Ford EcoSport PowerShift Automatic review, test drive

Automatic gearbox equipped cars are an ideal way to take on the dense traffic we encounter here in India. With no clutch and no gearlever, your left hand and left leg get much needed rest. Automatics, however, haven’t really caught on here. This is because you normally face a double penalty with automatics -- they are both more expensive and less fuel efficient. To top it off, there is also a drop in real world performance. So, automatics are normally looked at but generally avoided.    

This is where the EcoSport A/T steps in. The big news is that with this car, the first hurdle, that of a high price, is all but taken care of. The automatic transmission equipped EcoSport 1.5-litre petrol is priced at a relatively affordable Rs 8.45 lakh (ex-showroom, Delhi). Then, because a twin clutch automatic gearbox is used, efficiency and power aren’t too badly affected either. So, on paper, the EcoSport automatic is really quite attractive. But just how good is it?

First, the driving impressions. The EcoSport uses the same six-speed dual-clutch gearbox as the one found on the Ford Fiesta. While driving in the city in ‘D’ mode, the automatic gearbox upshifts early, maintaining a relatively low engine speed in a bid to improve fuel economy. A dab on the throttle gets it moving quite nicely, and when driven like this, it is quite adept at mixing it with other traffic. Ask for a bit more acceleration however and the engine’s lack of oomph in the mid-range comes through. The response is there when you press your foot down on the accelerator but it is not in line with what you expect to get back from the car. What makes matters worse is that the gearbox is sometimes reluctant to downshift and that further accentuates the problem.