[vb-saan]

Originally Posted by carfreak77

Went to my dealer today. Test drove & Paid the full amount for the NFS! He said that Ford is not offering any discount at this stage. He told me that delivery should be in the first week of August!! Can't wait!

Congratulations!
What color, variant, fuel? Details please

[carfreak77]

Originally Posted by vb-san

Congratulations!
What color, variant, fuel? Details please

I have booked the Titanium+ Diesel in Moondust Silver color. Vb-san, are you still considering the NFS?

[Poitive]

Originally Posted by carfreak77

Went to my dealer today. Test drove & Paid the full amount for the NFS! He said that Ford is not offering any discount at this stage. He told me that delivery should be in the first week of August!! Can't wait!

Congrats Mate!

The car must've been very special to drive. Looking forward to a Drive report before your ownership report. Somehow have been thinking that a drive may actually change people's mind on this car.

The price made us expect a lot (low prices). The review has made us expect less from the driving experience. The expectation benchmarks set play a huge role in what we like/dislike.

[optimist]

Originally Posted by prabhuferrari

I just came back from Metro Ford. Test drive vehicle has gone for registration. No discount offered.

The Sea Grey Titanium and the Silver Titanuim+ TDCi's are back at palace cross with temp registrations. Test drives start tomorrow. I believe the white petrol currently on display will be the petrol test car and the Silver Titanuim+ will be the diesel test drive car.

Some observations:
*Headlights are bright

*The sound is smooth and well controlled / refined
.
*The rear running light with a seperate switch is a bright red light in the right cluster of the boot lid. Visible from far. Hope they are not confused with brake lights.

*The single reverse light on the left looked dim in the basement of metro ford. (Maybe some extra under body lamps which will be mostly useless with a high boot?)

*The steering is nice and effortless at low or zero speed.

*The clutch felt light enough and very smooth.

*The reversing beeps turned to constant alarm when about 400mm of gap is at the rear and the wall.

*The voice controls are a great source of entertainment watching people trying to get the commands right. The hand actions are much quicker and get finished within half a second. IMHO the voice controls are an unnecessary expense.

* The average thickness of the front seat back are 1 inch and i am wary of any kicks and shots from the back if i try any stunts. A finger press from the back can be felt. Perhaps this thinness and some need for strength is the reason for the extensive side supports. I'm of medium build (shirt size 42) and could barely fit in the front seat without any space for movement. i'm not sure how comfortable that would be sitting for some time.

*The rear headrest seemed uncomfortable causing you to hunch/bend forward a little.

[Mustang.101]

Originally Posted by optimist

*The voice controls are a great source of entertainment watching people trying to get the commands right. The hand actions are much quicker and get finished within half a seconde.

What would be easier and faster, taking the phone out of your pocket while driving and then taking your eyes off the road and dialing the no. And then using one hand for the phone OR let the phone be in your pocket and just say phone -> call aman (or whatever the name is) and you're good to go.

PS - you can also use the voice controls to dial unsaved nos. like call 5554321 etc.

[carfreak77]

Originally Posted by Poitive

Congrats Mate!

The car must've been very special to drive. Looking forward to a Drive report before your ownership report. Somehow have been thinking that a drive may actually change people's mind on this car.

The price made us expect a lot (low prices). The review has made us expect less from the driving experience. The expectation benchmarks set play a huge role in what we like/dislike.

