Ford Endeavour TDCi - Every Road Useable

Performs how?

Performance. This is where the Endeavour TDCi scores the brownie points. Endeavour in its previous form was languid and uninterested. The same car, in its current guise, is a different beast altogether! It is an ardent perfromer. It has a carefree attitude. And there is a special macho feel to this SUV that you will like. Numbers really cannot give you a feel of what this thing is capable of. The Endeavour TDCi is not about zero to hundred. It is not about top speed of a zillion kilometers an hour. It is not about handling or the dynamics.

The Endeavour TDCi is about presence. It is about presence in the unknown. Still, numbers do make quite an impact on people and we shall give them to you. The 2.5L common rail diesel injection engine has to be given credit. It churns out 143 horses and a meaty 330Nm of turning force. The result of which is this - the sprint from a standstill to a hundred took 13.27 seconds, which is simply astonishing, and the top speed was at the better side of 150, which is astonishing as well. The gearbox is a pleasure and the shifts are slick and precise. The steering too is accurate. You have to understand, this beast weighs about two tonnes. Everything about the Endeavour is huge. The proportions speak for themselves, so do the tyres - massive R16s with equally humbling 245 section width. Phew! And there is a lot to owe to these tyres for the kind of performance the Endeavour offers. While on tyres, let me talk about brakes too. Not much to say though. Just that the brakes lack in feel and do not engage you in their operation at all. The working of ABS too cannot be sensed but the bite offered from those disc-drum arrangement is sufficient.

Now that the number-game is over, let us get down with what the real essence of the Endeavour TDCi is - eating the roads. Of all kind. This SUV can pretty much quash any terrain. The transfer case in high 4x4 is enough to amend things if the going gets a little tricky. We encountered a particularly slushy area which had muck and mud aplenty. This made for a perfect setting to try out the Endeavour's off-road capability. And we were mighty impressed. First we drove around in the 2-wheel mode. Got stuck. Transfer caseshifted into high 4x4 and we got moving with ease. Very deep puddle and we deliberately went in. Got stuck even while in high 4x4. Wheels were spinning in a frenzied manner. Lest we find ourselves in deep problem, we shifted the transfer case to low 4x4 and it was as easy as walking in the park! The ease with which the Endeavour came out of it left us with a jutting eyeballs. And the story does not end here.

This SUV can climb quite serious inclines too. And then came the mother of all fun-filled antics that we tried - making donuts. In an SUV! Put her back in two-wheel drive mode we did, and waited for the fun to begin. And what fun it was! This is a tail-happy SUV with bucket-loads of torque and rear-wheel drive which prove to be immensely helpfull tools to furnish such antics! Okay, yes, we know that almost all the time the Endeavour will not be seeing the countryside or the rocky terrain or the slush. What this SUV will be on are the potholed roads of our nation. And when going over such land, you will be thanking your wits for making a purchase decision towards the Endeavour. Where the other cars go at crawling speeds, you can simply zip across without a worry over whatever mother earth has to throw on you! We tested the Endeavour TDCi over a varied topography and came out all simles everytime. Every road is usable with this machine.

So, likeable enough?

The Ford Endeavour TDCi is a great step ahead from the previous one. Alright, the seat comfort is not upto the mark. Yes, it has bumpy ride quality. But it also has a pleasing interior, great motor and go-anywhere capability. It has improved dynamics and better fuel efficiency too. More importantly, it is more drivable in the city congestions, owing to good in-gear driving ability. The Endeavour TDCi retains the musculature that many have liked and it adds a fair bit of essentials that were missing earlier. And you can have huge amount of fun with it! The Endeavour TDCi is an image pampering tool. A very good one at that!