Team-BHP - Ford EcoSport : Official Review

Quote:

Originally Posted by roy_libran (Post 3167602)

My choices are either the 1.5L AT Ecosport or the Polo GT TSI.

The 1.5l Ecosport AT will be a dud when pitched beside the GT. If power and fun behind the wheel in your priority, close your eyes and buy the GT. Personally; I find the quality of the drive superior in the VW. It hits you immediately. It was an almost back to back drive and the difference was felt from the word go. In fact; a non driver who accompanied us and who was sitting at the back of the GT said the same thing. We're not talking about power at all.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Moto-Mariner (Post 3167256)

Hey cmon guys, its the same pic that of Gandhidham, Gujarat..Lets not get into rumor frenzy..Toppling at 60/ 70 would require some divine powers...please: post only if you have credible info. Its OT but relevant..my colleague who visited a renault showroom today at Thane, Mumbai was surprised to see the continuous feed of pics of ecosport toppling shown on TV screens..He politely asked the show-room guys to show some thing of duster, the vehicle which he is interested in..

I wonder is this is a smear campaign :eek: Picture this - Get an experienced stunt driver to go to a random showroom, ask for a test drive, drive rashly and topple the car. Choose the variant with side curtain airbags to make sure there are no major injuries to the driver. Have people ready to snap pictures of the toppled car. Start a campaign on social media sites to unleash a lot of negative publicity. Use the same pictures to report similar incidents happened at other places across the country to "friends"......

Quote:

Originally Posted by 84.monsoon (Post 3167754)

I wonder is this is a smear campaign-------------Use the same pictures to report similar incidents happened at other places across the country to "friends"......

While it seems a bit extreme, but i did have a friend of mine - a Renault India employee - gleefully sharing the pics of the toppled EcoSport. I can already visualize Renault salesmen saying with disdain " Don't compare us to Ecosport. It topples"

Hi all,

Booked the my Ecosport ,Titanium Diesel-Silver on 1st of july at MPL Ford,Mount Road.When i went to the showroom previous week when it was launched there was heavy rush for test drives.The Sales Executive Told me that let the initial rush die down in the weekend and if I can come next week during the weekdays He can
arrange the test drive for both the variants.Went on Monday for the testdrive around 11a.m. Was able to do the testdrives of both Petrol Ecoboost and Diesel Titanium within a space of 45 Minutes.

They were getting signature on indemnity form for damage during the test drive.The delivery period for Diesel is written on the white board as 120 months and for petrol 180 days.

Quote:

Originally Posted by himanshuchadha (Post 3167705)

I am not going to recommend Polo to anyone till they increase the ground clearance and overall height quite a bit. The bottom hits speed breakers way too often and there have been some first hand complaints of oil chamber breakage in both Polo and Vento (my cousin brother broke his vento's oil chamber twice in about a year.) due to these ground bumps.

In addition, try reversing the car, I could never understand the existence of the terrible rear view mirror that Polo has. The size and incline of the rear windshield creates too many blind spots while reversing.

Though, my biggest complaint with the Polo with regards to the engine and turbo (diesel) is sorted if you buy the GT, I do hold a strong opinion on these regular issues which forced me into selling it for a car I hadn't even test driven!

Quote:

Originally Posted by sandeepmohan (Post 3167723)

Totally agree guys. The Polo GT TSI has a superlative drive (in this segment), AT being a MUST-HAVE in my requirements list. In fact the drive feel of the GT TSI took to my heart. But, I am equally aware of two critical limitations of the Polo. First the Ground Clearance and then the Chamber susceptibility. I have had two friends who have damaged their chambers while driving within NCR limits and had to face huge repair bills. Moreover, I am the kind of guy, who doesn't like to baby sit the vehicle that I drive. This is where the Ecosport is so much more appealing, knowing fully well that the 1.5L Petrol is a dud, and all the more so, when stacked against the 1.2 TSI. However, the Ecosport AT comes with an amazing level of kit and safety features, that the Polo cannot come close to matching.
I need to do a lot of introspection (meditation et al.) before I figure out which one I am going to end up prioritizing. In the meanwhile lapping up the TSI thread, and hoping for some real good Ecosport AT ownership thread. :)

I booked the Diamond white 1.5D titanium today at Metro Ford much against my wish. I wanted to book the polo gt but wife had made up her mind on the ecosport. The only reason I am against the ecosport is the waiting period.Its a good car, but not really worth waiting 9 months. The sales person said 9 months was the max time and hopefully I will get my car sooner. Also, took a TD of the diesel and liked the refinement and drivability of the car in peak traffic. Better than the ecoboost, which by the way has an even more ridiculous waiting period of 1 year. There were many who walked away on hearing the waiting period. I seriously don't understand what Ford was doing all this time.

