Team-BHP - Boosted: Ford EcoSport EcoBoost (Kinetic Blue)
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Took delivery of my pre face lifted Ecoboost Ecosport some weeks back. Face lifted ecoboost isn't any different from my car apart a few improvements and more kit. Clocked 1700Kms until today which I feel are plenty for me to judge this car. This review isn't going to be very comprehensive since as you know, tbhp has a very detailed official review. Aim here is to come up with a short crisp review which will help any buyer in this segment especially if looking at the Ecoboost.
Boosted: Ford EcoSport EcoBoost (Kinetic Blue)-final6-1.jpg
No good:

*Thick A pillars are a pain at an intersection, especially in Noida
*Poor lighting by the headlight. Fogs are alright, nothing special.
*Ride is a little stiff.
*Light and hyundai'sh steering. Heck, even they are improving.
*Rear doors close with a clunk.
* Some plastics are quite cheap and not properly put together. Ford needs to improve QC.
* Ecoboost has lag and poor drivability.
* No folding mirrors is very disappointing, even the Figo has them now. Y u do dis Phord? Wat sins did I make?
*No engine temp gauge.
* Should've had TCS or ESP in the manual variant as well.
* Hill hold would have been nice in the Ecoboost.
* Partially leather wrapped wheel.
* A four seater only.
* The horn pad is quite unintuitive, as are the steering mounted buttons.
* Sub 4M does look a little odd from some angles.
*Would have loved if doors had an individual control over the lock.
* Doesn’t drive like a ford :(.
* Panel gaps.
* No rear bumper.
* Starts stop button thing is stupid.

So good:
* Good looking!
* Easy to park thanks to the length. City friendly size.
* Ecoboost: fuel efficient, low emissions and a fun engine.
* Lots of kit, more than I wanted.
* Good high speed stability.
*Solid build.
* Sync and the stereo is amazing.
* Powerful A/C.
* Cheap spares of Ford.
* Interiors though have rough edges, are a nice place to be in.
* Safety.
*Decent handling.
*Comfortable seating.
* VFM, to me atleast.

Background:
Cars I’ve driven extensively are:
>City 2012 Ivtec
>Scorpio 4wd Mhawk
>Toyota Innova 2.5D

But my daily drive was:
Boosted: Ford EcoSport EcoBoost (Kinetic Blue)-img20151023wa0018.jpg

My “dhanno”, a 2002 WagonR F10D which was showing her age for quite a while. It isn't a car that aged gracefully after 13 or so years and almost 70,000 kms clocked. I wouldn't exactly blame the car, my mom isn't a very "careful" driver and this is the car on which she learned to drive. Didn't want to buy a car right now since I’m planning to go abroad for further studies but the final nail on the coffin was nailed when its estimated service and repair bill to get it into bearable condition ( ineffective AC,poor brakes,no heater for winters and a few more niggles) was over 45k! That’s cheap Maruti service for you. Over the last 13 years I’ve never trusted them and have never been satisfied where ever it was serviced( Delhi and Banglore, Gurgaon and Noida). I never liked the wagonR as a car but loved my “dhano”. It had some really stupid ergonomic flaws and some design goofs but still, I don’t know why I loved her but I just did. Wanted to keep her to be honest but the parking here would be worth way more than what she was worth (45K to be precise). Add the estimated costs of making her drivable and it was a no brainier that we will have to let her go.
Boosted: Ford EcoSport EcoBoost (Kinetic Blue)-img20151023wa0016.jpg
Those dents were already there before I got it.

Priorities:

>Safety kit
>Good build quality
>A fun car to drive
>Decent ground clearance(185+)
> Aesthetics
> Good amount of room at the front
> comfortable for tall drivers.
> decent head room at the back
> Should have some character and soul.
>Lots of blue.
A lot of these points automatically knock most cars from land of the rising sun and Korean cars(Scross and Creta are the exceptions).

Cars considered:
We didn't have a budget as such but more than 15L(on road Delhi) is a lot for a second car so that was set as the limit. There was a lot of window shopping across different segments and price brackets, used cars were also considered but only two.

Initially I decided that 6.5L should be enough to get me a decent car to replace the WagonR. New cars which were considered at this price point were:

Polo 3 pot Comfortline: yes its a three pot( shouldn't have said that now lol) but its quite good value at 6.2L. Has all the kit I could've asked for( rear wiper, defogger, electric windows and mirrors) with solid build and premium fit and finish. The car reeked of quality and the safety was an added bonus. It also rode pretty well, was quite stable at speeds and had decent brakes. Space at the back was pretty much non existent but not a bother at that point of time. The three pot( or let us call it 1.2) was quite.. unexciting to say the least.
The diesel wasn't considered because at that price, I had a better option.

FIAT Punto Evo/ Avventura Emotion 90HP: I must admit by now that I'm a total sucker for Italian cars. Lancia, Alfa, De Tomaso, Ferrari etc are my favourites. Italian cars have that soul, flair and "pizzaas". Also they usually are quite pretty. Very pretty in this case. I was always attracted to the Punto because of its looks. It was later when I drove a 90HP that I became a complete fan ( a typical FIAT fan albeit without a FIAT lol).
The Punto is one of those cars which just pulls your hearts strings. I didn't drive an Evo but just drove an Avvy since dad preferred it over the Evo. Yeah, he loves SUV's unlike me. I didn't mind though because the Avventura drove pretty well, rode beautifully and overall felt like a tank.
The steering, the chassis and the brakes were spot on. She took corners pretty well and was a joy to drive. It wasn't slow and it was a little hard for me to believe the numbers on paper. Far from the quickest thing on road though but this wasn't a serious drawback. It was also one of the two cars which my dad liked( he isn't a petrol head by any means). The car was also pretty spacious at the front and surprisingly average at the back. And most importantly, it felt Italian! Absolutely loved this car. So why am I not penning an Avventura review? Well, in the end we decided that we should get a car that's an upgrade over the City. That upgrade part also included rear leg room and that's where the Fiat was out. Sad this :(.


Mahindra Quanto: Just kidding :D.

