Ford EcoSport in India - trick or treat?

In the mad scramble for manufacturers to install diesel engines in all their cars Ford is taking a different route. The American giant is now focussing their energies for India on the EcoBoost engine. The EcoSport compact SUV was first shown at the Delhi Auto Expo in January this year. We've heard the buzz about the EcoBoost engine powering it as well, but what exactly is all the hype about?

Simply put the 1.0-litre EcoBoost is one of the most advanced small capacity petrol engines in production today. This tiny three cylinder turbo petrol makes the power of a 1.6-litre naturally aspirated engine and the torque of an even bigger unit. All of this in a compact package that also promises to be highly fuel efficient. It sure sounds like a winner. Well there's one glitch in the plan.

First of all the EcoSport may be compact (we were the first to report that it would be under 4-metres long) but it's still going to be seen as an SUV. And we in India expect our SUVs with diesel engines. We can't have it any other way. Let's look at the facts. The Chevrolet Forrester was perhaps India's first true petrol engine SUV. It came with a gem of an engine in the boxer four sourced from Subaru and with Subaru's inherent handling genius. It should have been a big hit but just wasn't. Then there was the Maruti Suzuki Grand Vitara with an excellent V6 petrol engine and considerable off road capability. But it failed spectacularly. Maruti then stuck a (relatively) more efficient four pot unit in the all new Vitara in 2007. Didn't work. Except for the Honda CRV, no petrol-engined SUV in India has had a fair share of success. The CRV was futuristic and more importantly it was from a brand our market revered. But even that ended when the Fortuner was launched and it immediately wolfed down Honda's pie. The moment the market had access to a well made diesel alternative they promptly forgot the petrols. And who can blame them given the absurd difference in price between petrol and diesel?

What Ford are quietly banking on is a drastic change in the fuel price structure. If the petrol prices drop closer to diesel levels (highly unlikely) or if diesel is deregulated then Ford would be in an excellent position with the EcoSport/Boost. But it's not all Ford eggs in one petrol basket. They may launch a 1.5-litre diesel in the future that could turn their fortunes around.