[aquarian1502]

Originally Posted by Svetblr

Hello all, just joined Team BHP and am very pleased to be part of this great forum!

I booked an Ecoboost Titanium(O) Moondust Silver with Lathangi Ford Bangalore on 21 of July and was given an estimated time of delivery of 10 months. Even got a call last week confirming this. I didn't bother to chase them. And then I got another call 2 days back saying that my car is in transit and, "could you pls submit all documents?" etc. And now, (surprise surprise!) they seem to be in a hurry to deliver the car to me! (Month-end pressure??)

Guys, should I be worried? I plan to visit the dealership on Saturday - so any advice on what I should look out for / be careful about?

I have booked mine - 1.5 TD Titanium Seagrey on 13th july from Lathangi but still havent heard from them. Did you apply any kind of pressure on them that they are delivering so early ? Though I am not in that much of a rush, I emailed them last week but their response is elusive. They dont seem to know when I may get mine delivered.

[rajneeesh]

Originally Posted by sharninder

I don't understand why everyone is talking about price protection already. Has Ford given any indication of a price increase. If not, how would price protection come into the picture. They'll announce a price protection only whn they announce a price increase, no?

I am talking about price protection as the booking receipt says price applivcable at the time of delivery will be applicable. It will be a good proactive initiative from Ford if they declare that the initial customers who have booked the cars in the first 30 - 60 days will get price protection.

With the delivery time stretching like a rubber band and the rupee crashing against he dollar, it is but a justified concern.

[epranay]

Originally Posted by rajneeesh

Ther should be some regulations about interest on booking amounts and the number of bookings a company can take . ( this should not extend beyond 3 months)

This can only be enforced by regulator.

sorry for It is more to do with consumer rights and laws that are generally neglected/ ignored in our country.

[//M]

I booked a Mars Red EcoSport ecoboost Titanium (o) from Capital Ford, Bhubaneswar on 4th August 2013. Last week the dealer called up and asked if I am interested to pick up a Diamond White or a Moonlight Silver car of the same spec as the Mars Red color will be available sometime in November. I never thought I'll get a call to pick up the car so early. Thought a lot about the colors but finally decided to wait for the Mars Red as this color just blew me off the moment I saw it while booking the car. So another 2 months to go !!

[raz0r]

Hi Guys,

I wanted to know if the Ford Ecosport passed the [b]moose test./B]

For people who want to know what a moose test is, here is a video for reference :

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aZF8N9NItHI

I would really appreciate if someone posts the answer.

[anilkumar]

Price Protection is indeed a very valid point ford is planning to increase the price of Ecosport about 2-3% very soon is what the GM of Cauvery Ford.

[Thad E Ginathom]

Originally Posted by HillMan

EcoSport performance should be the ever best in August. It will be surprising if not. On the other hand Duster will take a huge hit from people waiting for Terrano launch.

I have not been following the Terrano story, but only caught sight of it in the newspaper a few days back. Whilst it seems to be a Duster in a different suit of clothes, those clothes seem, to me at least, the more attractive. And I may be picky, but the ridiculous name Duster really spoils it for me.

It is not going to compete for those who really want the hatch-sized SUV package, but for those who might tend towards the bigger vehicle but don't like the look of the Duster, yes, they may bite. Especially if it is available.

On the pricing front, I don't know what the purchase contract says, in India, when buying a new car, but I wonder how many are aware that, back in my mother country, the pricing is that ruling at date of delivery, not at date of order. Yes, the car companies want their cake as well as eating it. And they get it.

(This was true when I last looked, but that was well over a decade ago)

[HillMan]

Originally Posted by Thad E Ginathom

(This was true when I last looked, but that was well over a decade ago)

On pricing front they have not changed much. Some manufacturers provide price protection to initial buyers. Ford EcoSport also comes with the price on delivery clause. There is no announcement of change on prices so we don't know how that will be handled.

Then, this is partly also true because the local authorities fix registration charges based on current price of the vehicle.

For example Tata Aria base version costs 1007000. For the additional 7k it falls in a higher tax bracket, around 30k in additional taxes. The dealer was ready to give 20k discount plus exchange offers but can't reduce purchase price because that's the published cost of the car. This cost was in April.

