[vnabhi]

Originally Posted by fiestarry

If I can get my Fiesta S to shine like yours, I would have done a good job. I recently got the mechanical work done and the lipstick work is due.
Your care will ensure decades of Fizz in your life !

Thanks for your wishes. What colour is your Fiesta S? I adore the Aquarius Blue.

Originally Posted by petrolhead_neel

She looks lovely! Can't believe that she is 9 years old! How frequently do you wash her/detail her? Also, any tips on protecting the beige parts of the interior?

The spoiler on your car looks to be absolutely same as the one on our car. But the Ford guys told me that there are differences between the spoiler of the Fiesta and the Classic. Is there a brake light on yours?

Also, when is she due for her next service? Any replacements lined up?

Neel

I normally clean the beige seats twice a year with Amway cleaning solution. That is all. The car washer cleans it everyday, and once a week he cleans the dashboard and mats.
When the car was new, I used to clean it myself, but that takes a lot of time and energy. I did not have time then. And it is a pain to clean in rainy season.

The black plastics fade fast, so I use a tyre shiner liquid every 4 months on the ORVM holders and on the front bumper. the toughest part to clean is the black radiator grill that has so many holes.

I bought an aftermarket spoiler because it was 1/4th the cost of what Ford was charging, but the Ford one was better-looking and stronger. I did not go for the one with a brake light as I did not want to risk warranty.

Next service will be after nearly a year, as usage has dropped. And it always used to go for service once a year for the past 6 years.

[vnabhi]

My only gripe with the Amaron battery that I installed in the summer of 2012 is that the red plastic cover of the positive terminal does not sit snugly over it, and is prone to falling off. I'm not sure if it serves any purpose, but Ford A.S.S says it protects the bonnet from battery sparks. They say that if I'd bought the Ford Motorcraft battery, the cover would have properly fit into that place.

I'm not sure how true their statement is, because when I changed my Figo's battery at Ford, I found it does not even have that cover.

Below is a picture of the Fiesta's engine bay. Does anyone have a similar experience?

[rohitnp]

Thanks to vnabhi, mayankk & unni.ak, among others. I finally took the plunge and got myself a 1.6 sxi, 2008 model with 93K kms on the clock. Single owner, regularly maintained at F.A.S.S . Did some preventive maintenance including changing the timing belt and accessory belt (6 years or 120,000 kms), front brake discs and pads were at their end of life, the left front and rear wheel bearings were humming. Cost me quite a bomb at 22K rs at F.A.S.S. But each individual part is not very expensive plus I was expecting something like this and the work done should last me a few thousands of kms atleast. Minor rattle from the right rear door. Have seen this in unni.ak 's thread and seems to be regular fare. Will concentrate on getting some kms under the car before fixing stuff.

Engine mounts will need replacing. There is a slight shiver at startup. Have left that to the next service in a couple of months. Overall, very happy.

Originally Posted by vnabhi

My only gripe with the Amaron battery that I installed in the summer of 2012 is that the red plastic cover of the positive terminal does not sit snugly over it, and is prone to falling off. I'm not sure if it serves any purpose, but Ford A.S.S says it protects the bonnet from battery sparks. They say that if I'd bought the Ford Motorcraft battery, the cover would have properly fit into that place.

I'm not sure how true their statement is, because when I changed my Figo's battery at Ford, I found it does not even have that cover.

Below is a picture of the Fiesta's engine bay. Does anyone have a similar experience?

My car had its battery replaced the day before I took delivery, with an amaron. And the terminal cover sticks out just like it does on yours. I wouldn't consider it a biggie as long as it doesn't touch anything else.

[vnabhi]

Originally Posted by rohitnp

My car had its battery replaced the day before I took delivery, with an amaron. And the terminal cover sticks out just like it does on yours. I wouldn't consider it a biggie as long as it doesn't touch anything else.

So you finally got it, eh? Congrats and wish you many happy miles. As your car has run a lot more than mine, we will depend on you to provide updates on what parts you had to change etc.

If the life of the timing chain and accessory belt was 6 years, I wonder why mine were not changed so far. I'll get this checked in my next service.

By the way, I don't get any rattle from the rear door. Why don't you get it checked up? It's actually my Figo that has an issue with the right rear door not opening easily when opened from outside. As many are having the same issue, i have not bothered about it.

