[teemus]

Originally Posted by Abhi_abarth

Now I am worried if another episode of Fiat might open up if I choose the blue oval. I am looking to keep the car for 7 to 8 years atleast and reliability and easy to maintain is on top of my list. Not to forget the rear seat passengers have to feel comfortable.

Since most of your points are already covered by the helpful guys here, I would like to just point out the easy to maintain part.

As you might have seen the ongoing ads about how cheaper to maintain new gen Fords are; I would just like to state that the ads are not false. You can go through numerous awesome ownership reviews of Figo twins wherein people are surprised to see easy on pocket the Aspire is; most definitely cheaper than even Swift (I am not even considering Baleno).

I have a Figo 1.5D which is 16 months old and after 23K Km's I am quite satisfied and do not regret one bit for going against the tide (read jazz, i20 & baleno) and putting my trust and money on a car which sadly is not doing all that well in the market.

[R-Six]

Originally Posted by Abhi_abarth

5. Value for money.
7. Space (we are a family of 5 + 1 dog)

Hi Abhi,

Looking at the number of passengers you expect to ferry around on weekend trips, and with your budget in mind, I would strongly suggest you to look at the new Ertiga. I know it might not be as fun to drive as a Ford. But with 5 people and a dog, it is going to be a difficult task for you to get the luggage and everything sorted for a long weekend travel.

For me, the Ertiga would be the most practical VFM 7 seater you can get.

Cheers,
R-Six

[narayans80]

Originally Posted by Abhi_abarth

Space (we are a family of 5 + 1 dog)

This I feel is your deciding requirement. How frequent is this? I do second R6's suggestion of Ertiga if the frequency of fitting everyone is high. Its slightly (about 2L over budget). It would more practical carrying everyone in comfort. Doggy'll be happy he gets his own row Given you say that he doesn't like travelling in car, squeezing would only irritate him more.

Go for a Figo twins or any B2/C1 segmenter only if bulk of your usage is with 3/4 adults+dog or 4/5 adults max.

ABS, EBD, Rear wash and wipe mandatory

Rear wash+wipe is not necessary on a sedan, the aerodynamics take care of it. Its a requirement only if you are going with a hatchback.

[mxh]

Originally Posted by Abhi_abarth

Thanks for the inputs. I am planning to test drive this Saturday.
=======
Oh ! Most of the time we would be just 4 adults and my 2 year old daughter. Is yours diesel or Petrol ? How is the rear comfort ?

If you are ok with the slightly dated look, the base Etios might match your requirements - very spacious and it has safety features from the lowest models onwards.

[Abhi_abarth]

Originally Posted by mxh

If you are ok with the slightly dated look, the base Etios might match your requirements - very spacious and it has safety features from the lowest models onwards.

The centre console is a deal breaker for me, can't imagine to live with it for 7-8 years.

Originally Posted by narayans80

This I feel is your deciding requirement. How frequent is this? I do second R6's suggestion of Ertiga if the frequency of fitting everyone is high.
Rear wash+wipe is not necessary on a sedan, the aerodynamics take care of it. Its a requirement only if you are going with a hatchback.

Originally Posted by R-Six

Hi Abhi,

For me, the Ertiga would be the most practical VFM 7 seater you can get.

Cheers,
R-Six

My Bad ! I should have clarified about the 5+1 equation. We are a family of 4 adults (Me, wifey, Mom & Dad) and 2 year old daughter. The dog hates travelling so no question of him taking with us on trips. So to sum it up it's just 4 adults and one kid.

Originally Posted by teemus

I would just like to state that the ads are not false. You can go through numerous awesome ownership reviews of Figo twins wherein people are surprised to see easy on pocket the Aspire is; most definitely cheaper than even Swift (I am not even considering Baleno).

Thank you for that valuable input. Inspires confidence when it comes from one who ownes it.

Originally Posted by samaspire

1. Excellent or atleast fair suspension as I live in a locality which has worst roads:

Should not be an issue - service has also become cheaper now - cheaper that Maruti (notice the ads on TV?)

Sam

Thank you samaspire. We are a family with average built and heights not greater than 5.7 so the aspire should be fine.

Originally Posted by samcan123

If you are going for a petrol, I would say Baleno beats Aspire in terms of performance, whereas in case of diesel the Aspire beats Baleno. Test drive both and decide for yourself. IMO, Aspire Titanium and Baleno Delta are VFM given the pricing and the features.

I am comparing between the aspire D and baleno petrol. I have to test drive both back to back maybe this weekend in good and back roads and check the rear seat comfort along with wifey and then take a call.