[Svetblr]

Originally Posted by aquarian1502

I have booked mine - 1.5 TD Titanium Seagrey on 13th july from Lathangi but still havent heard from them. Did you apply any kind of pressure on them that they are delivering so early ? Though I am not in that much of a rush, I emailed them last week but their response is elusive. They dont seem to know when I may get mine delivered.

Absolutely no pressure. I did not even call them once. In fact I wouldn't have minded a delay of a few more months, since I was in no hurry. I asked them why I was being offered a car so early. The response was, you are lucky, since the variant i opted for matched with the allotment they are receiving. I confirmed the VIN no. and it shows the vehicle is Aug 13 manufactured. So, as they said, I guess I am lucky.

[ACM]

Originally Posted by HillMan

EcoSport performance should be the ever best in August. It will be surprising if not. On the other hand Duster will take a huge hit from people waiting for Terrano launch.

Actually Ford may not have done as well as it could with the EcoSport as the production would still be getting ramped up as well as due to the initial delay caused on account of the recall due to which they lost the start of the month.

Sep may give a clearer idea of the mid to long term figures. The Petrol vs Diesel figures too may be skewed for Aug due to the Diesel recall. Going ahead their focus seems to be on diesel variants. Many of the Aug deliveries like mine of AT Petrol were actually July Production units and they do not seem to be manufacturing any more since august for the short term.

Yep the Terrano will affect the Duster for now, but if the price is announced higher than the Duster (as is being anticipated) then don't see to much affect in the mid-long run. If the price is lower than the Duster though then Duster may be seriously affected though the exact pricing will determine if the combined sum will do any decent numbers.

[epranay]

Originally Posted by ACM

Sep may give a clearer idea of the mid to long term figures. The Petrol vs Diesel figures too may be skewed for Aug due to the Diesel recall. Going ahead their focus seems to be on diesel variants. Many of the Aug deliveries like mine of AT Petrol were actually July Production units and they do not seem to be manufacturing any more since august for the short term.

You are right.... We will have to wait for September figures to know production trend for August

[achyutaghosh]

Hi,

I am not trying to defame any brand or showroom, but it seems success has gone into their heads, and Ford dealers are stooping to new lows. Please find below verbatim complaint by a colleague of mine-

I have booked Ford Ecosport Diesel Titanium (o) on 27 June 2013 at 12:30PM from Delhi Ford, Sufdarjung, New Delhi. My receipt says "Delivery within 90 days". I also gave Rs. 50000 as booking amount. I get a call from Delhi Ford on 29th Aug that they will deliver the car within 10 days, so i should get my financial formalities done. the first thing i made a mistake was, that i sold my old car. I also got my loan approved. but they had not confirmed me with delivery date. I have been trying to reach 2 people fro Delhi Ford ever since - Mr. Sanjeev Dogra & Mr. Tajinder Pal Singh (the biggest crook of all), they have been ignoring my calls ever since. To prove my point, i did call them from different numbers and they would take the call. If i asked about my booking, they would give me answers u wont believe: 1. Dear Sir, we don't have any bookings under your name. I will call you back next morning with the details - Sadly i would never receive a call back. And no booking??? where is my money? i have the receipt for the proof. 2. After calling few times - Dear Sir, We are not delivering any Diesel Titanium cars. I will need to wait for another 1 month. - Really You are not launching any Titanium Diesel Cars??? Really ??? 3. Today, 02 Sep 13, i get another call from Mr. Harsh, who works under Mr. Tajinder Pal Singh - informing me that they are changing my Ecosport booking from Petrol version to Diesel and they will deliver my car in November - PLEASE STOP TORTURING ME! my original booking was Diesel version, how come they are changing to diesel????? how???? Dear Ford Authorities, i need your help! i have been tortured enough. i am not able to deal with these crooks anymore. The only thing left for me is to file case against Delhi Ford. this is not acceptable.

He has put this up in their facebook page too. Another colleague of mine who booked the Ecosport petrol auto from Harpreet Ford, Gurgaon, has been asked to deposit complete on road price of the car this week. Delivery has been "promised" at end of September. I have strongly advised her not to pay them the full amount but she is confused as she needs the car, and is afraid it would be allotted to someone else, given the limited production of petrol models.

[Raonick]

Friends,

We just created a new petition and we hope you can sign -- it's called: Deliver our Ecosport

This issue is very important to us, and together we can do something about it!

