Ford EcoSport to get Mahindra S201 compact SUV’s petrol engine

The next-generation Ford EcoSport, due in a couple of years from now, will sport a Mahindra engine. Specifically, the turbocharged petrol motor that the upcoming Mahindra S201 code-named SUV will sport, will be borrowed by the next-gen EcoSport. Here are more details.

Pawan Goenka, the Managing Director of Mahindra & Mahindra said,

The S201 will have both petrol and diesel engine options. The petrol engine of S201 will also be shared with the Ecosport made by Ford. Both engines will be BS-VI compliant.

The new 1.2 liter turbocharged petrol engine that the Mahindra S201 will use is said to be a powerful motor, putting out up to 140 Bhp of peak power. What this also means is that the new Mahindra engine will be a perfect replacement for the 1 liter-3 cylinder EcoBoost turbocharged petrol engine that’s currently on offer in the S trim of the Ford EcoSport. Notably, Bharat Stage 6 emission norms will kick in from April 2020, and Ford has no plans to make the EcoBoost motor compliant with the new norms. Instead, the American automaker will offer the 1.2 liter turbocharged motor sourced from Mahindra in the next-gen EcoSport.

It remains to be seen if the new diesel engine that the Mahindra S201 sports will also be borrowed by Ford for the next-gen EcoSport. We say this considering the fact that the 1.5 liter TDCI diesel that the EcoSport currently uses is an old school engine with an 8 valve-SOHC design. Making it Bharat Stage 6 compliant will need extensive re-engineering, and it could be cheaper for Ford to simply use the newly developed 1.5 liter-4 cylinder diesel motor that Mahindra will soon offer on the S201 compact SUV. Notably, this engine is already offered on the Marazzo MPV, in which it makes 120 Bhp-300 Nm.

Mahindra is already working on making this engine Bharat Stage 6 compliant. Don’t be surprised if Ford offers the same engine in the next-gen EcoSport as well. The current EcoSport is also offered with a newly developed 1.5 liter-3 cylinder Dragon petrol engine, which is naturally aspirated. This motor makes 125 Bhp-150 Nm, and is expected to be carried over to the new model considering that it was introduced just a year ago.

Mahindra and Ford are in a partnership in India. The partnership will involve multiple areas – from electric cars to engine and platform sharing. Ford and Mahindra are jointly working on two new SUVs that will be badged Ford and sold in India. While one SUV will sit in the EcoSport territory, the other will be larger, and will rub shoulders with the Jeep Compass. This partnership will also see Ford offering Mahindra the Ka (Figo) platform for electrification.

Via MoneyControl