[samarthnarayan]

Originally Posted by RavenAvi

Slightly OT:- There is confirmation that they are looking at these segments as well.

Yes, I did come across this news earlier, thanks, however, let me just elaborate on my point in the following manner:

Broadly speaking, the SUV segment is divided into 4 categories:

1- Sub-Compact (Under 4m length)

2- Compact

3- Three Row Seats SUVs

4- Large SUVs

Now, this new Patented SUV design from Ford, is in the second (Compact SUV) segment[/b], where the market leaders are Hyundai Creta and Kia Seltos, and it is by far the most competitive segment of the four.

So much so, the VW Taigun, Skoda Kushaq, Jeep etc are all struggling.

Now, if Ford is targeting this segment, its a really tough one, and I for one, would hope that they instead target the [b]first segment (Sub-Compact), where Ecosport was an established player, and frankly it can take on the market leader Tata Nexon, because the old Ecosport is a superior product in my opinion.

In addition, Ford should leverage its existing customer and brand base, where the market was already in love with the Ecosport product. Please note, that the Ecosport was selling fine even when Ford decided to exit in 2021. It was the small cars and sedans etc which Ford was losing badly in.

Lastly, in my opinion, Ford should also target the third segment (3 Rows Seating SUV) where the Mahindra XUV700 and Toyota Innova/Hycross are the market leaders, and there is no sporting (fun to drive) option in this segment. And Ford should bring the Explorer to the Indian Markets.

As for the fourth (Large SUV segment), Ford has the Everest / Endeavour, and just needs to make up its mind and commit to the Indian market, that product will be a winner.

In Summary, I am hoping that Ford adopts a segment wise strategy for India

1- Sub-Compact (Under 4m length) - Ecosport to take on Nexon, huge existing and loyal customer base.

2- Compact -- New Patented Car to take on Creta, Seltos

3- Three Row Seats SUVs -- Bring Explorer to take on XUV700, Hycross

4- Large SUVs -- Everest / Endeavour

Unfortunately, Ford is not (so far) on the same page as my views

So lets hope they are listening to their customer base.

[DicKy]

Originally Posted by samarthnarayan

And Ford should bring the Explorer to the Indian Markets.

3- Three Row Seats SUVs -- Bring Explorer to take on XUV700, Hycross

As much as I like the present Explorer, can't expect it to come to India. It is exclusively LHD and the only 'Explorer' with RHD is the VW ID based BEV sold in Europe.

Even if Ford doesn't come to India, I just pray that they don't plonk the Chinese market Fords in the Indian market.

[samarthnarayan]

Originally Posted by DicKy

As much as I like the present Explorer, can't expect it to come to India. It is exclusively LHD and the only 'Explorer' with RHD is the VW ID based BEV sold in Europe.

Yeah, all in good time. That is what I would like to add and hope to happen.

Also Importantly:
Surely someone at Ford Global must be taking a Macro-level view of the Global order, wherein:

1. India has a huge population
2. Fastest Growing Economy
3. Customers love SUVs
4. Ford still has a name in the market, thanks to Ecosport and Endeavour.

and Lastly:

5. Ford should consider India a primary "Design and Engineering" destination, i.e., Make in India for Indians and Export to other markets. This attitude of aligning the Indian market to tiny foreign markets is what failed Ford in the first place.

They need to give India and Indians the huge respect they deserve in the market. Customise and build according to Indian wants. That's the bitter truth, and I hope folks at Ford are realising the new reality.

If not, I won't be surprised if they fail again.

[DicKy]

Originally Posted by samarthnarayan

They need to give India and Indians, the huge market respect that they deserve. Customise and Build according to Indian wants. That's the bitter truth, and I hope folks at Ford, are realising the new reality.
.

The last time they customised and build for Indians (2nd gen Figo and Aspire) they fell flat on their face. They lost their trademark build quality/handling, while also not being able to provide the features that mainstream market needed.

But I agree with you that they should start treating the Indian market with respect to its size, beginnning with launching a new gen Ecosport with all the engine/transmission options bang against the Nexon.

[samarthnarayan]

Originally Posted by DicKy

The last time they customised and build for Indians (2nd gen Figo and Aspire) they fell flat on their face. They lost their trademark build quality/handling, while also not being able to provide the features that mainstream market needed.

Yeah agree, but Look man, the small car market is a totally different kettle of fish.

That's where Maruti is the king. And for good reason.

