[SDP]

Are there DRLs as part of the headlight assembly?
Its not very clear from the pictures.

Edit: Another question.
With the spare mounted on the door, the luggage area should have corresponding amount of empty space. But from the pictures, it looks like the luggage area in boot is level with the bumper's upper edge. Can anyone shade some light?

[jessie007]

Originally Posted by SDP

Are there DRLs as part of the headlight assembly?
Its not very clear from the pictures.

Edit: Another question.
With the spare mounted on the door, the luggage area should have corresponding amount of empty space. But from the pictures, it looks like the luggage area in boot is level with the bumper's upper edge. Can anyone shade some light?

There seems to be a loop to lift the boot floor which must be housing the tools and jack. I believe there should be additional space where one can keep stuff. If you note carefully in the picture below there is a crease/line running in across the middle of the boot floor and I believe it can be flipped open to access the storage.

[SDP]

jessie007, thanks for the pic and the explanation!

I just hope that they have utilized that invisible space wisely and not wasted it only for the tool-kit.

[man_and_machine]

The Trend with these "made in India, made for India" cars seems to be very disappointing. The EcoSport may be for the "emerging economies". The quality let down seems to be evident. However, interiors quality is not a big deciding factor, as long as you are in the "SUV" trend. Check the Duster - Vento/Verna for that.
Swift/Dzire surely will have to be worried if the pricing of the EcoSport is aggressive (right). I think that EcoSport might have found a middle path between Hatchbacks and Sedans. They might have created a market, that might eat up the Sedans on the upper and Hatchs on the lower side.
Space is a premium, but for say 7 - 10 price range is space a big USP? Then the Sunny/Scala should have been selling more than the Verna/Vento. However, for new looks and capabilities, Ford seems to have practical yet fresh product. Ford, read this straight, "price it well, let economies of scale prevail over greed".

[dnahelix]

Thanks Parrys. This is a very helpful preview and thread has developed quite well - a market researcher's dream if Ford were looking here. The interior quality looks sub-optimal to me. I had a budget of Rs.13 lakhs or thereabouts on a good car that offered good ground clearance, automatic transmission, decent interiors and a high stance. But if the product is positioned after force fitting dimensions to sub-4 meter to achieve cramped interiors, footwell compromised compared to new Ford Fiesta, cargo door opening the wrong way, poor upholstery to achieve large volumes at a lower price point - I would end buying a "compromise" product. I have started looking at other cars now as waiting for four more months for a product loaded with ambiguity doesn't seem worth. I will revisit Volkswagen Vento automatic.

[sajusherief]

Originally Posted by zulfi hansi

Frankly, I am not that disappointed. We here at Tbhp have an eagle eye to details not so much is the general car buyer, not that he will not see these negatives on quality, but there are millions in India who will ignore it if the product is priced right. Good example is M&M products. So it all boils down to pricing now. Now that we have seen the interior quality it is more believable the price will start around 5-6 lakhs. The shocker will be if it does not!

I completely agree with this, it's all dependent on the price. Though the interiors look cheap, an aggressive pricing will override all it's drawbacks !

[swiftnfurious]

Originally Posted by akshay4587

...Also what's the fuss for Microsoft sync??,Fiat's have the blue and me since 4 years now.

It's all about marketing dude!! Ask the common man and they will say "Fiat uses Maruti's DDiS engines"!

Originally Posted by highwaypatrol

...One of my friend is confused is confused between Bolero ZLX and Ford Ecosport. What will you guys to suggest him as he is mainly looking for mean looks, mainly on roader and at times off roading too, reliability, and a bit of confort too....

Except for the off-roading & looks factors, Ecosport should be the choice. Unless Bolero has a 4x4, thats a level field again.

Originally Posted by SDP

Are there DRLs as part of the headlight assembly?
Its not very clear from the pictures...

Guess @Parrys mentioned there are NO DRLs.

Edit:: He didn't mention anything about DRL, but I guess it is absent. Ford would have flaunted that if they had is my assumption

Originally Posted by SDP

....With the spare mounted on the door, the luggage area should have corresponding amount of empty space. But from the pictures, it looks like the luggage area in boot is level with the bumper's upper edge. Can anyone shade some light?

Originally Posted by jessie007

There seems to be a loop to lift the boot floor which must be housing the tools and jack. I believe there should be additional space where one can keep stuff....
Attachment 1062833

I am more worried about the tall transmission hump making the 5th person un-comfortable!! I have NO idea why did this happen inspite of Ecosport having 200+ mm GC! I guess this also answers the reason why luggage space is level with the bumper's upper edge!

[shankar.balan]

Originally Posted by eq24

Oh my God, you guys haven't even seen the car in flesh and already pitch forks out and flames at the ready.

I was just speaking to a friend who had gone to see it at Saket and he says it is a thing of beauty and something to look at. Even interiors according to him were quite nice. The car at Saket was the same vehicle seen testing around Gurgaon. According to him the price is also going to be a compelling factor for people to buy an Ecosport.

Just remember how everyone moaned at the Dusters interiors and still it turned out to be a game changer for Renault. Give it a break people, see the car yourself and then decide.

Some sense at last!
It is so easy to indulge in armchair criticism is it not?
I think this vehicle will sell very well indeed.
Anyone planning on a higher end hatch or a small or mid size sedan will definitely consider it!