Used Linea Tjet: Basically everything the Punto did but now with some steroid which is also known as a turbocharger. Turbo petrols are quite rare in India despite being around since the 80s or so. This is quit sad since turbo adds a lot of drama to a cars performance and makes the car feel faster than what it is. Petrol ensures that I don't upshift at 4.5k with a lot of clatter.
The Tjet was a hoot to drive. The acceleration reminded me of the Cruze, which feels something like barely moving for a few seconds then suddenly BOOOST, loads of it. The 200+ nm of torque and mouth watering 114 ps makes the Linea from the slowest car to the fastest! This coupled with very bite-ey brakes and no nonsense hydraulic steering meant that I was in nirvana. It was also quite pretty, I liked the interior and was quite practical as well(maybe). Modern cars are getting too " electric" and driving something a little old school was refreshing. The problem was,where do I find one? In a span of over a month I was only able to find 4-5 Lineas and I checked out three of them. First two were cheap(3L cheap) but had lots of dings. One of them appeared to have been vandalised but was quite fit mechanically or at least seemed to be so. Other one was crap if I'm honest. Its been like 6-7 months since I checked those two cars out and the crappy one is STILL up for sale( yeah I still OLX Tjet :D)!
Then I came across a Bhpian's Tjet. "Mint candishan" is a very frequently used term on OLX for cars which are well, not in mint condition. This though,was. The thing is, Tjet owners don't really want to part with their cars. First of all, they mostly are petrol heads so there's nothing which is a significant upgrade unless you jump into beemer territory. Second, why would you be keen to change cars if your car is a petrol Fiat(=poor resale)?
But anyway,this car was like I said perfect and I got this " this is the one " feeling. Alas, space was also pretty bad in the Linea and the sloping roof meant that it was worse for taller people at the back than it was in a Punto. What's more, we have never bought a used car and hence my family was a little anxious to pick a used car. I was able to convince them for this particular Tjet despite its price, which was almost same as a comfortline Polo( more than its market value in short). Like I mentioned, rear room is the main reason why she was knocked out along with other Fiat's.

Used Fiesta 1.6S: found only one car worth checking out, was owned by a bhpian as well who was a NRI now or something like that. The car was with his cousin. For some strange reason, he always made excuses when I called him to ask if I can have a look now. That car was on tbhp classifieds for almost a year and no wonder(just checked, its still up!).

Now we decided that if we want a car which is an upgrade when compared to the city then we have to spend a little more. Here are the cars:

Vento TDI 1.5 Highline( pre facelift): This was a very serious contender not only to the Ecosport but also to the City back in 2012. I always felt I made a huge mistake by not going for ze german over Japanese. This time we almost bought the Vento, dad liked its premium feel and comfort, I loved the engine but mom didn't like it one bit. It was too noisy according to her and she prefers the Polo over it. They were offering a huge discount on it which meant it was a little cheaper than a petrol ecoboost! The Vento wasn't exactly a drivers car and I don't know why, it feels softer and slower than the 1.6 and nowhere as fun. I would hapily take a Vento over new City or any other diesel car in in its segment except the Fiesta.

Hyundai Creta: I didn't like the way Creta looked from behind and haven't liked previous hyundai's as well. Still,checked it out and yes,it is a better car than ecosport if you're ready to pay 3-4 lacs more for the six airbags diesel. I certainly wasn't. They didn't have a petrol for TD and I knew I'm not going to go for the diesel because of its pricing so no Creta TD. I have driven a petrol elentra and that car wasn't very sure footed at higher speeds but Creta seems to have better reviews. Drove a friends Creta(1.4) later and I didn't have any regrets.

Maruti Scross 1.3 : I quite liked the Scross. It drove better than a diesel ecosport(less clearance and height helped) and had nicer interiors as well. I didn't took it as a crossover but more like a premium hatchback. Like a Golf equivalent you know? Hot hatches over sedan or SUV any day for me. It also had HID's and auto dimming mirrors which really do help night driving. And that ride quality was also quite plush coupled with sure footed stability meant that the Scross was hard to resist.
Where it disappointed was build quality and safety. The official review says its a solid car and no doubt its among the better built Japanese cars but compared to the Europeans, its still wasn't "solid", to me at least. I was boasting about its safety to my family before we TD it. After the TD, first thing my mom said was that it didn't feel solid at all. I too was surprised, it was on par with the Elite in the " thud department". Lack of six airbags meant that Scross was also knocked out of the list. Poor headroom at the back( why did Maruti jack rear seats up?) was also another big contributing factor.

Duster AWD: My family was a big fan of the Duster, I certainly wasn't right from the day it was launched. Based on an old Clio and made by a budget Romanian brand else where in the world only to be rebadged here and sold at a premium. The Duster is mechanically a solid car, just not worth it at this price unless Renault does something about that Logan interior. AWD though made me interested.It was a decently capable car off road and didn't have the awful dynamics of a body on ladder car. I certainly didn't need AWD but it sure would be fun to tackle the muddy stuff if my car was capable enough. The Duster also was a decent car to drive. Not a hot hatch but handled pretty well and also had a decent steering. Stability was impressive and ride was " Rolls Royce". It had a lot of things against it though. Legroom at the back was almost non existent and interiors felt cheap. Crash tests results were poor and the ergonomics were Mahindra. Rejected without a second thought.

Ford Fiesta TDCI: the TD car was the first face lifted car I saw in real life, that's how rare( or flop as some would say) this car was. Didn't matter to me though. The facelift made the Fiesta from one of the ugliest cars in its segment to one of the best looking. It really did look special even in white. This is one of those rare cars where I got instantly comfortable( usually it takes me at least five minutes to find the perfect driving position). It was very easy to drive thanks to its near lag free engine and somehow it felt more eager and quicker than a diesel Ecosport in a straight line al together. In the bends though, it kills the Ecosport or any other sedan in its segment( even the Linea). Steering was perfect, the best EPS I've come across. Cornering was close to flat and all that underlying stiffness in ride did make sense. It was a fun car to drive without a doubt. Decent brakes as well( somehow better than an Ecosport). I liked the interiors as well and the seats were super comfy.They also had a discount of a lac on the price, making it a lot cheaper than an Ecosport for a lot more kit( and length?). What worked against it was its rear legroom. Same story as a tjet this. I was worried about its ground clearance which was less than 160 if my memory serves me right. I scrapped its nose a little during the TD on a road where my City never scraped even at higher speeds. I didn't consider the Ecosport at that time. Actually, I never considered the Ecosport at all untill I ran out of options.

