Ford Ecosport India launch brings a Compact SUV to the market. The vehicle is priced at Rs 5.59 lakh and up.  The compact SUV comes in one of four trims, eight colors and three engine options, including the award-winning 1-litre EcoBoost.

Regarding a possible Ford Ecosport USA launch, "We certainly have that ability. We're studying it very, very closely." according to Jim Farley, global head of sales and marketing at Ford.   Autoblog reports that the Fiesta-based EcoSport was developed for emerging markets like Brazil and, more recently, China, but it apparently may have a future in the States, where it would form a new entry-level rung below the Escape in Ford's already robust crossover stable. Ford has big plans for its tiny CUV - Farley tells Automotive News that the EcoSport is only available in 10 countries right now, but by 2017, its distribution will have grown to 62 countries.

The engine delivers a power of 1.6 litre engine and fuel efficiency of a small car.  The EcoSport comes equipped with Sync, Ford's voice-enabled in-car connectivity system.  This system enables you to operate your Bluetooth-enabled phone and USB devices, dial calls, read out text messages and browse and select music tracks using voice commands.

According to the India Times, Joginder Singh, MD, Ford India, said, "We expect the EcoSport to be a game changer for Ford India. It will set a new benchmark in the Indian automotive space. Based on the One Ford global platform, the product is tuned to the needs of Indian consumers."

Watch Ford Ecosport India Launch here:

Ford India also intends to export EcoSport to over 40 countries, such as South Africa, Australia, New Zealand, Taiwan and many parts of Europe. Ford invested US$142 million (Rs 838 crore) to produce EcoSport at its Ford India manufacturing facility in Chennai.

According to IHS Automotive, global small utility vehicle sales grew 154 percent between 2005 and 2012. In the next five years, small utilities sales are expected to increase by 51 percent. Ford small utility sales are projected to outpace the overall industry.

"Despite slowdown the compact SUV continues to buck the trend. Our expectation is that SUV sales will grow five fold by 2020," added Singh.

Manual transmissions will be available in both petrol and diesel models, while the automatic gearbox will come only in the petrol variant.