When it comes to crossovers, the subcompact segment is where many automakers are heading for more than obvious reasons. Europe loves this segment, and so does the United States considering the 2018 Ford EcoSport is confirmed for this market. But in comparison to European models, the U.S.-spec EcoSport is manufactured in Chennai, India, not at Ford’s plant in Romania.
Production of the Euro-spec 2018 EcoSport kicked off today in Craiova, with the first production model rolling off the assembly line a couple of hours ago. Romania’s President and Prime Minister were invited, and surprisingly, the former accepted Ford’s offer to take the small crossover for a test drive. Local reporters asked Klaus Iohannis if he’d buy an EcoSport, but Mr. Iohannis replied that he needs to talk to his wife first and foremost. What a lad!
A facelift at heart, the 2018 EcoSport rides on the Ford global B-car platform that also underpins the Fiesta and B-Max. The latter was produced in Craiova before the EcoSport took over, and after five years of disappointing sales, it was discontinued like most other multi-purpose vehicles from recent memory.
The Edge-inspired front fascia hides the EcoBlue turbo diesel engine, which replaces the 1.5 TDCi Duratorq introduced back in 2012. Also new for the 2018 model year is the Intelligent All Wheel Drive system, which is loosely related to the one found in the Kuga (a.k.a Escape). Another newity comes in the guise of the ST-Line visual package, which makes the EcoSport look desirable-ish in the face of competing models such as the Renault Captur.
Offering both manual and the PowerShift automatic transmission, the Euro-spec EcoSport is available with an array of turbocharged engines. In addition to the 125-PS diesel mentioned beforehand, customers can opt for the 1.0-liter three-cylinder EcoBoost in no less than three tunes: 140 PS (138 horsepower), 125 PS (123 horsepower), and 100 PS (99 horsepower).
After a 1:43 scale model of a Ferrari 250 GTO sparked Mircea's interest for cars when he was a kid, an early internship at Top Gear sealed his career path. He's most interested in muscle cars and American trucks, but he takes a passing interest in quirky kei cars as well. Full profile
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