2019 Ford Endeavour Roadtest Review – Desert Bashing

The Ford Endeavour started off its journey in India way back in 2003. Since then it has been regarded as one of the better, full sized SUVs available here. Globally, the Endeavour received a complete overhaul in 2015. Now Ford is all set to give the Endeavour a midlife refresh. We drive the 2019 Ford Endeavour to know all the changes it has undergone, and if it still makes a good proposition to buy in its class. Read on to know all about it.

Exteriors

Not much has changed on the 2019 Ford Endeavour, with the SUV still looking trendy and in-style for the current times. The dimensions of the Endeavour remain the same. The vehicle stands at 4903mm in length, 1869mm of width, 1837mm tall and a massive wheelbase of 1560mm. There are a few changes to the exteriors, Ford has redone the grill which now comes with chrome plated and bold trapezoidal grill, adding a lot of character to the front fascia. The front bumper is also totally redone which now looks more butch than before. Headlights styling remains the same, with LED projector type low beam and Halogen powered multi-reflector high beam.

The sides get refreshed with the new set of dual tone 18 inch alloy wheels shod with 265/60 MRF Wanderer Tyres. The rear profile remains the same with neat looking, C-shaped LED tail lights and bold Endeavour badging in chrome on the tailgate. Tailgate now comes with hands-free power lift gate which can be opened by triggering the sensor with your leg and the tail gate will open and close automatically. The roof gets a full panoramic sunroof which was missing on the outgoing model.
Ford has also introduced a new color option on the 2019 Endeavour, the one we are driving called as Diffused Silver. The other color options are Moondust Silver, Diamond White, Absolute Black and Sunset Red.

Interiors

Step inside the 2019 Ford Endeavour and you will be welcomed instantly with a sporty-looking cabin in beige and black color tone. The instrument cluster remains the same with twin color display in the either sides and a large analogue speedometer in the center. The major change in the cabin is the inclusion of the latest generation Sync 3 touch-screen infotainment system which now comes with more intuitive and responsive features, including Apple CarPlay and Android Auto connectivity, Navigation system, FM radio, USB, Bluetooth along with other features. A 10 speaker system with sub-woofer and power amplifier takes care of the acoustics on the Endeavour.

The seats come in leather upholstery, with both the driver and co-driver seats getting 8-way power adjustable seats and manually adjustable lumber support. The 2019 Ford Endeavour comes with dual zone automatic climate control unit along with auto headlamps and auto wiper. Ford has also added the push button start/stop feature on the 2019 Endeavour. The cabin gets further isolated from the outside world with an active noise cancellation feature which goes a long way in making the cabin extremely quiet, enhancing the comfort level drastically. Comfort and space is abundant on the Endeavour as always, with tons of leg room and headroom all around. Seating position is commanding due to the vehicle’s height. You feel dominating when u are seated behind the wheel.

Engine Transmission Drive

The Engine options on the 2019 Ford Endeavour remain the same, with a 2.2L TDCi in-line 4-cylinder engine which generates 160PS at 3200rpm and churns out a healthy 385Nm of torque between 1600-2500rpm. This engine comes with a 6-speed manual as well as automatic transmission option. The bigger hearted Ford Endeavour gets a 3.2L TDCi in-line 5-cylinder engine which pushes out 200PS at 3000rpm with an earth-moving 470Nm of torque between 1750 to 2500rpm. This engine comes only with an 6-speed automatic transmission. We drove the 3.2L 4×4 fully loaded Titanium + variant on our drive. We took it on some butter smooth roads of Jaisalmer, but the real fun was driving the beast off the roads at Sam Sand dunes. This is where the Endeavour shows it’s real mettle. Driving in the sands is nowhere like driving off roads, you can either drive on the sand or get stuck. Once you are stuck, it’s a task to get out. We had some real good instructors to get us out of tricky situations and the 3.2L engine was a big boon to drive on the dunes.

The Ford Endeavour is a serious off-roader loaded with a lot of technologically advanced 4X4 gadgetry. The vehicle comes with an advanced terrain management system which includes drive modes such as Sand, snow/mud and rock. But naturally, we used the Sand mode all the time during our time at the dunes. It also comes with an electronic rear differential lock, hill launch assist, hill descent control and a 4X4 Low driving ratio to name a few.

The Endeavour can wade through a maximum of 800mm of water if needed. All this gadgetry makes an amateur driver look like a professional and that’s what we experienced. The Endeavour boosted our confidence so much so that we just didn’t want to stop pushing the vehicle thru it’s paces at the dunes. The Ford Endeavour can go to places with ease where not many SUVs would dare to. Not once did we feel scared or out of control while doing the tricky maneuvers in the Endeavour at the sand dunes, but we had to let go of the vehicle due to limited time and some unseasonal rain.

Safety

The 2019 Ford Endeavour comes loaded with a lot of safety features that include 7 air-bags, ABS with EBD, Electronic stability control with rollover stability and traction control, Customizable Ford My Key, rear view camera with active guideline, tyre pressure monitoring system, semi auto parallel park assist, front and rear parking sensors etc.

Competition Check

The 2019 Ford Endeavour competes with the Toyota Fortuner, Mahindra Alturas G4, Honda CR-V and Skoda Kodiaq in its segment.

Verdict

The Ford Endeavour always had the right recipe for being one of the better, full-sized SUVs. This update refreshes it even further. We had a gala time driving the beast in the sand dunes and this also proved the vehicle’s capability off the road big time. The in-cabin comfort is best in class and so are the safety standards. Not forgetting the low ownership cost for the SUV, which is as low as 68 paisa for the 2.2L and 72 paisa for the 3.2L version per km. This refresh has made the Ford Endeavour a stronger contender in the already crowded, full-sized SUV segment.