XUV 5OO W4: now we are entering the prestigious " reaall ESSUV mahn" segment. Again, I wasn't very excited to TD one since like I said before I'm not very fond of these UV's and their size. Still, my "essuvee" lover dad wanted to me to check it out and so I did. The face lifted cheetah looks a lot better. Previous one was trying too hard, had fussy styling and at some places felt quite tacky. Speaking of tacky, the interiors though had an interesting design felt quite cheap and Chinese some how but far from unbearable. Ignore these issues and the XUV is a solid car for the money. My cousin was one of the first " lucky" people to get an XUV in Gurgaon when it first came out. I was quite impressed and shocked how does it offer so much at so less? The ride was a lot better than a Scorpio, the car rode flat on highway and had a very punchy engine. Brakes were quite bad but they were recalled later. It was also very spacious and a good car to sit inside and be driven around. Later though we all realised why it was so cheap. Let me sum it up by saying that it wasn't the most reliable thing in the world.
Still, I was expecting the facelift to iron out all issues and W4 should be even more reliable. The facelift also had much better and classier interiors and now I can stop calling it tacky. It was rejected ultimately because interacting with Mahindra felt quite 'sarkari' and the niggles remained as another cousin picked up a W8 who had a list of things to fix during the first service. XUV's crash tests were not very impressive either if you dive deep into the AU results. Also the W4 didn't have six airbags.

Safari Strome A car which my brother loves. I too like the Safari, it has some character and unique aura around it. No tata dealer had a TD here and dad wasn't agreeing to buy a Tata. A sense of deja vu prevailed when we went to a local tata dealer who declined for a TD citing absence of a car. While leaving the showroom, I spotted a TD strome parked near the showroom. Tata was also the reason why we didn't consider a Tjet way back in 2012. No TD means I don't know if I made a mistake or not but damn the Strome is overpriced! Anyway this car would've been rejected since I don't think it will do well in a crash test.

Toyota Innova G: Don't want an Innova again and that too at 15L. Tried my best to convince everyone in my family to not buy one( previous one was a company car). I didn't want one because it was slow,boring,noisy, bare bones, hideously over priced,tinny,unsafe(why isn't toyota sharing the crash tests?), has a Mick Jagger gear box and is dull. I don't mind being driven around one but will definitely not like to drive one. Yeah its reliable but buying a car solely for its reliability is like wedding a women because she cooks well.

There were a few more cars that we did consider but I'm too lazy to write about them and these were the most relevant IMO.

Test driving the Ford Ecosport:

Ecosport wasn't a car that I was considering. In fact it was the last car we TD out of all the options. I wasn't very fond of the SUV wannabe segment. Like I said before, a hot hatch (Fiesta) is much better than a jacked up hatch or mini SUV( Ecosport) and even a sedan. My opinion changed along with the condition of roads here. The roads here are awful now. Managed to scrape an Innova a few times! Now if you want high GC and car like dynamics, you will have to go the C-SUV way( Linea and Punto are exceptions though). Coming back to the Ecosport, I first saw it at the Expo as a concept and I wasn't impressed. My cousin went crazy after seeing it( same cousin who bought an XUV recently) but I thought it was trying too hard.
Fast forward to 2013 and I spot an Ecosport for the first time in mars red. I really liked it and couldn't believe its launch price. I wondered if we should have waited for it but then the JDM fan in me said " nah man, Fords are unreliable and expensive to maintain. Also it lacks Vtec. Never buy an american car. City will SMOKE this "

I have driven a diesel Ecosport before but never have even sat in an Ecoboost. Initially the idea was to get a diesel but NGT ban and our low running( 2012 City has clocked 20k) meant that we would be better off with a diesel. That did make me go :D because that meant I could go for an Ecoboost but I wasn't sure. It was a turbo petrol, something that I've been craving for but its one of the next gen engines. All petrol engines will eventually go in this direction and then finally get extinct which is sad. But if you look it from a different perspective, maybe Ford wants to ensure that Fun On Road Daily exists in future? Maybe Ecoboost is actually more fun than say an equivalent 1.6 NA. I didn't know but the hype suggested so.
All these awards and praise sure did raise my expectations. I never had much interest in the Ecosport but Ecoboost did excite me. 1L 3 pot making 125Ps of power and that top gear episode where Hammond and Jeremy praise this engine in a Fiesta. Lots of expectations in my mind then. The Ecoboost should make the Ecosport a fun car to drive( sorry to say that but the diesel was pretty...dull"). Surely I was excited about the Ecoboost but still not convinced that I go for it over the conventional TIVCT. It has a lot of tech( more likely to be unreliable),unbalanced cylinders and a premium over the 1.5. It's also a turbo petrol and not a lot of mechanics in India get turbo petrols. Imported engine means that parts would be more expensive than the locally built 1.5. What's more, 1.5 should have more refinement and better drivability. But I later got to know that the Titanium O is available only in the Ecoboost so I don't have any choice. I could've went for a DCT and my dad also preferred the AT but I didn't want an AT at all even if its a DCT.

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I call up the dealer from whom we were buying the Fiesta and he says they don't have any petrol cars for TD. Call up Harpreet Ford and they quickly send a car to my residence. It was a mars red Ecoboost with 33k on its odometer. The first thing I realised when I got into the car was that this is an abused car, no doubt. Few bits of interior falling off and the engine didn't feel healthy at all. Before taking it for a spin I made sure that everyone in my family will fit( 6'5 me,6'2 dad and brother along with my mom, sorry for bragging :P). We did, not bad at all this. It was more comfortable than the City. So I set off and redline first three gears on a long straight. And was not impressed. Not even close. The car felt lethargic to say the least and the boost I was expecting wasn't there. So much for eco friendly engines.It drove like this after I floored it nearly all the time:
>Lots of lag ,almost stalling
> get into the turbo zone and barely moving.
There was no pull and it was far from a brisk car. The 90ps diesel felt a lot quicker. Further,the boot was rattling like an old swift. This coupled with an incredibly stiff suspension( a lot stiffer than the diesel I drove) meant that going over pot holes made a ghar ghar ghar dug dug dig sound. Not what I call a good first impression.
I wondered why am I after this car after all? Driving this would anyway mean that I'm a part of the Compact SUV club. Basically its a club where people who couldn't afford a Fortuner meet. At least that's what I thought of all CSUV owners. Couldn't have been more mistaken( to some extend lol).
I get back home and search for reviews on Ecoboost. Every single one of them was unlike my TD. I ask owners personally about their cars and again, their experience is in contrast to mine.
Special thanks to Arunphilip, if not for his review and advice, I wouldn't have went for the Ecosport.

