comp@ddict
Skilled
My family is considering getting the car. What are your opinions?
Car & Bike Ford EcoSport... How is it?
- Thread starter comp@ddict
- Start date
On paper, it is a terrific proposition.
But is it the right car for you? That mate can only be decided once you take a drive with it and then drive the competitors to see if it is to your taste,
But is it the right car for you? That mate can only be decided once you take a drive with it and then drive the competitors to see if it is to your taste,
Exactly. As an example, the trouble i find (partly due to my 6'3 height) is that with the swooping/cab forward designs, the rake of the windshield in conjunction with the flowing design to the front invariably results in the A-pillar obstructing my view to a degree that I'm not comfortable with. What that means is, for me, it kind of annoyingly disturbs my POV and field clarity resulting in a bit of blind spot.. from the design of the Ecosport and the style of it's A-pillar... it would be one area i would surely keep in mind if i were looking to buy it.
Likewise there are many other things you notice that don't often get covered in depth in all reviews. These are softer aspects that one notices based on one's experiences and preferences only when discovered in person.
In the Ecosports case, I've not seen many reviews address the issue with the broad and thick swooping A-pillar considering it has immense fallouts on safety and field of view obstructions. Sometimes i feel of late (especially with the more high profile Indian Automotive Journalists/Publications) that their reviews are more like paid advertisements.. each car seems to have more +ves emphasized than significant -ve's.
However some reviewers have noticed it...
http://autotechreview.com/car-reviews/item/697-ford-ecosport-review-|-first-drive-impression.html
http://www.vicky.in/slideshow/ford-ecosport-review/
Tinbed
Disciple
I would suggest you to test drive it yourself. As mach9 suggested, when do you so, you make a picture of yourself owning it. You could easily gauge if you family would fit in fine. Would it work out for your weekend shopping/getaway trips etc. If your married, would you wify like it ( it does matter).
The price is just one factor out of many. Once you have driven it and considered its rivals, price-wise, like Swift, Dzire etc you can make an educated decision.
The price is just one factor out of many. Once you have driven it and considered its rivals, price-wise, like Swift, Dzire etc you can make an educated decision.
Superbad
Skilled
it should be taken as a hatchback on stilts.
thinking it as an SUV with loads of space will be a mistake.
also seating is good for 4 persons, 5th is a squeeze because of lack of shoulder room.
the top of the line Ecoboost is available only for the top end, at the base variant is an engine which does duty in the new fiesta.
the auto variants is too not available for the ecoboost.
just putting in perspective , if one wants to compare the ecoboost variant, compare the polo 1.2TSi along with it for a realistic comparo.
if one is thinking of it as a sedan, drive a t-jet first to check out what one is missing.
thinking it as an SUV with loads of space will be a mistake.
also seating is good for 4 persons, 5th is a squeeze because of lack of shoulder room.
the top of the line Ecoboost is available only for the top end, at the base variant is an engine which does duty in the new fiesta.
the auto variants is too not available for the ecoboost.
just putting in perspective , if one wants to compare the ecoboost variant, compare the polo 1.2TSi along with it for a realistic comparo.
if one is thinking of it as a sedan, drive a t-jet first to check out what one is missing.
Add 2013 to that as well. Well, I just came back from a test drive. Was too short though because of the rush. The ecoboost does pull quite cleanly when in the right gear. I could reach 70 in 2nd gear quite easily. The NVH is brilliant as expected and the AC is a chiller. The thick A pillar is really bad and the turn indicator stalks on the wrong side is quite irritating. I will need to give it a better "dekko" soon before finalizing.
One thing is for sure though - the Ecosport is a crowd puller and Ford definitely has got it right this time. This has the potential to knock the socks off competition and when I say competition I mean Swifts and Dzires as well. Would really be interested to look at the sales volumes in the coming months.
comp@ddict
Skilled
Could anybody elaborate on the "A pillar being thick" issue?
I face a similar problem with my beat, but i do not think it's a deal breaker. Novice drivers may find it a bit odd.
Just use the old rule of looking where you are going before you go there.
comp@ddict
Skilled
I'll definitely test drive the car soon. Really looking forward to it.
For those of you who want to know what the example of the A-pillar is about... here are a few pics
1.
This image has the A-pillars circled and indicates how it affects a drivers FOV/POV which is in turn also affected by one's height and therefore the line of sight from the normal driving position. This is also why seat height adjustment is an important feature for some in a car. On the flipside, it also shows you how tall drivers are affected by swooping cab-forward designs in todays cars. Due to the rake and the swoop, the roof - pillar flow can and does come quite close to a tall drivers head. If the pillar happens to be broad too.. the blind spot created can be quite a bother for some tall people.
2.
This is about the closest i feel it comes to the height/POV position for most people, except it's centered... if the image was at the same height but slightly to the left, it would illustrate perfectly the POV for a regular driver and the fact that you CANNOT seem to see the front of the vehicle at all. For people who've come up through the ages, they will instantly notice this.
3.
Side profile, though possibly not to scale.. illustrates perfectly the shallow rake of the windshield to the front and the POV angles involved at an estimated height for an average driver. (Actually i feel the drivers position should be slightly forward and a tad lower!!) The area in Green gives an idea of the thickness of the A-pillar and how it needs to be factored in by the driver when adjusting and compensating for it in his driving style.
