Ford unveils all-new EcoSport at Delhi Auto Expo 2011

NEW DELHI, INDIA – It was two years ago when Ford Motor Company first revealed plans to launch eight new global products to the ASEAN market by mid-decade. In 2010, the first phase of that promise came with the worldwide unveiling of the all-new Ford Focus. Last year, that was followed up with the regional unveiling of the all-new Ford Ranger (which will be available in local Ford showrooms this year). Last week, in New Delhi, India, select members of the Philippine motoring media were given a glimpse of the third part of that promise. It came in the form of a vehicle not previously made available in the region – the all-new Ford EcoSport.

Created as the latest One Ford global product, Ford Motor Company sees the EcoSport as a key model in expanding Ford’s presence in major worldwide growth markets, including ASEAN. Originally developed in South America, the EcoSport has been a market phenomenon since it was launched in South America in 2003 as the region’s first affordable SUV, selling 750,000 vehicles in nine years. With the arrival of its latest iteration in the ASEAN region, Ford Motor Company is confident that the EcoSport will create for itself an all-new segment and woo in a new set of Ford owners.

To stress the importance of the vehicle in the region, Ford Motor Company’s top brass, including president and CEO Alan Mullaly, were on hand to unveil the vehicle. “The all-new Ford EcoSport reflects our commitment to serve our customers with the cars and trucks they truly want and value,” said Mulally in a press statement. Later, in an exclusive closed-door Q&A session with the Philippine media contingent, he went on to stress further, “All around the world, more and more, people are expecting the best from their cars. They want the best technology, the best fuel economy, the best safety features and the best quality. With the all-new EcoSport, we can confidently say that we’re giving all that to them. It is one product in an entire family of best in class vehicles.”

What exactly is the Ford EcoSport, anyway? And what makes everyone who works at Ford so sure that it will hit its intended target market right smack in the solar plexus? To answer those questions, we’ll have to fill you in on the kind of questions we threw at our hosts while on coverage. We asked, for example, if the EcoSport shares its basic platform with any of the Ford vehicles we are already familiar with. The answer we got… the Ford Fiesta. We also asked which of the vehicles being sold locally could be considered as its “competitors”. The answer we got… none. “The moment you look at what the competition has to offer and how you can compete with that, you try to create your version of a competitor’s product. That was not how this particular vehicle was developed,” clarified J Mays, group vice president of Global Design and Chief Creative Officer at Ford Motor Company, over dinner.

What we know from what we’ve seen and heard over the many presentations and discussions we’ve had with the Ford executives both globally and from within the ASEAN region is that we have not seen anything like the Ford EcoSport in these shores before. Being based on the Fiesta, you can imagine its more diminutive dimensions when compared to the average “compact SUV” that we know of. But also keeping that in mind, you can imagine it being offered with absolutely nothing but the best that technology has to offer (the Fiesta is the first car in its class to offer voice command, for example, it is a real possibility that the EcoSport comes with the power-enhancing, fuel-maximizing Ecoboost technology once it hits our shores).

Though none of the journalists who were at the global unveiling were able to get behind the wheel of the all-new EcoSport, we were pretty much in unison in expressing our approval of the vehicle’s basic design. Its chic, contemporary shape marries the modern ideas of refinement and a sense of adventure quite handsomely. It is casual and sporty all at once. It’s got a commanding view of the road, but is not overbearing in any way. And while the bright orange shade it came in might work wonders for it to standout in an auto show where thousands of prying eyes are expected to view it, once it is previewed in more traditional shades, we’re sure it will exude an air of classic timelessness, the kind that will make it a vehicle to be remembered – wherever in the world one might be.

As we had stated earlier, the Ford EcoSport will eventually make it to Philippine shores. Just don’t expect the vehicle to be available very soon. And though we cannot reveal Ford’s exact timelines, this much we can say… If you thought that the availability of the new Ford Explorer at its current price point was empowering to the Filipino buyer, you’d better be ready to get your socks blown off once the Ford EcoSport debuts in our shores. Given the (very realistic) targets that the regional Ford executives kept on discussing, we’d say that the confidence that Ford has in this all-new vehicle isn’t just warranted, it’s necessary.