Ford Figo Aspire First Drive Road Test Review

Inside, it’s the same story. The centre console has been switched to the Fiesta and EcoSport styled dial pad with the buttons that give it a futuristic look. Housed below is the climate control system. Under the climate control assembly is a rubber padded shelf big enough to keep your mobile phones. The car will be available in 4 trims in the 1.2 petrol and the 1.5 diesel – Ambiente, Trend, Titanium and Titanium+. The 2^nd and 3^rd variants get a brilliant feature called “My Dock” which basically is a place to keep your phone and transforms it into a screen altogether. With a USB port inside the dock, it will also charge it as well as connect it to the infotainment system with Bluetooth or many more features about which I can go on and on. The most convenient part about “My Dock” is that it sits right on top of the centre console in perfect view of the driver and is very accessible, so you don’t have to stretch your arm to get to it. The dock is so simple and elegant, I think it’s brilliant. We couldn’t find a single smart phone that doesn’t fit in the dock. The Titanium+ though doesn’t get the docking system. Instead the top model gets a 4.2 inch MFD infotainment screen for all the crazy features and the brilliant Ford SYNC with AppLink.

The front and rear seats are very comfortable. The seats in the front are extremely soft and provide great support from all sides. Even at high speed corners, you won’t be thrown about easily. The Aspire is also the first in its segment to offer leather upholstery. The cabin is extremely spacious with a great amount of head room and shoulder room.

Now that we have all the itty bitty bits covered, let’s talk drivability. At first I drove the 1.2L, petrol engine. Rudyard’s engine produces 70bhp and 102Nm of torque, the updated 1.2L, Ti-VCT now produces 87bhp and 112Nm of torque. When I first set off, I realized that the throttle is extremely smooth and it can easily just start rolling without any hesitation from the gearbox and clutch. The gearbox is essentially the same as the old and brilliant one but with updated ratios to be economical. A small green arrow also tells you when to change up so you can drive economically in city traffic. Though the petrol engine only punches through anywhere above 3000rpm, in the city you won’t notice any lag of power from the engine. The ratios in the gearboxes are so good, you can rev and rev and rev the engine and the car just wants more. The limiter is all the way up at 6500rpm. In 3^rd gear at 4500rpm you’ll find yourself at half throttle at 120kmph. Push it further down and it just climbs with ease. It’s a brilliant new engine, a massive improvement from the previous one.

On the other hand the 1.5L, diesel is a meaty and torquey beast. Again no hesitation from the clutch or the gearbox, the engine just loves to push you into your seat. The torque is just crazy when you think that it’s just a 1.5L, 4 pot, diesel and not a 10L, V8. The power is immediate as soon as you nudge the throttle you receive an almost immediate response which is linear to the pedal inputs. It’s the same power you get at low and high revs with six and a half thousands of them at your disposal. It is easy to max it out to its top speed, we were able to get 190kmph on the empty, lonely and smooth highway. The old 1.4L, Duratorq, diesel produced a terrible 68bhp in the Figo and 160Nm of torque, the 1.5L, TDCi however produces a massive 99bhp and 215Nm of torque. Ford claims that despite the power upgrades and torque, the fuel economy is pushed up even further with the petrol giving 18.6kmpl and the diesel despite the massive power gives a highly economical 25.83kmpl.

The only thing left to address is the EPAS system. Is it just like all other wooden electric systems found on modern cars? I’m extremely glad to report that it’s just not the case with this one. The system does feel immensely lighter than my old hydraulic, it isn’t as great as that system but it does get close to it as it can get. You do get feedback from the wheels, you do feel a slight amount of weight in the steering wheel and yet it’s easy to maneuver into tight spots without a glitch. Only when you get above 160kmph you start to lose confidence in your inputs, you start to feel disconnected. In normal driving conditions however, it suits my love for a driver’s car feel. Yet it also meets popular demand of the “kitna deti hai” society.

So were my fears true? Ford could just ruin it or would I want to replace my old for the new? Obviously not, I have a connection with Rudyard which is like true love. He has grown on me, and I have on him it’s an emotional connection that I just can’t have with any other. But would I be disappointed to get the Aspire instead of him in the first place? Absolutely not!

In a nutshell, the Sub 4- metre sedan segment hasn’t amazed me at all. I have never desired any of the vehicles from this segment ever, no matter how many accents you use in the name, in writing them or naming them, those cars just don’t have that zest in them. But the way Ford has styled the Figo Aspire and provided a massive list of features, quality, optional accessories and the entire car itself makes it a threat to other contenders. Ford just needs to price it right at around Rs. 5 lakh to start with. If that is the first number, the Indian compact sedan market has a storm coming its way.