The 2020 Ford EcoSport and 2020 Nissan Kicks are two small SUVs with personality and style, but the EcoSport comes prepared to accomplish everything you need in a compact SUV. Let’s look at the differences and make a choice; then head over to Keystone Ford and take a look for yourself.
Design
The 2020 Ford EcoSport’s small build is a great choice for parking and navigating tight city streets. It comes with a comfortable interior and it offers a decent amount of cargo space for a compact SUV, with 20.9 cubic feet of cargo space behind the rear seats. The seats fold flat with a 60/40 split, providing 50 cubic feet of space. The EcoSport seats five people in two rows; and for a small vehicle they can ride reasonably well in either row.
The Nissan Kicks is standard with front-wheel drive. All-wheel drive isn’t offered, and the Kicks’ ground clearance is only slightly better than its competition. Nissan Kicks seats five, but comfortably it seats four, with two adults in the rear. The interior may be well constructed, but it does not feel as nice with its hard plastics. Nissan offers seating upgrades that include leather upholstery, heated front seats, and a leather-wrapped steering. It has 25.3 cubic feet of room behind the rear seats and 53.1 cubic feet with the rear seats folded down; however, the rear seats don’t fold completely flat.
Power, Handling, and Gas
The EcoSport comes standard with a 123-hp turbocharged three-cylinder engine or an optional 166-hp four-cylinder engine. Both engines share a six-speed automatic transmission. When equipped with the more powerful engine, the EcoSport can tow a respectable 2000 pounds. That number is good for this small-size vehicle. Both engines are peppy leaving stoplights and at city speeds; and they feel athletic in and out of traffic on busy streets. It comes in four different trim levels: S, SE, Titanium, and SES - all-wheel drive can be ordered at every trim level, perfect for maneuvering new terrains. The base engine gets an economical 27/29 mpg city and highway.
Kicks is powered by a 122-horsepower 1.6-liter four-cylinder engine and is paired with a continuously variable automatic transmission (CVT). This vehicle is good for commuting in stop-and-go city traffic, but has slow acceleration and it takes a while to get up to highway speeds. It estimates 31/36 mpg on the city and highway, which is expected for a smaller SUV that doesn’t deliver a powerful engine.
Tech, Safety, and Price
The Ford EcoSport comes standard with a rearview camera and Ford MyKey. The MyKey system encourages safe driving habits by adding extra seat belt reminders and letting you set limits on speed and audio volume. Available safety features include rain-sensing windshield wipers, blind spot monitoring, rear cross traffic alert, and rear parking sensors. It comes with a 4.2-inch display, two USB ports, and a Wi-Fi hot spot. It has an optional SYNC 3 user-friendly infotainment system, but in higher models it comes standard along with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. Attractively priced, the starting price for the EcoSport is $19,995 for the S model and ranges to $27,380 for the SES model.
The Nissan Kicks strong point would also be its long list of standard safety features which include automatic high-beam control, lane departure warning, a blind-spot monitor, rear cross-traffic alert, rear parking sensors, forward collision warning with pedestrian detection, adaptive cruise control, and front and rear automatic emergency braking. It comes in three trims, starting with Nissan Kicks S trim that starts at $18,870 to the Nissan Kicks SV trim that starts at $20,400 and lastly Nissan Kicks SR trim that starts at $21,120. Kicks’ base S model doesn’t come standard with Apple CarPlay or Android Auto. You will need to step up to Kicks’ SV trim for the NissanConnect infotainment system with Android Auto, Apple CarPlay, and satellite ratio.
Overall
The 2020 Ford EcoSport is designed to help you move freely in and out of traffic; and it’s available 4WD is perfect for maneuvering new terrains. If you want a sporty, comfortable, compact SUV that moves easily around town and off the road; but also offers plenty of room to hold the things you need, then the Ford EcoSport is your choice.