2018 Ford EcoSport gets a facelift

Ford’s smallest SUV offering, the Ecosport receives a good refresh before it hits showrooms sometime in 2017. The covers were taken off the new model at the 2016 Los Angeles Auto Show. With this launch, the Ecosport has made its first entry into the North American market. The production of the new Ecosport will be handled by Ford’s manufacturing facility in Chennai, India. It speaks volumes about the quality of Ford’s Indian-built offering if the company feels it’s ready to tackle a developed market like America.

The slim upper grille and the large lower grille of the current model are replaced by a more muscular single unit. The fascia is a toned down version of Ford’s family SUV face that bigger SUV’s like the Ford Edge sport. The big grille is flanked by the new headlamp units that give it a meaner look. The faux skid plates give it a little bit of an off-road ready stance. Not that it is going to traverse the unbeaten path, but these additions give it a bit more character as an SUV.

Two drive trains are on offer. A four-wheel-drive version accompanies the city-dwelling front-wheel-driven Ecosport. The crossover is powered by a 2.0-litre four-cylinder along with the 1.0-litre turbocharged EcoBoost engine. The power is handled using a 6-speed automatic transmission. The Ecosport is offered in four trims which start with S, then the SE, SES, and the most premium Titanium model tops it off. The four-wheel-drive model will only be available with the 2.0-litre engine in the SES and Titanium trim levels.

The interior is spruced up with Ford’s Sync3 infotainment system that supports Android Auto and Apple CarPlay. The interior will also feature two fast-charging ports, a 12-volt socket at the front and one at the rear and a 110-volt outlet. A large number of storage facilities are littered inside the cabin to increase practicality.

The new Ecosport will go on sale in early 2018 in the United States. It should reach UAE and GCC showrooms at about the same time as well.