LIKES
- Easy to park
- Big enough back seat
- Cargo space isn’t bad
DISLIKES
- No active safety tech
- Spartan base model
- Hardly a value
- Built to a budget
- Cheap, but somehow still too much
BUYING TIP
The 2022 Ford Ecosport doesn’t offer much “sport,” and even the “Eco” part’s a stretch.
What kind of car is the 2022 Ford Ecosport? What does it compare to?
The 2022 Ecosport takes up the bottom rung in Ford’s crossover ladder. It’s a rival for vehicles like the Hyundai Venue and Honda HR-V, but in reality it’s much less a rival once you’ve test driven those other crossovers.
Is the 2022 Ford Ecosport a good crossover?
You can do better. We give it a TCC Rating of 3.5 out of 10, one of the lowest ratings for any new vehicle on our charts.
What's new for the 2022 Ford Ecosport?
It’s a carry-over, and Ford plans to drop the vehicle soon. For now, its stubby exterior and its cutline-filled cabin set a low water mark for Ford vehicles—for any new car, really.
The interior pulls together lots of textures and plastic grains with budget-grade upholstery and seats that could use more support. It’s blessed with 20.9 cubic feet of cargo space and four usable seats for adults, but even those features get compromised by seat comfort, a high load floor, and a side-mounted tailgate.
Crash tests haven’t been updated in a while and weren’t kind to begin with. The Ecosport lacks automatic emergency braking, and blind-spot monitors cost extra on some trims.
How much does the 2022 Ford Ecosport cost?
Prices start in the low $20,000 range for a four-seat runabout with 16-inch wheels, cloth upholstery, a teensy 4.2-inch infotainment display—and without automatic emergency braking. Take the Ecosport SE for its nicer interior and its 8.0-inch touchscreen and stop there.
Where is the 2022 Ford Ecosport made?
In Chennai, India, until Ford shuts down those operations in the next year.
Styling
The Ecosport does little with its cute-ute potential.
Is the Ford Ecosport a good-looking car?
It’s just not—and what’s worse, some cars and crossovers of its size are. We give it a 3, with a point deducted from the average for the body and the cabin.
The Ecosport’s outfit looks wash-and-wear ready from the front, with a wide grille and a short overhang. From the side, it looks...compressed. The tall roofline and stubby rear end don’t come to an amenable compromise, and the result is a truncated look that’s ungainly from the rear doors on back.
Performance
City speeds show off the Ecosport’s better side.
The Ecosport weighs about 3,000 lb, which damps any energy that might come from its turbo-3 or inline-4 engines. The struggle is real. It’s a 3 here.
Is the Ford Ecosport 4WD?
All-wheel drive comes with the bigger engine; it’s a simple setup that can send power to the rear wheels when the fronts give up their grip.
It’s not very quick. With a 123-hp 1.0-liter turbo-3 and a 6-speed automatic, front-wheel-drive, the Ecosport seems more responsive than it is. A casual 0-60 mph estimate of 10 seconds feels about right.
The 166-hp inline-4 on the upgrade sheet might be slower, since it adds about 300 lb to the running mass. It can tow up to 2,000 lb; the turbo-3 car can pull up to 1,400 lb. We recommend neither.
There’s no hint of hot-hatch handling in the Ecosport. Numb steering and average ride comfort zap any fun potential. It’s most useful when it darts through traffic and parks easily between stops. Convenient? Sure. Fun? Not so much.
Comfort & Quality
The Ecosport’s space gets offset by a cheap interior.
The Ecosport promises to be an inexpensive city runabout, and it’s qualified to do that with an interior fit for four. That cabin’s plastered in cheap plastic, though, and the seats lack good padding. It’s a 4 here, with the cramped rear seat and lackluster trim offset by its cargo space.
Thinly padded front seats wear cloth covers on the base model, and they sit high for a decent driving position. The synthetic-leather versions seem better, but the comfort levels are still low.
In back, the Ecosport has 36.7 inches of leg room according to the spec sheet, but adults in back will have to horse-trade some space with those in front. Small doors don’t make it easy to get in or out, and a fifth passenger would do better with Uber or Lyft.
Safety
The Ecosport lacks the usual active safety tech.
How safe is the Ford Ecosport?
Crash-test scores have been poor, and the Ecosport doesn’t have automatic emergency braking. It’s a 2 here.
The IIHS hasn’t tested one yet, but the NHTSA gives the Ecosport four stars overall; it pegs the front-drive model at three stars for rollover resistance, a rare black mark in any modern vehicle save for some full-size trucks. The Ecosport lacks the latest safety features, but blind-spot monitors can be had on top trims.
Features
The spartan Ecosport adds some useful features in SE trim.
The Ecosport costs about $20,000, but that’s about the same as Ford’s tempting Maverick pickup. For that price the Ecosport S offers a 4.2-inch infotainment display, 16-inch wheels, and cloth upholstery. We give it a 4, since it lacks automatic emergency braking and has inferior infotainment.
Which Ford Ecosport should I buy?
We’d pick a Maverick over the Ecosport, but if you buy one, choose the SE. It gets an 8.0-inch touchscreen with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, heated front seats, and a power driver seat. Options include navigation and upgraded audio. The SES gains 17-inch wheels, blind-spot monitors, and the bigger engine and all-wheel drive.
How much is a fully loaded Ford Ecosport?
The Ecosport Titanium can cost $30,000 or more for its 17-inch wheels, B&O audio, and synthetic leather upholstery.
Fuel Economy
The Ecosport could be more efficient for its size.
Is the Ford Ecosport good on gas?
It does OK, but bigger crossovers fare better. The EPA pegs the front-drive Ecosport at 27 mpg city, 29 highway, 28 combined. We give it a 5, based on that rating—but the all-wheel-drive version scores 23/29/25 mpg.
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