After selling the exclusive Brazilian-made EcoSport model for two years, Ford do Brasil has introduced a flex-fuel version of its compact SUV. It is the first SUV model made in Brazil equipped with an engine that runs on petrol, alcohol or a blend of the two.
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The new version, named EcoSport Flex, has a 1.6-litre, eight-valve engine whose power output varies between 105hp and 111hp depending on the fuel used.
The EcoSport is based on the Fiesta, but is not a version of the European Fusion. It has different styling, powertrain and interior and has been far more successful than its slow-selling European counterpart.
In two years, Ford has produced 170,000 units at its Camaçari plant, Bahia state. About 75,000 were sold in Brazil and 95,000 were exported. The principal foreign market is Mexico where 49,000 units have been sold since 2003.
But the strong performance of the EcoSport and also of the Fiesta hatch and exclusive-to-Brazil Fiesta sedan version, all of them ‘members’ of Project Amazon, are slowing the expansion of the range.
Ford plans for Project Amazon are to develop a complete range of compact models based on the Fiesta, however, with only the EcoSport, Fiesta hatch and sedan models the Camaçari plant is working at full capacity. Because of this, the automaker has postponed the introduction of new vehicles such as a pick-up and minivan.
Rogério Louro
