This Is What The Upcoming Ford C-SUV May Look Like

When Ford and Mahindra decided to call off their joint venture earlier this year, it inevitably killed off a number of models that were in the pipeline as part of the JV for both companies. Perhaps the most important of these models was the upcoming Mahindra XUV700 based Ford C-SUV that was being specifically developed for India. Codenamed the CX757, it was going to sit between the EcoSport and Endeavour in the compact SUV segment. It would have been a vital model for Ford India, as the company doesn’t have an offering in the rapidly growing class. More importantly, the automaker was already quite far into the development of this C-SUV, even having finalized its design by Pininfarina.

While the JV has been called off, Ford did not completely scrap its plan of a C-SUV for the Indian market. Instead, it went looking for a platform from their own global lineup, and as per reports, the CX757 will be built on a Ford platform that's similar in size and spec to that of the new XUV700. This platform already underpins the Territory SUV sold in the Chinese and Brazilian markets. In fact, Ford shares this platform with Chinese automaker Jiangling Motors Corporation, and just like the Mahindra platform, this too has been engineered at a low-cost base. This will help Ford price their new C-SUV at a competitive price point against the likes of the Tata Harrier or the Kia Seltos.

The platform which underpins the Ford Territory has a similar wheelbase of 2,716mm as Mahindra’s W601. This means that the automaker can keep the alterations to the CX757's Pininfarina design for the new platform down to a minimum. Here, we have a rendering of the upcoming facelift for the Ford Territory. While the CX757 won’t be a true copy of the Chinese model, expect it to look fairly similar to its donor. The vehicle in rendering looks like a mixture of the EcoSport and the recently unveiled Equator. The hexagonal grille and the high bonnet remind us of the former, while the split LED headlight setup seems to be inspired by the latter.

The LED DRL strip above the front grille that spans the width of the SUV is a design element we particularly like. This rendering has been imagined wearing contrasting black body cladding all around while both front and rear bumper get silver skid plates. Moving to the side, the SUV gets a floating roof with the B and C pillars being blacked out. It also gets ORVM-mounted turn indicators, roof rails, and black 5-spoke alloy wheels. The rear-end of this facelifted Ford Territory rendering looks quite muscular and distinct. Similar to the front, the LED taillights are connected via a LED strip running the width of the SUV. The bumper has been revised as well, with dual exhaust tips flanking the aforementioned skid plate.

The Ford CX757 will likely continue with many of the design elements as seen in this rendering, which should make the vehicle look as contemporary as the Tata Harrier. In India, the new SUV will be likely powered by the 2-litre EcoBlue diesel and the 1.5-litre EcoBoost petrol engines.

Source- Behance