Ford Endeavour 4x2 Automatic: First Drive

When the latest version of the Ford Endeavour set foot on Indian shores, it was gearing up for a battle against the formidable Toyota Fortuner. The new Endeavour boasted of a revised body style that was more contemporary and didn't have the 'Tonka Truck' look of its predecessor. At the time, Ford decided to play it smart and offered the Endeavour with two engine choices, namely the 2.5 litre TDCi which churns out 143PS and generates 330Nm of torque at just 1800 rpm, and the more powerful 3.0 litre TDCi which offers 156PS and a healthy 380Nm of torque at 2500rpm.

Incidentally, keeping with the trends of the marketplace, Ford also opted to do away with the need for a manual version on their top end 3.0 litre 4x4 Endeavour, and though this wasn't easy to digest for hardcore SUV owners, the gamble seems to have paid off. The 2.5 litre engine still came with a manual gearbox, however there was no 4x4 option on that SUV. Now, a little over a year later, Ford has rolled out a new variant that is set to bridge the gap to a certain extent-behold the 4x2, 3.0 litre TDCi automatic Endeavour.

The latest variant offers you the might and power of the 3.0 litre engine, coupled with the ease of an automatic gearbox and a slashed price due to the exclusion of the 4x4 system. One might argue that this defeats the purpose and a manual gearbox plus 4x4 would have been a better choice, but the truth remains that most SUV owners just don't go mud plunging and therefore their big bad SUVs are often confined to tarmac and the hassles of city driving. Having said that, it makes perfect sense to offer an SUV that does away with the need for the clutch in order to make it easier to drive around town and yet it retains the ability to be a great highway cruiser. Off roading in this variant is best restricted to farm roads.

In terms of performance, the 3.0 litre TDCi engine offers a lot of grunt and by no means can you refer to the Endeavour as underpowered, however it isn't as responsive as one would like it to be, which is a fact that is attributed to the gearbox and the tall gearing and not the power output of the engine itself. The tall gearing does make the Endeavour slightly cumbersome in first gear, however once the behemoth gets rolling; you are in for an easy drive. On the highway, the Endeavour is a whole different story. Unleash the horses under the hood and the Endeavour shifts up to 5th gear smoothly and allows you to cruise along at a handsome pace. It is on open roads that the Endeavour is a sheer joy to drive and there is no doubting the fact that you will be smitten by this vehicle on such jaunts.

Overall the 4x2 automatic 3.0 TDCi Endeavour does impress. It's a capable machine that offers the joys of an SUV in terms of street presence, size and versatility along with the ease of motoring thanks to the automatic gearbox. It's a brilliant highway cruiser and it soaks up road undulations with ease. It might not go off-roading, but then again, you have another variant to cater to that need. Summing it up, the new 4x2 automatic variant is competitively priced and definitely compliments the entire Endeavour range in order to take on the growing competition.