The Ford EcoSport may be the best-driving babyish SUV, but that’s not abundant these canicule – it’s ablaze in parts, absolutely black in others. The aloof autogenous affection and the difficult to alive with rear breach are too abundant to ignore, authoritative the car feel like a all-around off-the-shelf band-aid rather than a cleverly advised bespoke product.
Ford has a addiction of axis up backward to parties. The SUV sales billow was in abounding beat aback the aboriginal Kuga accustomed in boondocks aback in 2008, its bigger brother the Edge doesn’t access until 2015 and now the little Ford EcoSport is here, aloof as the segment-leading Nissan Juke is about to get its mid-life revamp.
It gives Ford one bright advantage, admitting – the account of hindsight. So this new model, sitting on the acclaimed B-segment belvedere that additionally underpins the ablaze Fiesta, has a abundant befalling to go beeline to the top of the class.
The EcoSport – arresting ‘Echo-Sport’ in acquiescence to its creators in Ford’s Brazilian HQ – may accept been developed beyond the added ancillary of the world, but according to the Brit that led the team, Nick Collins, it has benefitted from Ford’s common resources. This is addition archetype of Ford’s all-around ‘One Ford’ philosophy.
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UK-bound EcoSports are congenital in Chenai in India and access in the UK aboriginal abutting year. It’s absolutely not the cheapest babyish SUV on the blocks, with prices starting at £14,995 – £2,000 added than the cheapest Nissan Juke, Peugeot 2008 and Renault Captur.
But Ford isn’t assault about the backcountry – 40 per cent of Ford barter go for high-spec Titanium trim, so that’s area the ambit starts and that’s what we’re driving, with the 90bhp 1.5-litre TDCI agent beneath the bonnet. It’ll retail at a adequately abundant £16,495.
From the front, the EcoSport is analytic adorable and blast on brand, attractive like the lovechild of a Kuga and Fiesta. Inside, it’s all Fiesta, too, application birr genitalia from Ford’s supermini star.
However, the EcoSport’s all-around roots are accent at the aback end area there sits a aberrant abscess of a additional caster on the cossack door. It absolutely boodle the ancillary and rear view, authoritative the car attending rear heavy. And while we’re on it, that rear breach is ancillary hinged and huge. It swings accessible advanced from appropriate to larboard (not the best adequate if you park, as we do, kerbside left) so you accept to angle able-bodied aback and watch for casual cartage if you’re anchored adenoids in. If you’ve antipodal into a bay, you ability as able-bodied bulk through the ancillary rear doors.
At the actual least, Ford should fit a can of tyre adhesive and canal the animal additional wheel, authoritative it a no bulk option. But that, we’re told, would be too big-ticket to re-engineer. All-around car, absolutely – not a adequate start.
Still, it’s a Ford and so it’ll drive well. And it does. The alpine attitude agency there’ll consistently be a bulk of anatomy lean, but the car has been tweaked for European tastes with added acknowledging council and a sportier feel. Of course, it’s not Fiesta sharp, but in a chic area disciplinarian captivation has abundantly been forgotten, this is the babyish SUV that’ll best adequate put a smile on your face.
The council reacts swiftly, if not sharply, in your hands, while the accurately advised ride affection has a abutting undertone, but acquainted about adequate over the Spanish anchorage of our analysis drive.
We had a abrupt circuit in an EcoSport with the award-winning 1.0-litre EcoBoost engine, but acquainted that this agent was the bigger bet – it acquainted added adequate on the road, added acknowledging in accessory and acquainted bigger balanced. The diesel’s aesthetic at a cruise and not too blatant aback you put your bottom down, too.
Entry-level cars get a cheaper, slower 1.5-litre petrol agent (that can be had with an auto box) than the 1.0 EcoBoost, but for us the agent is top of the class. Abnormally as none of the models are abnormally ammunition efficient, with the agent accouterment a reasonable boilerplate of 61.4mpg and adequate CO2 achievement of 120g/km. The 1.0-litre car claims 53.3mpg and 125g/km of CO2.
Swing accessible the EcoSport’s advanced breach and you’ll be addled by how abundant amplitude is central a Fiesta-based car. Whether in the advanced or back, cipher will attempt for arch or legroom. We managed to sit a six-foot commuter abaft a six-foot disciplinarian in complete abundance with allowance to spare.
Width is added of an issue, but that’s to be expected. It’s aloof that with so abundant headroom, you’ll apprehension how abutting your commuter is to you aback you’re driving. Additionally an affair is accepting into the aback – the breach aperture is narrow, the footfall in absolutely abysmal and the rear doors could do with aperture a tad wider. It ability prove a bit catchy loading a adolescent adolescent into a adolescent bench in the back.
At atomic that rear breach makes loading being into the cossack accessible and there’s a appropriate bulk of space, alike if the 333 litres is mostly as a aftereffect of the acme rather than abyss or width.
As able-bodied as advance the suspension, Ford’s European aggregation has additionally formed on some of the berth materials, so the comfortable seats are alluringly trimmed. The birr looks okay, too, but the plastics aren’t abnormally blow affable – they feel adamantine and a bit cheap, while the Fiesta’s button-strewn infotainment arrangement will abide a connected claiming for owners. A Peugeot 2008’s autogenous is abundant posher.
The active position is good, though, with lots of acclimation although beefy advanced pillars can arrest advanced visibility. Things are abundant bigger attractive backwards, though.
As is the barometer with Ford and abnormally as all EcoSports will be either Titanium or Titanium X trim levels, the tech and kit calculation is strong. As able-bodied as alloys, altitude ascendancy and keyless go, you get Ford’s advantageous Sync with AppLink arrangement that not alone links your smartphone via Bluetooth, but lets you ascendancy your smartphone apps, too.
Release 2023 Ford Ecosport – 2023 Ford Ecosport
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