Quote:
Originally Posted by Mu009 Please do share your experience in detail... |
Finally managed to TD Aspire AT today. Here's a short assessment:
Powertrain:
D-mode is smooth, and effortless to drive in traffic. Crawls in both Drive(D) & Reverse(R) without accelerator input, is smooth and non-aggressive, so maneuvering in/out of tight spots should be a breeze (did a 3-point U-turn on a 30-ft road to check). Shift quality is good, kick-down has a slight delay when flooring throttle, but not enough to be annoying. D-Mode is perfect for city driving and relaxed highway cruising. 100kmph comes up somewhere in the low-mid 2000 RPM range. Lots of traffic on NICE road during TD so couldn't get a stable number, but the engine seemed relaxed with a lot of grunt on tap if needed.
S-Mode is a lot of fun, shifts eagerly but kick-downs are aggressive and can catch one out with the slight shift delay and sudden surge in power before one feels the shove in the seat as the car propels forward. Best used on the highway.
Tiptronic mode works seamlessly in S-mode, and provides decent gearing control when driving through twisties. Tried it in city too, and I was able to move to S4 (4th cog on 6-speed TC autobox) while moving at 30-40 kmph without lugging the engine.
Verdict: Powerful motor, competent gearbox Better than any automatic in that budget range, and good fun-to-drive in S-Mode. My ranked preference in ATs around 10L range would be VW DSG > Ford TC > All others.
Ride/Handling:
Let's be clear, this is no 1st-gen Figo, or the current-gen Figo S, keep that in mind to not be disappointed.
Ride is compliant at city speeds, but larger bumps transfer into the cabin if driven over at speed. Car feels stable at legal speeds in a straight line, but doesn't have the on-rails feeling of the two cars mentioned earlier when cornering. With three people in the car, it didn't scrape or bottom out on Bangalore's moonscape, so ground-clearance shouldn't be an issue.
There's some body roll, felt esp. when cornering hard in S-mode or weaving through highway traffic, but nothing alarming. Rear can get bouncy over undulations (should improve with rear loading), and is easy to make it step out in S-mode.
Verdict: Comfortable ride and decent handling, but not a corner carver.
Cabin setup & Features:
This is where most deal-breakers would probably reside.
Cabin feels average, both in materials used and overall ambiance. No top-end AT available, so one needs to compromise on additional safety kit and the SYNC3 ICE for the convenience of the autobox. Single USB port too, beside an AUX-IN.
Seat height adjustment has a healthy range. Only tilt-adjustable steering but finding my preferred driving position was easy. I'm 5'7" and prefer a laid-back driving position, I can still fit in the rear with a few inches of knee-room (tried on a showroom Figo on launch day). Front seats lack lumbar support, and will probably need an accessory for long drives. Rearward visibility is average due to thick C-pillars, front corners can cause blind-spots (not as bad as the Ecosport's tree-trunk A-pillars) for those preferring a low-slung seating position.
A/C is a chiller, probably the best one can find in the segment. Cooled a car parked in the sun within 5-7 mins, enough for us to turn the blower to levels 1-2.
Fly Audio ICE is average, touchscreen slightly laggy, and it didn't recognize my Moto Turbo XT1225 via USB at all (paired reasonably quickly over Bluetooth).
Integrated maps are laggy and useless, not a patch on G-Maps. Audio quality is acceptable at low volumes, gets boomy and distorted as one goes higher. Limited equalizer presets available, and one can move the sound-stage too.
Verdict: Decent cabin but lacks features vis a vis competition. Titanium variant loses out on extra airbags but gains Hill Launch Assist (HLA), Traction Control (TC) and Electronic Stability Program (ESP). Does not get the Freestyle's rollover protection (ARP). All safety features mentioned are specific to AT.
Overall Verdict:
If AT is a must-have, there isn't a better powertrain available in this budget/segment, except the TSI/DSG combo. TC boxes are known to be robust and reliable, which can't be said about the superior VW DSG.
Cabin is ergonomically spot-on for average height/built persons, but the par-for-the-course ambiance and lack of features is unmistakable. Nobody will buy this car for anything except the 1.5 AT option, given Ford's recent variant distribution removing even more features. Lack of SYNC3 is a glaring miss.
All said and done, if you prefer a fun-to-drive experience over creature comforts (there's no missing the lack of them) and are willing to pay ~10L OTR, get this car.
If you want a fully loaded Ford petrol hatch but can live with MT, the Freestyle petrol would be a better option. If diesel isn't a deal-breaker, the 1.5 TDCi motor is proven and capable, and the top-end variant can be had for a nearly-identical price.
What would I buy? I'm swinging between the Figo AT and Freestyle TDCi MT. Will TD the second and decide.