You can't be a "please all" kind of car manufacturer.
For example: Maruti struggles in every other segment. But it doesn't drop its core strengths and game play, and has nearly 50% of the market share.

So Ford also needs to just focus on its earlier strengths (Build quality, driving dynamics and bang for bucks) and add a bit of tech and features to its interiors, that's it.

Lastly, When I said customise for Indians, it was in reference to your LH specification for the Explorer. And just doing the math, the percentage of Indians who own cars currently is in single digits. Every manufacturer, should have an India strategy, knowing fully well, that this market is going only up! Especially the SUVs.

[blueather]

Guys, guys, Ford has ended the production of Ecosport.

Their smallest crossover right now is Puma which is exclusively sold in Europe as far as I know.

So we're not getting any small cars. Ford doesn't want to manufacture smalls cars and sedans.

I think China is the only country where they're offering a sedan (Mondeo).

[samarthnarayan]

Originally Posted by blueather

Guys, guys, Ford has ended the production of Ecosport.
Their smallest crossover right now is Puma which is exclusively sold in Europe as far as I know.
So we're not getting any small cars. Ford doesn't want to manufacture smalls cars and sedans.
I think China is the only country where they're offering a sedan (Mondeo).

Yes, you are right, and exactly my point earlier.

That Ford's current mindset is "What do I have Globally that I can also sell in India".

If instead Ford's mindset should be "What do Indians, the biggest population with the fastest growing economy in the world, want and how I can Design and Engineer as per their needs".

And if that answer is reproducing the Ecosport, then Ford should do that.

But yeah, they wont, I agree with you on that.

MOD NOTE : - Please do not use BOLD fonts unless absolutely necessary.

[Doge]

Originally Posted by samarthnarayan

Yeah, all in good time. That is what I would like to add and hope to happen.

Also Importantly:
Surely someone at Ford Global must be taking a Macro-level view of the Global order, wherein:

1. India has a huge population
2. Fastest Growing Economy
3. Customers love SUVs
4. Ford still has a name in the market, thanks to Ecosport and Endeavour.

and Lastly:

5. Ford should consider India a primary "Design and Engineering" destination, i.e., Make in India for Indians and Export to other markets. This attitude of aligning the Indian market to tiny foreign markets is what failed Ford in the first place.

They need to give India and Indians the huge respect they deserve in the market. Customise and build according to Indian wants. That's the bitter truth, and I hope folks at Ford are realising the new reality.

If not, I won't be surprised if they fail again.

I don't agree with Ford ignoring Indian customers when designing their cars.

The ecosport was only successful here in India because it was designed for our market and they nailed it IMO. In the west the ecosport was considered subpar and weirdly compromised, because they don't have the sub 4 rule and the size gave it no pricing advantage.

The Figo twins were also designed with India in mind though they were quite underwhelming, maybe they made them too Indian.

As a Ford customer I feel they did almost everything they could:

In the mid 2000s Ford had a reputation for expensive spares and maintenance and weak AC. They fixed all of that with the first Figo.

Then they fixed their ASS, in my experience it was the best i experienced out of all mass market brands like Maruti, toyota etc

I hope people realise how difficult it is to fix ASS experience, Skoda, Tata, VW etc are still struggling here to this day.

They then launched the ecosport, a revolutionary car and created the sub 4 crossover segment. And the car was super competitive. Just recently I drove my cousins new Venue and I couldn't find many reasons to consider it over my 10 year old ecosport apart from boot space.

What they did miss out on was the Creta size segment. But I still feel Ford's efforts here vere commendable and I would've bought another ecosport without a second thought if it was still around. The Endeavour too still feels a segment above the Fortuner minus the engine.

There was only one option if one wanted a solid, fun to drive yet reliable car with great ASS under 20L, that was the ecosport. With it gone, at least for me and a few other people I know, there is a big gap in the market. Nexon and other Tatas would be perfect but man they are riddled with issues.

I do miss Ford dearly and can't blame them for exiting the market if mediocre cars like the brezza outsould them.

[abaliga]

Honestly speaking, I am tired of these rumors, Ford is playing the hype around their return too much!

- Despite the Ford fan base and their service commitment post exit, they will have a tough time convincing customers that they are here to stay.

- Their exit has lead to lot of disgruntled customers including myself, all Ford cars on the road lost value overnight.

