[chiranjitp]

Originally Posted by Thilak29

Today Freestyle website went live and I found sun-blind as an accessory which I hope we all could use provided dimensions are exactly similar to Aspire/Figo.

Thanks for sharing, though I believe buying the sun-blinds aftermarket would turn out to to significantly cheaper. For the Freestyle the price isn't yet given, while the sun-blinds for the Ecosport costs a cool Rs. 3299 & we can expect a similar pricing for the Freestyle ones. For our 2016 Ecosport, I have bought the sun-blinds from Flipkart for around Rs. 900 & they are also a perfect fit.

While going through some of the other Accessories for the Freestyle I found something new, a Reverse camera. While Ford was providing a Reverse camera as an accessory for its cars since a long time, the new one (On the freestyle page) comes with a separate display which is kept in the dashboard. In the old reverse camera the display was in the IRVM, a new one was fitted in place of the OE IRVM. The worst thing about fitting this accessory was that you would have to lose the Day/Night feature of the IRVM.

Here is a photo of the same:

[AKTRACK]

During the 60k service for my diesel Aspire, the advisor told me that one of the wheel bearing was making noise. I asked him if that would be covered under warranty to which he refused. He checked with the centers warranty department and they too said it doesn't come under warranty. I raised a concern with Ford India and they too have declined the warranty replacement citing it to be a wear and tear part. My car is under the 3rd year extended warranty. Would wheel bearing come under wear and tear part like tyres and brake shoes etc?

Also, as per the advisor they have to change the hub along with the bearing if I go the cash route. He says both come together for the Figo/Aspire. Please advise your thoughts.

[tharian]

Originally Posted by AKTRACK

During the 60k service for my diesel Aspire, the advisor told me that one of the wheel bearing was making noise. I asked him if that would be covered under warranty to which he refused. He checked with the centers warranty department and they too said it doesn't come under warranty. I raised a concern with Ford India and they too have declined the warranty replacement citing it to be a wear and tear part. My car is under the 3rd year extended warranty. Would wheel bearing come under wear and tear part like tyres and brake shoes etc?

Also, as per the advisor they have to change the hub along with the bearing if I go the cash route. He says both come together for the Figo/Aspire. Please advise your thoughts.

As far as I remember , it is not covered.
I am not sure what is with Ford and the wheel bearing quality. These are parts that are supposed to last for more than a lakh kms and fail as early as 50k kms.

Is there a humming sound that you can hear inside the cabin at certain speeds? That normally means the wheel bearing is failing.

In this case I would suggest getting a second opinion and also check for the humming noise first.

[AKTRACK]

Originally Posted by tharian

As far as I remember , it is not covered.
I am not sure what is with Ford and the wheel bearing quality.

You are right, tharian. There is definetely something wrong with the wheel bearings and many other things as well. I hope it is just my car!

In these 60k kms I have had to change -

• 4 tyres (MRF tyres had excessive noise and uneven wear)
• Front headlights (burnt reflector issue)
• Front headlight bulbs, both side (fused)
• Some AC switch (AC used to trip)
• One power window switch (stopped working)
• Driver side front wheel bearing at around 25 k. (This would be my second bearing failure )
• Some fuse for rear camera as it stopped working

If that is not all. Non ford guys, especially tyrewallahs, have told me to get my suspension checked as they are finding abnormal wear on my tyres. I have raised it with Ford couple of times and they dont see anything wrong with the suspension. Will get them checked outside.

Quite an eventful ownership I have had

Yeah I do hear abnormal thrumming sound around 100 kmph. I thought it was coming from the engine. Will get it checked.

[batterylow]

Originally Posted by tharian

Is there a humming sound that you can hear inside the cabin at certain speeds? That normally means the wheel bearing is failing.

In this case I would suggest getting a second opinion and also check for the humming noise first.

Originally Posted by AKTRACK

You are right, tharian. There is definetely something wrong with the wheel bearings and many other things as well. I hope it is just my car!

