[SDP]

Originally Posted by Vid6639

Incase of EcoSport and Quanto, there was really no other choice. The Ecosport has fairly big tyres and wheels which would not fit below the boot area since the length is lesser than 4m. There was no other choice but to have it on the hatch door. But that means side opening since the hatch will never lift with a heavy tyre stuck to it.

Incase of hatches the spare tyre barely fits and that too because a hatch tyre is smaller. Try fitting a 205/60-16 tyre into a small hatch spare tyre area and you will know what I mean.

Vid6639, I believe the question was about why the hatch-door opens on left instead of right.

[Vid6639]

Originally Posted by SDP

Vid6639, I believe the question was about why the hatch-door opens on left instead of right.

Then the answer is even simpler. lol.

Because EcoSport was designed for Brazil LHD market and they didn't want to spend on redesigning the hatch for RHD. You would need new parts and dies to make it as RHD.

Disadvantage of this in RHD country like India is that if you park and you want to open the hatch it faces traffic. You cannot put luggage unless you step onto the road and open the door fully

[apachelongbow]

Originally Posted by vasanthn21

A quick question.

What are the advantages/disadvantages of the hatch door opening being the opposite of the conventional design? I see this point being mentioned a few times, is this such a big issue?

No big deal Vasanthn, its simply that people need some or the other point to comment upon. Even if it opens to the left/right or top, its bound to take up similar space when open. Remember EcoSport is not a tall SUV, hence a top opening hatch will still hit the vehicle behind because the car is short.

Only inconvinience I forsee, when the hatch door opens to the left, and the car is parked with the kerb to the left, the person who loads/unloads the hatch will be exposed to the road and traffic, slightly unsafe in my view when compared to the hatch opening to the right.

[84.monsoon]

I had some apprehensions about going in for the Petrol version of the Ecosport with the Ecoboost engine, but my perceptions changed dramatically after a recent US trip.

I was lucky enough to get a brand new Ford Escape 4WD as the rental car from Avis, and took it out on Pacific Highway over the weekend. This car has an Ecoboost engine (from the badge at the back) - not sure if it is a 1.6 L Ecoboost or the 2.0 litre Ecoboost. The engine was so smooth, with enormous torque (easily better than some 6 cylinder petrol engines I had driven in the past and just as good a the 2.0 Liter Diesel in our Laura/Yeti). It was totally noiseless and gave 27 MPG on the highway (about 11.5 KMPL) and 23 MPG (about 10 KMPL) in the city. The automatic gearshift had a bit of a lag, especially when starting acceleration suddenly, but I do not think it was a dual clutch transmission - so this might not be a problem if we got the the Powershift transmission.

I know we are getting a smaller capacity Ecoboost, but then the Ecosport is substantially lighter than the Escape (about 1700 KG versus the Ecosport Petrol's estimated 1250 KG). SO I think I will still be able to get similar response from the Ecoboost powered Ecosport in India. The Escape had really premium interiors and this is going to be a problem with the Indian
Ecoboost. People pay about Rs. 17 Lakhs for the Escape in US< one of the cheapest Auto markets in the world and if we can get the Ecosport for half that, it would not be a bad deal at all!

Here are some pictures from my journey.

[vasanthn21]

Originally Posted by dheepak10

Hi Vasanth,

When the hatch door opens sideways compared to the traditional mechanism, for the ecosport, it roughly translates to 33% more space needed to open the boot completely.

Also, with the traditional method, a semi open boot would still provide you access to both corners of the boot, compared to the one side poor access in case of a partially open boot, that opens sideways.

Originally Posted by Vid6639

Incase of EcoSport and Quanto, there was really no other choice. The Ecosport has fairly big tyres and wheels which would not fit below the boot area since the length is lesser than 4m. There was no other choice but to have it on the hatch door. But that means side opening since the hatch will never lift with a heavy tyre stuck to it.

Incase of hatches the spare tyre barely fits and that too because a hatch tyre is smaller. Try fitting a 205/60-16 tyre into a small hatch spare tyre area and you will know what I mean.

Originally Posted by SDP

Vid6639, I believe the question was about why the hatch-door opens on left instead of right.

Thanks SDP, yes your understanding of my question is correct.
Dheepak, Vid, I guess I was not clear when I posed the question.

Originally Posted by Vid6639

Then the answer is even simpler. lol.

Because EcoSport was designed for Brazil LHD market and they didn't want to spend on redesigning the hatch for RHD. You would need new parts and dies to make it as RHD.

Disadvantage of this in RHD country like India is that if you park and you want to open the hatch it faces traffic. You cannot put luggage unless you step onto the road and open the door fully

Originally Posted by apachelongbow

No big deal Vasanthn, its simply that people need some or the other point to comment upon. Even if it opens to the left/right or top, its bound to take up similar space when open. Remember EcoSport is not a tall SUV, hence a top opening hatch will still hit the vehicle behind because the car is short.

Only inconvinience I forsee, when the hatch door opens to the left, and the car is parked with the kerb to the left, the person who loads/unloads the hatch will be exposed to the road and traffic, slightly unsafe in my view when compared to the hatch opening to the right.

Thanks Vid & Apache,
I understand the safety concern now, but I don't think it should be a factor for deciding whether or not you will buy the car! (as some people here have pointed it to be).

