[sknair]

I had my first detailed test drive of 3.2 Litre TIT 4x4 AT today with Elite Ford Bangalore
Route: A mix of very narrow and congested roads to some bit of open road and to a construction site (loose mud and practically no-road)
Occupants: 2 in the front and 2 in the middle row.
First impression:
• Pulls off cleanly on drive mode with very good power (much more than my 2.4 litre/174 bhp petrol outlander)
• Easy to find a comfortable driving position with the electric adjustable seat
• Seated fairly high, if the seat is already raised high then the head would be almost touching the roof (adjusted the seat down and then there was enough head room)
• Open the panoramic sunroof the interiors transform dramatically especially in for the middle row occupants
• One thing I noticed right away, the hand rest (central arm rest) is a bit back and is not very useful and does not slide to the front like I had in the outlander
• Very easy to move around in the congested and narrow back roads which is crumbled and riddled with pot holes, endy just flew over it (no noticeable bouncing around in the middle row as well) when others were crawling (huge plus point)
• Then I got some open stretch and I could feel a bit of lag when trying to press hard around 100 kmph, very little though, put it in sport mode and then not much issue at all (though I would have loved to drive it on highway for some good amount of time to check out high speed stability (if anyone has done it already, please let us know)..
• Tried a bit of loose dirt road to a construction site by putting in mud/grass mode, seemed ok
• Tried rock mode (got confused with switching in and out of low range by putting in neutral), will get used to it…
• Bottom line: entire family came out thumbs up and wait for the delivery.

I must say the elite ford dealership is pretty easy to deal with, Hemant (SA) was very prompt to get us started off the TD and explained features very well. Also I had some good interactions with Harish (GM), very happy with the booking process, follow ups, TD etc.

[Vasuki]

Originally Posted by LionX

May be you can have a look at the New BMW X1, but its a front wheel drive vehicle now.

I believe New X1 comes in 4 versions & only the base version is FWD, rest are AWD.

[Mnjdnght]

Originally Posted by sknair

...
First impression:
• Pulls off cleanly on drive mode with very good power (much more than my 2.4 litre/174 bhp petrol outlander)

Would it be possible for you to put down a more detailed comparison between Outlander and Endeavour? I am also considering a move on from my Outlander and have been looking at options. I am still in the homework stage and your inputs would be of great help. Thanks in advance.

[deetjohn]

Had taken the Fiesta for service yesterday and saw these two brutes together.

The Endeavour has come a long way!

[atthewheel]

Originally Posted by Chethan B G

As the second row seats are on rails, did you try sliding them backwards and then fold the seats?

Hi Chethan_B_G,

Yes, I did. There's a 5 - 6 inch gap between the second row and the flat surface at the back whatever you do. There goes my fantasy of moving the camp mattress into the car :-)

I have now seen the 3.2 twice and the 2.2 once, the last couple of time with family. Here are my takeaways, do not I haven't test-driven this yet (not allowed in NCR, apparently):

1. Headroom - a bit tight when you are seated at the highest position, but not a deal breaker either. I am constantly reminded of the third row in Santa Fe which is far worse, as anyone without a seat belt is likely crash his cranium into the hard glass in case the car goes over a bump at speed.

2. Fit and finish - Maybe I am being picky but I continue to find the materials used inside underwhelming. Barring the leather on the 3.2 dashboard, most of the plastic seems of the regular (as against premium) quality. Overall, I was expecting more plushness from the seats, softer/nicer material for other interior surfaces.

3. Delivery time - Delivery time is apparently 3 months for the 3.2 Titanium (may even be longer).

I did book one today, so let's see what happens, both with the courts as well as with Ford! Fingers crossed.

[Chethan B G]

Originally Posted by atthewheel

Hi Chethan_B_G,

Yes, I did. There's a 5 - 6 inch gap between the second row and the flat surface at the back whatever you do. There goes my fantasy of moving the camp mattress into the car :-)

Maybe, if the length of the second row railings can be extended, this problem can be solved.

Should be a simple DIY. Not to worry.

[LionX]

Originally Posted by niruvrs9669

Coming back impressed after yet another 3.2L Titanium test drive from Elite Ford, Marathahalli, B'lore. Took it over some unpaved stretches to get a feel of the suspension, I'm sold on it big time.

Do they have 2.2 AT/MT available for test drive ?

[SuperFlyBoy]

Just took a last-minute TD of the 3.2 4x4 AT Titanium.

Did only a highway+very short city driving test, and here are my viewpoints:

Previous comments regarding view of the road in front of the vehicle are still valid, as one cannot see immediately downward. However, one can judge the distance of the front of the car quite well, so that it is not an issue - also as some recent posts have stated. Seat height and whether one's head touches the roof does not matter, as the view is still limited, but drivable.

As far as size was concerned, I thought it was a bit smaller than the Safari - but now could see that it was comparably as large, but obviously not as tall!

I did find that first gear and the accelerator were *very* sensitive - as the car lurches forward with power - very weird.

The rear wheels spun out for half a second when I pressed down too quickly when the other wheels probably engaged and then things were fine.

When I was on the highway at speed and wanted to pass, I pressed the accelerator, but the car took at least 1 second to 1.5 seconds to respond - and then kicked in - but without much power. It was a gradual push forward.

I feel the Fortuner 4x4 AT's response to throttle inputs much more satisfying and immediate - in comparison to the Endeavour's. (That was some time ago - will be taking another TD in the coming days, I hope...)

Steering was excellent.

Driver and passenger front seat travel were good - seats went back very far to allow my long legs to extend further than the Safari Dicor.

