Ford Ecosport, gestures

I know who the lions are Gavino (Father Padrone, 1977)

“Is that your crocodile? He is bothering my panther »« No, he is not mine, but I know his owner. Wait» «It’s just that my panther is Aristotelian, you know? And I haven’t had time to level up yet. In addition, it is difficult for him to debate with cold-blooded animals, you know, the classic problem in these cases» «Calm down, I’ll take care of it. I’ve already spoken to my client.” The crocodile slaps its tail, splashing the panther in the water of a nearby stream. The panther jumps and roars something about the soul and the fullness of the human being while the crocodile disappears. «That has been ugly» «Yeah, it’s that he is Kantian and very aggressive. Don’t take it into account. His owner works in crypto »« Don’t tell me »the avatars look at each other« What do you do? » The panther has laid down on the jungle grass. It slowly disappears and they both find themselves in sun loungers on a paradisiacal beach with a turquoise blue sea. “I’m a lawyer. But I am AI» «What do you say, interesting. Is it true that it is more difficult for you to lie than for people?» “Yes” the lawyer’s avatar smiles knowingly. They both let out a cold digital laugh.

“A walk? I can only afford the beach for about twenty minutes. Actually seventeen» They both get up and walk. It quickly gets dark. «I wanted to be a musician» the IA lawyer suddenly blurts out «But I got into trouble and now I defend autonomous driving systems. And of course to alleged cryptocurrency scammers. That makes more money.” “I’ve read something on the subject” the sand makes sand noise under the virtual feet of the avatars while the sea makes the noise of the sea breaking against the beach. The sun has stopped in the sky to give a rosy color to the clouds. “I have to go. I have a case» «I suppose you won’t have to travel for that» «No, not really. It’s that I don’t like you. I don’t like sand either. «So it was true» «The what» «That it’s more difficult for AI to tell lies» «I told you that and you laughed» «But if you’re a lawyer…» the lawyer’s avatar shrugs his shoulders and disappears waving his hand. The beach remains for a few seconds until everything vanishes.

The utility concept is that of a vehicle with an affordable price and compact size that, as its name indicates, in its design and concept, utility prevails over other considerations. With the irruption of the SUV in the automotive market, the image of the utility has changed since these Sports Utility Vehicles (Sport Utility Vehicle) adopt the appearance of SUVs to provide more interior space and ease of access as well as greater load capacity. .

There are many compact SUV models that have taken over from utility vehicles of a lifetime and some by design and concept are a little more peculiar. This is the case of the Ford EcoSport, an SUV that has very particular design elements that make it stand out from the competition. It is a veteran model for what the market is since it has maintained the same design in its last update since 2018, but it plays a series of unique and interesting assets.

The first thing that catches the attention of the EcoSport is that despite its name, its design is not particularly sporty, even in the ST version that we have had the opportunity to test. The shapes of this model actually seem more oriented to the use of space on its platform of just over four meters to be faithful to the Utility part than to surrender to aerodynamics to lean towards the Sport aspect of this model from the American manufacturer.

The front part also sports a sober design with a black hexagonal as the only concession to some showiness. It is a tall nose with a design reminiscent of more muscular and robust SUVs with large headlights in proportion to the size of the car and also generously sized auxiliary lights. A lower air intake with trim, also in black plastic, completes the whole at the front.

sober design

On the side is where that Spartan design that we mentioned is most appreciated with lines that rise vertically at the front and also drop sharply at the rear, giving that image of a minivan rather than an SUV that is very particular to this model. On the back, the windows are tinted in this version. A spoiler has been placed on the part of the trunk that seeks to provide some sportiness to the appearance of the car rather than to improve aerodynamics.

In the back, what is most striking is that the tailgate covers practically the entire space, while the headlights are divided in two. In the lower part, a short bumper is complemented by the relief that does the same function on the trunk door itself. But the most surprising thing is the choice of its opening, since it is done on hinges placed vertically, imitating the trunks of Jeeps. A system that presents some problems from the practical point of view as we will see.

In this ST version, some aesthetic details are incorporated that are not too flashy but that add a little more appeal to the car’s design. On the one hand, the 17-inch wheels specific to this version with a five-element design and, on the other, black skirts for the lower part of the car, as well as a design of the bumpers that stands out more than in the rest of the versions of Ecosport that markets the brand.

