[jesal]

can u post how expensive the parts of the ford are for really ? i am planning but i am scared since i owned a ford ikon and it was rubbish. the fuel pump issues were main. still today i read that fiesta going uphill loses power because the way the pump is designed. is it true? worth buying the car. as i am about to book the swift over this. this is a 90k difference for me

[zuch]

Originally Posted by jesal

still today i read that fiesta going uphill loses power because the way the pump is designed. is it true?

I can't say about parts since I've only had a fiesta for 6 months but this is the first time I'm hearing something about uphill driving. I've done two trips to Shimla since my brother is studying there and I've not felt any issues.

In fact the place where he stays has a very narrow and steep road leading to it. And the car has done great on every account anywhere I've taken it!

[suman]

Originally Posted by jesal

can u post how expensive the parts of the ford are for really ? i am planning but i am scared since i owned a ford ikon and it was rubbish. the fuel pump issues were main. still today i read that fiesta going uphill loses power because the way the pump is designed. is it true? worth buying the car. as i am about to book the swift over this. this is a 90k difference for me

No issues with the fuel pump whatsoever, at least not with the 1.6. I haven't done any major hillclimbing as such but have never faced any issue of losing power going up a slope. In fact one rarely has to downshift, so awesome is the Duratec - picking up even in overdrive on a normal stretch of road is a breeze.

Read through this thread if you want to know ownership costs - haven't paid for anything other than my regular services so far. I have extended warranty & the items claimed under it AFAIR -

• Brake discs
• MID (the info display on the dashboard)
• Water pump.

Car will complete three years in January. I've owned a Ikon 1.6 & this baby is way ahead in quality & performance, trust me. The Ikon's handling was a tad better but that's about it.

[vnabhi]

Hey Suman, that is a good report. I wanted to know at what mark on the odo you got the brake discs and water pump changed. I also wanted to know how many years of extended warranty you have taken. I took mine for a year, and it expires in March, 2009. I wonder if I should shell out 11k and get another year's warranty.

As regards MID, my clock jumps by 30 minutes for a few minutes , and gets back to normal time. This happens every hour when the minutes reading is between 30 and 31--it show as 00 and 01, and then gets back to 32.
I wonder if you had the same issue.

[fidaford]

As regards MID, my clock jumps by 30 minutes for a few minutes , and gets back to normal time. This happens every hour when the minutes reading is between 30 and 31--it show as 00 and 01, and then gets back to 32.
I wonder if you had the same issue.[/quote]


Same issue mate do not worry and after you press the mode button for one second or so and it shows the date after it coming to the original state i.e time it gets resolved.

[suman]

Originally Posted by vnabhi

Hey Suman, that is a good report. I wanted to know at what mark on the odo you got the brake discs and water pump changed.

Thanks mate. Below are the details -

• Discs - 9k kms (7 months) AND 46k kms (22 months). Both times the problem surfaced after the monsoons, when car had gone through some major water-logging
• Water pump - 23.5k kms (13 months)
• Info display - 32k kms (17 months)

Originally Posted by vnabhi

I also wanted to know how many years of extended warranty you have taken. I took mine for a year, and it expires in March, 2009. I wonder if I should shell out 11k and get another year's warranty.

I'd taken 2 years extended (so total 3 years cover). Well, I would spend the money & get it covered. For example, if the throttle body packed up, its 25k, I would have been sunk if something had happened to it & I didn't have the extended warranty.

Originally Posted by vnabhi

As regards MID, my clock jumps by 30 minutes for a few minutes , and gets back to normal time. This happens every hour when the minutes reading is between 30 and 31--it show as 00 and 01, and then gets back to 32.
I wonder if you had the same issue.

Something similar, plus I also felt that the outside temparature reading was malfunctioning in summers when the temperatures were very high. Time to get yours replaced under warranty I think.

[suman]

She completed three years in the family with over 70k kms of running, on Sunday the 25th of January. Three hassle free years of ownership with hardly any visits to the workshop other than routine servicing. Ford reliabilitycheers:!!

The 70k kms servicing was completed last week - just a regular oil & filter change & attending to a squeak from the handbrake cable. Total cost was 2.1k. I need to get the front discs machined because there is a faint shudder on braking at speeds which will probably get worse. Will cost me 4k to get the pair changed but am not feeling very generous, so will look for a solution outside the Ford workshop. LOL

I decided to extend the warranty by another year (4th year) but was cheesed off to discover that on the Petrol Fiesta, there is a mileage cap of 80k kms (Diesel Fiesta gets 4th year warranty till a cap of 150k kms, why the discrimination)!!!! Even with the 80k kms cap, decided to go for it, should serve me for another 6 months at least. Cost was 4.5k, which was quite reasonable I thought (forget about the mileage actually done by me which is not the normal trend).

Not much else to report, haven't driven her for a while, intend to make amends this weekend & burn some rubber! Will also get the alignment & balancing done at Star Wheels, Sector 14 in the course of the next few days.

At this point, on the one hand, I'm idly debating whether or not one should start thinking of the replacement option once it gets close to the four year mark (the EMIs are already over so the car is fully paid for). On the other hand, she's running beautifully, no complaints, no signs of ageing or abnormal wear & tear, so why bother? No decisions taken yet, let's see how she progresses over the course of the year......our faithful & reliable Moondust Silver Streak!