Whole hearted thanks for your valuable time and comments. Let's see how this goes.

Cheers.

[blackbandit]

Originally Posted by Abhi_abarth

I am comparing between the aspire D and baleno petrol. I have to test drive both back to back maybe this weekend in good and back roads and check the rear seat comfort along with wifey and then take a call.

Whole hearted thanks for your valuable time and comments. Let's see how this goes.

Cheers.

I would suggest you to go for the Aspire Dsl. I had booked the baleno and even gone through 90% of the waiting and then changed my vehicle to Ford Figo in the last moment for various reasons. The baleno petrol is a very good vehicle no doubt. But where it fails to impress is the back seat comfort and the build. Though spacious its definitely not comfortable. Ive got numerous inputs from potential owners who stated that the back seat was the worst place to be on during a long journey - probably the flat bench and the stiff suspension setup are to blame here. This is not the case in the aspire. As i mentioned before no one complained during long journeys in my car. Ive driven almost 500kms continuously with 4 passengers on board and we had two cars during the trip, that makes total of 8 passengers and two drivers. The other car was a swift. And people were literally fighting to get onboard the figo. And not to forget the unbeatable engine that you'll be getting in the aspire.

And PS: A small test drive is ought to make anyone think the baleno is more comfortable and a better vehicle considering the space offered and the sheer size of it. I would suggest you to consult a few owners before taking the decision regarding this.

[DevilsCry]

Originally Posted by Abhi_abarth

1. Excellent or atleast fair suspension as I live in a locality which has worst roads.

Etios wins. My first gen Figo is absolutely horrible on bad roads at low speed. New Figo/Aspire is not really better. Etios is supremely comfortable on bad roads at low speed.

2. Easy to maintain and reliable (very ver imp, burnt my pockets with the palio)

Tied for both Figo/Aspire and Etios. I'm confident that both are cheapest cars to maintain in their segment. Maruti was never cheap in first place. No idea why people call Maruti cheap. My Esteem costed a bomb to maintain.

7. Space (we are a family of 5 + 1 dog) The dog hates to travel in car and bike though.

Definitely rule out Maruti. Both Baleno and Ignis rear seats are terribly short on thigh support. Etios beats Figo in interior space but Figo is not bad either. Trunk space-wise, Etios beats Aspire by a mile. Aspire boot space utilization is even worse than first-gen Figo.

I understand that you hate Etios dashboard. Even I do. But man, rest of package is simply amazing!

[d3mon]

Originally Posted by d3mon

The gear selector is located behind the flap circled in red. This region is located right behind the front left fog lamp. Sorry, I don't have a picture of the spray itself, but it was a generic 3M lubrication spray. Perhaps WD-40 will also do the trick.

Originally Posted by d3mon

Look what I found! A guy is opening up this very panel and showing the gear selector working.
See from the 0:45 mark.
======

So the gear notchiness had reappeared about 1500 - 2000 kms after this 3M spray. Undeterred, I opened up the gear flap underneath my car, and sprayed it, this time with a generous dose of motorcycle chain lubricant & cleaner

Yes, that worked wonders again.

Gentlemen, I can confirm with absolute certainty now that spraying a lubricant of some sort in this gear selector region will introduce a spring in each step of your gearbox. Figuratively, of course, as I don't think anybody would want additional springs in their gearboxes.

If anyone ever complains about notchy gears on the new Figo, please do tell them about this neat trick that completely solves the issue.

[Vid6639]

Originally Posted by d3mon

Gentlemen, I can confirm with absolute certainty now that spraying a lubricant of some sort in this gear selector region will introduce a spring in each step of your gearbox. Figuratively, of course, as I don't think anybody would want additional springs in their gearboxes.

If anyone ever complains about notchy gears on the new Figo, please do tell them about this neat trick that completely solves the issue.

This should apply for Ecosport as well. I get this notchiness sometimes and I think I need to get that spray as well. Last time I told them they opened the console around the gear lever and liberally put lubricating oil in the gear shifter assembly and adjusted something in that flap you mentioned.

Now I need to just keep it well greased and it should do the trick.

[Abhi_abarth]

UPDATE :

So I registered for a test drive on the Ford website with the choice of dealer and yes nobody approached me even after 4 days so i called out two dealers (Mody & Fortune) for a test drive. Fortune guy turned up at my office today around 2.45 pm with a silver Titanium variant. Here are my observations :

+
1. Seats are very comfortable
2. Powerful A/C
3. Silent cabin
4. Excellent ride quality. Although I was searching for bad roads couldn't fine any. However, wherever there were little rough and bad patches the car took them very well.
5. Felt little turbo lag till 1800 rpm but post that the car zoomes like a jet and ride, smoothness kept getting better as the speed started increasing

(-)
1. Built quality isn't as the previous Fords. Many parts were of poor quality.
2. Rear seats are fit for 2 adults and a kid, 3 would be a squeeze.
3. Average rear view visibility.

