Team-BHP - Ford Fiesta : Test Drive & Review

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Originally Posted by Guna (Post 2408477)

BTW, a good back bench was one of Ikon's strengths.

True, and that’s one reason my parents are not agreeing to sell off our Ikon for a new car :)

Quote:

Originally Posted by Guna (Post 2408477)

One more thing to consider when it comes to the rear leg room/base depth is the sitting posture (for which it is designed) and the height.
If the sitting is more upright, relatively lesser leg room is sufficient compared to a low/reclined sitting posture.

Yes, and another thing with Ford is the way they sculpture the rear of the front seats. It kind of free up more leg space for rear passengers. I reckon they have done the same for the new Fiesta as well.

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Originally Posted by vb-san (Post 2403048)

I remember hearing/reading in one of the review that the seats further enhance noise absorption due to the materials used. Is there any truth in such a comment, and if so, any idea of the technology?

Any material that is a sound absorber should help reduce in-cabin noise, so i really wouldn't read into this too much.

Quote:

Originally Posted by vb-san (Post 2403048)

And, even though the official specs are not out, was there any mention on the ground clearance?

It was unofficially mentioned as 155 mm - but that might be without the "rough road tyres" (ie higher profile sidewall) which would further increase the GC a bit.

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Originally Posted by dot (Post 2403391)

Again, I really, really hope the production car is rectified.

I asked how likely it was that they would do the following before launch :
1) Cover up those ugly hinges
2) Add some colour/accents to the rear door panels

The answer was that it was very unlikely, as they have just started production IIRC.

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Originally Posted by quickdraw (Post 2404121)

This might be because americans cant drive manual cars.

I think the comparo was from the figures of the official tests.

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Originally Posted by Surprise (Post 2404161)

Lot of guys are disappointed to see a 1.5Ltr instead of a 1.6 ltr in NFS. Is this frustration more from not getting their expectations met

Thats one part of the disappointment - which i have only reflected once in my review, in the opening engine para.

However, the rest of it comes from two things :
1) The "on paper" (ie marketed) figures and how they translate in real life
2) The actual driving experience expected from a 1.5L, also with regard to competition.

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Originally Posted by ritzy (Post 2405359)

So got to know some info from an internal source about NFF. Localisation is ~25 %

Thats a surprising number, especially since the the powertrains are made in India.

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Originally Posted by architect (Post 2406453)

a. The temperature gauge is gone. Somehow, car companies believe you should know only when the car HAS overheated, not before.

Incase you missed this discussion :
http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/techni...ge-yes-no.html

cya
R

Quote:

Originally Posted by Surprise (Post 2409187)

Hyundai bags 20,000 bookings for the new Fluidic Verna | IndianCarsBikes.in

That is a super start. Congrats Hyundai. Challenge is to keep the waiting period down as much as possible & keep clocking the numbers.

All the best H

If Fiesta priced similar to Verna or only little lower than that....I guess more people will move towards Hyundai with H after sales service a BIG PLUS

Hyundai is happily walking away with numbers. It was earlier mentioned by Mustang.101 that prices will be revealed between 25th - 30th of June 2011. Two more days to go. But I really doubt whether that will happen...to be in safer side its better to prepare for 15th July 2011 :)

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Originally Posted by anachronix (Post 2408275)

Sorry mate, but the current Fiesta owners including me will only have a good laugh at this comment :D

Atleast, the pictures were promising enough that the New Fiesta is going to give more space for the 6 foot'ers!

I am talking about this picture where 6'2" high adult seated front & back in the New Fiesta!

I respect your opinion but what I shared was what I felt. For people of height above 6 feet, even a small adjustment of driving seat and alignment of back rest makes wonder in legroom as they basically just want to fit in. Additionally, it also depends how the rear seat passenger is sitting, whether he is upright or a bit relaxed and that's something not clearly visible in this picture.
I completely appreciate Rehaan's extensive thread which is bang-on but what I shared was my humble opinion considering that I would need to shell out 10L for this car. there are few other sites who have driven the new Fiesta and they too expected it to be better.

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Originally Posted by vb-san (Post 2408346)

Completely agree with Aravind and Anachronix here. Rehaan has provided a pictorial representation of the available space, and it looks pretty decent for a car in this class.

Some things just need to be 'experienced' to know and relate to. Seating ergonomics is one area where this particularly applies.

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And I guess, leg space definition (for the driver and also for the back seat passenger) in this segment is about how comfortable you’re with the car. Poitive mentioned about the comfort factor in his Accent. For me, leg space was one reason to eliminate Accent from my shortlisted cars (back in 2003). So, it’s all person dependent to an extent.

