[vb-saan]

Originally Posted by Taffy

on the other hand the fiesta has design pedigree but is the price worth it? especially once you have driven the Vento on the road down the Konkan coast (thank you Dad :-))

More than worth it, but just that Ford India has to believe in the car's potential.
The Vento is a great car, but the Fiesta is miles ahead when it comes to driving experience.

Originally Posted by vb-san

More than worth it, but just that Ford India has to believe in the car's potential.
The Vento is a great car, but the Fiesta is miles ahead when it comes to driving experience.

hmm... maybe I am prejudiced to German engineering , always wanted a German car in the family, have one now, maybe it's time to turn to American manufacturing, looking for a hatchback, and heart is with the Figo, but will again test drive the Fiesta once then :-)

[Chetan_Rao]

Originally Posted by noopster

There is a joke in the Support team that any car I review doesn't sell.......

In that case, can we have you designated the official reviewer for all the ugly boot-rammed-in-as-afterthought pseudo sedans?

[wantarangerover]

Just a bit OT, I have seen a lot of people describing the Ford fiesta "American". It is technically true, but most Ford cars ever launched in India (except the Endeavor maybe) are primarily Ford Europe cars, and they dont even sell that much in the US. The ford focus, fiesta, ka, Mondeo, fusion to name a few have always been more European than American in its driving characteristics etc., since they were mostly developed in Europe.

And the case of the fiesta not selling well is just a huge American company not being interested in a market they deem unimportant as of now. American cars just dont sell well overseas because of this step-motherly attitude they have towards other markets. Ironically the exception to this is Ford which sells very well in Europe since Ford europe is run like a different company with entirely different products. This is just my view, not really based on hard research or anything

[CarNerd]

Fiesta doesn't make sense for an average Indian buyer. It has a bad look at the rear, isn't spacious, isn't cheap, not much features, poor mileage & resale value... Most people buy a car keeping their family in mind and very few buy for single use. A car has different aspects and handling is one of them and not the only one. So good handling doesn't make a good car. The whole package should be good. Otherwise its like passing in only one subject and failing at others. That's why Fiesta is a failure.

[Chetan_Rao]

Originally Posted by CarNerd

It has a bad look at the rear

Looks are subjective

isn't spacious

At the rear (for taller occupants), agreed

isn't cheap

The new Fiesta is the cheapest car in its segment

not much features

Care to mention what major features are missing, compared to direct competition?

poor mileage

Ownership threads/experiences suggest otherwise

poor resale value

Subjective again. Not everyone buys with resale value in mind.

While everyone is entitled to their opinion, some perceptions are just wrong.
The Fiesta is admittedly a failure in 'India' for many reasons (the numbers don't lie), but 'not a good car' isn't one of them.

[Porschefire]

Originally Posted by CarNerd

Fiesta doesn't make sense for an average Indian buyer.

Originally Posted by CarNerd

Most people buy a car keeping their family in mind

..which is what I've done mate and let me tell you that I'm an average Indian buyer.

Originally Posted by CarNerd

A car has different aspects and handling is one of them and not the only one. So good handling doesn't make a good car. The whole package should be good. Otherwise its like passing in only one subject and failing at others.

Suggest you to go through the official review as well as anachronix's and my review of the car and tell us in which aspect it falls behind the competition other than the lack of space at the rear. The rear space is actually an assumption by many as both my mom (5'3) and dad (5'9) are absolutely comfortable at the back. As I've mentioned already, the extra bit of space that you need to stretch on a long journey isn't there, that's all.

Originally Posted by CarNerd

That's why Fiesta is a failure.

Fiesta is a failure in India because of Ford's lackluster, step motherly treatment towards it and not because it's a bad car! Period.

[lakshman1067]

Originally Posted by CarNerd

It has a bad look at the rear, isn't spacious, isn't cheap, not much features, poor mileage & resale value... Most people buy a car keeping their family in mind and very few buy for single use. A car has different aspects and handling is one of them and not the only one. So good handling doesn't make a good car. The whole package should be good.

I use to own a Figo diesl and was very close in buying a Fiesta. The only reason I own a Rapid 1.5 TDI instead of a Fiesta is just because I didnt get the colour I wanted (Not even after waiting for 2 months).

Isn't cheap - It is now and the service costs are also very much in the same level as the Maruthi's and hyundai. I was very happy owning a figo and it was trouble free till the time I sold it .

Poor Mileage - Wouldnt say so, I was getting a decent 17km/l in city in Figo and so did few of my friends who owns the previous Gen of Fiesta.None of us were racers.

Keeping their family in mind - Definetly Yes, If you ask me. Fiesta is solid.Atleast the body built is what I mean and yes I felt the interior quality could have been better. Love the handling of the car. It goes where you want it too and you dont feel a thing when you hit a pathhole.Have driven it in different sorts of road(Travel a lot in rural areas) and not a single problem I had faced and in fact never toed even once till the time I had it.


Not that I am not happy with the 1.5TDI Rapid but would have loved to own a another Ford(Fiesta in particular) in the family.

[CarNerd]

Originally Posted by Chetan_Rao

Looks are subjective
At the rear (for taller occupants), agreed
The new Fiesta is the cheapest car in its segment
Care to mention what major features are missing, compared to direct competition?
Ownership threads/experiences suggest otherwise
Subjective again. Not everyone buys with resale value in mind.

The Fiesta has a bad rear in comparision to City or Verna.
The Fiesta is not spacious compared to others which is one of the main reasons for its failure.
The Fiesta was not cheap when it was launched in both petrol & diesel variants. Also the interior looked cheap.
I think features like rear camera, rear AC, push start/stop are missing..
What about the mileage of the petrol version? So in the end the Fiesta is not a VFM car compared to its competition.