Ford has this Urban Drive going on for couple of months.
They have been having a lead time of an year before they finally launch the vehicle.

I'm wondering what were they doing all the while, should they not have at least a 100 vehicles ready per dealer in big cities.

Even if they had 20 Ecoboost, 20 1.5 Petrol and 60 Diesel, it would have been reasonable. It is accepted that we are skewed towards Diesel, but Ecosport being such a success everywhere, Ford was not confident of selling even 20 Ecoboost ? Ridiculous.

Looking like they want to catch in the hype and allow dealers to make money, only few t-bhpians are going to protest for insurance, accessories etc. Others will relent being tempted by early delivery.

Sets a very wrong precedent and could backfire badly, but then who cares !!

Cheers
MKP

I took a TD of the Ecosport TDCi last Saturday and even though the TD was a short one, I was impressed by the car.

Pros:

1. Good Diesel engine with excellent in-city drive-ability. The diesel drives like a petrol for the most part and NVH levels are best in class.
2. Good view from the drivers seat
3. Loads of Gizmos
4. The car "feels" safe. Maybe it's the "thud" from the doors or just the feel of the car, but it feels safer than sitting in, say, the Duster.

Cons:

1. Interior plastics
2. Rear seat shoulder room

The car is a 4-seater, no doubt about that. We're a small family, my wife, our 2 year old and I. Our parents don't live with us and rarely sit in my car. The Ecosport is designed for exactly this kind of a family and the moniker of the Urban SUV suits it very much.

I've driven naturally aspirated petrols all my life and have only taken short drives on diesel vehicles belonging to my friends. What I loved about the TDCi was how petrol-like it was to drive. The turbo boost also was pretty linear and I felt right at home driving the car. I don't usually drive fast and so even if the diesel loses steam at 120 or so, that'll work for me since I drive just under 100 most of the time.

The brakes were excellent and the gadgetry impressive. The cabin felt a little claustrophobic when I sat in the backseat but I think that's because I NEVER sit on the backseat. My Palio also has black interiors and I like those.

The plastics quality was BAD and worse than my 7 year old Palio, but they do seem built to last. Hopefully the Ecosport won't be a rattle machine in a couple of years.

Harpreet Ford in Gurgaon isn't giving me a clear picture as to how many bookings have been done and according to them they haven't even started deliveries yet so can't say how many cars will be allocated per month. They seem nice to deal with so far but I haven't gone into too many details about the price list yet.

There were days when we lined up at Honda Showroom for Amaze and the SA at the showrooms were throwing their attitude on us. I liked the car and requested for a proforma invoice for corporate finance through L & T(on a sunday) and was told that they are busy and I should speak to them on Monday. On Monday I was told that they cannot dispatch the proforma invoice and I will have to visit the showroom again for the same; I dumped them.

Now after the launch of Ecosport, it seems that Honda dealers are back in their senses and have somehow discovered that i was interested in Amaze and have visted their showroom and requested for a proforma invoice, and have given me 3 calls in last 2 days.

Such joys are shortlived and I am sure the way Ford Dealers are throwing their weight on us will soon get over and the usual "paani ka gilas" followed by "tea / Coffee and cold drinks" will be offered, Just one more good launch in the segment between 6 - 10 Lac category is required.

They do not understand that its a zero sum game, today if they have a upper hand, tomorrow some other manufacturer can have ! - thus attitude and ego has no space in service / sales sector.

I do not plan to visit any Ford Dealer soon though I am on a lookout for a new car in the same price bracket.

Sheer Madness and the Ford Management is sleeping after disclosing the price of their machine without even keeping an eye on their dealers.

Quote:

Originally Posted by i74js (Post 3167869)

I do not plan to visit any Ford Dealer soon though I am on a lookout for a new car in the same price bracket.

Sheer Madness and the Ford Management is sleeping after disclosing the price of their machine without even keeping an eye on their dealers.

Exactly my thoughts, I was initially thinking of replacement for our Ikon, but the way these people are acting, I've dropped the idea.

Looks like the Ford Management have gone on long needed vacation after the launch :Shockked: or they are celebrating the success already. Either way they need to understand that the hard work starts now !!

Kudos to Maruti, for keeping the interest on Swift /Dzire alive in spite of labour problems galore and managing to finally ramp up production and reduce waiting period from 6 months to few weeks now. I was never a fan of Maruti but some things needs to be appreciated.

Cheers
MKP

Quote:

Originally Posted by sandeepmohan (Post 3167723)

Can you please elaborate? What do you mean by 'its a dud'? What is 'power and fun'? I thought 1.5ltr and 100+ bhp is enough for a family of four. GT has lots of issues when compared to PowerShift. Not sure about VWs warranty's though. Seriously, I want to know why you have put this car down...I have booked an AT!