[PrideRed]

1.6 mill of Ikon is one of the most underrated engines! This along with Opel 1.6 Engine to me were as exciting as the iVtec. 1.6 on the Ikon had sweet sporty note too!

[akash_v12]

Great writeup Sanidhya Mukund! What a garage you got there. The Ikon, being one of the cheapest cars, that also is one of the greatest and most thrilling for the driver and the other being the epitome of luxury.
Ikons were the best sedans of their times and I specially liked the 2008 avatar. It looked sweet! Had fond memories of riding in one of my friends' car, a white facelifted model back in Assam.

[ads11]

Originally Posted by Sanidhya mukund

Attachment 2092332
Make: Ford
Model: Ikon
Year: 2000
Month: September
Variant: EXI
Engine: Ford 1.3 Endura-E
colour: Tourmaline Green metallic

Thank you so much for sharing this! It brought back so many fond memories for me as it was my first car, the one I essentially taught myself how to drive on, and the one which in its final parting act, kept me alive in a moment of distraction that could have been fatal. I have nothing but love for the Ford Ikon, mine was silver, but any of these original models, garner nothing but fond memories just seeing them still out and about.

I found myself chuckling at your mention of the abysmal headlights - something I often found myself toiling with, especially if in torrential rain. Those lamps were the equivalent of driving with a handheld torch but you learned to adapt nonetheless. What I'll never forget was the excellent driving position, that crisp steering (in my mind I basically have it as my yardstick by which I judge others for steering feel), the short throw gearbox and the predictable power delivery (though by the time I got it - it was less predictable and more just long beyond the days of its josh!).

I still remember the day our Ikon arrived. My parents are both impulsive buyers - the kind where, if they find themselves sold on a vehicle for sure, can end up buying it just like that. And so it happened, one day dad drove to work in our 1999 Santro (also silver - dad had a colour theme back then..) and drove home in a brand new silver Ikon. Mum and I were a bit puzzled and he just matter of factly said he felt like giving it a test drive, liked it and bought it with no advance warning to anyone really. And so it became the car with which my parents would vie for the keys when driving anywhere.

Reading your post I find myself smiling, nodding and concurring. I remember how heavy those doors were! When I'd drive home from a football game, feeling sore, and sighing at the weight of the door. Like I alluded to earlier though, that front crash structure took the brunt of a WBST bus hitting me head on.

Oh this thread is so great for reminiscing, thank you again for sharing!

[asbshyam]

This was on the few cars that I always drooled after when I was a kid in school. An American brand selling cars in India was an fascinating concept for me at the time. Happy to see you celebrating your car along with the Mercedes!

[RohanDheman]

Very well written and good to see all original documents still being with you.

On a lighter note: Please do tell me how it is living with two cars with zero bottle holders!
I still cant get over the fact that during the multiple test drives, i completely forgot to check that the Merc too has zero bottle holders!

Hoping some sense goes into the folks at NGT and we don't have to scrap our cars. My E36 has the same current fate as your Ikon.

Cheers!
Rohan

[sgm]

Ford Ikon 1.3 was my first car I purchased in 2005 and sold it when it was approaching the 1L KM mark. It was a fun car and the suspension setup was spot on. I used to glide over bad roads and humps when all the other sedans will be slowing down.
The sore point was the maintenance cost. I was spending like 30-40k easily in the last 5 years of ownership, or the Ford ASS was taking me for a ride.

[ArshThakur]

Seeing you article made me remember my 2002 Ikon 1.3 EXI which I bought second hand in 2004 from a retired Army officer. It was my second car, first being a matiz which I bought in 2003 and was totalled in 2004 by my college roommate. Drove it for a lakh km and finally sold in 2018 to buy another car. I have attached the only pic I could find of the car.

[TrackDay]

That was a different time and era. And I truly miss that.

If the Honda city, Rapid/Vento, Ciaz, Verna are the affordable proper sedans today, back then it was the Honda city, Ford Ikon, Baleno, Cielo, Opel astra, accent and Lancer ruling the roost. All those cars had such individual characters and traits.

[vinya_jag]

I really miss the simplicity of the cars of that generation:

Huge windows, low shoulder line- perfect for windows down driving, simple and functional dash devoid of gizmos, peppy engines with no lag whatsoever, hydraulic power steering which the modern day cars can't even match, thick windows with good noise isolation, and overall, good feedback from the road.

I feel, cars these days are trying to sell us unwanted luxuries, which is probably taking the fun out of our travels. My daughter is worried about listening to the same song over and over again, and she doesn't know what else to do in a 30 minute drive, and I would have spent hours gazing outside, and then have a fully dry and dusty hair at the end of it.

Back to the topic, I had driven my cousin's Ikon, and loved everything about it, but for the noise that the diesel made. Glad that you kept it so long.