- I was getting an offer of around 7.5-8 lakh for a Titanium plus Diesel Ecosport with only 25k on the odometer, this is when a similar Brezza/Venue could fetch 10-11 lakhs easily, luckily I found a Ford fan who wanted an Ecosport and paid a price that was fair (though no where close to what a Maruti/Hyundai would fetch)

- Ford should now reveal their plans with an official announcement with details on their product lineup and sales network if they are serious this time around.

[samarthnarayan]

Originally Posted by Doge

I don't agree with Ford ignoring Indian customers when designing their cars.

My statement was in the context of the future, w.r.t the rumors surrounding Ford's possible return to India, and the reported lineup of Everest, Ranger and Mustang. The point was that they should cater to the Indian audience demands, which are highest in the 10-20L zone.

Request you to please read the thread for my accurate point of view.

As for the past, in short, Ford simply lost the entire sedan and hatchback space (Figo, Fiesta, Aspire etc) as new entrants catered to that segments primary needs.

Ford, to their credit, really tried the small car space in the Indian Market, but the reality is that the customers in that segment are more suited to Maruti and Hyundai cars. And for Good Reason.

The Ford Ecosport was doing okay even when the exit decision was taken. Even today, it has become no.1 in the second hand car market in various parts of India.

In Hindsight, Ford simply had to cut its sedan and small car lineup, and bring in a higher version of Ecosport and another larger compact SUV, along with the Endeavour, and they would have been okay in India, as the sales numbers of Nexon - Creta - Seltos - Fortunner show that these segments have grown like mad in last 2-3 years.

In fact, Creta is the second most selling car in India! Imagine, of all the talk of small cars, a Compact SUV, not cheap, outshining even the mighty Maruti cars, all of them.

This fact just shows how Indians love thier SUVs and the aspirational class is moving towards them.

So my point is, that Ford needs to look at what the Indian customers are wanting, and the answer is straight up in the sales figures.

[venukrithish]

Originally Posted by darkgamer

If Ford wants to come back to India, their EVs are a good option if they take the PLI scheme for 15% import duties, or go hard on local manufacturing and bring back the Ecosport.

My dad still has his 2017 Diesel Ecosport and honestly he still doesn’t want to upgrade. Just soup up the looks and interiors and it’ll be unbeatable.

Relaunching the ecosport wouldn't do much for the brand. They'll need fresh products with high localisation.

[samarthnarayan]

Originally Posted by venukrithish

Relaunching the ecosport wouldn't do much for the brand. They'll need fresh products with high localisation.

From my personal experience, almost 99% of current or previous Ecosport owners that i know of, are wanting to buy that car again if relaunched.

That includes a 70 year old uncle of mine, who is a motoring enthusiast and he still has his 1st gen Ecoboost Engine Ecosport, which he just loves and doesnt want to sell it till its 15 year validity.

Ecosport is a brand, and has its following. Now its upto Ford to understand that these are easy sales that they can immediately generate on return. in my opinion ofcourse :

[blueather]

Originally Posted by Doge

I do miss Ford dearly and can't blame them for exiting the market if mediocre cars like the brezza outsould them.

What's exactly mediocre about Brezza? It's a trouble free, fuel efficient and simple car with an understated boxy design. No funky elements at all. What more does a middle class family want? Has enough ground clearance.

decent seating comfort,steering is light and good all around visibility.

Let's not blame Brezza for Ford's failure but Ford's outdated line up in India. If anyone checked out Figo, Tiago and i10 he'd certainly prefer the latter two especially Tiago. And likewise people preferred Dzire, Amaze, Aura and Tigor over outdated Aspire.

I know many people talk about handling, dynamics, accurate steering yada yada but other than a very very small percentage of enthusiasts, majority of car buyers do not care at all about those things. People want a trouble free car with decent features and good fuel efficiency in this segment. That's why Brezza and Nexon are killing it.

[BlackBeard]

IMO Ford product line in India has been a mixed bag in terms of sales.

The Escort, Endeavour were decent
The Mondeo, fiesta global were flops
The Ikon, fiesta classic , figo old & new, eco sport were hits

Having owned a ford fiesta classic for 8 years and almost bought a figo 1.5 Ti-VCT I will buy another Ford any day if the price suits my pocket!

Their vehicles are safe, reliable & reasonable to maintain.

However a CBU vehicle will be in a different price bracket due to steep import duties levied and I am sure there will still be buyers despite this. After Sales service might be an issue though.

[neerajku]

The only place where the last Ford endeavour sold well was on Team BHP walls with many dissing fortuner and singing paeans to it.
If it is the near same car and near same prices, they may win the critics award on Team BHP but will be a dud like before.