[Murugan]

Originally Posted by wilful

With the needle hovering about the half way mark, isn't the distance to empty pretty high? Are you sure the guage is functioning properly?

Guess that's because of the high mileage during the highway run.

It's definitely working well.

[Murugan]

Is Ford EcoSport ‘Brake system malfunction Stop safely’ warning indication actually an indication of car battery ‘weakness’ and not an indication of brake system malfunction?

Our Ford EcoSport petrol automatic has started showing a ‘Brake system malfunction Stop safely’ warning indication momentarily on starting the car. It disappears on its own before the ‘OK’ button is pressed. Our car starts without any hesitation, runs efficiently, and all the electricals including music system, air-conditioner appear to work normally.

Is this warning an indication of brake system malfunction as the car says, or a car battery/ car remote key battery weakness as the Chennai Ford service engineers tell me?

On checking our team-bhp forum I find that other EcoSport users have had a similar warning indication and that it was only an indication of battery weakness and not brake system malfunction.

Our Ford EcoSport was delivered on 23.August.2013 and has done 25106 kilometres so far. On seeing the ‘Brake system malfunction Stop safely’ warning indication I took our car to ‘Chennai Ford’ from where our car was delivered and has been serviced regularly.

The first service engineer said that it is not a brake system malfunction but that the car remote key battery was weak, needs to be changed, and would cost Rs.1200. On asking how the car remote key battery weakness could cause the car to give a ‘Brake system malfunction Stop safely’ warning indication he said that the car would know via electromagnetic induction. He said he will send someone to change the car remote key battery.

The second service engineer who came also said that it was not a brake system malfunction, but contrary to the first service engineer said that it was an indication of car battery weakness and not car remote key battery weakness. He said the car is over 2 ½ years old, and this being the normal life time of the Ford EcoSport car battery it needs to be changed. The first service engineer agreed with the second although he had a few minutes earlier attributed a different cause (car remote key battery weakness) for the ‘Brake system malfunction Stop safely’ warning indication.

They said they will check if the car battery needs to be charged or changed and will send someone to do it immediately. When no one came after about 15 minutes I rechecked with the service engineers, they checked with the person who was supposed to check the battery, and he said, “The battery checking equipment is not available today at our service centre.”

The service engineers reiterated to me that it is not a brake system malfunction and that I could continue to drive our Ford EcoSport safely without any worry of brake or other system failure but there is a chance that the car might stop if the battery totally fails. He told me to bring our car on another day for a battery check and annual service which is due in the end of this April.

They also told me that three other Ford EcoSports had come to their service centre in the past with a similar ‘Brake system malfunction Stop safely’ warning indication issue and that the Ford company engineers had told them, the ‘Chennai Ford’ engineers, that it is an indication of car battery weakness and not a brake system malfunction.

We took the car to our regular battery dealer near home. He checked the battery’s first vent and said that the battery function is good. We didn’t open the other vents as that would have involved removing and refixing some parts covering the battery.

Our Ford EcoSport is going in for annual service and battery check-up today morning. The previous annual service was around the 18,000 kms (currently 25106 kms) mark on 30.April.2016.

If the battery is weak, why can’t the Ford EcoSport give an indication to that effect instead of something unrelated and scary?

Will post updates when available.


Before inserting the key


On first turn of the key


Few seconds after first turn of the key


On starting our Ford EcoSport


The ‘Brake system malfunction Stop safely’ warning indication


Momentary warning indication disappears spontaneously

[condor]

All,
what's the FE of the ES Petrol AT in city & highway ?

[wilful]

Originally Posted by condor

All,
what's the FE of the ES Petrol AT in city & highway ?

For me the FE hovers around 8 in the city (Cochin butchers FE of vehicles with its narrow lanes and the Metro work) and about 12.5 on the twisty, fairly crowded highways in Kerala. I daresay it will return better figures on good 4 lane highways.

[Murugan]

Originally Posted by Murugan

Is Ford EcoSport ‘Brake system malfunction Stop safely’ warning indication actually an indication of car battery ‘weakness’ and not an indication of brake system malfunction?

... (contents deleted in the interest of brevity)

Our Ford EcoSport is going in for annual service and battery check-up today morning. The previous annual service was around the 18,000 kms (currently 25106 kms) mark on 30.April.2015 (error in year in the original post corrected).

If the battery is weak, why can’t the Ford EcoSport give an indication to that effect instead of something unrelated and scary?

Will post updates when available.