[landcruiser123]

Your Ikon is a true icon. I've been a big fan of the car since 2003 when I used to carpool with my neighbor to some sports classes. As an 8 year old, the Ikon 1.6 was my wet dream as it was ages ahead of my moms '98 Maruti 800 which had no AC. The Fiesta is pretty popular in Europe - I wonder why Ford doesn't sell the car in India?

Stupid rules aside, have you explored getting it registered in any of the neighboring states and using the car as a beater for your local errands?

[kiku007]

I can't believe there's a 20 year old Ikon that's been taken care of. You are amazing!

Originally Posted by Sanidhya mukund

Conclusion-

The sad part is that in 2019, the NGT rule that was implemented in Delhi NCR stated that all petrol cars older than 15 years can no longer ply on Delhi roads. This rule left many people with no option but to scrap their beloved cars.
Since my car is no longer road legal, it now spends its days parked in a corner. We crank it up every once in a while, and take it for a spin around the colony, but for the most part, it has become virtually unusable. However, this does not mean that we have plans to sell it or scrap it anytime soon. I now consider it to be a classic car, and even if it cannot run on the public roads, there is nothing stopping me from keeping it parked at home.

Huge respect for holding on to the car even with the stupid NGT rule.

The Ikon signified a change in direction and fortunes for Ford India. Maybe it's worthwhile to send this story over to Ford India. What if it pulls the heart strings of someone higher up at Ford who'll want to get this car for their Ford India collection if they even had one? Imagine a 25 year old Ikon in 2025.

You've triggered the memories of fellow Ikon owners and here's my pride and joy, the Ikon 1.3 ROCAM Nxt. It only had 72 horses under the bonnet but they'll outrun the 100 horses in some cars. Even Ford doesn't make such cars anymore and that's saying something.

[Sanidhya mukund]

Originally Posted by TheHelix0202

Brilliant thread! Brings back so many memories associated with our own 1.6 and 1.3, both ROCAMs (clear lens ones).


2) When I was a kid, I used to love flipping through the pages of the 1.6's ownership manual. All those illustrated diagrams and that sweet smell emanating from the book's pages rattled my childhood self to its joyous core!

This was the car that set the passion of cars in me, and I really hope I would be able to pick up a decent example once I start working! I think my signature perfectly suits the idea!

Thanks TheHelix0202! The owners manual indeed has a very nostalgic smell. If I had to describe that time period using a smell, this would be it!
Just like you, for me also, the Ikon was the car that made me an enthusiast.

Originally Posted by fordfreak

Loved your thread! Kudos to you for preserving a piece of Indian automotive history!

Reading your thread brought back a lot of nice memories from the time my family owned an Ikon. (that car was the reason for me choosing 'fordfreak' as my handle on T-BHP!)...

Attachment 2092939

Wow, thats a really nice looking Ikon! Especially the multi-spoke alloys. It seems like the 1.6 was a major reason why people loved this car, and rightly so!

Originally Posted by ciddharth

A well-articulated review, Sanidhya. Apart from the original and pristine condition of the Ikon, it is impressive how meticulously you have preserved the original brochure and service invoices after 2 decades...Hope you maintain this to showcase 5 decades down the line in a museum - a budget car of the Millenium. Thank you for sharing this review.

Thank you so much for the appreciation! Yes, I would love to keep this car for as long as possible. This car would indeed soon become museum worthy.

Originally Posted by puneetakhouri

Even we own a 2005 Ford Ikon 1.3 Flair and I totally agree to all your observations about the car. The car feels solidly built, has very few rusting spots, is beautiful to look at, has a fantastic steering system and equally pathetic wooden brakes. One thing however, where I differ from your opinion is the headlights. I find the headlights to be simply fantastic on the Ikon, I am not sure maybe it is the later model years that got better headlights, or if the car has higher rated headlight bulbs (say 90/100).

Attachment 2092956

Looks beautiful in Black! thanks for sharing these pictures! your car is the facelift model, so they most probably upgraded the headlamps.

Originally Posted by Rocketscience

Wow, this brings back so many memories, not only did we own the same car, same model year, same exact color (which was quite rare, my mom suggested my dad to buy this at the time), but the same city and the same dealership as well. (I saw one Harpreet Ford invoice in your review), i think the showroom is still situated in Moti Nagar but has been shifted to the other side of the road...

Yes, my car is indeed from that very showroom in Moti Nagar! I didn't know that it still exists.
Enjoyed reading your childhood experiences with your Ikon!

Originally Posted by akash_v12

Great writeup Sanidhya Mukund! What a garage you got there. The Ikon, being one of the cheapest cars, that also is one of the greatest and most thrilling for the driver and the other being the epitome of luxury.
Ikons were the best sedans of their times and I specially liked the 2008 avatar. It looked sweet! Had fond memories of riding in one of my friends' car, a white facelifted model back in Assam.