After my quick online search, I reach to a conclusion that the TD car has a leaky turbo or something else which is making it so slow. I thought I should cut the car some slack, 33k is a lot for a TD car.
But then I had to take the risk of buying a car that I've kind of not driven. What if the world is lying and its a bummer? Illuminanti is trying to trap me into buying a crap car? I didn't know.
Drank a mountain dew, watched a few Salman Khan movies and decided to risk it all. After all, greater risk= more gain right?
By this time I knew that I'm not buying a car just for me. I am buying a car for everyone in the family. Translated, not a fun car to drive. Unless the ecoboost delivers.

Boosted: Ford EcoSport EcoBoost (Kinetic Blue)-ecoboost.jpg

Dealership Experience:( Harpreet Dilshad Garden)

We booked the car on some date I can't remember but we got the car a couple of weeks after we booked it. The car was in stock, in fact it was a couple of months old as per its VIN. The delay was because the sales girl was pretty uninformed about RTO rules and formalities.
I did feel sometimes that they are trying to delay delivery on purpose but maybe I'm being a paranoid detective.
The dealership experience depends a lot on your sales guy. When we were looking at the Fiesta, the sales guy from the same dealership was very honest and straight forward. This sales girl though always had many stories to share when ever she goofed up. The buying experience isn't what I'd call good.

Boosted: Ford EcoSport EcoBoost (Kinetic Blue)-img_20150915_140316.jpg
During PDI.

After a painful wait, its D-day and we head to the dealer at around 3PM after confirming that the car is ready. I spot the car in an instant and first thing that came to my mind was " why the hell is it so dirty?" The sales girl told me that they have a lot of deliveries today and this might take a while. And it did take a while. We left the place by 6Pm or so. The car was still dirty in a few placed and had muddy boot prints inside which was not cool. I couldn't wait more so we left anyway.
Biggest set back by far: no free key chain :(.

Boosted: Ford EcoSport EcoBoost (Kinetic Blue)-img_20150925_192440.jpg

First picture clicked when she reached home. She is chilling with the City and familiarizing herself. My bad for potato quality.


No wait, actually the biggest set back was that the car didn't have any water in its wiper washer reservoir, something I realised when I was trying to understand how the wipers work. Reached home and took a bottle of RO water and filled it up a little. Came back an hour later and it had quite literally pee'd it all out!

Boosted: Ford EcoSport EcoBoost (Kinetic Blue)-img_20150927_135051.jpg

Taking a piss and marking its territory.

I took it back to the dealer after a couple of days for the installation of plates and getting this leak sorted. The dealer redirected me to the SVC and that's when I had my first Ford ASS experience. They were pretty professional and cool but a tad slow and had to be reminded to make it quick. Nothing great but nothing poor either. These days finding a good local garage is better since most service centres are just average at best. Couple of pipes were replaced and fluid was filled with soap and all was well. Except this took a couple of hours.
It wasn't over though. Next day mom noticed that there's a colour contrast in front bumper and the body. It was quite bad in the picture and I couldn't sleep that night.
Next day took her out in day light and carefully tried to see what's what. There was a slight difference in shade but no where near what the photo depicted. Clicked a couple of pictures then shared with a few friends and even here asking if they can see something fishy. Next day went with a friend to check out another blue ecosport parked in my apartment and it also had a very similar contrast! That was a " phew" moment. Hopefully he didn't actually repaint it after bumping, lol. An exciting start to an exciting car!

Boosted: Ford EcoSport EcoBoost (Kinetic Blue)-img_20150928_092840.jpg

The picture which scared the crap out of me.

Exteriors:
Now this can be subjective but the Ecosport isn't what I will call beautiful. In fact I can't remember any Ford which was pretty( apart the GT40 and the original Mustang). With that being said, its far from ugly. Its actually quite good looking and stunning for what it is. The design is quite aggressive,shout-ey and in your face types. The blue and that design means that I often stare it for no reason. It is quite satisfying to look at it and it does make your day bright. It does look a little odd from some angles and the tyres look skinny despite the fact that they aren't. Segment benchmark remains the Avventura or even better, an Evo in glitterati gold.
Even after being such a common car, this car does grab attention. Initially I thought its because of the new car thing but even after a month of taking seat covers and ribbons off, it does grab eyeballs. Its a good thing sometimes and quite annoying at other times. When I was in my car waiting for somebody, a cute girl :D walked by the car and asked her friend "what car is that" and her friend replied by saying " its a ford yaar".
To sum it up, the Ecosport looks fresh,modern and cheerful. Looks are one of the primary reasons why it sold so well and its not hard to see why. Overall its a treat for my eyes to watch. What I really like about the Ecosport's looks is that it doesn't appear to take it self seriously. Has that angry cub look to it and a lot of character. The design also helps this car to hide its actual size.

Boosted: Ford EcoSport EcoBoost (Kinetic Blue)-front.jpg
Front houses at least four chromed radiator grilles along with angular lights which give it an aggressive stance. I think that its a little over chromed and a little blingy in this colour. A black edition like in the Skoda Rapid will suit this colour well. This aggressive front gives ensures it has decent road presence. Vertically mounted inter-cooler is partially visible.

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The three quarter profile is dominated by a thick belt line. The EcoSport is cleverly designed for sure. When viewed in isolation,the car appears to be bigger than what it actually is. Black cladding and front splitter hide the otherwise oddly tall proportions well. Flared wheel arches, found on many Ford's adds a lot of beef to its profile.

Boosted: Ford EcoSport EcoBoost (Kinetic Blue)-side-2.jpg
This is where the consequences of the sub 4M rule can be felt. The rear seems to end a little sooner than what I'd like but its nowhere as bad as a compact "sedan". The non existent rear bumper coupled with that tail gate mounted wheel means that any hit from the back will most likely dent the sheet metal. This is where I wished that the rule didn't specify a car to be 3999Mm in length. The spare wheel looks a little wannabe but again, hides the car's length pretty well.

