Ford to launch lower priced EcoSport compact SUV without tailgate-mounted spare wheel

There has been a new sighting of a Ford Ecosport without a tailgate-mounted spare wheel. The new variant is known as SE and it will be launched soon in India. The major highlight of the new variant will be the new boot-lid design. The new tailgate design is from the Ecosport that is sold in the international markets. Due to which the SE variant does not come with a boot-lid mounted spare wheel. The export version of the Ecosport also does not come with a tailgate-mounted steering wheel which makes the rear of the compact-SUV to look more cleaner and more modern. The new design will also help Ford in hiding the Ecosport’s ageing design. The EcoSport SE will also get significantly cheaper, making the compact SUV more attractive to buyers.

The number plate is now placed in the middle of the tailgate. While the design is new, the tailgate still remains side-hinged. The new design has been done based on the customer feedback. However, due to this the Ecosport will not be coming with a factory spare wheel. Instead, it will come with tubeless tyres, tyre pressure monitoring system and a puncture repair kit.

Not having a spare wheel might feel a bit weird at first, but Ministry of Road Transport and Highways or MoRTH amended some rules in July last year. Due to which vehicles falling under M1 category who meets certain conditions like having a tyre pressure monitoring system etc. could be sold without a spare wheel. Vehicles which weigh less than 3.5 tonnes and have a seating capacity of upto 9 occupants, including driver fall under M1 category.

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According to Autocar India, the new SE variant of Ecosport will be positioned below Titanium and Sport trim. This will help in attracting more people as the new trim will cost less and is more aesthetically pleasing. Currently, Ecosport is offered in 5 variants, namely Ambiente, Trend, Titanium, Sports and Titanium Plus where the Ambiente is the base variant and Titanium Plus is the top-end variant. Ford has not yet announced officially about the SE variant so there are no prices out yet. However, we can expect the manufacturer to launch the new variant soon.

The prices of the Ford Ecosport starts from Rs. 7.99 lakhs ex-showroom and the the top-end variant will cost you Rs. 11.49 lakhs ex-showroom. Ford does offer quite a bit of equipment with the Ecosport. It comes with dual airbags, cruise control, electric sunroof, side and curtain airbags, automatic headlamps, rain-sensing wipers, paddle shifters, SYNC 3 touchscreen infotainment system with Android Auto and Apple CarPlay and a lot more.

Ecosport is offered with a 1.5-litre petrol engine and a 1.5-litre diesel engine. The petrol engine puts out 122 PS of max power and a peak torque output of 149 Nm. It is offered with a 5-speed manual gearbox or a 6-speed torque converter automatic gearbox. Then there is the diesel engine which produces 100 PS of max power and a peak torque output of 215 Nm. It is only offered with a 5-speed manual gearbox. Ford Ecosport competes with Maruti Suzuki Vitara Brezza, Hyundai Venue, Mahindra XUV300, Nissan Magnite, Kia Sonet, Tata Nexon, Toyota Urban Cruiser and recently launched Renault Kiger.

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