Our car was returned after annual service with a suggestion that the existing battery could continue to be used or changed, with 30% discount on the new battery since the car is under 2 years extended warranty in addition to the standard warranty of 2 years.

The ‘Brake system malfunction Stop safely’ disappeared on its own after a couple of days and the service person said we could continue to drive it without any problem.

We continued to drive it without any problem, more than a thousand kilometers, and even made a round trip to Bengaluru without any problem till the 'Transmission malfunction Service now' indication (picture below) showed up suddenly one night.



I've detailed all that happened after that in a new post with the heading "Ford EcoSport 1.5L Petrol AT - TCM failure (Transmission Control Module of Automatic transmission/ dual clutch 6-speed automated gear box [Ford PowerShift DCT]) - replaced under Extended Warranty - 26,162 Kilometers on the Odometer - EcoSport AT less than 3 years old."

To avoid repetition, I've copied the link to that post below:

http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/techni...26-162-km.html

Will continue discussions on this aspect in that thread since it would be more practical.

Will continue to post other regular updates here.

[noelravin]

Just a note on our experience with Ford cars. Speaking of reliability and company commitment. You will see 20 year old Honda Citys and Accords, Qualis, Innovas, even Tata Indicas running and being operational because their manufacturers continue to supply parts and service them.

Our family has been first hand owners of a Ford Mondeo, Fusion, and Ikon cars. I can tell you from experience that the moment these cars stop selling Ford just shuts them down and does not supply parts. Try to maintain an ikon and see how much it costs. Every time the Mondeo went to the workshop it would be there covered with crow **** for 90-120 days. That Mondeo is now parked abandoned on a roadside in Velachery Chennai. See the number of ikons and Escorts just junked all over our cities - Its an eye opener with regard to that brand. This is not hearsay - we owned those cars.
__________________

[adeshgunjan]

Hey guys,

I was planning on upgrading my car recently. I drive a 2009 Ford Fiesta 1.6 Duratec LE which has served me very well. Looking at the traffic conditions of Mumbai, I wanted an automatic. Considering the budget, I shortlisted Vento and Ecosport. Even though the Vento has better driving and interiors, the Ecosport scored high on practicality (Mumbai roads are riddled with potholes) and seemed like a better package overall. But now reading the owner's reviews about the powershift and other issues, I am a little apprehensive about the car.

Although, I have spoken to a couple of owners within friends and they are pretty positive about the experience. A friend had a problem with the gearbox at 2000 kms. He had purchased the car in January 2016. There was shuddering between shifts and so he took the car to the service centre. Even after 2 drives the associates could not find any problem. It was only after he wrote an email to the company that his car was again taken the service centre. The gearbox was replaced free of cost as it was under warranty. But despite this experience, he still recommends the car strongly.

Now I was bent towards Ecosport as I had not heard good stuff about the VW after sales experience and the problems with the DSG gearbox. But now I am extremely confused. Please help me. :(

I test drove the car and found it good at handling and general dynamics. However, it did miss the pep and lacked the eagerness in the beginning. (I am too used to it in my Fiesta). But I could drive it only in city conditions. So I wanted to ask a couple of questions the the owners here:

1. How is the performance on the highway? What do I expect? We are planning to go on long highway trips with this car. (hence the worry factor about the gearbox failing in no man's land)
2. What about steep inclines and ghats? Even malls in Mumbai have those vertical parking lots with steep incline angles.
3. Am I getting too paranoid?

Thanks in advance.

Cheers
Adesh

[Murugan]

Originally Posted by adeshgunjan

1. How is the performance on the highway? What do I expect? We are planning to go on long highway trips with this car. (hence the worry factor about the gearbox failing in no man's land)

The high driving position, the enormous ground clearance and the automatic gear box make the EcoSport AT a breeze, a lazy and relaxed breeze actually, to drive on the highway. The sound deadening from the engine noise is inadequate and could be disturbing, and it is a bit of a slouch when it comes to top speed and acceleration beyond a certain speed.

It's no match though for our manual transmission Toyota Corolla Altis when it comes to acceleration, top speed, handling, boot space - http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/test-d...lla-altis.html

Originally Posted by adeshgunjan

2. What about steep inclines and ghats? Even malls in Mumbai have those vertical parking lots with steep incline angles.

We've driven it on the ghat roads of Yercaud and it was effortless during the climb. In downhill sections we used the sports mode with manual overrides for the purpose of benefiting from engine braking - apparently this is the recommended way to drive an automatic transmission; correct me if I am wrong.