And can we have a picture of your car?

[rohitnp]

Thank you for your wishes. I would surely like to update the thread with my ownership experiences. It may not be very frequent but, besides helping others it will also help me keep track of my own history. Should I start another thread or could I just piggyback onto this thread?

Originally Posted by vnabhi

If the life of the timing chain and accessory belt was 6 years, I wonder why mine were not changed so far. I'll get this checked in my next service.

The SA told me 6 years. I could find this online which mentions the change interval as 96 months (8 years). But this is an international link and I don't know if the intervals for the Indian models are different.

http://www.mytimingbelt.com/Results.aspx?ModelId=215

Anyway, it was always on my list of things to be changed as part of preventive maintenance so I am not really nitpicking.

Originally Posted by vnabhi

By the way, I don't get any rattle from the rear door. Why don't you get it checked up? It's actually my Figo that has an issue with the right rear door not opening easily when opened from outside. As many are having the same issue, i have not bothered about it.

I also have a broken right ORVM back over. The previous owner has procured the part and it sits in my boot. It is the wrong colour. Will need to get it repainted to the car colour before fitting it back on. I will be getting a few kms on the clock in the coming week and then maybe see if any more issues crop up before getting it checked. Ford A.S.S is quite busy in my place. Don't want them to do a hurried job.

Originally Posted by vnabhi

And can we have a picture of your car?

Sure! Here goes!

[mayankk]

Originally Posted by rohitnp

Thank yo---------SNIP-------CH]

Hey!
Thats in pretty decent nick, going by the ONE picture.
What's that color? I haven't seen one in that shade before.
Anyway, treat this as if the previous owner did not take any care of it. Get a full service and diagnosis at the A.S.C. And the timing belt. The 100k service should be done. It will be a bit expensive, but its a one off expense. You can go to an FNG later on.
And, start your own thread, I suppose?

[rohitnp]

Originally Posted by mayankk

Hey!
Thats in pretty decent nick, going by the ONE picture.
What's that color? I haven't seen one in that shade before.
Anyway, treat this as if the previous owner did not take any care of it. Get a full service and diagnosis at the A.S.C. And the timing belt. The 100k service should be done. It will be a bit expensive, but its a one off expense. You can go to an FNG later on.
And, start your own thread, I suppose?

Hehe! Thanks! The car is pretty clean. All dentwork and painting has been done by the previous owner on a regular basis. I have been seeing the car for a couple of years now and he maintained it nick-free most of the time. I have been a bit lazy about clicking pictures and right now the car is quite dirty. I have been parking it outside the garage as we have a rat problem inside it which has left my diesel Manza stranded with a gnawed through diesel pipe twice in the last month. Need to get that problem sorted before parking it inside.

As you can see above some of the stuff has been already done after I got delivery. The 100k service is due in a month. So will wait till then to see if there is more stuff to fix. And yes I plan to go FNG soon for the non-major bits.

[vnabhi]

Nice car! Never seen the earlier model in that colour. By earlier model, I mean the shape of the headlights and bumper are different, as also the recessed fog lamps. Mine is of that category.

Take care of your car and do start a new thread. Wish you many happy miles on it.

[NiXTriX2004]

Hello. I hope you and your car are doing well.
I have recently purchased a Fiesta 1.6S and your thread was an invaluable source of information Thank you for maintaining such an exhaustive and detailed ownership review.

I would like to know if have ever had to recharge your AC gas and if yes how much did the AC oil cost? My car needs AC as top up and the SA says the oil itself (a 500ml can) will cost around 2500 rupees. Is this correct? This is in addition to 2000 rupees for AC charging and 600 rupees for a leaking hose.

[vnabhi]

Originally Posted by NiXTriX2004

Hello. I hope you and your car are doing well.
I have recently purchased a Fiesta 1.6S and your thread was an invaluable source of information Thank you for maintaining such an exhaustive and detailed ownership review.

I would like to know if have ever had to recharge your AC gas and if yes how much did the AC oil cost? My car needs AC as top up and the SA says the oil itself (a 500ml can) will cost around 2500 rupees. Is this correct? This is in addition to 2000 rupees for AC charging and 600 rupees for a leaking hose.

