It was the Ford EcoSport which was the first ever modern sub 4 meter SUV which was launched in India. The first of its kind car, managed to find immediate success, not only in India, but also across the world. But, the success was short lived. In March 2016, Maruti Suzuki launched the Vitara Brezza compact SUV, at a staggeringly aggressive price tag.
Ford EcoSport sales dipped overnight. In order to compete, Ford announced a massive cut in prices of EcoSport. Thanks to launch of Vitara Brezza, EcoSport prices had been slashed by up to Rs 1.3 lakhs. Today, it also has the Tata Nexon to compete with. This has resulted in Ford EcoSport being left behind as far as sales are concerned in the sub 4 meter SUV segment.
Surprisingly, it is not only sales where the EcoSport has been left behind. Considered as a performance oriented car, the Ford EcoSport was pitted against Maruti Brezza in a drag race recently. The outcome of the race saw Brezza beating EcoSport in the duel.
Speaking about numbers, the Ford EcoSport is powered by a 1.5 liter diesel engine which generates 100 PS of power @ 3750 rpm and 205 Nm of torque at 1750 rpm. Transmission is taken care by a 5 speed manual gearbox. The car has a kerb weight of about 1270 kgs. On the other hand is Maruti Brezza, which is powered by a 1.3 liter Fiat sourced engine which delivers 90 PS @ 4,000 rpm and 200 Nm at 1750 rpm. Transmission is via 5 speed MT while kerb weight is about 1,200 kgs. Watch the drag race below.
In the first attempt, it is the Maruti Brezza which comes out as the clear winner. It has a good start, and the EcoSport fails to catchup, in spite of having a more powerful engine. In the second attempt, it is the EcoSport which has a better start. But, Maruti Brezza manages to catchup, in spite of having a less powerful engine.
Yes, it is the Maruti Brezza which has the weight advantage. But, Ford has a more powerful engine, which delivers more power and torque at a lesser rpm. It also has better driving dynamics. But in a straight line, it is no better than a Maruti Brezza. It will be interesting to see how these two perform in a drag race with Tata Nexon, which comes with the most powerful diesel engine in the segment at 110 PS.
This post was last modified on September 17, 2018 10:13 pm