Ford C-SUV is expected to launch sometime later next year following the arrival of the next generation Mahindra XUV500
Ford and Mahindra have a mutually beneficial partnership which was consolidated in late 2019 when a Joint Venture company was announced. Mahindra will supply its petrol engines that will propel the Ford-badged vehicles and it is said to include the new 1.2-litre petrol engine for EcoSport. They have agreed to work on various departments – taking advantage of each other’s strengths.
There is no secret that a range of SUVs are coming in the near future and harbingering the new lineup for Ford will more likely be a C-segment SUV and it shares several bits and pieces with the second generation Mahindra XUV500 (W605), slated to arrive early next year. The alliance between the American auto major and the homegrown UV specialist extends to developing products for India as well as abroad.
It looks like the first evidence of it has come up on the internet courtesy of a spy image emerged on Instagram. If it turns out to be legit, it does surprise us as it looks production ready revealing the main details of the front fascia already. Internally codenamed CX757, its design works are carried out by the famed Italian firm owned by Mahindra, Pininfarina.
What you can clearly see in the supposed leaked picture is the prominent octagonal black grille with chrome inserts and the Blue Oval badge is mounted in the middle. The upright front fascia also shows the presence of multi-layers LED Daytime Running Lights and the headlamps could be positioned in a different cluster on the bumper altogether or the fog lamp housing is bigger.
A wide central air inlet with black surrounds is another key addition. It is expected to use the same 2.0-litre mStallion petrol and 2.2-litre four-pot diesel engine that will power the upcoming Mahindra XUV500. The former could pump out 190 hp and 380 Nm while the latter could generate around 180 hp. The CX757 will likely be offered with a six-speed manual and a six-speed automatic transmission as well.
It will be interesting to see whether a 4WD variant will be sold or not as the range-topping model. It will compete against a host of premium SUVs including MG Hector Plus, Jeep Compass, upcoming Tata Gravitas and so on. The interior could boasts of a dual screen (one for touchscreen and the other for instrumentation) as in the 2021 Mahindra XUV500.