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Boosted: Ford EcoSport EcoBoost (Kinetic Blue)-rear3qtr1.jpg
The rear also looks impressive. Those tail lamps now can be found on the Hyundai Creta as well. Just add a spare wheel to Creta's boot and they both look quite similar! The spare wheel cover looks awful and I plan to take it out when it starts rattling. Also notice that the tyres appear to be skinny( while they certainly are not). The spare wheel cover actually reminds me of...
Boosted: Ford EcoSport EcoBoost (Kinetic Blue)-avocadocartooncharactersmilinggreenbigroundpitnose41493132.jpg
...this. In blue.
Boosted: Ford EcoSport EcoBoost (Kinetic Blue)-wheels.jpg
R16/205/can't recall the profile. Alloys are a treat to look at but the wheels appear to be skinny from some angles. Crappy tyres love to spin wheels.

Boosted: Ford EcoSport EcoBoost (Kinetic Blue)-final5.jpg
* in Arnold Schwarzenegger voice* " Get outta mah way pal, I donn have time for games.."

Some random clicks. Meh photographer toh nahi par jabse dheka maine thujko, photography aa gayi..( not quite there yet though).She actually looks good when she's a little dirty.
Boosted: Ford EcoSport EcoBoost (Kinetic Blue)-random5.jpg

Trying to get somewhere no other jacked up fiesta has reached..

Build quality:
This is one area where you'd expect me to praise this car but it's not so.
While this car does feel solid, no second thoughts on that. when the front doors shut, emit a thud just like a W204 Mercedes. The solid-ity is typical Ford(eu) and is second only to Fiat in this price range. All body panels seem to be of a thicker steel than what I'm used to. BUT the car with best build quality is without a doubt, the Vento. Yeah, the Ecosport is more solid but the Vento is a better built car. Build quality to me also includes fit & finish, paint quality and panel gaps.
The Ecosport has a decent paint coat which feels reasonably thick and is free from the orange peel effect to an extent but the plastic parts( especially the bumper) are a little darker than the sheet metal. Panel gaps though are quite annoying:

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Panel gaps in the boot lid

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The door is shut but notice that uneven fit. Not as bad as the picture makes it look though.

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Few more gaps.

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Roof's sheet metal seems to be lighter than other panels and is ribbed to make up for that. It's good actually, lighter roof reduces body roll and lowers the centre of gravity(as long as it's not a compromise when it comes to safety). Those ribs on the roof look pretty old school though. Ones found on a Micra would be in line with the futuristic design. Those ribs may be good to support luggage though. Roof rails are functional and you can strap on luggage weighting 40kgs to compensate for the slightly lacking boot space.

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Remember I said that the front doors close with a thud? The rear ones close with a clunk. Feels very cheap, looks like they have skipped some beading at the back.

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Fiesta has better wipers, these are pretty cheap. Washer nozzles on the hood looks dated.

Interiors:

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are sort of a mixed bag really. I like the design of the dash, its different and interesting. The batman like centre console has been praised by my a lot of people who sat in my car. The position of the Sync screen is perfect, never gets illegible in sun light. The ergonomics are spot on for most of the part.
The steering wheel feels good to hold,so does the gearknob. All of the switches are illuminated all the time which is weird. When it comes to space, the Ecosport has a lot of room in the front. This is the only car that I've driven whose driver seat doesn't have to be pushed all the way back. The legroom at the back is decent as well. Decent headroom throughout the car. What will be concerning is the rear shoulder room. This is a 4 seater without a doubt. The seats are quite comfy and firm which is good for long distance trips. Front seats are a little on the narrower side though. Since this is the optional variant, it comes with leather(art?) seats of decent quality.
The all black interior is a nice and cozzy place to be in.
The Ecosport is far from perfect from inside. The plastics over all feel cheaper than the ones in Fiesta and are nothing special. Fit and finish is nothing worth writing here about either.

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Well spaced ABC pedals with a proper dead pedal.

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360L or something boot space. A little less, the Kwid can compete! The seats can be reclined forward a bit(like in a Scross) and you can increase the boot space by doing that but good luck finding someone who will agree to sit on perpendicular seats.

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What a cheap bit of plastic this! Also houses the fuse box.

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Strong AC means this is the minimum temperature even during the hot Delhi days.

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That silver strip feels cheap. Resting my leg on the door pad makes a weird click noise. Also dark grey door pads instead of the light grey found on the lower variant.

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Confusing and unintuitive OVRM control. No folding mirrors, not even in the facelift! Y u du dis ford?

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Interior looks cool at night as well and it has a cool blue back lighting effect. Sorry for the quality of photo, my phone becomes a potato in dark.

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No individual locking doors. Doors are always unlocked from inside, like in a VW.

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Good punchy speakers but no tweeters. AT has them though. Sound quality greatly affected by the quality of songs in your phone.

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Piano black looks classy but is prone to scratches. Passengers using them as grab handles doesn't help either.

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Thanks Ford!

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You can use the audio system even after turning off the car. It doesn't switch off on its own when you get out and lock it.

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Rear seats are supportive enough. Red stitching is pleasing but blue would have suited it better.

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Me behind my driving position. I'm 6'5 hence a little cramped.

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These vents cause a HIDEOUS reflection on the OVRM(driver) sometimes.

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Twin pod looks cool. Fit isn't perfect and it's easy to move the console around. No temperature gauge :/

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A trick I found out: Pull the lever towards you like you would flash the beams and the lights will stay on for half a minute! You can lock the car and walk away and the lights will go off on their own. Neat! Almost forgot, the levers are all wrong but this is corrected now.

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Leather pads on all four doors in the O variant.

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Dummy button in the key fixed by using a silicon case. Key's plastic not the best. Seems like Ford needs to take more inspiration from Hyundai in areas other than steering!

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Wheel feels good to hold. It is partially leather wrapped. Well done Ford, superb unnoticable cost cutting.

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Huge gap towards the left side of the wheel. Looks ugly and the horn pad is hard to press from that side.

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The buttons are pretty hard to use and don't work as expected sometimes.

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All of the window controls are backlit. Noyce!