Thank you for the kind words! The 2008 model tried to integrate Ford's Kinetic design language, and gave the Ikon a breath of fresh air. I especially liked the shape of the headlights.

Originally Posted by ads11

Thank you so much for sharing this! It brought back so many fond memories for me as it was my first car, the one I essentially taught myself how to drive on, and the one which in its final parting act, kept me alive in a moment of distraction that could have been fatal. I have nothing but love for the Ford Ikon, mine was silver, but any of these original models, garner nothing but fond memories just seeing them still out and about...Oh this thread is so great for reminiscing, thank you again for sharing!

The Ford Ikon is one car that seems to evoke emotions in whosoever owned one. This car really has character.
Thats one of the most unique car purchase stories I have ever heard!

Originally Posted by asbshyam

This was on the few cars that I always drooled after when I was a kid in school. An American brand selling cars in India was an fascinating concept for me at the time. Happy to see you celebrating your car along with the Mercedes!

Thank you for your reply! It was indeed a new concept back then. The Ikon was one of the first cars that an international brand designed and developed with the Indian market in mind.

Originally Posted by RohanDheman

Very well written and good to see all original documents still being with you.

On a lighter note: Please do tell me how it is living with two cars with zero bottle holders!
I still cant get over the fact that during the multiple test drives, i completely forgot to check that the Merc too has zero bottle holders!

Hoping some sense goes into the folks at NGT and we don't have to scrap our cars. My E36 has the same current fate as your Ikon.

Cheers!
Rohan

Thank you for the appreciation! Yes, it indeed is a pain to have two cars without bottle holders. One has to use those seat back pockets to store bottles. On longer drives, it becomes really uncomfortable due to the hampered legroom. [which isn't much in the first place]
The NGT ruling has indeed massacred loads of young timer cars. I don't think its going to be revoked any time soon, given the anti old car environment in Delhi.
this may or may not help reduce pollution, but is sure to wipe out the automotive history of this region.

Originally Posted by sgm

Ford Ikon 1.3 was my first car I purchased in 2005 and sold it when it was approaching the 1L KM mark. It was a fun car and the suspension setup was spot on. I used to glide over bad roads and humps when all the other sedans will be slowing down.
The sore point was the maintenance cost. I was spending like 30-40k easily in the last 5 years of ownership, or the Ford ASS was taking me for a ride.

After running about 50k, every car is bound to have part failures. It becomes really inconvenient, and one tends to lose interest in the car. But on this car, part costs were indeed a little higher than its peers.

Originally Posted by ArshThakur

Seeing you article made me remember my 2002 Ikon 1.3 EXI which I bought second hand in 2004 from a retired Army officer. It was my second car, first being a matiz which I bought in 2003 and was totalled in 2004 by my college roommate. Drove it for a lakh km and finally sold in 2018 to buy another car. I have attached the only pic I could find of the car.

Wow, same car, same variant! what colour is that? Looks very different from the gold that it came with back then.

Originally Posted by TrackDay

That was a different time and era. And I truly miss that.

If the Honda city, Rapid/Vento, Ciaz, Verna are the affordable proper sedans today, back then it was the Honda city, Ford Ikon, Baleno, Cielo, Opel astra, accent and Lancer ruling the roost. All those cars had such individual characters and traits.

Agreed. nowadays, cars feel way to generic. Back then, every car had a very individualistic nature.

Originally Posted by vinya_jag

I really miss the simplicity of the cars of that generation..
Back to the topic, I had driven my cousin's Ikon, and loved everything about it, but for the noise that the diesel made. Glad that you kept it so long.

Agreed. As the saying goes, ''They no longer make them like they used to.'' Back then, the focus was on offering a car with great fundamentals. Features and gizmos were secondary. It seems to be the other way round nowadays.

Originally Posted by landcruiser123

Your Ikon is a true icon. I've been a big fan of the car since 2003 when I used to carpool with my neighbor to some sports classes. As an 8 year old, the Ikon 1.6 was my wet dream as it was ages ahead of my moms '98 Maruti 800 which had no AC. The Fiesta is pretty popular in Europe - I wonder why Ford doesn't sell the car in India?

Stupid rules aside, have you explored getting it registered in any of the neighboring states and using the car as a beater for your local errands?

Thank you for the compliment! Unfortunately, even if a car has a valid registration, it simply cannot run in Delhi-NCR. Delhi registered cars won't even get their 5 yearly renewals, but cars registered in other states, even with valid papers are eliminated by not issuing them pollution certificates.

Originally Posted by kiku007

I can't believe there's a 20 year old Ikon that's been taken care of. You are amazing!



Huge respect for holding on to the car even with the stupid NGT rule.

