Ford India has launched its first BS VI-compliant model for our market – the EcoSport SUV, with prices starting from Rs 804,000 for the 1.5-litre petrol variant. The BS VI-ready Ford EcoSport 1.5-litre diesel is priced from Rs 854,000.

The Ford EcoSport BS VI petrol comes with a 1.5-litre, three-cylinder petrol engine good for 122hp and 149Nm of torque. This engine is mated to either a 5-speed manual or a 6-speed torque convertor automatic gearbox. A total of seven variants are available on the 1.5 petrol EcoSport. The company has discontinued the 1.0-litre EcoBoost petrol engine for our market. The BS VI EcoSport also gets a 1.5-litre diesel engine good for 100hp and 215Nm of torque. This engine is available with a single 5-speed manual gearbox. The diesel will be offered in a total of six variants, bringing the total petrol and diesel variants of the updated SUV to 13. The company has also announced that the BS VI EcoSport range comes with a standard three-year/1,00,000km warranty.

Key features of the updated EcoSport range include six airbags on higher variants. Depending on the variant, the SUV will get either an 8.0-inch touchscreen infotainment with the Ford SYNC 3 system (replete with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto), or a 9.0-inch multimedia system. Higher trims also get features like HID headlamps with daytime running lights, rain-sensing wipers and push-button start, amongst others.

While prices for most variants have increased by about Rs 13,000, prices for select variants like the 1.5 diesel Titanium are unchanged.

Key rivals of the Ford EcoSport in India include the soon-to-be launched Tata Nexon facelift, the Mahindra XUV300, Hyundai Venue and the Maruti Suzuki Vitara Brezza; the latter of which will see a facelift sometime next month, along with a 1.5-litre petrol engine. Additionally, the EcoSport will see competition from some of Kia and Renault's compact SUV offerings that will see a market entry later this year.

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