Yeah I do hear abnormal thrumming sound around 100 kmph. I thought it was coming from the engine. Will get it checked.

I had the same issue with a humming noise from the front left wheel. I initially dismissed it thinking its from the s drives, which are known to get noisier.

The easiest way to check it to raise the car on a ramp and run the wheels via engine power.

If its the non driven wheels, they will provide resistance when they are rotated.

[tharian]

Originally Posted by AKTRACK

You are right, tharian. There is definetely something wrong with the wheel bearings and many other things as well. I hope it is just my car!

Are you sure the suspension is fine? Tyre's getting uneven wear and wheel bearing failing can be due to this.
Were all these issues from when the car was new?

Originally Posted by batterylow

I had the same issue with a humming noise from the front left wheel.

Checking for play in the wheels by shaking it when on the ramp will also help.

[oli.ferns]

Hi Guys,
I needed a bit of advice on whether I should go in for the current gen Aspire Petrol automatic. Its available at a discount of 47.5k. I've heard rumors of people bargaining a little higher than this too. My questions are:

• Would it be better to wait for the newer Aspire automatic? Will the newer aspire have a better petrol engine mated to the automatic gearbox?
• Considering the honda amaze cvt launch next month (which looks really good and has a whole lot of features including cruise control, paddle shifters), would it be better to wait and take a chance with the stocks of the current gen Aspire automatic? Maintence of the Honda Amaze should be more than the Ford Aspire i'm guessing.
• Can a branded aftermarket touchscreen infotainment system (eg:ones offered by Pioneer) be fitted into the current gen aspire? I think I had seen someone post about an unknown brand but not completely sure. This is important to me as I frequently use Google Maps and viewing it on the inbuilt screen might be better than viewing it on the mobile (docked in the inbuilt dock)
• Any other newer features the new aspire may include? From the leaked images, I see that the aspire gets better alloy wheels.
• Should I be concerned about the parts availability since the current gen production has stopped?

[samaspire]

Originally Posted by oli.ferns

[*]Can a branded aftermarket touchscreen infotainment system (eg:ones offered by Pioneer) be fitted into the current gen aspire?
[*]Should I be concerned about the parts availability since the current gen production has stopped?[/list]

1. No. Not as of a year back. A friend tried installing a 2DIN System, but it just does not slide in fully. You will need to cut some metal bracket/rod to fit in the unit. But a 1DIN system with retractable or fixed 7" screen can be installed using the panel from the Ambiente or lower variant.

2. Parts for the Ford Fusion are still available on demand so that should not be a concern.

[Chetan_Rao]

Originally Posted by oli.ferns

... Will the newer aspire have a better petrol engine mated to the automatic gearbox?...

3-pot Dragon motors may not be as refined as their outgoing 4-cylinder siblings, but the thing worth waiting for is the torque converter autobox that's expected to replace the troublesome DCT.

Given existing model production has ended, the facelift isn't far away. Worth the wait if Petrol AT is the car of choice.

[AKTRACK]

Originally Posted by oli.ferns

Hi Guys,
I needed a bit of advice on whether I should go in for the current gen Aspire Petrol automatic. Its available at a discount of 47.5k. I've heard rumors of people bargaining a little higher than this too. My questions are:

• Would it be better to wait for the newer Aspire automatic? Will the newer aspire have a better petrol engine mated to the automatic gearbox?
• Considering the honda amaze cvt launch next month (which looks really good and has a whole lot of features including cruise control, paddle shifters), would it be better to wait and take a chance with the stocks of the current gen Aspire automatic? Maintence of the Honda Amaze should be more than the Ford Aspire i'm guessing.

I would suggest waiting for the new Aspire. There has been a lot of praise for the petrol motor on the Freestyle. Plus the newer Aspire will come with other changes as well. I too like the looks of the newer Amaze but feature for feature Amaze is going to be very expensive compared to the Ford. Honda charges super premium for their cars.

