Move aside hatchbacks, your King has taken the throne.

Exterior Barely anything needs to be said about the Ecosport's exterior with the vehicle making a bold and futuristic statement with it's open-mouthed grille design, narrow headlights & aerodynamic architecture, along with the spare wheel bolted to the back door, is a guaranteed head turner. Be it the Mars Red or the Sea Gray, what we get is a design well thought off and implemented to give the Ecosport the attenting-grabbing stance of high end SUV.

Interior (Features, Space & Comfort) As far as the seating goes, I personally wasn't too fond of the material and design of the seat covers which are available for the ambiente, trend and titanium variants. The one that truly hits the spot is the leather with its red stitches which can be subed in for a fair amount. This plays well into the comfort factor as well. Parking your rear onto the leather seats felt extremly good.

In the features department, Ford has gone all out with it's Microsoft powered Sync taking the technology in the Ecosport by the reigns. Toss bluetooth, AUX, USB (even in the base variant), power windows, electronic side mirrors, rear wipers, central locking/keyless entry, push button ignition, climate control and a plethora of storage spots, you've got yourself early Christmas presents under the tree.

But I will testify as to the lack of shoulder space in the rear. 3 adults will be a squeeze but then again, this would be an issue mostly for regular car-poolers. For those XL-sized families who're looking for frequent drives with a packed car, why are you even considering this car? Move on to the XUV or Innova or even the Duster. This is a compact/urban SUV. Why buy a horse when you're in need of a carriage? Getting away from all that, the rear recliners provide a good angle on comfort for those long rides with the seats providing enough thigh support. Couple that with a small foot-bar below the passenger and driver seat, to rest your feet on, and you've got a happy passenger at the back.

Engine Performance, Fuel Economy and Gearbox Now, the Ecoboost lives up to it's reputation of being high on horses and pumped up on torque. But as they say, all good things come at a cost, and I don't essentially mean the extra space this will make in your wallet. Put it in the first gear, take off and you're good, it's the start, it's all good. Throw the gear to second and rev the pedal to cover that distance the car in front of you made and you're left wondering. Am I accelerating enough? Maybe not. So push it all the way down and you're still wondering what the hell- until you hit 2000rpms and you're thrown back into your seat. Yep, that's your turbo lag. The cost I mentioned earlier. Now it won't seem much at all to some and it actually isn't. But if you're driving this car around where overtaking is as frequent as using the men's room after chugging down a pitcher of beer, or you've got a lot of uphill battles with the road to and from your destination, then you'll feel the lag all the more as you run short of enough power at first to make a quick overtake revving from lower speeds to high. But on the highway, maintaining a good rpm of over 3000 or so, getting around a tanker should be a walk in the park. I haven't had the chance to test the 1.5 petrol or diesel so bear with me on my limitations!

Ride Quality & Handling The ride was smooth, the gears give you a good sense of shifting through the levels with nice short and snappy throws which fall into place quite easily and assuredly. Although the steering was a bit light and bit out of proportion for an SUV, the response and feel was spot on. You point, it obliges. Great handling. You truly feel in control of the car inspite of the light wheel which gives way to it's nifty turning angles which makes you forget you're cutting through traffic in an SUV, compact as it may be. The armrest proved to be a good touch for the driver adding to the effortless ride.

Final Words Let me clear up all that mist. This vehicle is intended to be the urban SUV for the occassional long drives for a small family living in or close to a city. I know many of you claim that the 'SUV' branding is misleading and it's nothing but an overgrown hatch. What the Ecosport does, is bridge the gap between the two. You've got the ride height and features of an SUV with the nimbleness and traffic tackling abilities of a hatch. And the cherry on top of the sundae being the price tag. I won't say it's the perfect vehicle. But for those interested in a small, feature-rich SUV with a possibly low (I cannot vouch for this and it's my own prediction based on what I've dug up) maintenance cost and an eagerness to make a statement out on the roads without popping the cap on your savings deposit, this is the car for you.

Bold design, A generous helping of features, Good Handling, Good ride heightLess shoulder room, Turbo lag on the ecoboost variant, Light steering