The thoroughly updated Ford EcoSport is out – and it’s certainly made an impression. It’s a model that appeals for its bold look, the redone cabin ups the comfort quotient and, as expected, the ride and handling are great. The new petrol engine (that’s available with the choice of manual and automatic gearboxes) is also rather nice, while the diesel continues to offer a pleasant experience. 

Which engine should I go for?
The petrol is the engine of choice for those whose primary usage is within the city. The petrol engine with the manual gearbox works well but buyers looking for greater convenience should seriously consider the well-executed new automatic. However, if long-distance driving is a priority, we’d recommend the diesel.

Read our review of all engine-gearbox combinations of the EcoSport here.

What are the trims on offer?
The new EcoSport comes in five trims, although not all engine-gearbox options are available in all trims. The petrol manual, for instance, is not available in the top-spec Titanium+ trim. The diesel variant is the only one available in all five.

The gap between the prices of the base trim and top-spec car is wide but if you take a closer look at the price jumps between successive trims, you realize that the climb up is, indeed, sensible.

Having so many options in terms of engine-gearbox combinations and trims can be, we are sure, confounding for potential buyers. To help out, we’ve taken a magnifying glass to all trims on offer to ferret out the trims that offer the best value for your money.

First up, let’s take a look at the various trims available and what they entail:

Which version should I buy?

Once you’ve picked your engine-gearbox combination, it’s time to choose the best trim:

1. Petrol manual (offered in Ambiente, Trend and Titanium trim):

The Ambiente base trim commendably comes with dual airbags and ABS with EBD as standard and (refreshingly) a music system with Bluetooth connectivity is also a standard. For those on a tight budget, the Ambiente that gets the modern day essentials does make sense.

The Trend trim adds a host of creature comforts, thus giving you the best value for your money as far as the petrol manual EcoSport goes. We recommend stretching your budget to buy this over the base trim.

The Titanium trim is pricey – especially when you see it in light of a fully-loaded Nexon petrol – but it should be the pick in the case of the petrol manual EcoSport, if you are not limited by budget.

2. Petrol automatic (offered in Trend+ and Titanium+ trims):

The Trend+ trim gets you enough of the good stuff as well as safety kit such as ESP, traction control and hill-start assist. Apart from the missing alloy wheels, this trim does not feel particularly pared down, thus making it the value-for-money trim in the case of the petrol automatic EcoSport.

The petrol-automatic Titanium+ variant is the priciest in the entire EcoSport range, but it gets a whole host of safety and comfort features. This is also one of the rare cases, today, of an automatic variant being offered in the top-spec trim.

3. Diesel manual (offered in all five trims):

The diesel manual comes in all five trims – so you really are spoilt for choice, here. The base Ambiente trim has all the basics in place, and the Trend gets a few more creature comforts, but the pick of the litter here when looking at value is the Trend+. It costs Rs. 40,000 more than the Trend but as mentioned before, gets a host of creature comforts that encapsulate the needs and desires of most consumers, today. The Titanium trim here is expensive for what you get vis-à-vis similarly-priced variants of the Maruti VitaraBrezza and Tata Nexon but it is, admittedly, desirable. The Titanium+ is simply pricey by segment standards but the money does go far in getting you more features. The added safety kit alone – including six airbags and ESC – make this the version many wouldn’t mind spending big money on.