Inside with news

Inside, the Ecosport is mainly sober, following the philosophy that permeates the rest of the design decisions for this model. In general, it is very reminiscent of the design of other compacts from the brand, such as the Fiesta, with materials of acceptable quality and a good layout of the controls and buttons that are always within easy reach and are intuitive to use. In this sense, more modern but less practical touch sensors have been dispensed with.

The placement of the infotainment screen is good as it protrudes from the top of the dashboard. It also has the SYNC3 system that allows connectivity with Android Auto and Apple Car Play as well as providing a very readable and intuitive screen. In the same way, an update of the interface design would be good for it, but the truth is that in terms of speed and efficiency of operation, you cannot put any buts on it.

As far as front room is concerned, this is very good even for people of a certain height, with enough adjustments for the seats and the steering wheel so that both the driver and the passenger are comfortable. The seats are comfortable but not too enveloping, more designed for highway routes than for curvy routes at a certain speed. The upholstery of this version of Ecosport has been enriched with the usual red stitching of the sports versions. We also find these seams on the steering wheel and other interior elements.

The rear seats are somewhat more sacrificed. First of all, the rear door is small and does not have an opening perpendicular to the car, so the hole to access the interior is not too large. The occupants of the rear seats do not have much legroom, although curiously there is no lack of headroom thanks to the space-oriented design that we discussed at the beginning of the test. For the rest they are comfortable seats and with a nice upholstery like the front ones.

a peculiar trunk

In the trunk section we find the aforementioned vertical opening. On the one hand, this type of access to the trunk leaves ample space to load packages that is not hindered by height. On the other hand, this type of door system limits the ability to introduce objects if we have parked the vehicle with its rear end near a wall or another vehicle. It is an original choice but one that we will have to take into account when assessing its versatility.

On the other hand, the trunk capacity is not too large. With its 334 liters it is not one of the most capable, although it does have practical solutions such as a tray that can be placed at two heights, lights and fastening elements. The rear seats can be folded down to increase the cargo volume up to 1,238 liters, although to achieve this you must first raise the base of the seats, it is not enough to fold down the backrests as in other models.

controlled agility

For the test drive, as always, we first look at the technical characteristics of the engine. In this case, we are dealing with a 1.0 three-cylinder engine that yields 125 horsepower and 170 Nm of maximum torque, a modest figure that is far from what the same manufacturer achieves with the same displacement engine in its micro hybrid version. . On the other hand, it is an engine widely used by the American manufacturer in its most compact models with a good balance between performance and consumption.

The Ecosport with this engine is somewhat noisy, especially when cold, with the characteristic sound of a three-cylinder that also, having a somewhat low torque figure, needs to rev up to move freely. In the city it has no problem moving with relative agility, although more clumsy than the Ford Fiesta, for example, which weighs about 100 kilos less and we tested with a much happier engine than this version of the American manufacturer’s model.

On the highway, it takes advantage of the six gears to be able to advance with a reasonable cruising speed without the engine going too revved up. Of course, we cannot ask for much in recoveries unless we resort to shorter gears, which can often happen if the car is loaded and/or we have to face hills on the road with a certain inclination. Playing with the change we will not have problems but consumption will increase and the reactions are not too immediate.

It is a car that, although it does not give sporty sensations, has shown itself to be very safe in curves at good speed with good reactions to maneuvers that are not entirely smooth. With regard to consumption, as we have pointed out, you have to make use of the change and rev the engine on many occasions and this, together with poorly optimized aerodynamics, means that you spend a little more than a similar vehicle on the road. In the city, it does maintain a fuel expense in accordance with its category.

conclusions

The Ford Ecosport is a peculiar proposal in a world where modern designs and SUV aesthetics with an aerodynamic conscience prevail. This model from the North American manufacturer has brought practicality to the fore in its design but has forgotten it when proposing a solution for opening the tailgate. A frankly original solution has been adopted, but in the end it offers few advantages and some drawbacks.

It is a car in which you travel very comfortably in the front seats and a little less in the rear, with a somewhat fair engine and mechanics but that behaves well in the city and a little less on the highway but that more than complies with its behavior on the road and transmits security in any circumstance of the trip. A somewhat large trunk, in addition to a traditional hatch as we have mentioned, would have been desirable to increase its practicality.