Sorry, I got to see your post only now. BTW, congrats on your 1.6 S. It is still a drool car for me.

It was only in the 8th year that i found the cooling to have reduced. It was last summer to be precise. I got it inspected and they said it was the AC evaporator coil. I changed it at an FNG and it cost me Rs 7600. The A.S.S had estimated 12 to 13 k for it.

I don't think the SA is correct. Please take a second opinion from another Ford center or an FNG about oil cost.

[NiXTriX2004]

Originally Posted by vnabhi

Sorry, I got to see your post only now. BTW, congrats on your 1.6 S. It is still a drool car for me.

It was only in the 8th year that i found the cooling to have reduced. It was last summer to be precise. I got it inspected and they said it was the AC evaporator coil. I changed it at an FNG and it cost me Rs 7600. The A.S.S had estimated 12 to 13 k for it.

I don't think the SA is correct. Please take a second opinion from another Ford center or an FNG about oil cost.

Thank you. The issue turned out to be a leaky pipe. AC gas charging, AC Oil, Replacement pipe, and labour was 7500 all inclusive. Thanks for your help.
I am still not happy with the cooling. Although it has improved, it still isn't cooling the cabin enough. I'll check with a FNG.

[vnabhi]

Originally Posted by NiXTriX2004

Thank you. The issue turned out to be a leaky pipe. AC gas charging, AC Oil, Replacement pipe, and labour was 7500 all inclusive. Thanks for your help.
I am still not happy with the cooling. Although it has improved, it still isn't cooling the cabin enough. I'll check with a FNG.

That's not good to know, after spending so much. Did they check the Evaporator coil? There's a lot of effort involved in removing the dashboard for it. That is the one which is known to fail in most Ford cars after 5 to 8 years.


Meanwhile, after a gap of a few years, I tried to manually unlock my car yesterday. The key just wouldn't turn either anti-clockwise or clockwise. I had to struggle to remove it from the keyhole also.

I tried the same on my 3 year old Figo and it worked like a charm. Therefore I returned with some WD40. After a spray into the keyhole, it started working like a charm! Therefore the lesson learnt is to use the manual locking and unlocking at least once in a few months.

While on this, I have seen some Fiestas with a keyhole on the boot also. Mine does not have it, perhaps due to the remote unlocking provided.. Nor does the passenger door. I guess that is the same for all Fiestas that have a remote. Any clues?

[NiXTriX2004]

Originally Posted by vnabhi

That's not good to know, after spending so much. Did they check the Evaporator coil? There's a lot of effort involved in removing the dashboard for it. That is the one which is known to fail in most Ford cars after 5 to 8 years.


Meanwhile, after a gap of a few years, I tried to manually unlock my car yesterday. The key just wouldn't turn either anti-clockwise or clockwise. I had to struggle to remove it from the keyhole also.

I must remember to check this. I haven't even tried manual unlocking and locking yet. They said they have and I am inclined to believe them. There is now a faint rattling from the Head unit which was not there before. So it looks like they have removed the dashboard to check at least.

Originally Posted by vnabhi

While on this, I have seen some Fiestas with a keyhole on the boot also. Mine does not have it, perhaps due to the remote unlocking provided.. Nor does the passenger door. I guess that is the same for all Fiestas that have a remote. Any clues?

In mine the passenger door doesn't have but the boot does. Did the lower variant not come with remote unlocking? And while on the subject is there a way to enable auto locking of doors at speed?

[vnabhi]

Originally Posted by NiXTriX2004

In mine the passenger door doesn't have but the boot does. Did the lower variant not come with remote unlocking? And while on the subject is there a way to enable auto locking of doors at speed?

Only the sxi (top variant) had remote unlocking of the boot. And I'm sorry to let you know that there is no provision for auto-locking at speeds on the older models of the Fiesta. It was introduced only with the Figo. I'm not sure if the Classic version had that feature.

[petrolhead_neel]

Originally Posted by vnabhi

It was introduced only with the Figo. I'm not sure if the Classic version had that feature.

Hi Sir,

The Classic Titanium had auto locking. The doors on my car lock when the car crosses 7 km/h.

BTW, does central locking disable the boot release on your car?

Also, the battery of our car's remote key is behaving anaemically. When did you have to replace them on your car?

Neel