2017 Ford Endeavour 3.2 Titanium Initial Ownership Review

No doubt, currently the hottest SUV in the Indian market. Is it the perfect SUV then ?

Positives:

1. Pretty powerful 5 cylinder engine on the 3.2 variant, 197 Bhp and 470 Nm torque.
2. Excellent refinement and NVH.
3. Terrain management system like in Range Rovers.
4. Spacious Value for money vehicle.

Drawbacks:

1. The biggest drawback is it’s very low fuel mileage. It averages just 8-10 Km/ Liter. Many reviewers skipped this crucial point saying that customers in this price category really don’t care about fuel mileage. This is not entirely true because there are vehicles in this price range that give customers good fuel mileage car’s like the Superb and Fortuner for example.
2. The interiors though good is still not good enough for this price range. There are lot’s of hard plastics around and the top dashboard although with leather stitching et all, is not really soft like in other Luxury vehicles.
3. The backup camera is quite pathetic, poor resolution and clarity.
4. It has no push button start, key-less entry nor memory seats.
5. Ford keeps fluctuating the Endeavour’s pricing. 2.2 Liter Titanium is priced relatively higher and has much lesser features compared to similar Titanium variant of the 3.2.
6. At low speeds the bumps on bad roads can be felt inside.

EXTERIOR:

Huge imposing front grill.

Smart rear but sadly looses the rear wheel on the booth lid as in the previous generation Endeavour.

It definitely looks very masculine and Tough. Much better looking than the new Fortuner. Go anywhere attitude.

Nothing really beats the look of the new Endeavour. It’s huge and imposing.

INTERIOR

The interiors are definitely good and utilitarian but not luxurious as Ford wants you to believe.

NVH levels are well controlled and it’s very silent inside while driving. Could be their new noise cancellation technology magic.

The cool-looking instrument cluster has two display screens on either side of the speedometer. The left screen displays information for the connected phone and audio, while that on the right is a multi-information display.

It’s mostly hard plastic all around. No soft touch material anywhere.

The air conditioning is very effective and cooled the interior in no time even in our currently hot climate of 37 degree Celsius.

The leather wrapped dash only available on the Titanium variant is good looking but not that soft to the touch as you find in luxury vehicles.

The steering wheel is light to steer and has a multitude of buttons for various functions such as the ICE and toggling instrument display screen menu. I personally don’t mind having so much controls on the wheels.

Huge Ac vents and a shiny plastic cover in front.

Huge panaromic sunroof. Gives more than an enough light to the cabin. It’s available only on the 3.2 Titanium variant.

Fold the 3rd row of seats and you have huge boot space. 1,050 Liters to be exact with 3rd row down and 450 liters if their up.

The electric motor adjusting the seats is surprisingly fast. The same adjustment takes an eternity on our 2nd Gen Skoda Superb.

Kids and short adults can sit comfortably in the 3rd row as the 2nd row of seats can be adjusted for Fore and Aft movement. The 2nd row seats can also be reclined.

Fuel economy is really low. A dismal 8.2 Km/l for me and I wouldn’t say it was full on spirited driving as well. But 5 cylinders, heavy kerb weight of 2394 Kg’s and a full time 4X4 drivetrain you shouldn’t be surprised with these figures. Many owners are getting fuel mileage in similar range of 8-10 Km/L only.  For people travelling long distances a lot, will feel the pinch slightly on their pockets although many say in this price range people are not bothered about mileage. Not true !

If you want a fuel efficient vehicle and not bothered about 4X4, the panaromic sunroof nor a powerful 5 cylinder. It’s really much better to go for the 2.2 Liter engine, 4X2 Trend or Titanium variants.

POWER

With 3.2 Liter 197 Bhp and 470 Nm of Torque, the Endeavour is pretty powerful on paper. Gladly the Torque converter gearbox doesn’t disappoint as well and it puts the power down well. On full throttle, there is a nice roar from the engine which is very addictive but you can also hear the fuel guzzling from the other end.

To be honest the 2.2 Liter engine is not bad as it’s much lighter and more fuel efficient as well. If you are not going to do very high speeds and confined to city driving, better to go with this engine itself.

RIDE QUALITY and HANDLING

Ride quality is good for an SUV this size but there is some bumpiness while travelling at low speeds on broken and pot holed roads. At high speeds you can just glide over anything and not feel a thing.

It isn’t plush nor too stiff, somewhere in between and it’s not such a bad thing. The suspension is also very silent. No thuds or clunk noises.

Handling is very good at highway speeds. You won’t feel this as a Body on Frame SUV. Feels better planted than some car’s even. Endeavour manages a fantastic balance between ride and handling.

ISSUES

The 2016 versions had projector HID light alignment issues. Ford seems to have rectified it on the 2017 models as I’m not facing that issue now.

IMPRESSIONS AND VERDICT

It’s a great VFM vehicle, especially when you compare it with the new Fortuner. The Fortuner still outsells the Endeavour by a large margin and that’s because of Toyota’s brand image. The Endeavour is a good SUV and if you are buying this vehicle only for the 3rd row seat and occasional family hauling over long distance, my advise would be to go for the 2.2 liter Titanium variant as it’s more fuel efficient and it still drives pretty fast till 120 Km/Hr speeds. You will also loose out on the cool panaromic sunroof in the 2.2

Some features are missing like the keyless entry and go, Push button start and turning off full time All wheel drive options. But the 5 cylinders and great styling make up for that. It’s not cheap at 37 Lakh’s OTR and has a very thirsty engine (3.2 variants) but there is definitely no other vehicle that comes close to it’s all rounded nature and practicality.