Ford EcoSport to feature Emergency Assistance technology

Ford Ecosport official images India (8)

The Motoroids team is already in Goa testing the Ford Ecosport and have been bringing every bit of detail on the highly anticipated SUV to be out on sale very soon.

Apart from the horde of features, the SYNC® Emergency Assistance technology, already available in 5 million Ford vehicles across the globe will be offered on the Ford Ecosport when it goes on sale in India.

A segment first with Ford being the only manufacturer in India to offer the technology, the Emergency Assistance system is a vehicle-based, no-cost, non-subscription call-for-help system and the service is provided free for the ownership cycle of the vehicle.

“We’re so excited about being the first automaker to provide this technology where EcoSport will be uniquely positioned amidst segment players. Ford’s Emergency Assistance system has already proved itself as a life-saver in other parts of the world and we expect our customers here to appreciate this level of reassuring in-car connectivity,” said Joginder Singh, president and managing director, Ford India.

Ford Ecosport official images India (31)

The Ford SYNC Emergency Assistance system utilizes the driver’s own mobile phone via Bluetooth and once paired with SYNC runs in the background if in mobile phone range. It’s a one time setup and the phone gets automatically paired with SYNC whenever the driver/passenger enters the vehicle, provided the Bluetooth on the mobile phone is on. Also the system can be turned on or off as per the preference of the driver/passenger.

If the airbags have been deployed or the emergency fuel pump shutoff is activated after a mishap, the SYNC feature as a handsfree enables the driver to connect to 108 – India’s emergency service. But before the dial-in takes place, the SYNC system provides a ten second bugger to the driver or the passenger to decide to place the call or not. If the call isn’t cancelled within ten seconds, the SYNC places an emergency call.

Also if the accident takes place while the phone was in use for a regular call whether incoming or outgoing, the Emergency Assistance system ends the call and dials for the emergency services. Once connected, the occupants of the vehicle step out and still stay connected with the emergency services on the mobile phone within the Bluetooth range.

In case the occupant wasn’t able to communicate with the emergency services, a message is sent with the GPS coordinates to the emergency operator that an accident has taken place.

Ed Pleet, Connected Services Director, Ford Motor Company, Asia Pacific and Africa, and Europe said “Since 911 Assist (SYNC’s North American version of Emergency Assistance) was launched in 2008, we have heard many remarkable stories about how the technology made a difference for people in their time of need. We are constantly working on new innovations to provide Indian customers with the latest smart features and Emergency Assistance certainly raises the bar on in-car technology and connectivity in India.”

Adding to Mr. Pleet’s statement, Subodh Satyawadi, Chief Executive Officer, GVK Emergency Management and Research Institute said “We’re very pleased to see a company like Ford take the initiative to launch such a critical service, which will provide Ford customers with an extra level of comfort knowing that should they be involved in an accident, that “108 Emergency Services” will automatically be contacted.”

We’d say its a novel feature to be included on a car’s safety spec chart. Such features do matter in circumstances where the difference between a life saved and life lost rests on a hair line timeframe.

Good initiative Ford India, now please get the Ecosports to the dealerships. Your prospective customers have been running out of patience.

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