I am expecting the Fiesta to have a good backseat (even though the car is meant for Ajay). Going by tradition, the Fiesta classic, and even the Ikon had comfortable back seats :)

I hope it is comfortable too :) Somehow, one wants this car to do well.

IIRC, the Ikon was a made for India car and what I ACI mentioned in one of it's articles that the (European?) design engineers were shocked that a car of this segment was being designed to be a chauffeur driven car! It was something they found hard to fathom.

I think I read somewhere that India came in later into the Ford/Fiesta One World program and was late to ask for a longer wheelbase; as the rear seat in this segment is more important that it is in many other markets.

About me being comfortable in the Accent's seat (btw, it was only the front seats, and people who end up sitting behind me invariably crib ;) , you can find some thoughts on seating comfort in this post here (under -
"Another thing about the space/comfortable sitting" )

(note for vb - not propagating here mate ;) )

Quote:

Originally Posted by Guna (Post 2408477)

BTW, a good back bench was one of Ikon's strengths.
One more thing to consider when it comes to the rear leg room/base depth is the sitting posture (for which it is designed) and the height.
If the sitting is more upright, relatively lesser leg room is sufficient compared to a low/reclined sitting posture.

+1 to that.
Seat height makes so much difference.

Over time, many cars have made the cabins taller to allow for more legroom and make the cabins more spacious. This, of course, leads to a higher Center of Gravity.

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Originally Posted by Cooltronics (Post 2409670)

I respect your opinion but what I shared was what I felt.

Appreciate your maturity mate :) Looking forward to more of your comments, as you and I may share our discomforts in seating! (if you are looking to buy a spacious car, consider the Optra Magnum Diesel)

@Rehaan - Thanks for such a well written review mate. Didn't want to write only a thanks post, as a series of them hardly makes for good reading. Hope this car does well. We need competition to the Verna. Also need more cars which aren't targeted to please all (jack of all). Ford too seems to have gone a bit towards that line of thinking, but that is understandable - they are here for business.

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Originally Posted by fluidic_fan (Post 2409423)

Isn't the ground clearance that low will be an issue under Indian driving conditions? As per my information ANHV has a ground clearance of 165 mm i.e a good 10 mm more than ANFS..... Any thoughts on the same?

Yes, 155 sounds a bit too low. But as Rehaan mentioned, there could be some difference in the production cars. I think the GC + suspension combination is the key.

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Originally Posted by Poitive (Post 2409820)

Some things just need to be 'experienced' to know and relate to. Seating ergonomics is one area where this particularly applies.

Completely agree. That’s why I touched on Rehaan’s comment (as he is owns a Fiesta-Classic)

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Originally Posted by Poitive (Post 2409820)

IIRC, the Ikon was a made for India car and what I ACI mentioned in one of it's articles that the (European?) design engineers were shocked that a car of this segment was being designed to be a chauffeur driven car! It was something they found hard to fathom.

Maybe designed to be chauffeur driven, but Ikon was one of the best driver’s cars in its time, in fact even better than some of the current modern offerings. For me, it provided all the fun for the driver, and a good back seat was a bonus.

In fact I have a task in hand to convince my parents that I want to get a new car for them :)

Quote:

Originally Posted by Poitive (Post 2409820)

About me being comfortable in the Accent's seat (btw, it was only the front seats, and people who end up sitting behind me invariably crib, you can find some thoughts on seating comfort in this post here (under - "Another thing about the space/comfortable sitting" )

Sorry, I was not questioning your judgment. What I mentioned is, it all depends on the individual.

And I don’t think the overall height of a person directly impact the seating comfort. For example, a person maybe 185cm, but with short legs. For him the leg room would be fine, but headroom maybe a problem. Lot of people comment about the cramped footwell of Linea. Italians by genes have slightly short legs and long upper body and arms, and their cars are designed accordingly.

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Originally Posted by Poitive (Post 2409820)

(note for vb - not propagating here mate)

Liked that one :D

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Originally Posted by Surprise (Post 2409191)

Hyundai is happily walking away with numbers.

It’s not surprising. They have got a great product in hand. All they need to do is to avoid negative publicity due to delivery delays.

Will it impact the new Fiesta? Maybe… I feel the impact will be more on the existing players – Vento, City and SX4. Once this euphoria is settled, I guess there is enough room in the market for these cars to co-exist and do good numbers. The new Fiesta could hit the Linea quite badly (not that it makes much of a difference)

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cooltronics (Post 2409670)

Nothing to offend you mate, but the Fiesta Classic has tightly packed interiors. You cannot avoid hitting elbows or rubbing shoulders with your copassenger in the Fiesta Classic. Most of the current Fiesta owners who are looking at an upgrade would obviously look at the space in New Fiesta for improvement and the picture posted by Rehaan was making it evident that it was addressed.

Lets wait for couple more days and experience the space in the NFS :D