Pre-worshipped car of the week : Buying a Ford Figo / Aspire

The two cars are still a heck of a lot of fun and Ford has continually improved them since launch!

These two cars were Ford's attempt at doing a "Maruti". With a lighter build than the usual Fords, clean but boring styling, softer driving experience and an electric steering, this offering is quite different from the 1st-gen Figo / Fiesta. That said, the two cars are still a heck of a lot of fun and Ford has continually improved them since launch! Because they flopped in the market, the twins can be picked up for an attractive price in the used market. Our top choice would be the stonking 1.5L diesel, but the petrol is competent too. 

Positives
• A well-priced car in the used market. Extremely good value-for-money
• Aston Martin-esque face still looks very stylish!
• Well-packaged cabin offers good legroom, lots of features and a chilling air-con  
• 1.5L diesel is a cracker of an engine. Will make you grin wide :D!
• Peppy 95 BHP 3-cylinder petrol is sweet (avoid the lethargic 1.2L 4-cylinder of early cars)
• Good ride quality & decent handling. You can have a lot of fun with these chuckable cars
• Titanium+ variant gets 6 airbags, while the 1.5 AT has ESP
• Features such as that awesome touchscreen HU, auto headlamps & wipers, reversing camera etc.
• Transparent + reasonable service costs
• Owners have reported good reliability with their Fords

Negatives
• Looked old & bland at launch, and feels rather outdated today (inside & out)
• 1.2L is good for a 3-cylinder engine, but the 4-cylinder 1.2s from Maruti, Hyundai & gang are superior
• Lighter build is a departure from the usual Ford sturdiness. Some interior plastics do feel cheap
• Cabin width makes the Figo / Aspire suited to 4 adults, not 5
• Automatic doesn't come in the top variant with 6 airbags. Also, avoid the earlier dual-clutch ATs
• Aspire's 359-liter boot is among the smaller ones in the segment
• Rear headroom is limited. Headliner brushes the heads of taller passengers  
• Some missing essentials (dead pedal, full-size spare tyre) & some deleted (leather seats, height-adjustable seatbelts)
• Later year models don't come with the brilliant SYNC 3 infotainment
• A bit uncertain of how the long-term after-sales will be, with the Mahindra-Ford JV  

Related Threads

• Official Reviews - Figo Facelift, Aspire Facelift
• giri1.8's Figo 1.5L AT
• tharian's remapped Aspire 1.5L diesel
• joe_lightspeed's modified Figo
• bhuvan_prasad's 2016 Figo Diesel
• KreativeGeek's Blue Oval, Aspire
• auto_enthusiast's 90,000 km done Aspire
• karan561's video review of his car
• espraveen's 1.16L km done Figo

Mod Potential:
A remap will make the 1.5L diesel fly! Some members have even got lowering springs. That aside, the mod potential is similar to any mass market hatchback. 

Availability:
Fair, but both cars flopped, so supply is obviously not like a Swift / Dzire. Still, you can find a good car for a VFM price without that much effort. Because the car ages quickly (visually), many owners are bored of their Figos & Aspires. If you get the rare Sports edition, pick it up with your eyes shut, then come back and tell us how much fun you're having. The taller Freestyle is a more recent launch & hence, its supply is too limited in the pre-owned bazaar. Check out some of the examples on sale here.

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