[apachelongbow]

Originally Posted by vasanthn21

Thanks Vid & Apache,
I understand the safety concern now, but I don't think it should be a factor for deciding whether or not you will buy the car! (as some people here have pointed it to be).

For me atleast its not a factor to weigh in on my buying decision. My Safari tailgate swings open similarly and I have faced no problems so far.
However in spite of the heavy build quality of the Safari the rear door has to be adjusted every six months or so, otherwise the tailgate starts rattling due to the heavy spare wheel.
Since EcoSport is far lighter in built I forsee some amount of tailgate rattle due to the big spare wheel.

[vasanthn21]

Originally Posted by apachelongbow

For me atleast its not a factor to weigh in on my buying decision. My Safari tailgate swings open similarly and I have faced no problems so far.
However in spite of the heavy build quality of the Safari the rear door has to be adjusted every six months or so, otherwise the tailgate starts rattling due to the heavy spare wheel.
Since EcoSport is far lighter in built I forsee some amount of tailgate rattle due to the big spare wheel.

so, this definitely can be a problem, but again not big enough to change buying decision.

What can be done to avoid/mitigate the rattling of tailgate (in addition to adjusting it every 6 months)? I would assume that the rattling of tailgate would be primarily due to the hinges used, is my assumption right. Can these hinges be changed to "heavier" duty ones?

[sumeshmani]

I thought EcoSport was being launched in China today. I am not able to find such news item.
Does anyone else have updates on this?

[vnabhi]

@84.monsoon---thanks for your update.

I watched an episode on DW TV (German TV) two days ago that tested the Ford Focus with the 3-cylinder EcoBoost engine. They had many good things to say about it.

The episode can be watched with the following url. Please scroll down to the bottom of the screens on the right pane to find the correct one.

http://www.dw.de/drive-it-the-motor-...-16618219-9798

[drpudhi]

Found this video by powerdrift on the ecosport from Delhi.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wjr6NN3kf9k

One thing i noticed at 0:54 in the video is the rear parcel tray. It appears to be integrated into the back of the rear seats and can be pulled/retracted into seat back, if needed, saving space. Seems pretty nifty. Can any one who saw the ecosport in person confirm this.

[EFF-EIGHT-BEE]

I know its a dumb question but how the spare wheel will be protected from being stolen? I mean its a matter of unscrewing 3-4 bolts no? Or is there any locking mechanism? I have seen many SUV(eg safari) using small locks on spare wheels to prevent theft, will that kind of arrangement be uses on Ecosport?

[apachelongbow]

Originally Posted by vasanthn21

so, this definitely can be a problem, but again not big enough to change buying decision.

What can be done to avoid/mitigate the rattling of tailgate (in addition to adjusting it every 6 months)? I would assume that the rattling of tailgate would be primarily due to the hinges used, is my assumption right. Can these hinges be changed to "heavier" duty ones?

In case of the Safari, the final solution was to move it under the chassis, thats why the Storme has no spare wheel on the door. EcoSport has very limited space under the chassis, both in terms of length and in terms of ground clearance. But you can relax, its not such a big deal, especially with periodic resetting of the door, there are no rattles to speak of.

[agambhandari]

Attaching a few Shots from the EcoSport Brochure(that is what it is called on the website, but I suppose it is just the flyer given at the displays). This just seems like the English version of the Chinese pre-launch brochures!




I believe the features highlighted in the brochure will certainly be available at the time of launch. So I guess the features such as:
-The Parking sensors(which were thought to be absent because of none on the display cars.
-The 6 airbags

will be there afterall.

P.S. For the first time ever, I have seen a manufacturer logo on the Airbags!

Originally Posted by EFF-EIGHT-BEE

I know its a dumb question but how the spare wheel will be protected from being stolen? I mean its a matter of unscrewing 3-4 bolts no? Or is there any locking mechanism? I have seen many SUV(eg safari) using small locks on spare wheels to prevent theft, will that kind of arrangement be uses on Ecosport?

Yes there is a locking mechanism, one of the bolts requires a key to be unscrewed.

[Sanjunair5]

Originally Posted by drpudhi

One thing i noticed at 0:54 in the video is the rear parcel tray. It appears to be integrated into the back of the rear seats and can be pulled/retracted into seat back, if needed, saving space. Seems pretty nifty. Can any one who saw the ecosport in person confirm this.

I had this feature in my LR Freelander (previous generation) and it indeed is neat. It also helps to keep anything in your boot hidden from 'roving' eyes. In my current Murano it comes as an optional accessory. The 2013 RAV 4 does it one step better. The whole parcel tray can be removed and stored under the boot floor.

[noopster]

Originally Posted by Vid6639

Because EcoSport was designed for Brazil LHD market and they didn't want to spend on redesigning the hatch for RHD. You would need new parts and dies to make it as RHD.

Interesting. I never knew EcoSport wasn't a made-for-India vehicle (like the Figo).

Disadvantage of this in RHD country like India is that if you park and you want to open the hatch it faces traffic. You cannot put luggage unless you step onto the road and open the door fully

While this is definitely inconvenient it doesn' seem like a dealbreaker. You should NOT be opening the hatch/loading & unloading on a trafficky road anyway!