[Kamen_rider]

It's hard to believe, but I created this thread on the assembly line in September last year. While I had good intentions of finishing it, I was caught up in preparation for an epic adventure/trip/expedition which took away most of my time. Now the crazy trip (involving paddling a sea kayak for 300kms, coastguard chases, police detention, customs, majestic forts, bull sharks and venomous snakes - separate thread on that soon) is behind me, so finally I can get down to writing about my now-not-so-new car. But the bright side is that I have 12,000 kilometers on the Fiesta Automatic, which means that I now have more dope on how the ownership experience has been so far.



My hunt for a new car actually started around August 2011. From early on, I was clear on what I wanted - an automatic car which will help cut the stress of bumper to bumper driving in Bangalore. While I was not particular about diesel or petrol, I wanted a sedan which was safe, with nice front seat ergonomics and had an advanced automatic gear box. And I had roughly around 20 Lakhs to spend. Around that time, I looked around, and I had the Skoda Laura, Chevrolet Cruze, Toyota Altis, Civic, Vento, SX4, Verna and the City as potential candidates. After a quick visit to different dealerships and looking around, I quickly struck off these cars off my list:

1) The Laura (nervous about the DSG),
2) Civic (fuel guzzler, lazy autobox, facelift imminent)
3) Verna (4 speed autobox)
4) Vento (no dead pedal, how could they?)
5) City ( peppy car, but car a little flimsy for my liking)
6) SX4 (autobox no good)

So which brought me down to two cars - the Altis and the Cruze. I slowly started leaning towards the CVT Altis after seeing how one of my neighbors labored to reverse his Cruze into the parking slot. While the Altis was not a very exciting car to drive, but was totally reliable, spacious and comfortable. I made a few trips to the Vivo Toyota near my house to look at the car a few times and also check out the final price for the car. I was almost all set to buy the Corolla. And it was then that I saw an article in Autocar (October?) about the new Fiesta Powershift which led me in a completely different direction.

Soon after, I devoured every write-up on the new Automatic Fiesta - and I must have read the team-bhp review at least a dozen times, and based off whatever I read, I was convinced that I hold on to my money till I saw the Ford Fiesta automatic in person. And boy, that turned out to be a long wait. It was also the year end anyway, so I thought it was better to postpone my buy to 2012. Auto Expo came and went and still there was no news of the launch - I was getting a bit impatient, but decided to camp a wee bit longer. Ford finally launched the Powershift version on February 28th, and the next day I rushed to Cauvery Ford to check out the car. But it wasn't there yet, and was told I'd had to wait a week or so to see and test drive the car.

After a week, I got a call from Cauvery saying that they'll get the car to my office for a test drive. Sweet. On the promised day, three guys from Cauvery Ford showed up in a Paprika red Fiesta Powershift, and off we went for a test drive. In the first few minutes, I was amazed at how light the steering was, and at the super smooth gearbox. Minimal lag, and very linear power delivery when in D mode. And the Powershift Titanium came with factory fitted leather seats (the only Fiesta variant to have this) which were very comfortable to sit in - and it looked a completely different car inside as compared to variants with fabric upholstery. The Cauvery guys encouraged me to use the 'L' mode, Fordspeak for low gear-high RPM mode. I had an empty stretch of road, so I shifted to L and the car lurched ahead with lots of engine noise and a sudden burst of power which took me by surprise. At that time, I thought the L mode was cool, though my opinion changed with time - more on that below.

Just one thing bothered me during the test drive. You see, the Powershift gearbox is an import and is plonked in the car without any changes, which meant the gear box markings were on the left side (for the US market) so I could not see which slot I was shifting to. I was told to look at the information display on the dash for gear change, which I thought was inconvenient. But other than that, the car floored me - I liked its sharp front styling, with sweeping lines on the side, the feather light steering, voice recognition and great seats. It was also a LOT cheaper than the Altis, so after sleeping over it a few nights, I made up my mind to get the brand new Ford Fiesta Automatic! I tried to negotiate with Cauvery, but they were unwilling to drop prices on a car which was just launched earlier that month, so I had to make do with the OEM mats and a car cover. The Powershift Titanium came down to an on-road price of Rs.11.81 lakhs, which wasn't actually bad, considering that the price went up by Rs.50,000 the next week because of the excise hike. I liked the signature colorway of Paprika red, but I thought Silver made the car look longer and sleeker, so I went for the Moondust silver. I chose to pay full down, so there was no bank or loan paperwork involved. Just my good 'ol chequebook and a ballpoint pen.



So to cut a long story short, I got the keys to my brand new Ford Fiesta on March 30th, 2012! Yes! I was still a bit nervous about not being able to see the gearbox markings properly, so Cauvery Ford sent a driver along with me to my house. I tipped him, and finally I had the car!

Trust me, your world changes when you have an automatic car in busy Bangalore traffic. No more changing of gears every second, constant pressing of the clutch and getting frustrated by the time I reached office. So the next week, I was so much looking forward to drive to office. My home parking is a bit tricky, with reversing around pillars involved, and on the first day, I managed to put a rather large scratch on the front bumper right right in my parking lot. I was trying to squeeze past a scooty, and one of the broken metal footrests scraped against the left side of the front bumper. While it pained me greatly to see that on a brand new car, I took it as a sign of good omen and went on my way.

