Team-BHP - Ford EcoSport : Official Review

It is appalling to see that so many of us are waiting with bated breath to get our Ford Ecosports cars after paying atleast Rs. 50 000 in advance and Ford India is busy exporting cars when they cannot even meet the local demand.

Just imagine the kind of interest the dealers are reaping from our deposits and we have no clue when we will get the cars.

Also seemingly not a single 1.5 L Petrol model is to be seen anywhere and assuming that demand for this engine is low is difficult as many Ford dealers have stopped taking bookings for this engine option citing heavy demand.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Red Color Lover (Post 3226865)

Also seemingly not a single 1.5 L Petrol model is to be seen anywhere and assuming that demand for this engine is low is difficult as many Ford dealers have stopped taking bookings for this engine option citing heavy demand.

While I don't know about the BOM & manufacturing cost, I strongly suspect that the 1.5P Ambiente is the EcoSport's loss leader, so its unsurprising that dealers have probably been asked to discourage these bookings by quoting large waiting periods.

I prebooked EcoSport Titanium Diesel Sea grey with Lathangi and got it delivered on 3rd week of August.

If there's anything made me smile with regards to Gadgets this year; that's surely EcoSport. It's an amazingly built gizmo rich car, there are so many nifty features you not heard about. I am enjoying the company of this lovely vehicle !

A long drive to Mysore and Bandipur is due this coming weekend !

This vehicle is nothing like I've seen it before..

It may take some time, pls don't miss it !

I randomly logged into my Ford Sync account today, and the page seems to tell me there is a software update available. See this screenshot:

Ford EcoSport : Official Review-ford-sync-update.jpg

But it doesn't seem to work because

If I click on the green 'download update' button, I get a blank pop-up
'Download Status Checker' and 'What's in this update' point to Ford Sync homepage
Print Instructions link points to the online user guide which doesn't have instructions on updating software.

Can any of you log in and check?

Quote:

Originally Posted by saisrujan (Post 3227265)

But it doesn't seem to work because
[*]If I click on the green 'download update' button, I get a blank pop-up

Keep the ctrl key pressed while clicking the download button. It overrides the popup blocker. Or try a different browser.

I don't have Sync, but usually the way it is updated is by loading the downloaded into a pen drive and plug it into the USB slot. The player will launch the update module.

If download is an exe application, run it on the PC first. It will have the instructions.

Quote:

Originally Posted by saisrujan (Post 3227265)

But it doesn't seem to work because

If I click on the green 'download update' button, I get a blank pop-up
'Download Status Checker' and 'What's in this update' point to Ford Sync homepage
Print Instructions link points to the online user guide which doesn't have instructions on updating software.

Can any of you log in and check?

It doesn't work for me too - both on IE 10 and Firefox 23. I experience the same issue as you - blank popup and invalid links.

Quote:

Originally Posted by niks_devil666 (Post 3225814)

Are MRF's bad that come with EcoSport?

Quote:

Originally Posted by ecosport (Post 3225819)

Probably not. But MRF zv2k is hard and is supposed to last long. So it is my guess that grip would be bad. On the contrary, goodyear assurance armorgrip (not fuelmax) has received some good reviews. Moreover, i do not trust most indian brands.

Found this in the official review:

Quote:

The OEM rubber was another spoilsport. Our test car was shod with MRF ZV2K tyres that were absolutely useless. They'd start wailing at the slightest opportunity. With such a brilliant chassis, the MRFs greatly let us down. Thankfully, there are 2 tyre options available in the EcoSport. We had a run on the Goodyear Assurance tyres and found them to offer far better grip. Between the two, our pick would definitely be the GoodYears.

http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/offici...ml#post3131317

Quote:

Originally Posted by ecosport (Post 3227428)

Found this in the official review:

http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/offici...ml#post3131317

So should one opt to get them changed right after delivery , what is the approx cost of any other after market tyres? Any suggestions for which tyres shud be put?

