[Big Smoke]

I'm a Ford Aspire TDCi (BS4) owner. I wouldn't recommend anyone to buy a new Ford, apart from the Ecosport 1.5 Petrol, only if available at a mouth-watering price. Here are my reasons-

(1) Stay away from the 1.5 TDCi (BS6) engine. Even though it's a very reliable & rock solid engine, Ford has not yet solved the clogging issue.

(2) The 1.2 Petrol engine in Figo & Aspire is boring. As an enthusiast, I can't recommend it. Also, I don't think it'll last as long as the 1.5 TDCi.

(3) The 2.0 Diesel on the Endeavour has seen very low sales. It'll not have a very strong after-sales support. I would suggest to stay away from it, especially if you plan to keep your car for long.

[Baddychat]

Originally Posted by madhav14

So a couple of days back, I have confirmed a dealer to collect the booking cheque on this saturday towards booking of a new Endeavour 4x4 AT. And here Ford drops the bomb! Now I'm in a big dilemma.

I know many would advise me not to worry, but if this had been for an Ecosport or a small car I wouldn't have worried. We're talking about plonking 40+ Lacs on a car which is going die very very soon. How far it is advisable to do that? Or is it better to wait for a month or so and get a used one for a good price? Or should I totally avoid this one and look for an alternative?

I think you should cancel your booking and look at other options. I am assuming that you preferred the Endeavor to the Fortuner so you would overlook the latter once again.

If you can wait then there is the 7 seater Jeep launching sometime soon, most probably called the Meridian. Would be worth a look at. May not be the size of the Endeavor but should be good to drive.

Re the service commitment of Ford, I think existing owners should be good for the next 5-7 years but you would want some peace of mind with ASS after plonking a good amount of money on a car.

[parampath]

I own 2 cars in my garage, both companies packed from the country in the last 3-4 Yrs ( One Chevrolet and one Fiat). I wouldn't mind picking up a new Aspire diesel top end or freestyle if given a handsome offer that I cannot resist. ( probably matching that of a second hand car/ segment lower)

Never faced any issue in servicing the discontinued cars that I have and I am sure that with many Ford cars running around, parts availability will not be an issue for at least 5 to 7 Yrs. If Fiat parts can be sourced by local mechanics, then I am sure they can source ford parts also.

Now combing OLX for panic selling by some risk averse owners.

George V

[Madrasin_selvan]

This same thought crossed my mind and I did dial all the Ford showrooms across Chennai enquiring about Ecosport. The news is that none are having any stock and they are not accepting any on demand booking too.

But, they were ready to sell their demo cars for a discount of 2 lakhs.

[pannags]

Originally Posted by Candy$Cars

Do you recommend getting an Ecosport now at discount? So, is it wise to buy an Ecosport now? If yes, how much discount should we be aiming at?

Originally Posted by sid_deb

Also how much discount would you like to get to be comfortable buying a new Ford today. My answer is at least 50% discount from the Ex-showroom price.

I agree that with the OEM shutting shop both warranty and service experience are big unknowns, and therefore, there is a definite risk involved in buying new.

However, I still think the Titanium plus petrol variants of both the EcoSport and Figo, especially the ATs, are worth considering if available at substantially lower prices. Say, in the range of 30%-40% discount on ex-showroom prices.

[84.monsoon]

I think it would be better to buy nearly new pre-owned Ford's at this point. The resale values will come crashing down shortly. There may be some panic sellers who do not want to hold on to their 1-3 year old cars with the news of Ford's exit. Such a newer car should be reasonably trouble free for 3-4 years during which time the dealerships/service centers network should be reasonably good, though Lee's than today, since Ford pans to continue selling CBUs. If one buys a 2 year old Ecosport today at a hefty discount and is able to get 4-5 years of good use from it, one should not be bothered about reduced resale value at the end of that period. You would have had a car that is fun to drive and rock solid and would have given many pleasurable miles by then.

[aneesh2M]

in my opinion currant ford owners don't have to be panic as service will not be an issue for at least next 8-9 years. few critical part may take a time to arrive though. getting a brand new Ford from showroom makes sense now only if a great discount is offered and the owner wants to keep the car for more than 8-10 years as resell will be very low henceforth for Ford vehicles.

