Ford Reveals EcoSport Compact SUV for China, India and South America

Ford took the wraps off of its Ecosport compact SUV at the Auto Salon China in Beijing. The small truck will be on sale in China, India, Thailand and South America. It will be built in Ford factories in all four of these markets, and later Ford says it will expand the Ecoboost to 100 countries. 

The main powertrain of the Ecosport will be Ford's new 1.0l, three-cylinder Ecoboost engine. Ford is saying other engined will be available eventually, but it is pushing the new three-cylinder Ecoboost as the major powertrain.

The Ecosport will be available later in the year

© photo courtesy of: Ford

The Ecosport carries the new Ford corporate nose found first on the new Mondeo/Fusion that means it carries the wide, octagonal nose, and in the case of the Ecosport, there is a smaller grill higher on the nose. It appears that Ford put usability over everything else in the Ecosport. While it is compact, the doors are large, and it appears to offer good visibility. The side mirrors are mounted on stalks coming from the doors, which should offer better front visibility from the small windows in front of the A-pillars. The rear has a spare tire integrated into the hatch.

The interior is airy and modern with angular lines on the air vents and offers enough room for five people. There is an info screen high on the center console with the controls below it, and the HVAC controls below them. The instruments are a tachometer and speedometer with a small info screen between them. The instruments are quite simple, but seem easy to read and functional.
The Ecosport shown in Beijing was the highest trim Titanium version that includes 16in wheels and a chrome grill. Ford will give these trim models with SYNC, key-less entry.

Ford is planning on offering 15 new vehicles in China by 2015 and will offer 50 new vehicles in the greater Asia Pacific and Africa regions by that time. It is recently made commitments to expand current factories and build new factories in China. Formatted and completed text.

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