[aaggoswami]

I have seen the new updated or rather facelifted Fiesta on the road and it does look nice. The reason for Fiesta's failure is Ford's strategy to sell both, old and new Fiesta together. This strategy lead to a higher pricing for newer one, while the older continued to soldier on with "Classic" name. If this was avoided, I am sure that sales would not have been so low. The competition had more space inside cabin and this parameter plays an important role in sedan segment. Petrol was nothing to write home about and diesel was fantastic. But poor pricing and space ruined the game. Ford should have stopped older classic, launched new Fiesta with 1.6 petrol for performance and 1.5 diesel for efficiency. At the most, old Fiesta with 1.4 petrol as Classic Fiesta.

Its a lost game for Ford. My experience at Ford was : Classic diesel is the only Fiesta available for test drive. No new Fiesta, no classic petrol. They were interested in selling only Ecosport or Figo. Even the Endy was getting more attention than Fiesta. The slow sales also does not inspire confidence into buyers mainly for spares cost/availability or even for resale value.

A well engineered car once again fails in Indian market ( alike Baleno ).

[jetti]

My guess is that fiesta is not getting its due because many people upgrade to a sedan for more space - like arrival of a baby or moved up in the business or corporate ladder. At that time, comparing with its rivals, the back seat space does seem lesser, even though it may not be so bad. For non-enthusiasts, this might be a deal breaker.
Plus Ford's lackluster marketing and misconceptions (that have come down from Ikon days) push down sales.
That said, an aggressive marketing campaign targeted at these factors could definitely help, but will the Ford Marketing division please wake up?

[CrAzY dRiVeR]

Originally Posted by aaggoswami

They were interested in selling only Ecosport or Figo. Even the Endy was getting more attention than Fiesta. The slow sales also does not inspire confidence into buyers mainly for spares cost/availability or even for resale value.

These guys aren't interested in selling anything. When I bought my Punto- I had checked out both Figo and Classic. They didn't show any interest for a few months and started calling up after my Punto purchase. This was at Chennai.

When we got the Xcent- I was willing to book Ecosport AT and wait for it for a year or whatever they needed to arrange one. But not even a call to the dealership was entertained properly, emails and website TD requests were not entertained. Nothing. Haven't faced such rude dealership attitude anywhere else. And as earlier- called up well after our Xcent purchase to follow up. Reason given- 'Sir, our executives were busy (For 6 months to return a website TD request!). This was at Trivandrum, Kerala.

And before going for the Avventura review- I visited VW, Toyota and Ford showrooms. Ford came across as the worst. The sales person did not say 'Please walk out so I could go back to sleep', but most of his actions and facial expressions hinted along these lines. Walked into the dealership for a second time later that week- and did not get a sales advisor at all! Not that the showroom was crowded- there was only one other family in the showroom. We just walked around the Ecosport for sometime and then walked out, while they pretended to be busy with other important things. This was at Bangalore.

Now, people might still overlook all this arrogance to get their hands on the Ecosport because there is not much competition to speak of! But with Fiesta- there are other options available.

[noopster]

Originally Posted by Porschefire

..which is what I've done mate and let me tell you that I'm an average Indian buyer.







Suggest you to go through the official review as well as anachronix's and my review of the car and tell us in which aspect it falls behind the competition other than the lack of space at the rear.

You're missing the point by getting defensive. That there are misconceptions in the minds of potential buyers regarding the Fiesta is a fact. What we are trying to analyse is why these exist and why Ford doesn't do anything to address them!

[d_himan]

I own a Polo TSI. Even today, after all these years, I feel the 1.6 Sxi Ikon (2003) is the car I had most fun in. The Polo TSI, though far more punchier and faster in the mid-range, just doesn't handle and feel as frisky.

Please launch a proper ST Ford! Get back to making 'Josh machines'! The game has moved over to the Germans completely for your core TG - car enthusiasts.

[anachronix]

Cant blame you mate, but the poor pathetic job that Ford has been with marketing their cars. Sometimes, I wonder if Ford funds a few hundred bucks a bloke sitting in the Internet browsing center to upload pics of their car randomly to that stupid Facebook page. Or even cheaper, an IT nerd gets paid to write a script that can post pictures randomly to their FB page. Thats how much Ford focuses on marketing in India

You thought the Ford was expensive!? I have spent 6 months & 13,900KMs with the car. The first service was free, the second service included an oil change. The 2nd service bill was 2,100 INR, its not a typo but exactly how much I paid. Buying cost with all the bells & whistles, 10.9L OTR. Average city FE has been constantly between 17.2 to 17.5KMPL.

The only place the Fiesta might fail compared to competition is its back seat space, but then even that is blown way out of proportion to complaint. I have done 3 trips from Chennai to Kerala with 4 people in the car. So far it has been comfortable. This car is a keeper and only thing I cry about is the lack of outright power!

Next time, stop by at the ownership review page. Read about the cars and decide on it being expensive or not to buy/own!

Originally Posted by CarNerd

Fiesta doesn't make sense for an average Indian buyer. It has a bad look at the rear, isn't spacious, isn't cheap, not much features, poor mileage & resale value... Most people buy a car keeping their family in mind and very few buy for single use. A car has different aspects and handling is one of them and not the only one. So good handling doesn't make a good car. The whole package should be good. Otherwise its like passing in only one subject and failing at others. That's why Fiesta is a failure.