Quote:

Originally Posted by niks_devil666 (Post 3227449)

So should one opt to get them changed right after delivery , what is the approx cost of any other after market tyres? Any suggestions for which tyres shud be put?

It is worth noting that both zv2k and assurance are car tyres, not SUV tyres. In contrast, Duster comes with MRF wanderer. If you read my review, I have detailed the reasons why I chose Assurance over Primacy And Yoko DBs. Most of the car tyres that offer good grip are soft ones, and i was afraid that I might end up with sidewall cuts since having a tall vehicle I would tend to go over bad roads like an SUV.

These are the price offers I got: Primacy ST - 9400/-, Yoko ES550 - 8000/-, Assurance - 5800/-

You can get a better price for your OEM tyres if you can drive straight from the showroom to the tyre dealer.

Quote:

Originally Posted by arunphilip (Post 3226121)

I booked my Kinetic Blue EcoBoost Titanium (O) on 20th June at Lathangi, and received delivery on 29th August, despite having been told it'll take 4-6 months. So, given the 2 day difference between our bookings, I'm surprised we were not part of the same order book (especially since we both pre-booked, we will have missed the rush after the prices were revealed on 26th).

My experience has made me feel that Ford (company or its dealers) are managing expectations by quoting higher waiting periods. Have you received any call from Ford Chennai? I received one in the 2nd week of August, confirming my colour & variant, and I notice from various receipts that my car was built in the following week. So, the lead time from the confirmation call to delivery is 2-3 weeks.

If you like the EcoSport, stay true to it, its worth it. With the delivery uncertainty, I too was severely tempted to go for another car that will be delivered quickly. Thankfully, before I succumbed to temptation, my car was delivered, and I'm grateful I didn't jump ship.

Arun,
I have also booked Kinetic blue 1.5 P on 26th June with Elite, but haven't received any visibility so far. Probably I should have gone with Metro. Btw how's the color looking? We didn't see any ES with that color and are still apprehensive if we chose the right one. Some pics from you might help in some reassurance.. :-)

Thanks,
Nitin

Quote:

Originally Posted by nitinr30 (Post 3227471)

IMO , the color is nice but will look better if you make the roof black and put black alloys with red stripes instead of silver ones.

Also a carbon fiber vinyl sheet on the hood will make it look better.

Quote:

Originally Posted by nitinr30 (Post 3227471)

Here's one pic of me taking delivery. I'll have more available once I've put up my ownership review, which is currently being drafted.

The colour is nice, even though its blue, its not a solid blue but has a metallic undercoat which makes it shimmer nicely in the light (and also makes it change colour when the viewing angle changes).

I especially like the combination of blue paint, black cladding and sliver alloys, I find they make a good contrast. From the front, that contrast can be obtained by going in for the front bumper cladding, but at roughly Rs. 5000 for a sliver painted bit, I did not find it VFM and did not opt for it.

What is nice is that the unpainted cladding on all 4 sides breaks the monotony of the colour. I've found that the equivalent Figo in this colour looks too 'vivid' simply because the bumpers, mirrors and everything except the glasshouse is coloured blue. That doesn't happen here.

The other advantage is that the colour is a head-turner, given its rarity. In that respect, please allow me to hate you for taking away my novelty status :-P.

Quote:

Originally Posted by arunphilip (Post 3222883)

On 29th August, I took delivery of my EcoSport from Lathangi Ford, Bangalore. Mine is the EcoBoost Titanium (O) in Kinetic Blue. [/list]

I pre booked Kinetic Blue EcoBoost Titanium O from Hyderabad on 13th June (on the day official booking started) and my booking number is 1. Today I came to know that my car may take another 2 months, else I need to compromise on color. From now 2 months is too much. Now I am just thinking should I move to BMW 1 series.

Quote:

Originally Posted by anumod (Post 3227692)

I booked the ecoboost titanium(o) on the same day, but my choice of color was white. I took delivery on July 10. Why is it taking so long for you? Which dealer did you go with?