[vnabhi]

70 K in 3 years!! Holy cow, I've run mine only for 13.5 K in 22 months!
Anyways, it is reassuring to read your review.
Are you sure an extra year's warranty costs only 4K? I plan to extend mine in March, but I recall the dealer gave me an approx figure of 11k for a year. I need to cross-check on this.
Further, assuming one takes extra extended warranty, is one compelled to get the car serviced every 6 months? With my kind of running, once a year is what the car needs, and I don't like being forced to get it done once every 6 months to keep the warranty alive.

[iraghava]

Originally Posted by suman

At this point, on the one hand, I'm idly debating whether or not one should start thinking of the replacement option once it gets close to the four year mark (the EMIs are already over so the car is fully paid for). On the other hand, she's running beautifully, no complaints, no signs of ageing or abnormal wear & tear, so why bother? No decisions taken yet, let's see how she progresses over the course of the year......our faithful & reliable Moondust Silver Streak!

Keep her till she throws a tantrum or two and then decide on the replacement. Resale values won't differ by much between now or 8-10 months down the line since you've already taken most of the depreciation hit.

[suman]

Originally Posted by vnabhi

Are you sure an extra year's warranty costs only 4K? I plan to extend mine in March, but I recall the dealer gave me an approx figure of 11k for a year. I need to cross-check on this.
Further, assuming one takes extra extended warranty, is one compelled to get the car serviced every 6 months? With my kind of running, once a year is what the car needs, and I don't like being forced to get it done once every 6 months to keep the warranty alive.

Well, 4th year warranty costs 4.5k, yours would be the 3rd year if I'm not mistaken - maybe there's a price differential depending on the year. I had originally taken 2 years extended warranty which took it up to the end of year 3.

It is always advisable to get the car serviced at the stipulated intervals so there are no issues with the warranty. A service would normally entail only an oil change & would be worth the cost. Extended warranty is peace of mind. As I'd mentioned earlier, God forbid if the Throttle Body ever packed up & you didn't have the extended warranty - 25k straight from your pocket

Originally Posted by iraghava

Keep her till she throws a tantrum or two and then decide on the replacement. Resale values won't differ by much between now or 8-10 months down the line since you've already taken most of the depreciation hit.

Ya, exactly what I was thinking. Presently, the only two replacement options I can think of (Linea & ANHC) don't possess even half the FTD factor this car has.

[suman]

The battery sounded like it was giving up on Friday so had them check it out. They found that the cells were weak & since 3 years were over, it was recommended that the battery be changed. With the extended warranty, I had an option to get a 25% (or was it 20?) discount on the price but I decided to go without the discount because -

• I would have to leave the car with them for 12 hours while they carried out extensive testing including charging etc - couldn't afford that
• Taking it under extended warranty meant that the normal one year warranty given with the battery would not be applicable.

Cost me Rs 3,399 including labour.

[ashthedivx]

Originally Posted by suman

The battery sounded like it was giving up on Friday so had them check it out. They found that the cells were weak & since 3 years were over, it was recommended that the battery be changed. With the extended warranty, I had an option to get a 25% (or was it 20?) discount on the price but I decided to go without the discount because -

• I would have to leave the car with them for 12 hours while they carried out extensive testing including charging etc - couldn't afford that
• Taking it under extended warranty meant that the normal one year warranty given with the battery would not be applicable.

Cost me Rs 3,399 including labour.

Which brand it is ?? I hope Amaron, hearing too many good stories about amaron now-a-days.

[suman]

Originally Posted by ashthedivx

Which brand it is ?? I hope Amaron, hearing too many good stories about amaron now-a-days.

Ford has its own.........

[vnabhi]

Originally Posted by suman

Well, 4th year warranty costs 4.5k, yours would be the 3rd year if I'm not mistaken - maybe there's a price differential depending on the year. I had originally taken 2 years extended warranty which took it up to the end of year 3.

It is always advisable to get the car serviced at the stipulated intervals so there are no issues with the warranty. A service would normally entail only an oil change & would be worth the cost. Extended warranty is peace of mind. As I'd mentioned earlier, God forbid if the Throttle Body ever packed up & you didn't have the extended warranty - 25k straight from your pocket

Thanks Suman. I broached the topic of extended warranty when my dealer rang me up for renewing my car insurance. I was told that my car has extended warranty till Mar, 2010, and not Mar, 2009 as I had presumed. Extending it by another year till 2011 would cost me only Rs 4500.

I checked my extended warranty doc and found that it says the extension is till Mar, 2009. I also remember paying for only a year's extended warranty---in addition to the manufacuter's one year.

So I cross-checked with Mody Ford and they confirmed that their records show that the current extension is till Mar, 2010,and will get updated to Mar, 2011 if I pay Rs 4500. This is good news to me. Perhaps they've extended the manufacturer's 2 year warranty to me also. though that scheme came later.Or bad record keeping.

Anyway who cares? I am rushing with Rs 4500 this weekend! Cheerio!

[BlackPearl]

wow man 70K in 3 years and that too in a petrol car. Over that you have the safari. Do you spend most of time outdoors?? I really envy you Suman.. lol. By the way, nice report and good to see that you are still enjoying the car after 3 years.