[oli.ferns]

Originally Posted by Chetan_Rao

3-pot Dragon motors may not be as refined as their outgoing 4-cylinder siblings, but the thing worth waiting for is the torque converter autobox that's expected to replace the troublesome DCT.

Given existing model production has ended, the facelift isn't far away. Worth the wait if Petrol AT is the car of choice.

Well, I read a lot about the dct in the ecosport after your comment and if by any chance the dct unit fails after the 4 year warranty, its an expense of close to 48k to get it changed. I had test driven the aspire and just loved the ride quality. Don't think the dzire amt petrol can match the drive quality of this dct but might end up eventually buying it for long term reliability. My heart now tells me to wait. Lots of releases next month: the nexon amt, figo/aspire at tc, honda amaze cvt (if this is too expensive, I'll be dropping this from the list) and hyundai i20 cvt (price might be competitive due to a high level of localization). Then in the not so distant future, there could be a Honda Wrv cvt and the facelifted Jazz but again being Honda, there are high chances of it being overpriced.

[samcan123]

Originally Posted by oli.ferns

Well, I read a lot about the dct in the ecosport after your comment and if by any chance the dct unit fails after the 4 year warranty, its an expense of close to 48k to get it changed. I had test driven the aspire and just loved the ride quality. Don't think the dzire amt petrol can match the drive quality of this dct but might end up eventually buying it for long term reliability. My heart now tells me to wait. Lots of releases next month: the nexon amt, figo/aspire at tc, honda amaze cvt (if this is too expensive, I'll be dropping this from the list) and hyundai i20 cvt (price might be competitive due to a high level of localization). Then in the not so distant future, there could be a Honda Wrv cvt and the facelifted Jazz but again being Honda, there are high chances of it being overpriced.

My 2 cents.
As mentioned by someone, the dragon series engine has been praised by many reviewers for the tractability which the current 4-cyl engine misses out. I own the current 1.2 petrol manual Aspire and it struggles with 5 people on board and requires quite a number of gear changes to keep the engine on boil. But the engine power is sufficient for me if there are 2-3 people on board. The only point in question is, will the 3-cyl dragon series petrol motor be as refined as the 4-cyl one? The choice is actually yours. I actually wanted to buy a refined and a silent petrol car with decent power and my aspire fulfills it perfectly.

Dzire looks good and provides better interior and boot space than the Aspire but I think AMT would not be as smooth as a CVT.

Honda and Hyundai are mostly overpriced and will not be in the league of Aspire's pricing. Probably, one variant lower in Honda/Hyundai would match the price of Aspire. And there was some news that there will not be any facelift to Jazz in India.

[oli.ferns]

Looks like the new aspire will get 2 engine options, a 1.2 and a 1.5 (borrowed from the Ecosport). Automatic will be mated to the 1.5
https://www.cartoq.com/ford-figo-asp...-india-launch/

[Waspune]

Originally Posted by oli.ferns

Looks like the new aspire will get 2 engine options, a 1.2 and a 1.5 (borrowed from the Ecosport). Automatic will be mated to the 1.5

https://www.cartoq.com/ford-figo-asp...-india-launch/

This makes sense actually. Even the outgoing figo came with 1.5 DCT in the auto variant. It all boils down to the transmission efficiency. Point being the 1.2 dragon might not be as exciting to drive in the auto tyranny, thanks to the transmission loss.

The Innova 2.8 auto isn't much faster than the 2.4 manual because of the transmission loss.

[oli.ferns]

so I just td the new ecosport at to get a feel of the new 1.5 dragon that will hopefully feature in the aspire. It was a real pleasure to drive. Sure it can't match up to the smooth drive of the cvt or the gear shifts in a dsg/dct but it was good enough, at least much better than most amt's I've td'ed till now (tigor, ignis, dzire). The sales guy mentioned that the aspire is rumoured to launch in the second week of July but he wasn't sure if they would launch it with a second gen dct (the outgoing model has the first gen) or if it would feature a torque converter. He mentioned that the second gen dct has been implemented in the Mustang currently.