Originally Posted by DocRock

http://Youtu.be/p1Ly_iVNcZE

a huge guy and i was really comfortable at the front.Cant be compared with laura and jetta or other premium suv's but the space is not claustrophobic.Seats are supportive and is made of leather.The rear bench i was not quite sure of it, 3 adults behind will be a bit of squeeze but legroom is good.Check the pics with seat all the way backwards.Under thigh support is not that good and the recline angle is just normal.
It has a good boot space though.You can get a lot of things back there.

asy to park and maneuver around tight spots.I thing this could be it.Interiors were better that a 7-8 lakh sedan, more spacious than a small sedan,and looks stunning.This being my first ever write up, please excuse me if i have made any mistake,hope my decisions and opinions are right.

Some more pics from my side.

Thank you very much.
Just a few queries. If you have sat in, driven or spent some time in a Yeti, how does the EcoSport compare?
Specifically in terms of seating position, under-thigh support in front and back, boot space and driving position?
What is the safety kit list like?
Also, what is the visibility like from the drivers seat?
Did you like the quality and feel of the leather seats in it?
I am asking because I am also quite big built and wide as well.
If the petrol version of this is priced well and comes with all the goodies I am seeking, we might want to consider it for my folks...
Interestingly from Parrys pictures the boot opens towards the left. Good for lefties then?
Most other SUV's I ve owned or used which had these sideways opening tail gates have typically opened towards the right side. Perhaps this is because this vehicle was primarily designed for the left hand drive markets?

Note from the Team-BHP Support: Please use the EDIT or MULTI-QUOTE buttons instead of typing one post after another on the same thread.

[coolboy007]

I specifically went to Citywalk, Saket to see the Ecosport and the car had hordes of people around it, infact it took me quite some time to make my way towards the driver seat and the people were quite happy and impressed with the car. As per my take, i am considering this car to replace dad's 7 year old Scorpio as he wants a small suv which is easy to maneuver in traffic.

As for others talking about the poor plastics or so, i feel that the pros of this car far outweigh the cons. I have never owned a Ford in my life but i respect manufacturers who make pure driving gems. I didnt find the plastic quality that low to just strike out the car from my buying list. I have read people here expecting this car to be priced along the lines of Quanto - this car is much more technologically superior to it with better interiors and deserves much better than being priced along side Quanto for heaven's sake.

Loved the top notch paint quality, the solid heavy doors, the back seat had sufficient leg room and the recline angle was awesome, up front the seating position gave a brilliant commanding view and this is a looker from all angles. I wasnt expecting my Vento like interiors here, it might be in the same price range but it offers much more over it especially for people like my father who love driving cars with good GC and go anywhere attitude. Going by Ford's reputation, this should be a good handler with a brilliant steering and a hoot to drive in the city going by its compact dimensions.

In short, am going for this car, didnt like the Duster and its build quality and even it doesnt offer spectacular interiors. Wait for the launch begins.

[arnabchak]

The quality of interiors looks sub standard.

Case is below:

1) The rear seat tack falling off.

2) The dashboard plastics.

3) The engine bay looke extremely cluttered.

4) The taping in the engine looks downright ugly.

Exterior looks fantastic. 9/10
Interior Looks drab. 5/10

[damager21]

I think we are being too critical about the interiors. Lets not forget that Ford is planning to launch this car at a price point which will appeal to everyone and in the process has
compromised a bit on the interiors.

I still believe interiors are not that bad, the quality of grey, silver and piano black center console, window buttons, chrome around gear lever, gives it a nice look. Though I think the grey color is overwhelming. Possibly a dual tone interior like Vista which has black and beige would have possibly looked better.

Also, I don't know how lack of engine cover or taping of wires impacts anyone's choice.

Exteriors look good and interiors are average. Now if the ride quality is good, I think we have a winner at a starting price of 6-6.5 lacs.

[parsh]

A few observations:
1. Makes pretty good impression externally overall, visually only based upon the pics, will have to see in person. But looks macho compared to Duster which is the direct competition in this case.
2. Just too much of a Chrome'd grille at the front with so many box slits of chrome. A plane one would have looked much better IMO.
3. The rear door windshield waistline seems too high for rear visibility. But maybe they couldn't do much with the huge tyre sticking out there and the rest of the design. But the rear design seems too much pulled up.
4. Interiors don't look too inspiring especially compared with Duster.
5. Seems to match with Duster's headroom and legroom for rear ditto. Couldn't they have bettered it atleast for a good competition while retaining good boot space having known the competition already? Add to that the middle hump which is going to discomfort the 3rd passenger.

Hope it is priced right not to go the New Fiesta way.

I have no interest in either Duster or EcoSport but these are just some thoughts come to me as I look at the pics.

[Sheel]

Originally Posted by shankar.balan

Some sense at last!
It is so easy to indulge in armchair criticism* is it not?
I think this vehicle will sell very well indeed.
Anyone planning on a higher end hatch or a small or mid size sedan will definitely consider it!

(at its best)*

A post on page 2 has also decided (albeit by seeing the pictures) that it has blind spots. And also that it is claustrophobic and leg room is insufficient (without actually seeing whether the seats are pushed back) and also measured the backrest angle.

Hilarious and totally out of sync. And whoever you are, thanks for making my day.

[Maky]

I must say I'm quit surprised at the amount of criticism. I'll reserve mine till I get to actually sit in one and most importantly, Drive one. Oh and...
*Awaits Team-BHP Review* ; )

[W.A.G.7]

* The car will be good,
* The engine(s) will be good,
* The drive-ability will be good,
* All the variants will be good,
* It will be a driver's delight,
...
but
...
* Ford will kill it by bad pricing. I may be wrong also, but I have this feeling, that they will get the pricing all wrong.

We'll have to actually go and see the car, before coming to any conclusion. Also, we'll wait for the detailed official review of the car. All in all,it looks much more better than the sketches and pre-production models displayed at the Auto expo. For some reason, the front end, looks very similar to the VW Vento/Polo.