**disclaimer, all images used are from a search in Google and all copyrights belong to the original creators of these images with all credit and thanks to them. Just in case
1.
This image has the A-pillars circled and indicates how it affects a drivers FOV/POV which is in turn also affected by one's height and therefore the line of sight from the normal driving position. This is also why seat height adjustment is an important feature for some in a car. On the flipside, it also shows you how tall drivers are affected by swooping cab-forward designs in todays cars. Due to the rake and the swoop, the roof - pillar flow can and does come quite close to a tall drivers head. If the pillar happens to be broad too.. the blind spot created can be quite a bother for some tall people.
2.
This is about the closest i feel it comes to the height/POV position for most people, except it's centered... if the image was at the same height but slightly to the left, it would illustrate perfectly the POV for a regular driver and the fact that you CANNOT seem to see the front of the vehicle at all. For people who've come up through the ages, they will instantly notice this.
3.
Side profile, though possibly not to scale.. illustrates perfectly the shallow rake of the windshield to the front and the POV angles involved at an estimated height for an average driver. (Actually i feel the drivers position should be slightly forward and a tad lower!!) The area in Green gives an idea of the thickness of the A-pillar and how it needs to be factored in by the driver when adjusting and compensating for it in his driving style.
**disclaimer, all images used are from a search in Google and all copyrights belong to the original creators of these images with all credit and thanks to them. Just in case
comp@ddict
Skilled
So is it bad enough for an experienced driver to avoid this?
well it's certainly not a make or break feature .. I don't think so, but for me, as i said, given my height and my general dislike for swoopy windshields that come too close to my head coupled with low rooflines.. it would be a significant put off.
It depends on peoples tastes and also of course on their driving style and experience/skill level. For me, I currently drive a 2000 Honda City Type II, a low car, but with excellent ergonomics, handling, refinement and of course, a sweet sweet hydraulic power steering that still gives you the all important feel of the road! beautifully weighted. So what i also love about the car is that the design, albeit old school, was still sleek .. so the glass area and the visibility is simply awesome without being extremely raked as todays design language follows. I also tend to drive a lot on the "feel" which means i rely a lot more on my judgement and peripheral alertness than actual visual confirmation of clearances. Given my height, while my knees tend to bend, the space is enough with the seat taken a couple of notches back but not all the way and still the A-pillar does not intrude or cause any issues, nor does the 2-half finger space to the roof when seated.
Yet when i step into my other family car which is the Honda ZX, i practically hate the swoop coming right across my head approx 45 degress from center swooping down across my line of sight. Why? Because the ZX has the cab-forward design. One can easily tell this by the amount the firewall and steering bay comes into the cabin below the lower sill of the windshield. The swoop and A pillar comes quite annoyingly past my head and POV at the 45 deg angle
So how does all this relate to driving style and skill? Well people have different driving styles... some rely on judgement and peripheral confidence much more while some prefer to drive a much more pragmatic field all clear method. Ironically, an intruding thick A-pillar is an issue for both these styles, simply because the blind spot obstructs or causes a judgement inclined driver to "Second guess" "Double check" much more than he would otherwise. Similarly for those who are more visually all clear pragmatic drivers will also take a couple of seconds longer working around the obstructive area of the pillar and calculating turns etc accordingly.
At slow speeds usually this isn't a problem, but as speeds increase the reaction times required to respond to sudden changes drastically reduces, this is where it becomes a much greater concern to have a thick A pillar obstructing your need for a quick glance to verify you're not being blindsided by someone approaching or overtaking
you
I just think that things that directly affect what you'll be doing most in a car -- that is driving it! -- should be given much more thought and weightage than for other lesser important criteria. I've known people who've bought cars thinking they'd adapt to it... but some eventually never get around to doing it and have sold their cars later. So these things are best thought out in a test drive --- and preferably not one where the sales guy accompanies you and constantly blabbers to you about features and schemes etc making the sales pitch while you drive -- because that takes your mind away from building a comprehensive "experience" snapshot in your head. Ask him to shut up politely and just drive .. if possible in a mix of conditions... low speed gear to gear traffic... and a short medium/high speed run. In fact... DEFINITELY a High speed run... why this too??? Because all electronic power steering these days are notorious for their vague feedback at higher speeds if not a deadpan feel even at low/medium speeds. Since they are often dynamically weighted/tuned to respond to speed levels... you might find that what feels great in the city at low and medium speeds... feels downright scary at high speeds. Either because the steering is mushy and vague with too much cutout... or because it stiffens up to an extent that it over enhances driver input resulting in a cat-on-hot-tin-roof reactions!
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the ikon's 1.6 was one frizzy engine. what it made up for in driving fun and off the marks performance, it lost in fuel efficiency for sure. Mechanically though i don't recall it being heavy to maintain? Ford's early days for parts were expensive though, as were their crappy after market availability and half hearted service quality. Though i still believe NOTHING beats Honda's insane part prices aftermarket thanks to their vice like grip on the market.
comp@ddict
Skilled
Might get to test drive it today. Excited
You would usually have problems while taking a 90 degree turn, with low visibility.
You can get used to it. You would have to be careful though. If you have no other issues then that shouldn't be an issue, once u get used to it.