Yercaud - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yercaud

Couldn't take it to Kodaikanal recently as on the day before our departure, and very luckily not mid-way or in Kodaikanal, the Transmission Control Module failed, as mentioned above and discussed in a separate thread - http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/techni...26-162-km.html

Hope that helps. Do let us know what car you purchased.

[manojas]

Originally Posted by Murugan

We've driven it on the ghat roads of Yercaud and it was effortless during the climb. In downhill sections we used the sports mode with manual overrides for the purpose of benefiting from engine braking - apparently this is the recommended way to drive an automatic transmission; correct me if I am wrong.

What is your experience with the sports mode while overtaking on a 2 lane highway? Is the downshift happening as expected without much delay?

[glikithvinayaka]

Originally Posted by skhattar

HI! Welcome.

Can you please give your views on the AT gearbox of the Ecosport - in terms of speed of gear shifts, smoothness , type - CVT, DSG etc.

Thanks

My driving impression is that the gear box is close if not equal to the DSG The shifts were super smooth and there are jerks sometimes, but it's Normal. It surges a little bit when you are coming to a stop.When you're in stop and go traffic, the car is switching between 1st gear and neutral. To prevent the car from stalling, the clutch is lifted from 1st when you apply the brake to stop. It does jerk slightly.

The engine is very smooth, the change in noise as the revs drop while shifting and the rpm counter were the only giveaways. The NVH levels from the engine are very low as mentioned in the thread previously, a couple of times I've gotten out of the car and the engine was still running(also because of the start stop button).

Also in the ghat roads of Dharmasthala and Kukke Subrahmanya it was effortless during the climb. In downhill sections it is recommended to use the sports mode with manual overrides for the purpose of benefiting from engine braking, but we were comfortable with the D mode.the use of manual override is recommended because the transmission likes to up shift to top gear very fast, which is easy to happen in downhills.

I quoted you in this thread so that if you have any doubts you can verify with a more experienced owner.

[Murugan]

Couple of days when trying to return from a relatives house, the car wouldn't start and the following warnings cropped up on the display.

Brake system malfunction

Engine malfunction

Called Ford 24 hours and they gave us the option of calling the regular service center or using their service for 1. Trying jump start and/ or 2. Towing the EcoSport to the service centre.

Called 'Chennai Ford' and they gave us the same options.

Next day a team came and attempted starting with a new battery but it did not work. Paid Rs.700 for the same.

Later a flatbed tow truck suggested by 'Chennai Ford' came and took the EcoSport to their Arumbakkam service centre. Paid Rs.2300.

After a day they diagnosed it as starter motor and battery failure and adviced replacement of both. When I pointed out that the battery was replaced just over a year ago by them, they said they will keep it in mind.

Finally the starter motor was replaced and the vehicle was returned to us in good running condition without any of the earlier warnings. Paid Rs.8700.

Totally spent 700 + 2300 + 8700 = Rs.11,700.

Question: Why does this 2013 Ford EcoSport give such unrelated, scary warnings?

[Murugan]

Got our EcoSport AT back from Chennai Ford today after almost a months stay at their Arumbakkam workshop.

Couple of days after the previous problem, the car did not move when the reverse gear was engaged, and so took it back to the work shop.

End of 1st week they said they could not diagnose the problem.

End of 2nd week they said rats have bitten some wires and they are changing them.

End of 3rd week they said they are changing some more parts as there were some short circuits due to the rat bite problem.

End of 4th week they said vehicle was being road tested extensively and everything looks good.

Today they delivered the EcoSport and gave a 18k discount on the bill on my repeated requests, and I paid a little over 61k for the repairs. Thanks to them for the discount (not sure if it is correct to name the Chennai Ford staff who helped).

They gave only a receipt for the amount paid, and said will provide a detailed itemized bill in a few days after getting it approved by Ford India.

On inspecting during delivery I found out that the boot was not opening and the gear knob rubber/ plastic had been damaged. They took the car back to the workshop and brought it back after about an hour after rectifying the boot opening.

They promised to replace in a few days the gear knob rubber/ plastic that had been damaged during the vehicle's stay in their workshop.

Hoping they keep their word on replacing the part that was damaged in their workshop.

[Murugan]

Chennai Ford finally, on reminding, gave an itemised bill for the rat bite caused damage repairs mentioned in the previous post.







Could someone update if they have faced similar problems due to rat bite?

[Deeps]

I hope you got the old parts which they took out - or supposedly took out.