The DRIVE:
Finally, we get to the driving part. Surprising that you're still holding on to this!
Engine:
Let let talk about the specifications I can recall.
Boosted: Ford EcoSport EcoBoost (Kinetic Blue)-enginebay.jpg

The engine is this time quite literally heart of the car. Without this engine, the Ecosport isn't worth being called a FORD( Fun On Road Daily). This engine is very high tech, at least for me. It has dual over head cams, dual VVT, direct injection, turbo charging,inter cooler and some other nerdy things to make it a lot more refined than other three pots. The turbo is surprisingly a FTG but is water cooled ( at least the one in Fiesta is). The turbo gives it a boost of 21 PSI which is a LOT for a normal car. The engine itself isn't made in India. All this means that it has higher probability to go wrong and if that does happen, it will cost a bomb to fix. Still hoping for the best.

Press the start button and the Ecoboost rocks around a little as it fires up. It makes a very diesel like noise when it wakes up. After warming up,the Ecoboost is very refined and very smooth. No vibrations what's so ever. I would rate the refinement slightly better than the Ivtec. Not bad at all for a three pot, thanks to geeky tech which I'm too lazy to explain. Get out of the car though and you know its a three pot without a doubt. There are also slight vibrations which can be seen( not felt) on the IRVM. Nothing bothering though.
The gearbox is alright, nothing special. It takes a little effort to engage and isn't as slick as the segment benchmark. Heck, its not as slick as the box in the TDCI Eco and the Figo.
The steering is super light, like hyundai light. My previous car didn't have a power steering and I feel that this is too light. The steering is very " un ford " as well. Its has less feedback and you need to make corrections sometimes to drive it in a straight line. The fiesta also had an eps but was still much better.
The clutch is easy to get used to , never stalled my first turbo car yet( barring a few exceptional cases which I'll explain later). The car crawls like a diesel if you let go of the clutch. A good thing this in traffic.
As expected, the engine does have lag. The turbo wakes up at around 1.5K RPM. It gets into the full turbo zone at around 2.6K rpm. Like I said in the beginning, I wasn't sure if ecoboost would deliver. But I'm glad to let you know that it did! The Ecoboost when in its zone delivers a solid punch. It accelerates effortlessly and pulls well , better than my City for sure. That's not bad when you consider that the Ivtec is a decently peppy car,the Ford is heavier and is a new car that hasn't been run in yet. Those cheap 3d mats that I got off eBay also ensure that I can't floor it( they get in the way ). The ecoboost does make this softened hot hatch a decent drivers car. I have had a good time driving this thing after I figured out how to stay in the turbo zone. The engine is also quite vocal ans sound good. The ecoboost isn't a marketing thing either. Its giving around 11kmpl as per tank to tank method, which is great for a new car driven by a naive driver. The city is giving 11 in similar conditions so I expect the ford to do even better. Not bad if you consider it is a lot heavier and has wider rubber. To sum the performance up,not missing an extra cylinder at all! The Ecoboost doesn't disappoint here at all. The Ecoboost just simply walks away from the TDCI but that has 10 more horses now.

So is the ecoboost perfect? Nope. I've had two issues with it. One is the obvious lag which makes driving in Delhi a little harder. Most annoying thing is the sudden unintentional acceleration because of the boost kicking in. Have to be careful about this.
Second issue is the way it climbs steep small inclines like a flat milestone or a small ramp. The car just vibrates and almost stalls! As a result one has to slip clutch a bit to get moving. This car then is not suitable for any kind of soft roading which involves crawling speed inclines.
Also,the engine being a turbo petrol is highly sensitive to the way you drive. Translated, drive a little harder and the FE drops more than you'd expect.

Ride,handling,steering and braking:
Ride may be the achilles heel of the Ecosport, at least for the average joe( which is the targeted customer). The ride is simply stiffer than anything out there. European cars do have a stiff low speed ride but the Ecosport is more stiffer than them and doesn't get as plush as speeds increase. It does get better as the speedo climbs but some cars just do it better. The ride isn't unbearable or bouncy, just a little hard. I"ve got used to easily. This stiff ride means that the car rides flat at speeds. No up and down movement and is very stable and very european( this is Ford Germany I believe). That coupled with supportive seats means I don't have to pull over and stretch after a couple of hours. The City now feels all over the place and like a boat at speeds!

The stiff springs also ensure that the Ecosport has a decent handling for its height and GC. Body roll is existent but well controlled and the car does have a lot of mechanical grip. It no Fiesta but is certainly good for what it is. Corners better than my City in fact, more grip and stability during the bends.


The steering though, they screwed up over here. This steering is not only un-Ford and unenthusiastic but also feels quite artificial and well, electric. Its basically a Verna's wheel with a quicker rack and more fake feedback. This is sad since the Fiesta despite being an EPS had a fantastic wheel which was beautifully caabirated. It was light at parking speeds and full of feedback at higher speeds. You also don't need to make frequent corrections on an expressway to go in a line. Segment benchmark here is the Fiat.

The brakes work well and are alright but rear discs would have been appreciated given that it's not exactly cheap for a jacked up hatch. Tyres are rubbish and definitely must be impacting braking performance. The Fiesta had better brakes somehow. There is no nose dive whats so ever which is nice.



To sum it up then:
The Ecosport still makes a lot of sense. Get over the fact that it's a sub 4m car and you would appreciate that it is solidly made,well kitted, quite practical, good looking, FE, safe,fun(ecoboost), refined and overall, a good jack of all trades. Its one car that appeals to the heart and mind at the same time.
People have been saying that the Ecosport isn't worth it now but I think every car is worth its price if somebody is ready to pay for it. Yeah its a sub-4M but so what if it does everything it needs to.

The Ecosport may have its shortcomings. The ride isn't perfect, there are some fit and finish issues and it does have its shortcomings. But for me this is the perfect car at this price. I guess that's what matters Not justifying somebody that why did I pay 11L+ for a sub 4M petrol car? I am very satisfied with this car, a car I didn't like much at all before and found it quite stupid. So much that I now love it. Detailing it for hours is quite satisfying now. That's love for you lol.

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Tribal paint!
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Need more work on my detailing skills.



As for the Ecoboost and even the Tjet to some extend, its hard to judge them initially. You might think that you can't take the lag and it will be a pain in traffic but you would eventually get used to it so do keep that in mind. That wouldn't happen in a single TD.

Notes:

Boosted: Ford EcoSport EcoBoost (Kinetic Blue)-wp_ss_20151025_00021.png
Windows phone and Microsoft SYNC, match made in haven? Nope, my blackberry paired much faster and had fewer bugs. Like the volume for instance.

