The Ford Endeavour is one of my favourite SUVs on sale today! It might be yours too. Nothing says that – ‘I will have my way in traffic’ than sitting in an Endeavour and being almost one floor above mere mortals. The Ford Endeavour is the car that will take you to the shops, do the school run, will look good in a hotel lobby and at the same time if you let it open on a long journey and it is one of the best highway cruisers that can go cross-country, smashing one state after another. And when it comes to going off-road, yes the Ford Endeavour might not be as dope and nimble as the Toyota Fortuner according to some and we have done a video where both these cars have gone off-road head to head – click here to see that. I think off-road merits and road manners of a car go hand in hand and the Endeavour has both.

Now let’s talk about the 2019 Ford Endeavour for what it really is. The car is a facelift. Its specs have not changed at all. The car continues to get two engine options. The 2.2-litre and the 3.2-litre engines continue. Yes, there will be no 2.0-litre with EcoBoost as thought before. There will though an option for a manual gearbox for the 2.2-litre engine with the Titanium option.

So with minimal changes and an addition of a few features, what does the Ford Endeavour have new on offer? Well in this review we will go over that. Also at Jaisalmer, we drove the 3.2-litre variant of the SUV which is unchanged and have experienced many times before but I’m eager to find out how the 2.2 manual would be. That’s for another time. Do let us know in the comments if you would like us to review the Ford Endeavour’s manual gearbox.

2019 Ford Endeavour front three quaters

Exterior

I could describe this car using big words and make a big deal of it being butch, handsome and an absolute freak for a sight on the road. But I won’t do that. Because you and I already know what kind of intimidating persona this car exudes. To sum up the exterior, the car gets slightly redesigned bumpers and the headlights get a smoked effect. The chrome plated bold trapezoidal grille is also new. Both rear and front bumpers have integrated skid plates to protect the car’s underbody even in off-road conditions. The ORVMs feature puddle lamps make it easier for drivers to get in and out of the vehicle in the dark. The car also gets a new design for its alloy wheels. The beefy 18-inch tyres continue. We do know that in the aftermarket, a size bigger on the Endeavour works too. Apart from all this the side and rear see no changes. The new Endeavour does get a new colour, in the form of Diffused Silver which is the car shown here. Other colors include Sunset Red, Diamond White, Absolute Black and Moondust Silver. And that’s it. That’s what you get as a facelift to the exterior of this car. Doesn’t sound impressing but do continue reading.

Interior

Now that we are done with the largely same exterior, let’s move to the interior where many things have changed. The first thing I like – the new dual-tone upholstery. Did the tri-colour upholstery look like it was trying too much in the pre-facelift Endeavour? It did to me for some reason. This just looks uniform, smart and well integrated. The SYNC 3 interface looks nice and it’s cool to see it in an avatar where it’s not presented on a floating touch-screen. The instrument cluster is good with a lot of information and the speakers too are very good. Now let’s talk about the buttons! A lot of them are on this car.  Some complaints still voiced are that the number of buttons that are still littered around this car should have reduced. And while I can see the point of that, I can tell you one thing, once you get used to the functions each provides. The off-road modes, the diff locking and Traction Control off buttons are all scattered in a small region of the car. But the overall interface is very good. It’s easy to know once you get used to it by which I mean to say, you won’t parallel park while trying to switch off the traction control. The buttons are fine. The seats are comfortable and features like the push-start-stop are a welcome addition. An extra knee airbag for the driver is there too.

2019 Ford Endeavour front row

The New Ford Endeavour also gets a panoramic sun-roof, covering up to 50% of the roof space. The practical interior design in the New Ford Endeavour continues to offer flexible seating and cargo arrangements – including fold-flat second and power-fold third-row that instantly flattens at the touch of a button. This is good. The only complaint that continues in the interior is the lack of space in the third row. It is advisable to only use it as a five-seater at any given time except when you have children and they can be seated in the third row.

Drive

Well, whats changed? Nothing! Yes, this is becoming a dull review. But when the same car drives exactly the way it did before and it has exactly the same handling characteristics as before you have got to bear with me. It’s often said – ‘If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it’. This is what the guys at Ford India have done exactly. You might ask why no 2.0-litre engine! Why? Because the 2.2-litre manual is good enough. And coming to the 3.2-litre, this thing is as wonderful as Game Of Thrones being renewed for 8 more seasons. It’s the biggest engine of its class (also the most thirsty, but I love it) and when you are on an open stretch of road with your foot down, the five-cylinder diesel quickly puts you in triple digits territory, you know it’s all worth it. And if handling for a big SUV needs to be discussed, let me tell you it’s way better than the Toyota Fortuner or the Mahindra Alturas G4. The body roll, though present is not as pronounced as the other two. The ride too is superb as I remember driving on a single lane road in Jaisalmer, racing to catch a flight in the Endeavour. I loved the fact that the car was not shy of suddenly leaving the tarmac for the barren and rocky patch of land running alongside (we ended up reaching before our plane had even landed). That’s the most you will use your Ford Endeavour off-road. Using the ground clearance and power to meet deadlines! That’s the best reason to own an SUV in the city for me at least.

Verdict 

So finally, the verdict. Nothing is new when it comes to the specifications. The addition of some features has made this a better deal. So should you buy it? Yes! My philosophy with mid-life facelifts is simple – ‘Give us something more and sweeten the deal’. And with the price announced today, that’s what happened. People might say a Toyota Fortuner is better at off-road, it’s an all-rounder and I will after some convincing agree. But you have got to drive the big Ford and forget that nonsense about off-road. The Endeavour has more features for you to play with, the engine noise is cut off by the Active Noise Cancelation, the thing can park itself, it’s not bad in the city too (most lesser mortals move out of your way) and when you are in the mood for adventure, the 2019 Ford Endeavour is ready to take on continents.

VARIANT TITANIUM TITANIUM+
ENGINE 2.2L DIESEL 2.2L DIESEL 3.2L DIESEL
TRANSMISSION 6-Speed MT 6-Speed AT 6-Speed AT
DRIVELINE 4×2 4×2 4×4
PRICE INR 28.19 Lakh INR 30.60 Lakh INR 32.97 Lakh
PREVIOUS PRICE(S) NEW ADDITION Rs 31.07 Lakh Rs 33.31 Lakh

(Prices – Ex-showroom, India)

 

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