Read more about it and sign it here:
http://www.avaaz.org/en/petition/Del...sport/?emQKsfb

Campaigns like this always start small, but they grow when people like us get involved -- please take a second right now to help out by signing and passing it on.

Thank you

[ecosport]

A Ecosport AT mini-review:

Even a week after I got the car, it had only added a 100km to the ODO. That was because my car had come with MRFs and I wanted to get something better, but couldn't make up my mind. On Saturday, I drove to Madhus to swap the MRFs with GoodYear Assurance, which is the other OEM. Spending 12K on tyres just because of a lottery that had a 50:50 chance that went against me, made me feel sad. So 12K of the 17K I saved on insurance went away. There is a reason why I decided against the Primacy 3 ST and the Yoko ES501, which I actively considered. Both are soft tyres. In my Civic, I used to drop to crawling speeds while negotiating potholed roads because of its ground clearance. What I observed after I shifted to Ecosport was that I was dismissing the same roads at higher speeds. My worry was that soft tyres would eventually give up on bad roads. So it was better to stick to harder rubber. And well, it is an OEM brand, Ford would have done its homework.

Now that the car got rid of the Bata chappals, it was time to give the new shoes some wear. Until dusk I was pottering around the city and then a 45km run on Ashok Kheny's road. The impressions:

The engine is not the right match for either the chassis or the heft. It needs a few more horses to move the car. Sometimes it feels lethargic But then, lack of power is not the real fly in the ointment. It is the gearbox, which does not respond to kick-down. Even when I floor the throttle, it tries to remain in the same gear. It looses a precious few seconds in that fashion before realizing that it should drop a gear. By then, it would be too late. The overtaking I had planned seems like a year ago.

The story is the same in both D and S mode except that in the S mode it would hold on to the same gear until red-line. That is pretty useless, if you'd ask me. Seriously, who would revv to red-line in every gear, unless you have a nut loose? Now, the best thing about the S mode is the gear toggle. Well, it is not as fun as the paddles in my Civic, the paddles which I have almost never used because it has a responsive kick-down mode. While using the toggles, you can rest your left arm on the center armrest and hold the gear lever while only twitching the thumb when you change gears.

In the highway, all you have to do is keep the revvs above 3K. I was constantly around, but did not go beyond 4K rpm. It was fun, and the steering does it's job well, maneuvering around the trucks without any drama. The steering is light, but I have learnt that it is only a matter of getting used to. There is a a 1-2 cm slack in the middle position. I do not know whether it is a feature, but I think it might be a good thing on the highways.

Back, to city roads and D mode, all the frustration was back. The Ecosport AT is finally teaching me the virtue of patience. When I floor the throttle, the car speaks back: "What's the hurry"?

So if you drive the AT, this is the thumb rule:

- In traffic, light and heavy, strictly D mode.
- On the highway, strictly S mode plus gear toggles.
- On standard roads, try to stick to D, but when you are in a hurry to get to your destination, shift to S mode. Plus toggles, of course.

FE was hovering around 7-8kmpl in the City. After the highway run, it shot to 9.7. So highway FE should be 14-15 kmpl.

Other points:

OEM music system has better sound quality than the Civic, but I did not like the interface. It is difficult to browse the folders and the buttons are too hard. Good thing: It plays songs in my phone via A2DP, and I can skip tracks using the steering controls. if two devices can be paired, I am planning to add a cheap 7" tablet to the dash that would double up as navigator.

Seats are a tad small, but snug. Couldn't find a comfortable position for the head restraints. The light grey fabric would get soiled easily. I want to add leather seat covers, but not sure what to do with the side airbags. Actually, if you feel the sides of the seat, you can feel a rectangular box which looks like the airbag module. So if you leave that area open while stitching the covers, I think it will not interfere with the airbags.

The car sways wildly while going up and down on potholes. Not a nice feeling, but probably softer springs would have spoiled the handling.

[epranay]

Originally Posted by ecosport

A Ecosport AT mini-review:

Even a week after I got the car, it had only added a 100km to the ODO. That was because my car had come with MRFs and I wanted to get something better, but couldn't make up my mind. On Saturday, I drove to Madhus to swap the MRFs with GoodYear Assurance, which is the other OEM.

Hi Ecosport, First of all congrats on your new car.

may be I have missed your feedback related to tyre swap ( MRF to Goodyear). Do you feel any difference ?