Carmakers ready to take on Ford EcoSport

Launched back in June 2013, Ford EcoSport has been the country's top selling compact sports utility vehicle. One can identify the popularity of the compact crossover by seeing that the bookings for the EcoSport crossed 30,000 mark in just 17 days of its launch, Incredible! Now, Ford is on rise, thanks to EcoSport compact SUV. We all know that the Indian car market is going through a rough phase, however the compact SUV segment is the one which has witnessed a constant growth. Interestingly, the other renowned carmakers, taking a leaf out of Ford's book, are now planning to introduce compact SUVs in the market to grab more market share.

By the next couple of years, we will see a series of new SUVs to be launched in the Indian car market. Earlier, it was speculated that EcoSport will cut down the Renault Duster sales, however the increasing demand for compact cars saw both the SUVs compete neck-to-neck with each other, with good sales. Now, the French automaker is ready to introduce the Duster in an all-new avatar, which is likely to make its debut at the 2014 Indian Auto Expo. With new features and exciting range of variants, the Duster will surely offer a tough time to EcoSport in India.

The Brio based compact SUV will be Honda's direct answer to the likes of Ford EcoSport and Renault Duster. Yes, Honda is working on a compact SUV, which will be based on the versatile Brio platform. This model is expected to hit the market by the early next year. Earlier, the company planned the Vezel crossover for the Indian car market, but with the regular depreciating rupee value and high cost has forced the manufacturer to drop its plan.

India's second largest carmaker, Hyundai is also planning to introduce a compact SUV in India. If media reports to be believed, this crossover will be based on the BA platform (Grand i10) and is expected to be launched by the early 2015. To make presence in this hot favorite segment, Volkswagen introduced the Polo Cross in India; Fiat India and Toyota will also launch the Punto Adventure and Etios Cross. Moreover, Volkswagen will also unveil the Taigun SUV at the 2014 Auto Expo. The vehicle is expected to hit the Indian shores by the end of this year or by early 2015.

Maruti Suzuki, the country's largest carmaker, will introduce the production version of the XA Alpha compact SUV by the next year. Additionally, Mahindra is all set to launch the Scorpio facelift at the 2014 Indian Auto Expo. Nissan already has Terrano SUV, which is based on the Duster platform. So, it will be interesting to see how Ford EcoSport counters the growing competition in the compact SUV segment.