The Great Ford Endeavour Drive Experience puts the car onto some ridiculously awesome terrains and thus demonstrates what it is actually capable of!
The Ford Endeavour, in its latest avatar, has been selling good numbers in India, despite it being launched into a segment that had long been predominated by the Toyota Fortuner! Needless to say, the car offers its customer, a bunch of exciting tech and equipment, along with state-of-the-art off-roading capabilities.
But how many of you know that your Ford Endeavour can tackle serious off-road obstacles demanding immense amounts of axle twisting, efficient articulation etc.? To ensure that you get the right taste of this, Ford India has been organizing experiential events titled ‘The Great Ford Endeavour Drive Experience’ in several locations across the country. We had recently been to one of these sessions and this is how it was like…
The event had for it, built a specially designed track, which would push the endeavour to its limits. Sharp turns, steep hill climbs and hill descents, wading through slush, uneven surfaces, driving at high degree tilts were all parts of the track and its experience.
Lured much by the track ahead, we jumped straight into the cabin of one of the Ford endeavours seen action-ready nearby and buckled up with a deep breath…
The Endeavour had recently gotten a major upgrade in India that featured changes mostly over the skin. The car is still powered by two fun-to-drive diesel engines- the budget conscious 2.2L and the massive 3.2L mills. The 4*4 driveline comes with just the 3.2L variant. Thus, needless of any particular mention, the Endeavour that we were in, had the 3.2 L TDCi mill mated to a 6-speed automatic box.
There have, however, been a bunch of additions in terms of tech and equipment in the Ford Endeavour facelift. The revised design of the 18 inch alloy wheels, push-button start with keyless entry, dual-zone automatic climate control etc are all novelties exclusive to the Ford Endeavour 2019 , while stuff like the large panoramic sunroof, advanced SYNC 3 in-car connectivity system, Active noise cancellation system, hands free power lift gate, power-folding third row seats have all been carried forward from the pre-facelift model.
The course started off with the SUV encountering an approx. 320mm deep water body, and wading it like another piece of cake, despite being driven through a fair bit of slush. The new Ford Endeavour boasts of an epic water wading capacity of 800mm! (Yes, that is more than that of the Land Rover Discovery Sport!)
What is usually called a chicken hole setup followed next, that puts to test, the axle twisting capability of the SUV. The Endeavour handled it like a boss as well. Soon we had our car put to a set of other obstacles that tested its articulation, hill climbs, descents etc. The Endeavour’s high ground clearance and the smart motor that gives out ample power and torque whenever required did prove to be perfect for handling all of such terrains.
The Terrain Management System on the new Ford Endeavour needs a special round of applause. Essentially a ‘Fordified’ version of Terrain Response system found on Land Rovers, this mechanism has 4 preset modes for handling different terrains. (We had actually heard some of the officials admit that a different version of the system is used in modern day Fords, while talking with them, about the Land Rover patented Terrain Response 2 at The Above And Beyond Tour)
The end of the course had had an approximately 28-degree steep decline, that demonstrated the Endeavour’s Hill Descent Control System the way it deserved to be!
Ask us how the overall experience was and we will have just one word to describe the entire thing- EPIC! We felt the ride quality and comfort inside the Ford Endeavour car like, throughout the exercise. The vehicle proved to be able, stable and dynamic at all times. The torque delivery was precise and there was hardly any drama anywhere.
At the end of the drive, we found ourselves bestowed with an almost lucid answer to the popular ‘Ford Endeavour vs Fortuner ?’ question. With the Ford Endeavour price in India starting at just INR 28.19 lakhs, we believe the ford endeavour facelift to be absolutely drool-worthy.
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