The Ikon signified a change in direction and fortunes for Ford India. Maybe it's worthwhile to send this story over to Ford India. What if it pulls the heart strings of someone higher up at Ford who'll want to get this car for their Ford India collection if they even had one? Imagine a 25 year old Ikon in 2025.

You've triggered the memories of fellow Ikon owners and here's my pride and joy, the Ikon 1.3 ROCAM Nxt. It only had 72 horses under the bonnet but they'll outrun the 100 horses in some cars. Even Ford doesn't make such cars anymore and that's saying something.

Thank you for the kind words! The Ikon was indeed the car that turned it around for Ford in India. The Escort didn't really do too well, but since the Ikon was designed and developed with the Indian market in mind, it was able to win hearts. I would love to share this with the people who made my car, but I am pretty sure it is gonna stay with me for a long time to come.
Your car looks awesome in that shade! especially love the alloys! they suit the car really well.

[TheHelix0202]

Our 1.3 NXT was sold off in 2008 after an accident we had on the highway. I will elaborate about it at a later time, but it was due to the horrible brakes. The poor car did its job beautifully, trying to protect its occupants. It was restored, but Dad felt uneasy driving it any more- it had lost its former glory, and also, for safety reasons. So this has always been a nagging doubt in the back of my mind- would better quality discs / pads have had any effect on the braking quality at all? Did you think of giving your car an upgrade in terms of said parts? Thanks.

Originally Posted by TrackDay

If the Honda city, Rapid/Vento, Ciaz, Verna are the affordable proper sedans today, back then it was the Honda city, Ford Ikon, Baleno, Cielo, Opel astra, accent and Lancer ruling the roost. All those cars had such individual characters and traits.

Wonderfully said, couldn't agree any further!

Originally Posted by Sanidhya mukund

Your car looks awesome in that shade! especially love the alloys! they suit the car really well.

Don't miss kiku007's blacked out B-pillars. They change the look of the car like never before.

[benbsb29]

This thread brings back a lot of memories from the time we had our Ikon, called Mike. Despite being the Flair variant, ie the ROCAM 1.3, it was a joy to drive, and took us touring around many places in the southern states. It was also my identity on Team-BHP, with its unique shade.



When we moved overseas, my FIL was the one using it back in Kerala. At some point maintenance expenses started mounting, (not sure how much of that was the dealer making some money) so we decided to scrap it (age + non-local registration with owner not present locally). Needless to say, FIL was not willing to look beyond a Ford (driving pleasure) and the replacement was an Ecosport.

Link to my final tribute: Link (The Story of MIKE - My Ikon Flair 2006 EDIT : The story concludes)

[Sanidhya mukund]

Originally Posted by TheHelix0202

Our 1.3 NXT was sold off in 2008 after an accident we had on the highway....Don't miss kiku007's blacked out B-pillars. They change the look of the car like never before.

Sad to know that you had to sell it off because of an accident, but thank god everyone was saved.
I don’t plan to upgrade the brakes, because I would like to keep it as original as possible. Also, not only do I love this car for its positives, but also love it for its quirks (as Doug Demuro would like to say).

The blackened B-pillars really transform the cars personality, but I don’t think it would be able to do much on my dark green car.

Adding some more nostalgia to this thread-



This is the man who maintained the car in its early days. He started working with my family in the 1950s, we lovingly referred to him as ‘Driver Sahab’. He has driven all the cars that our family has ever owned, except for the Merc and the Omni that were purchased after his demise. He drove our cars till the time he could drive. Even after he quit driving due to his age, he kept visiting us daily. He passed away in the year 2009, but is still ingrained deep in our memories and hearts. A story about this Ford Ikon is incomplete without a mention of him. In fact, he was the one who went to the Ford showroom for a test drive, and we bought this car solely on the basis of his approval.
Another story that I have heard is that people used to laugh at how slow he used to drive. But when the Ikon was new, he actually got a speeding ticket!

Originally Posted by benbsb29

This thread brings back a lot of memories from the time we had our Ikon, called Mike. Despite being the Flair variant, ie the ROCAM 1.3, it was a joy to drive, and took us touring around many places in the southern states. It was also my identity on Team-BHP, with its unique shade.

Attachment 2093384



Link to my final tribute: Link (The Story of MIKE - My Ikon Flair 2006 EDIT : The story concludes)

This Jewel Violet Ikon is probably one of the most famous Ikons in the country! Long before I was a BHPian, I had read your entire thread, and had just loved it!
However, I did not know that it has been scrapped. Was heart wrenching to read. Anyway, it’s better to let go sometimes, rather than letting the cops harass you due to the out of state numberplate. And you are not likely to miss it either, the Ecosport is the only Ford sold in India that I consider to be very similar to the Ikon in terms of character!
PS. I am really sorry if this makes you sad, but that car looked really pretty. The unique colour, the way you had maintained it, it just didn’t deserve to get scrapped. I have seen cars that look much worse still thriving.