Ford may launch EcoSport SUV at Rs 6.2 lakh, upset others’ math

ford's Fiesta-based compact SUV 'EcoSport', the second most important car launch this year in India after the Honda Amaze, is expected to come with a cracker of a starting price of around Rs 6.2 lakh (petrol) and Rs 7.2 lakh (diesel), industry sources and company dealers told FE. The car will be launched this Wednesday with a 1.5-litre petrol variant as the base model, followed by a 1.5-litre diesel variant and another premium petrol variant sporting the 1-litre turbocharged Ecoboost engine.

With this aggressive pricing, the EcoSport's target would be customers of entry sedans such as the Maruti Suzuki Dzire and the Honda Amaze, and not the Renault Duster as was earlier believed. Ford would also aim to not repeat earlier pricing mistakes — while the Figo did well after its launch in 2010, the new Fiesta's high starting pricing of R8.23 lakh in 2011 meant volumes never really took off. Instead, the EcoSport will aim for a sweet spot between premium hatchbacks/entry sedans and compact SUVs.

"It's quite a bit smaller than the Duster and really feels like a bigger hatchback with better road presence and all-round view. So pricing has to reflect that. The only worry is that the market is not responding very well, so whether this will help Ford pick up overall volumes is the question," an industry executive said.

Added a Ford dealer, "We are taking bookings for the EcoSport on a deposit of R50,000, which is refundable in a month. We expect pricing to start around R6.5 lakh for the petrol, with the diesel starting R1 lakh higher."

With around $2 billion worth of investments committed to India and a second plant in Gujarat expected to start next year (the first plant is near Chennai), the EcoSport is critical to success of Ford's India gameplan. This importance is underlined by the multiple visits paid by Ford's global president and CEO, Alan Mulally, for a single model — he came in January last year to unveil the EcoSport just before the Delhi Auto Expo, coming again this month to inaugurate nationwide deliveries of the EcoSport from Chennai. Globally, the EcoSport will be made at five plants, but Chennai will be responsible for exports to Europe as well.