So long Ford EcoSport – Here are the crossovers you can buy instead

The Ford EcoSport has officially been delisted, bringing an end to its more than nine years on the local market.

The crossover has been serving as the brand’s last affordable model in South Africa for over a year following the loss of the Figo and Fiesta in 2022, as the carmaker has instead focused its efforts on its next-gen Ranger and Everest series.

The EcoSport’s departure therefore comes as a significant loss to the passenger vehicle segment, as Ford has yet to officially announce a replacement. However, it now seems all but certain that we will soon be getting the Ford Puma, as a Gauteng dealership recently listed the car on its site for pre-order before taking it down again.

Until concrete plans from the blue oval are made public, South Africans will have to content themselves with alternatives from other automakers; the good news being is that there is no shortage of options within the compact SUV space.

For reference, the EcoSport had a starting price of R311,400, which went up to R416,900 for the range-topping Titanium trim level.

There were three engines to choose from – a 1.5-litre petrol, a 1.5-litre turbo-diesel, and a 1.0-litre turbo-petrol – with either a five-speed manual or six-speed automatic transmission connecting the driveshaft to the front wheels.

You can see a breakdown of their performance in the table below:

Engine	Power	Fuel consumption
1.5-litre petrol	91kW/150Nm	6.4l/100km
1.5-litre turbo-diesel	74kW/205Nm	4.6l/100km
1.0-litre turbo-petrol	92kW/170Nm	6.3l/100km

Equipment found on all models included 16-inch steel wheels, a multifunction steering wheel, a 4.2-inch media display with Bluetooth, six speakers, fabric seats, manual air conditioning, and rear parking sensors.

Higher-spec versions would then throw in automatic LED headlights, 17-inch alloy rims, roof rails, a spare wheel cover, a leather steering wheel, cruise control, an 8-inch infotainment screen, leather upholstery, seven speakers, ambient lighting, keyless entry and start, rain-sensing wipers, automatic climate control, and front parking sensors.