I completely agree with you that a test drive of the car may change people's mind. Here are a few points on my test drive:
Positives
1. Very easy to get in & out of the car (I'm 6'2). Seats feel great! I was extremely comfortable while driving.
2. Very silent engine for a diesel; the outside noise levels within the cabin are almost negligible while driving.
3. Extremely responsive steering, good feedback. I would rate it as one of the best EPS.
4. Smooth shifting gear and a light clutch. Also, short throw unlike the Fluidic.
5. Pick up of the car from rest is good and reaches 120km/hr effortlessly. Need I mention anything about the handling? Superb!!
6. Ride quality was acceptable, not the best. Seemed to be on the bumpy side IMO.
7. There doesn't seem to be a trace of any turbo lag. I did drive it in racing mode, but I did not get any turbo "kick" which enthusiasts like me might miss.
8. ORVM's really do eliminate blind spots. Very useful. Need to be careful though not to hit them while squeezing through traffic as they protrude quite a bit.
9. The car system connected to my blackberry instantly and the Voice controls called my friend immediately when I said his name. Seamless.
10. Even at rest, the engine is quite silent for a diesel. I parked next to a Fabia & was shocked to hear the difference in sound!
11. Cruise control worked just as expected at 80km/hr.

Negatives

1. I really miss the absence of a light for the rear passengers. The only light mounted on the roof is in the front.
2. The controls on the drivers door for the windows are badly positioned. When I rest my hand on the armrest on the door, the window buttons go below my hand and open the windows unintentionally.
3. I had a bit of trouble sitting in the rear seats. The headroom is low (I guess since I'm 6'2).
4. Signals on the left side. I put on the wipers by mistake a few times. I think this will take some getting used to.
5. I personally did not like the horn too much

[Poitive]

Originally Posted by Sugeeta

I put my Fiesta booking on hold and took a TD of the Verna on Monday evening. TD'ed the Fiesta 2 hours ago.

My decision : I stick to the Fiesta booking.

After having TD the Verna, why am I not surprised at all?!!!! For anyone fond of driving (and someone who has owned Fords), it was a pretty obvious choice (even without having driven the NFF).

Even if one was to keep on a budget, the simple thing to do would be to choose a cheaper variant and add probably some accessories over time.

Originally Posted by carfreak77

I completely agree with you that a test drive of the car may change people's mind.

Thanks so much for the quick reply with your TD experience, Carfreak (btw, that congrats message was sent to you from the phone and when I log in from the comp- Voila!). Clean, simple and informative report mate.

What does surprise me however is that you being 6'2" still choose this car, given it's cabin. On inspecting the stationary car, my impression was that it was a car suitable for families without tall people.

One reason I wasn't really serious about this car was because of the cabin not feeling spacious enough even with me being 2" shorter than you (and well, also because that I fell in love - with the Optra Magnum ). I do intend to take a TD even though I give myself less than 1% chance for going for this one.

Thanks again @Carfreak, especially for the promptness.

[dhanushs]

Originally Posted by optimist

IMHO the voice controls are an unnecessary expense.

Trust me, if you need to make a call whist driving, bluetooth connectivity and voice commands are the way to go. You can never come back once you get a hang of it. Its very convenient and safe.

I have even managed to change my slang so that "Mr John" on my N97 can understand.

Originally Posted by Mustang.101

What would be easier and faster, taking the phone out of your pocket while driving and then taking your eyes off the road and dialing the no.

[vb-saan]

Originally Posted by carfreak77

I have booked the Titanium+ Diesel in Moondust Silver color. Vb-san, are you still considering the NFS?

Cool, so far the two confirmed bookings on this Forum are Titanium+ diesel in Moondust Silver .
And yes, the New Fiesta (petrol) is always there in my list. This is one car I liked from Ford (I got the same feeling when I saw the Ikon 10 years back). Yes, its priced more than the competition, but personally I feel it’s rightly priced for a well engineered product.

Originally Posted by Mustang.101

What would be easier and faster, taking the phone out of your pocket while driving and then taking your eyes off the road and dialing the no.

Originally Posted by dhanushs

Trust me, if you need to make a call whist driving, bluetooth connectivity and voice commands are the way to go. You can never come back once you get a hang of it. It’s very convenient and safe.

Totally agree with the above comments. Like it or not, these technologies are here to stay, and especially for telephony, this is a very handy feature.

Originally Posted by carfreak77

I completely agree with you that a test drive of the car may change people's mind. Here are a few points on my test drive:

Thanks for your observations.

