[PrideRed]

Ford again seem to be missing the boat. Launching AT, why not redesign the front/rear , throw in new features and make the car more desirable? They did an excellent job with Ecosport, wonder why this step motherly treatment to Figo. Fits my bill perfectly- decent power, good dynamics, perfect size for city and occasional highway drive and backed by cheap and good Ford service.

[NiInJa]

Originally Posted by Mile_muncher

Those who are more updated on 'Ford plans for India' are requested to pls guide - Does it make sense to buy a FORD now in India?

I had a Chevvy Beat and a Fiat Linea, both phased out of market before end of useful life. I can say one thing is depending on your location, servicing and spares won't be a big problem even if they shut shop.
Most probably they will have one or two service centers functional in big cities for next 15 years (I think Indian law mandates that) and then there will be local garages who have their contacts.

Our Beat's servicing was done routinely, they also managed to get a new windshield after someone vandalized her. The bumper too was replaced by a local garage (they sourced it from GM Workshop). Similarly, our Linea's engine mounts were replaced rather quickly by our local FNG.

If I were in the same boat, I would probably not get any car with turbocharged petrol engine or a complex dct gearbox. For simple NA engine, I would go ahead and get one without much thought.

[evilmessiah]

Had the privilege to drive a Figo with the 1.5 dragon petrol engine and the 6 speed TC quite a while back. That car was rarer than an Abarth Punto and Ford didn't seem too eager to sell them. The car was nice, the engine was brisk and the transmission was also smooth and shifted reasonably quickly. As nisshith said, this was what Ford needed 3 years back.

This announcement is like ordering for a biriyani at Kayees and getting it after 3 years. Quite sad to see this lazy half hearted approach to the Indian market (though kind of justified from the company's point of view- people here end up buying Marutis with AMT-s anyways).

[gsferrari]

Brave is he who steps into a Ford Dealership in the current scenario. Their PR team really needs a dressing down.

[Venkatesh]

Ford Figo Automatic is here.



Media drive reviews to go live tomorrow at 2pm.

Link

[shubham7799]

A car with

1. dated exteriors
2. bland interiors
3. 1.2L 3 pot engine mated to a 6speed TC
4. a fly by night feature list
5. sparse dealership network
6. coming a company with unclear intentions about continuing operations in the country

Such a car is certainly not going to the top spot of the consideration list of any prospective buyer. Even more so when there are accomplished products like the Baleno CVT, Amaze CVT, Maruti AMTs(Swift, Dzire, Ignis, WagonR), Hyundai AMTs(Nios, Aura, Santro), Nissan Magnite CVT, Renault Kiger etc. which the ruling the current market. Agreed that an AMT is no match to the proper TC but the ones with the 1.2L have managed to masked the shortcomings fairly well. The only thing working in the favor of this car is the legacy of the previous generation Figo and the much hailed driving dynamics of the previous gen. Add to that, Ford is probably the only company around that deletes features and options with facelifts!

Why at all is the company launching a supposedly DOA product when the market is full of speculations about their exit from the India? Or why was not the baby Dragon armed with this ammo when the senior Dragon was made to hang boots around a year(or more) ago, when Figo Blu came? Also, why only the Figo gets an auto-box and not the Aspire and Freestyle? They too aren't very aspirational or stylish either for the market!

Ford really need to clear the air about their plans of continuing in India and price this product really really well if they want this baby Dragon to set the sales charts on fire, because this, in all probability, is their last shot.

[chiranjitp]

Some more details/photos regarding the upcoming Figo automatic, seems it will come in the top end Titanium + variant.















Source: Whatsapp forward.

[northstar*]

The Figo in Ford's latest teaser image got a TDCi badge!

[shubham7799]

True to their caption, it will stand out (Tdci + TC) in the hatchback segment!

Alas, that is not the case.

On side notes, does anyone in Ford's digital team brainstorm, verify or even do a QC before such a content goes out in the media?

[Turrrb0]

Originally Posted by shubham7799

True to their caption, it will stand out (Tdci + TC) in the hatchback segment!

Alas, that is not the case.

On side notes, does anyone in Ford's digital team brainstorm, verify or even do a QC before such a content goes out in the media?

Seems like Ford's PR consultants don't know jack about the product, or they don't have a single car guy on their team.

[DriveOnceMore]

Originally Posted by northstar*

The Figo in Ford's latest teaser image got a TDCi badge!

Attachment 2181830

Plus the car in post has Old Alloys too

[anb]

Originally Posted by northstar*

The Figo in Ford's latest teaser image got a TDCi badge!

Attachment 2181830

There is no blue tick after Fordindia in the previous image. Fordindia’s official account has blue tick and there is no tdci badge

[rainmaster]

Not sure why Ford had decided to launch automatic in Figo and Aspire at this point time, they could have launched when BS6 models where released. Aspire/Figo 1.2 petrol mated with 6 speed auto gear will get sub 4 meter tax benefits and acceptable fuel efficiency. With the current rumors, I’m afraid Ford will not have enough takers for petrol automatic. Instead, Ford could launch Freestyle and Ecosport automatic with diesel engine, will definitely have more takers for fuel efficient diesel automatic.

With BS6 releases , Ford could have released

Proper Aspire sedan with 1.5 Petrol and 6 speed automatic not the compact sedan. With 1.5 petrol, sub 4 meter tax benefits is no longer available to pass it on to customer, why not provide full size sedan. More customers might have opted to get a symmetrical sedan with proper automatic gearbox instead of AMTs prevalent in compact sedan.
Diesel is Ford’s strength, I have no idea on how much money and effort Ford India need to invest to mate 1.5 Diesel with six speed auto. I’m pretty sure they could have easily reaped the benefits in short span of time.

In business, timing is everything, guess Ford had already missed the boat.

[jithin23]

Dang. They got everything right except for Android auto /carplay. Cruise control could have been given too as the AT is sold only in titanium+ trim. How much does it take Ford to integrate it in flyaudio. It's OK if they aren't giving sync but this is like a basic feature in today's times. Even S-presso gets it.

They could have used this opportunity to bring the 1.5 EcoBlue diesel and it has 300Nm torque and good efficiency given that the fuel prices are at triple digits now. Plus the diesel AT could have been replicated in the entire portfolio and Bi turbo for the Endeavor

[TwerkyC0ffee]

So, as per Ford India, alloy redesign is what public wants but not stuff like LED and/or Projector headlamps? Or they think of themselves as Maruti that people will buy whatever abomination (read: S-Presso) they launch .