Suspension was better than the 4x4 AT Fortuner - the only one I have driven - but still not as good as the Safari's. The new Endeavour transmitted shocks to the occupants, but somewhat dampened.

Overall, I have to say that the Endeavour was like a young woman - suddenly doing this and that - instead of a sedate response to what the driver wanted to do.

I didn't get much time with it, so couldn't really give any further feedback (didn't want to go off-road anywhere in the dark/twilight+there was another person wishing to go on a TD), but the black center console was really difficult to figure out while driving - especially in the evening where there was not much sun to illuminate it.

In any case, I would suggest Ford redesign this - as I think one Australian 4x4 YouTube reviewer had the same comment...

PS: On my way out to Nerul today near Vashi, I passed a white Safari Dicor with a BHP sticker on the rear bumper...was that anyone here?

[The Dude]

Has anyone taken delivery of their new gen Endeavour yet? Waiting to see a review or two. Or three

[Chethan B G]

I have one basic query.


I am not able to understand head-room for the driver being insufficient. To have good overall visibility, EYE position is important - Is it not? Once we have our EYES at a particular height, every one of us will have the same head-room (approximately) irrespective of our height / length of our legs or torso.

Is it that we are not adjusting the seat height properly or am I missing something here?

[SuperFlyBoy]

Originally Posted by Chethan B G

I have one basic query.


I am not able to understand head-room for the driver being insufficient. To have good overall visibility, EYE position is important - Is it not? Once we have our EYES at a particular height, every one of us will have the same head-room (approximately) irrespective of our height / length of our legs or torso.

Is it that we are not adjusting the seat height properly or am I missing something here?

Yes, exactly.

Eye position is what we effectively are talking about - in order to maximize a safe driving stance.

As the eye-to-top of head average distance should be approximately the same for all humans, then the exact position of the driver's head to the roof is important (highest position is best for this in an SUV, with some clearance for the roof inside), in order to determine the angle of view from the driver to the ground ahead, while passing over the highest obstruction in front - normally the hood/bonnet of the vehicle.

Add to my previous post (#818):
I just reassessed the legroom of the Endeavour as compared to the Dicor - it's almost the same, maybe a slight bit more room for the Endy...

[n.devdath]

I took an extended test drive of the 3.2 AT Titanium a few days ago and was impressed on all counts except 4:

1. Mid-range performance. The truck just doesn't like to be driven in pedal to metal mode.

2. Fuel efficiency: 7.5kmpl in Bangalore city and prolly 9kmpl at decent speeds on the highway....slightly low for my liking. Not a deal breaker though.

3. The last row: Lacks space, ergonomics, visibility and ease of access.

4. Body roll: Chetak (My Pajero Sport) has much better high speed stability and lesser body roll compared to the softly sprung Endy.

On all the other parameters, the Endy wins hands down. If I wanted to buy a 33lac INR SUV today, I'd pick up the Endy over a new Pajero Sport.

Does anyone else have the same opinion?

[vigneshkumar31]

Thanks for the inputs SuperFlyboy from the perspective of Safari.Good data for those like myself looking for an upgrade to the next price bracket from Safari.

IMHO The Endy did get the styling spot on, without losing its truck cred and still making to look contemporary. The new T Fort and the Pajero Sport seem to have given into the curves game. Of course, it lies in the eyes of the beholder.

[SuperFlyBoy]

Originally Posted by n.devdath

I took an extended test drive of the 3.2 AT Titanium a few days ago and was impressed on all counts except 4:

1. Mid-range performance. The truck just doesn't like to be driven in pedal to metal mode.

2. Fuel efficiency: 7.5kmpl in Bangalore city and prolly 9kmpl at decent speeds on the highway....slightly low for my liking. Not a deal breaker though.

3. The last row: Lacks space, ergonomics, visibility and ease of access.

4. Body roll: Chetak (My Pajero Sport) has much better high speed stability and lesser body roll compared to the softly sprung Endy.

On all the other parameters, the Endy wins hands down. If I wanted to buy a 33lac INR SUV today, I'd pick up the Endy over a new Pajero Sport.

Does anyone else have the same opinion?

I think I agree on all points.

Although fuel efficiency for me is normally thrown out the window when I consider such a vehicle, it is definitely in the range of my Dicor 3.0 - where I push it significantly.

Therefore, I found the spinup of the engine very disconcerting when the gearbox downshifted for highway overtaking - we were effectively going nowhere for about 1-2 seconds! (I forgot to transfer over my dashcam for referencing and possibly posting here - I will do this on the next TD of the Endy I take)

I guess one can compare this to the older (57 years) GM Tahoe or Yukons - but even now they have improved their gear shift maps to a point way better than this one. It's like a very old technology - fail to understand why.

Maybe the manual option would be better - as many here in this thread have pointed out.

However, I definitely require an automatic tranny - which is why I was considering the new Endy.

Last row will be only used as an exception - which is why a Grand Cherokee would be fine with me - but Jeep is charging *way* too much for it!

If I have the time, I will go TD the Pajero Sport for reference, but I hardly have the time nowadays...

Looks like current Fortuner is the only option - but safety in one is a *serious* issue.

[SumitB]

Waiting Periods:
2.2 (4x2) Trend MT - Launch in April
2.2 (4x4) Trend MT - Launch in April
2.2 (4x2) Trend AT - 30 Days
3.2 (4x4) Trend AT - 30 Days
2.2 (4x2) Titanium AT - 40 Days
3.2 (4x4) Titanium AT - 60 Days

This as per an official communication to dealers from Ford. There are other details which if I post here, will put someone in trouble. All dealers have been asked to display the above information in the reception and waiting lounges at all dealerships.