Originally Posted by carfreak77

1. I really miss the absence of a light for the rear passengers. The only light mounted on the roof is in the front.

Do they have reading light attachment available as standard accessory?

Originally Posted by carfreak77

2. The controls on the drivers door for the windows are badly positioned. When I rest my hand on the armrest on the door, the window buttons go below my hand and open the windows unintentionally.

I have observed this issue on the Ikon as well.

Originally Posted by carfreak77

4. Signals on the left side. I put on the wipers by mistake a few times. I think this will take some getting used to.

Yes, you’ll master it in the first week itself. I am happy that they retained this trait

[NoRules]

Originally Posted by dhanushs

Trust me, if you need to make a call whist driving, bluetooth connectivity and voice commands are the way to go. You can never come back once you get a hang of it. Its very convenient and safe.

I have even managed to change my slang so that "Mr John" on my N97 can understand.

As someone who is using bluetooth system in my car for over 4 years I totally agree with you. In my present Sony Ericsson system I have to take my eyes off the road to look up the number I want to dial and every time I do that I wish there was a simpler way of doing it and voice command system is THE solution.

May be the voice command system is not so useful for reducing temperature but it certainly very useful in using your phone and choosing a specific song in a particular folder (if you can do that).

[optimist]

Originally Posted by Mustang.101

What would be easier and faster, taking the phone out of your pocket while driving and then taking your eyes off the
<some text deleted>

Originally Posted by dhanushs

Trust me, if you need to make a call whist driving, bluetooth connectivity and voice commands are the way to go. You can never come back once you get a hang of it. Its very convenient and safe.

I fully agree for the phone controls.(Try and use less of it while driving or see if you can pull over)

What i was meant was situations like increase fan speed, change temperature, increase volume etc.

[diffsoft]

If New Ford Fiesta were to be priced at such premium then Ford might as well have as well introduced or atleast announced the DCAT version on the diesel variant for later introductions.

[Sugeeta]

No discounts are being offered on the NFS anywhere in Delhi on any of the variants.

All dealerships are holding respectable number of bookings. Not anything to compare with the 35000 odd as in Verna's case, but in three figures at least (per dealer).

[NoRules]

Originally Posted by Sugeeta

No discounts are being offered on the NFS anywhere in Delhi on any of the variants.

All dealerships are holding respectable number of bookings. Not anything to compare with the 35000 odd as in Verna's case, but in three figures at least (per dealer).

You are right about the discount, Sugeeta. I spoke to my friend who is a senior marketing guy at Ford and he was very clear there will be no discounts.

When I told him i am not buying the NFF because of the price and lack of elbow space in the rear seat, he agreed the car is comfortable only for Ajay, his wife and his 2 kids. However he asked me to do a TD before I decide against NFF in favor of Chevy Optra Magnum. He was confident I will love the drive enough to change my mind.

Another point he agreed on was if the car is chauffeur driven then it is no fun at all.

Congrats on your decision. Will look forward to your ownership thread.

[Satya79]

Many Congrats, Sugeeta and Carfreak77.

Sugeeta: do put up your TD experience of the new Verna and the NFS.

I was hoping this would be my next car, but @11.9 OTR Mumbai for Titanium is shooting beyond my most stretched budget.
I had been the S.C. Ford last month to make inquiry's and registered for the TD. Had nearly handed over the booking amount then.

I got a call from SC Ford today, asking me about the booking. I asked them for a TD and to my surprise, I was told that the Diesel would be available for TD only after mid August. They only have a petrol for display and that I could go ahead with booking right away, since its such a good car with such fantastic reviews! Such optimism!
After I told him my views about the price and that in no way, was I going to even think about the car without a TD, he says: "Sir, why don't you go for the Fiesta Classic Sxi Diesel? Its a proven car and ONLY Rs 9.8 lakhs OTR" and then goes on to hard sell the Classic.

Ford is really now competing with itself. God knows their dealers have their jobs cut out for them.

Anyway, the Sales Head said that he would revert to me once they have a date for the TD.
That also gives me time test the elastic properties of my budget.