*The car does have its fan running after you turn her off but this doesn't happen to me often since I idle before turning it off( turbo petrol bruh).
*OVRM's can be adjusted even if its not in accessory mode( completely off).
* The smart key sensor needs to be more sensitive.
* Follow me home lamps use pilot lamps which makes them quite useless. Use the headlight trick that I mentioned, works much better in a dark area.
* SYNC will call up emergency services when the car is involved in a collision. Nice!
* Steering locks automatically after you walk away from the car it seems.
* Press the sensor on the doors and there's a small beep.
* The retractable parcel tray is quite heavy and a road rage weapon. Not serious.

Those HQ photos have been clicked by kissarchit. Crappy ones by me.

Thread moved from the Assembly Line to the Initial Ownership Section. Thanks for sharing!

Nice exhaustive review. You have chosen well. Wish you many happy miles of motoring.:)

Many congratulations to you for your new car, and well done on a fantastic review - I am very familiar with this car, and yet I read through it over half an hour and rated it 5 stars :thumbs up. Lovely pictures too (yes, including the potato ones!). It's also nice to see you've experienced the shortcomings of the EcoBoost engine and have overcome them.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Doge (Post 3832272)
* No folding mirrors is very disappointing, even the Figo has them now. Y u do dis Phord? Wat sins did I make?

Ha ha - its a compromise either way - you either get narrow but auto-foldable mirrors in the Figo, or these brilliantly wide but manual folding mirrors in the EcoSport.
Quote:

* Should've had TCS or ESP in the manual variant as well.
* Hill hold would have been nice in the Ecoboost.
Given that Ford are now offering the DCT in the far cheaper Figo, maybe we can hope that a future iteration of the EcoSport comes with a DCT and the EcoBoost engine, which will automatically give these features.

Quote:

* Starts stop button thing is stupid.
I'm curious - what don't you like about this? I've gotten quite accustomed to this, particularly since I can leave my key full time in my pocket.

Quote:

* Cheap spares of Ford.
Ford will be cheering when they read this!

Quote:

It was a mars red Ecoboost with 33k on its odometer. The first thing I realised when I got into the car was that this is an abused car, no doubt.
And Ford would probably shudder when they realize how they almost lost you as a customer! Honestly, if you were not a TBHPian, at this point you'd have just walked away from the EcoSport.

Quote:

Next day mom noticed that there's a colour contrast in front bumper and the body. It was quite bad in the picture and I couldn't sleep that night.
Next day took her out in day light and carefully tried to see what's what. There was a slight difference in shade but no where near what the photo depicted.
I noticed this on my EcoSport too, only after you pointed it out. And mine is a stock bumper, never retouched. Its probably something to do with how the blue colour interacts with the plastic. In fact, the front bumper is the only piece of painted plastic on the exterior, along with the ORVM cover.


Quote:

Front houses at least four chromed radiator grilles along with angular lights which give it an aggressive stance. I think that its a little over chromed and a little blingy in this colour. A black edition like in the Skoda Rapid will suit this colour well.
I had recently seen a low-end EcoSport in blue - and the black grille in the front looked awesome! I think a good change would be to change the tall grille with 4 slats to pure black, and leave the single slat grille (with the Ford logo) as-is with the chrome line.

Quote:

R16/205/can't recall the profile. Crappy tyres love to spin wheels.
It's 205/60 R16 <grin>. I've heard the MRF tires are poor on grip and noise, but good in longevity and resisting punctures. Were you not tempted to change the tires?

Quote:

Roof's sheet metal seems to be lighter than other panels and is ribbed to make up for that. It's good actually, lighter roof reduces body roll and lowers the centre of gravity(as long as it's not a compromise when it comes to safety).
Wait till you're in a heavy rain - it gets noisy in the car!

Quote:

Fiesta has better wipers, these are pretty cheap.
Try out the Bosch AeroTwin, Hella DynaEdge or Hella Curvo wiper blades - all of these are frameless wiper blades that look stylish. I've changed my wipers to Hella, and they look and perform well. Wiper sizes are 22" and 16" in the front, and 11" in the rear. The rear can be increased to 12" (I'm using 12").

Quote:

Washer nozzles on the hood looks dated.
I hate Ford's design of the entire external wiper/washer assembly - the wipers sit quite visibly on the windshield, these washer nozzles look awkward on the hood, and should have been integrated into the cowl like... well, like pretty much every other manufacturer!

Quote:

As expected, the engine does have lag. The turbo wakes up at around 1.5K RPM. It gets into the full turbo zone at around 2.6K rpm. Like I said in the beginning, I wasn't sure if ecoboost would deliver. But I'm glad to let you know that it did! The Ecoboost when in its zone delivers a solid punch. It accelerates effortlessly and pulls well
Ha ha, so its a far cry from the crappy TD car that they sent you :)


Quote:

*OVRM's can be adjusted even if its not in accessory mode( completely off).
I did not know this!

Quote:

* The retractable parcel tray is quite heavy and a road rage weapon. Not serious.
When I lifted this and felt the weight, I immediately decided to remove it. The thought of this getting loose and flying forward towards my head during hard braking made the hairs on the back of my neck tingle! Funniest part is that weight isn't due to the strength of the tray itself (its a flexible sheet), but due to the roller mechanism.

Congrats Doge on your brilliant purchase.

We've had the ecoboost for more than a year now and i can confidently say that it is brilliant car to own.

Wishing you many years of happy revvin'

Quote:

Originally Posted by arunphilip (Post 3835729)
I'm curious - what don't you like about this? I've gotten quite accustomed to this, particularly since I can leave my key full time in my pocket.

It's quite slow to turn of the car. I sometimes stall the car when I take my foot off immediately after pressing that button.


Quote:

And Ford would probably shudder when they realize how they almost lost you as a customer! Honestly, if you were not a TBHPian, at this point you'd have just walked away from the EcoSport.
Fiesta had already hypnotized me for a Ford:D

Quote:


It's 205/60 R16 <grin>. I've heard the MRF tires are poor on grip and noise, but good in longevity and resisting punctures. Were you not tempted to change the tires?
I have to drive through a lot of rough roads, hence didn't decide to change.

Quote:

When I lifted this and felt the weight, I immediately decided to remove it. The thought of this getting loose and flying forward towards my head during hard braking made the hairs on the back of my neck tingle! Funniest part is that weight isn't due to the strength of the tray itself (its a flexible sheet), but due to the roller mechanism.
I don't think it will come off like that, its locked pretty securely. The roller mechanism clearly says Fords tag line in some places ie "Built tough".

