There has been a sudden boom in the Sports Utility Vehicle (SUV) market of India with every major automobile company coming with its variant of the same. The market was initially started off by Mahindra & Mahindra with Scorpio that received positive response from the customers. However, the actual craze started when Renault introduced Duster in the domestic market at an affordable price tag. The SUV gave everything that a buyer requires, like price, performance, features and appealing exteriors. It enjoyed success for a long time but then Ford came up with EcoSport that became its toughest contender. Major companies that compete with each other in the SUV segment are Renault, Ford and Mahindra & Mahindra that share a fair per cent of consumers.
The home grown automobile multinational company, Mahindra & Mahindra established itself in 1945 and since then has been serving this sector with the manufacturing of heavy vehicles, four wheelers and two wheelers. On the other hand, Ford EcoSport has been performing exceptionally well owing to its aggressive pricing and sporty looks. This model from the American auto maker squares off against the likes of Mahindra Quanto, which can be considered as the chopped off model of Xylo.
On the exterior front, Quanto acquires smaller dimensions that help it avail tax benefits. It is totally inspired from Xylo because of its toothed radiator grille, wide front windshield design, raised headlamps and appealing fog lamps. However, the EcoSport has a huge front with broad multi layered trapezoidal grille and sleek headlights on top. It has a close resemblance with the Fiesta with overall exteriors featuring an international appeal. The interiors of Quanto are enhanced from those used in Xylo, though the fit and finish remain intact. Quanto gets a simple instrumental panel with speedometer and tachometer that displays the trip meter and engine temperature. Somehow, Ford EcoSport has a more stylish instrumental panel with clearer digits.
With EcoSport, Ford has introduced the smallest engine in its class, EcoBoost, which generates a maximum power of 123.3 bhp and torque of up to 170 Nm. The 1.5-litre TiVCT 4-cylinder petrol engine of EcoSport delivers a power output of 110.5 bhp at 6300 rpm and a peak torque of 140 Nm at 4400 rpm. The 1.5-litre TDCi intercooled turbocharged diesel motor produces a peak power of 89.8 bhp at 3750 rpm with torque of 204 Nm between 2000 to 2750 rpm. On the other hand, Mahindra Quanto gets a compact 1.5-litre, 3-cylinder mCR100 engine, which is equipped with a 5 -speed manual transmission. It churns out a maximum power output of 100 bhp at 3750 rpm along with a highest torque of 240 Nm at fairly low 1600-2800 rpm.
Ford EcoSport comes with a feature of SYNC as per which control of different entertainment as well as mobile options via voice commands can be worked out. It can be operated through controls mounted on the steering also. The diesel EcoSport Ambiente is priced at Rs. 7.93 lakh and the Trend variant is offered for Rs. 9.01 lakh. Whereas the Quanto’s top variants are priced at Rs. 8.06 lakh and 8.64 lakh. It must be noted although Ford EcoSport comes packed with an array of features, automatic transmission, more engine options and sporty looks; Quanto definitely plays in excellent spirit with its aggressive pricing scheme.