Overall it was a nice test drive and the SA was very professional and explained me all the features patiently. I will need to go for one more test drive with another dealer and then take the call.

[samaspire]

Originally Posted by Abhi_abarth

Overall it was a nice test drive and the SA was very professional and explained me all the features patiently. I will need to go for one more test drive with another dealer and then take the call.

Not one more; take a few more TDs - over good roads and bad. Drive along your daily route as it will be the best comparison against your current vehicle. And take it on the highway - that's where the Aspire really come alive.

[phamilyman]

Originally Posted by Tushar

A lot of local drivers were enamoured by the car and were very curious about the boot space, but were disappointed with the build quality. Even the Janta associates Ford with the rock solid build of the Fiesta & Escort, which isn't the case here. It's thinner sheet metal than what Ford has previously used - no two sides to that. The Aspire 1.2L sedan is 25 kilos lighter than the old Figo 1.2L, and that's with the boot, bigger dimensions & additional equipment!

So here's the thing - for the nearly same engine, the Ecosport AT is almost 300 kg heavier than Aspire for nearly the same safety kit. That means that while the Aspire is a screamer of a car to drive, the Ecosport feels borderline geriatric and nowhere as fun.

How should I make this decision? Where has that weight loss come from? Is the EcoSport structurally stronger in each area? I'm more prone to assuming the Ecosport to be a made-for-the-world vehicle with better safety even in the areas NCAPdoesnt check (like say in a T-bone accident).

PS: I'm otherwise considering the Creta and possibly the WRV if it comes in CVT version as well.

[samaspire]

Originally Posted by phamilyman

So here's the thing - for the nearly same engine, the Ecosport AT is almost 300 kg heavier than Aspire for nearly the same safety kit. That means that while the Aspire is a screamer of a car to drive, the Ecosport feels borderline geriatric and nowhere as fun.

How should I make this decision? Where has that weight loss come from? Is the EcoSport structurally stronger in each area? I'm more prone to assuming the Ecosport to be a made-for-the-world vehicle with better safety even in the areas NCAP doesn't check (like say in a T-bone accident).

Pretty sure that all of that 300 kg is in the sheet metal that covers the stucture - just knocking on the doors will make it obvious. FYI, I have lifted (tried) the rear quarter panel (?) (The last panel on the right side, before the bumper starts) of the export variant of the Aspire and it was at least 10 kg heavier. So Ford has done major cost cutting here; maybe also for the mileage quest.

But there is no compromise in the structure/frame. It is just as sturdy as the other fords. I have first hand experience of it (detailed somewhere in this thread). I have also posted previously an image of a Figo that was t-boned by a truck. The B-Pillar had taken the impact quite well and though the car was declared a total loss, the passengers walked out without a scratch.

[mobike008]

Originally Posted by phamilyman

So here's the thing - for the nearly same engine, the Ecosport AT is almost 300 kg heavier than Aspire for nearly the same safety kit. That means that while the Aspire is a screamer of a car to drive, the Ecosport feels borderline geriatric and nowhere as fun.

Originally Posted by samaspire

But there is no compromise in the structure/frame. It is just as sturdy as the other fords.

Well, I have no experience of owning any Fords before the Aspire except for driving the Fiesta Diesel, Figo Diesel and Fiesta S and they felt little heavier as many cars during that era. However, the industry is going through a paradigm shift of making lighter cars due to improvements in reinforcement technologies (without obviously compromising on the overall structure of the car) and providing better safety equipment (imagine a <10 Lakhs car having 6 air-bags) to make it a more economical package for the buyer

In an Aspire, lighter weight of the car can be felt only in 2 situations :

1. When you slam the door shut (it does not really make a difference to me)

2. When you are driving at high speed the road noise, tyre noise etc seeps into the cabin thereby reducing the overall driving experience (this makes a little difference to me)

To summarize, Aspire despite having a lighter body weight feels superbly planted at high-speeds unlike cars heavier (e.g : i20, Baleno) than it in this segment

[airbus]

My brother owns a Ford Aspire petrol variant. He was complaining mediocre performance of the petrol engine particularly in city driving condition. Is there a way to improve the performance by some tuning? If so, is there anyone in Bengaluru who can do the tuning?