Thanks for the review Doge ( And ArunPhlip ). I have been keenly following the reviews on BHP since I'm also bitten by the buy-a-new-car bug. Just like you guys out there I'm smitten by the Creta but it is surely over-priced, the real Creta seems to exist only in the top variant and the waiting period is ridiculous. SCross is over-priced too, I even thought of the Ciaz . I convinced myself that there is no equivalent to the Fabia driving experience sub-10 lacs and settled for Ecosport as VFM and asked for a TD.
The Dwarka dealer had sent me a 2013 ecoboost that actually looked like it was abused for much more than that ! The doors and panels were rattling and the suspension let out frightening grunts every time I hit a bump. The engine was peppy though and I was quite impressed with the driving position and handling.
When I alighted from the vehicle both my daughter and wife wore a grimace on their faces and declared that they were quite shaken from the rattling experience.
Now I am willing to make an allowance for the poorly maintained TD vehicle but my family is traumatised by the TD experience. Who in the world would present a ramshackle for a TD ?!
So I would sincerely like to know from ecosport users how the suspension and body are holding over a time ? Esp the tail gate.
Meanwhile , I'm even considering the new scorpio S6...Help me !

P.S. I seems to have found a genuine buyer for my Skoda Fabia 2009 TDi on BHP classified. Thanks Team-BHP.

Finally the review is up. I drove it around for some kms and I was pleasantly surprised. Didn't push it though (still running in, you better meet me again now *evilgrin*) but liked the engine. Speed breakers are not possible in 2nd gear and it is a must to downshift.

Congrats for the Ecoboost. Enjoy the car. Loved taking pics of the car.

oh and its kisharchit not kissarchit... :(

Wow! congrats on your new ride. Looks spectacular!

I still remember the first time i saw an ecosport in blue. My jaw dropped and my eyes went wide checking out its beauty. Thankfully had my helmet on so people looking at me with such an expression probably didn't think i'm crazy or something stupid: It's really a beauty and i would say it's the best looking sub 4 metre in india on par with a gold punto evo!

In two of the detailing pics i can see some white paste on the car. Can you please tell me what it is (polish or wax? and the brand too please?!?). I just want to know how long you leave that stuff on the car before wiping it off to give that gleaming look. We have a blue car too (swift zxi) and i'm currently using 3m premium liquid wax on it and i don't think i'm properly using the wax (i just put some on the metal and rub it off almost immediately). Some guidance would be useful for me as i'm a noob at this :)

Quote:

Originally Posted by shivaru (Post 3836074)
Thanks for the review Doge ( And ArunPhlip ). I have been keenly following the reviews on BHP since I'm also bitten by the buy-a-new-car bug. Just like you guys out there I'm smitten by the Creta but it is surely over-priced, the real Creta seems to exist only in the top variant and the waiting period is ridiculous. SCross is over-priced too, I even thought of the Ciaz . I convinced myself that there is no equivalent to the Fabia driving experience sub-10 lacs and settled for Ecosport as VFM and asked for a TD.
The Dwarka dealer had sent me a 2013 ecoboost that actually looked like it was abused for much more than that ! The doors and panels were rattling and the suspension let out frightening grunts every time I hit a bump. The engine was peppy though and I was quite impressed with the driving position and handling.
When I alighted from the vehicle both my daughter and wife wore a grimace on their faces and declared that they were quite shaken from the rattling experience.
.

First of all, I would suggest you to TD a diesel Ecosport from Gautum Budh Ford Noida. If you're really confused, have a look at my car sometime. They have an ambient which is maintained well. I have at least 3 relatives with an Ecosport( all TDCI's) and hence I was confident that I am going for the right car. The dilemma was the engine for me.
As for the rattles, there have been a few minor rattles which can be fixed easily from what I've heard. Nothing like a 1st gen swift or even the TD cars. Ford's age well in general. As for the suspension, its not bad at all. Just a little stiff, not noisy as the TD car. We had an Innova before and nobody had any problem adjusting to the stiffer springs. Now Honda feels quite wallowy to me.
I've driven a pre face lift Scorpio a lot. It is a terribly bumpy car but new one is better. After driving the fabia, you may have some trouble getting adjusted to its handling. Safety is also quite poor if that's a criteria. The Mhawk also has a poor top end, something which I hated. Good car for rural areas with very bad roads but a little too much in the town. I have checked the TUV and would recommend that over the Scorpio. XUV W4 is also an option.
Don't judge any car by its TD vehicle( sadly the way they are maintained, its true). Ford's take it or leave it attitude when the Eco was launched is reflected in the TD cars. Also do check out the Scross. Not a bad car at all.

Quote:

Originally Posted by kaushik51094 (Post 3836125)
Wow! congrats on your new ride. Looks spectacular!

I still remember the first time i saw an ecosport in blue. My jaw dropped and my eyes went wide checking out its beauty. Thankfully had my helmet on so people looking at me with such an expression probably didn't think i'm crazy or something stupid: It's really a beauty and i would say it's the best looking sub 4 metre in india on par with a gold punto evo!

In two of the detailing pics i can see some white paste on the car. Can you please tell me what it is (polish or wax? and the brand too please?!?). I just want to know how long you leave that stuff on the car before wiping it off to give that gleaming look. We have a blue car too (swift zxi) and i'm currently using 3m premium liquid wax on it and i don't think i'm properly using the wax (i just put some on the metal and rub it off almost immediately). Some guidance would be useful for me as i'm a noob at this :)

I used formula one wax which is quite disappointing actually(stick with 3M). Wash the car before waxing and then let it dry. Wax in circular motion, one area at a time( like hood, then fender and so on). Watch an episode of top gear and come back and wipe it with a dry towel. Waxing part is easy, its the cleaning before which took me a couple of hours!

Brilliant review, beautifully crafted and the attention to detail is amazing, you have keen eyes buddy. I have never seen this horn pad gap in my car in these 2 years. The plastics are cheap but they are well put together, our Ecosport traverse the pathetic Himachal roads every month and dad has a rough driving style, barring the tailgate rattle, every is silent inside.

It is a good car, i do not drive our Ecosport much since i like sedans from the beginning but it is a nice car for a family of 4.


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