[prk265]

My Ecosport 1.5L D Titanium has served me well so far and is in the 8th year of running. I have never had a single niggle or any other issue so far. Of course I was very particular about getting it serviced on due dates and generally tried to maintain it as much as possible. It is good to go for another eight years I am sure. I was looking to upgrade to a 7 seater this year and was really sad that I had to let go of such a good car. But in case I do not get a decent exchange value, will try to convince my better half to drive it as she is looking to buy a hatchback.

[SoupRaw]

Was hoping to avail a fat discount on the Ecosport, and called a few dealers in Bangalore. They started with the mandatory announcement of Ford's exit.

Cauvery Ford had no vehicles. Whereas PPS ford had an Aspire petrol automatic and a Ecosport test drive petrol automatic available.To top it all, there was a sad 30k discount. I almost burst out laughing when I heard the measly discount but held my composure.

Bid goodbye to Ford and the idea of owning a Ecosport Diesel at a lucrative discount. It'll be Nexon or XUV 300 now.

[warp_10]

Buying a ford now would be a gamble similar to getting a yes bank stock right after RBI froze their assets. It could swing either ways. Ford can provide a strong commitment in service and labour through some partner Indian channel (which is what I hope), or things might go downhill in couple of years from the quality of service. I personally don't like to gamble on such opportunities and would rather settle for peace of mind.

PS: Ford is no Toyota to keep running forever without issues.

[Fastdriver]

Originally Posted by fawad0222

Hi I have seen on purchase, sell old car thread, that someone from Guwahati only wanted to sell his almost new Ecosport AT Do check and you might be rewarded.

I am interested in manual. Anyway, thanks for the information!
Let's see how things progress!
Maybe Ford do a rethinking about its decision, God willing!

[AirbusCapt]

Originally Posted by sunikkat

No matter how much ever Ford says about supporting the customers for next 10 years, withdrawal tells about their commitment to Indian market. In such a scenario it’s not wise to buy a new Endeavour or an Ecosport even at couple of lakhs discount. The resale of your car will tank like Chevrolet, it will be difficult to sell your car and parts availability will be delayed.

I was watching a random youtube video on a Safari Dicor 2.2 (2015) suspension overhaul. The point that stuck me was the difficulty in finding parts like suspension bushes (rubber) and tie rods etc. That's because Tata has either stopped making them or the production for legacy parts is so low that this Delhi based mechanic couldn't source original parts. He couldn't even get an original (Tata made) fuel filter for the Safari.
Imagine if this happens with the Safari which belongs to a large automobile manufacturer who still exists in India, what kind of shortages can you expect for a Ford part say after 5 years?
All companies are forced to say they will support for the next 10 years (the regulation forces them to say so), but the real story would be far different.

[neel@makrand]

"How far it is advisable to do that? Or is it better to wait for a month or so and get a used one for a good price? Or should I totally avoid this one and look for an alternative?"


Well, don't dive if you still have the option of not to.Instead, pick alternatives like Fortuner, Alturas G4,Tiguan,Q3 etc.

[skyocean]

Ford was bleeding money from many years, and this decision to shut down operations was a well planned one.

So its no surprise that people are not able to get so called huge discounts or even find cars in the stock yard.

1) Check their sales numbers for the past few months. Some cars were in two digits or at max three, now count the number of ford dealers in India. This means most dealers did not sell any cars at all, so the question of finding one in the stockyard is super thin.
2) Well executed strategy of keeping the media on the heels by testing the new Ecosport, release of Figo AT, just to keep the positivity flowing. I'm sure this was done to realize the bookings into orders of whatever was left in the backlog.
3) If you all remember Ford was one of the first to shut down production citing Chip shortage in January. This would have lead to poor bookings in the first place. So question of over production/cancellation doesn't arise. Maybe this was their exit strategy kicking in?
4) The news of 1000 cars pending in stock is over exaggerated. It was not Fords official statement. Automobile Associations can have put forward anything in a press release, no one questions their numbers.

Before thinking of picking up a new Ford, please speak to Chevy owners and their plight, or simply ask yourself a question "Where was the last time you saw a Chevy service center or even their cars?". So basically No cars, No big discounts, No future promises from dealership, Advent of electric cars to further dent the resale of fossil fuel cars are clear indicators to stay away from a new Ford for the faint hearted.

[itsbaman]

Being an existing Ford owner, I am not worried at all. But buying a new Ford at this point is entirely different. It's not about resale value as I don't care about the resale value of the car as my primary motive is to enjoy the car not thinking about selling it. I never went for Chevrolet Cruze in 2017 when I bought Ecosport, despite it being a segment above and well-built fun car.