In the early days, the Powershift gearbox behaved rather strangely. In stop and go traffic, the car would suddenly shudder as if it was stalling. I wondered if this was normal, and googled for similar issues. It seemed that this was a part of the break-in quirks for the dual clutch gearbox, and sure enough, those shudders disappeared as weeks passed. I was using the D mode most of the time, and it was perfect for city driving. Acceleration is linear, and the engine did not feel under powered at all. The D mode is all about being in control, comfortable, and predictable. The L mode, however, is simply not meant for the city. The car bucks like a wild horse, the lag is significant, and you don't get a sense of control at all. I once slot the car into L while driving in Bangalore, and I was so scared that I'd rear end someone. So I decided to test the L mode when I got the car out on the highways and hills.

The opportunity to take out the Fiesta on the highway and the hills came at the same time, when the travel desk guy at my office invited us for his marriage near Yelagiri hills, just ahead of Krishagiri on the Bangalore Chennai highway. Three of us got into the car, and off we went to Yelagiri. And that is when the realization dawned that the Fiesta was meant to be on the highway. The suspension and chasis is superb; keeping the car solid and stable at speeds way into triple digits. The D mode was more than enough for most of the overtaking, while the L mode came handy in quick overtakes and engine braking before an intersection. The marriage was at the foothills of Yelagiri hills, so after the wedding, we drove uphill over curvy roads. The car handled superbly, embracing corners like a fish taking to water, and it was a joy to drive it around bends. The only shortcoming was the inability of the D mode to carry three adults over sharp and steep u-bends while going uphill. That's where the L mode kicked in, throwing the car into the lowest gear possible for the extra lugging power. While going downhill, I now prefer to use the D mode with the hill descent control engaged. Trying to go downhill in L mode is dangerous. While it offers excellent engine braking, the throttle input is hard to master, and when you switch from L to D on the way down, the car tends to accelerate a bit between the change, which made me very nervous. So to sum it up: L mode is good for overtakes and steep uphill climbs and nothing else. In the city, it is absolutely useless.



A few highway and airport runs later, the first free service came up quick at 2500 kms. Spent half a day at the service station, working on my laptop in the lounge while my car was getting ready. Did not have to pay anything because there were no consumables, and the next day I went straight to the HSR 3M store for a underbody coating and expensive 50:70 sunfilm. The anti-sunfilm law was passed the following week, and it annoyed me so much that I decided to leave them on. I kept the sunfilm for the next many months, till I got my first traffic ticket in December 2012, and decided to peel off only the films on the side windows.



In the months that followed, I took the Fiesta to many different places - Red hills, Ooty, Manipal-Udupi, Ganpatiphule and of course, with my daily commute to office and back, the occasional evenings out and errands thrown in. By December, the odometer crossed 10,000 kms, which meant it was second service time! This time I had to pay for the Oil change, the filter and taxes, which added upto RS.2500 for the 2nd free service.




After the 2nd service, I promptly put another 2000km on the car, driving to Maharashtra, Goa and then back home. And the reason I drive the car around so much is that the Fiesta Powershift is an absolute delight to drive. 12,000 kms down, and no creaks, rattles, breakdowns. The gearbox has fully broken in so the shifts are extremely smooth, and on the highway, it comes into a league of its own. Flooring the throttle will reward you with more than sufficient acceleration, leaving most of the manuals in the rear view mirror.

The voice commands in the Fiesta is a neat feature, but after the initial novelty wore off, I have stopped using it. Sometimes, in bumper to bumper traffic, I use the voice command to get to radio presets. But it is an excellent for showing off to friends, I must give it that.

So far I've had only one puncture yet, and a dent in the door sill which was a result of giving my car to a friend for 10 minutes. (Never again). I guess that has to be fixed. Fuel efficiency? It is exactly 10, with the air conditioning always on, and my driving is mostly in the messy Bangalore traffic. Me thinks that ain't bad for an automatic in the city.



Much has been said about the quality of plastics in the Fiesta, and frankly, I don't know what the fuss is all about. Unless the non-automatic Fiesta's use different plastics. I had a chance to sit inside and look at the US Fiesta hatchback, and trust me, my interiors look and feel way better. From the outside, it is exactly the same till the rear hatch, with small changes in the front grill. And the US version has less chrome!




The Fiesta is a driver's car, and while the rear seats are nothing much to write about, they aren't very cramped either. I have had full grown adults sit in the back, and I've had polarizing reactions. Someone says that the rear seats are so comfortable, they can sleep all day, while somebody points out that the headrests are uncomfortable. Anyway which - I don't think I am going to sit in the back, so the jury is out on this one.

So for now, that's it for my initial ownership review (with a summary in the post below) - let me see if I can find time to write about my crazy adventure, which involved the Fiesta in stage 2! If you have any questions, type furiously away below this review, and I will get back to you! But honestly, I was amazed that my ownership review is the first of a Fiesta Automatic on Tbhp; I thought somebody would beat me to it. It is a great car, and anyone in the market for a Petrol automatic should consider the Fiesta Powershift. It helps that there is a lower priced variant too, for a place like Bangalore where the road taxes are absurd.

Oh, by the way. The Fiesta Automatic's most important feature (see picture below) is that it can float in water a-la the Spy who loved me. My MapmyIndia GPS says so clearly, helped by accurate satellite geo-positioning, blah blah.

[Kamen_rider]

After owning the Fiesta Powershift for 12,000 kms, it is easy to list out what I like, and what I don't about the car.


Thumbs up for:

1) The superb handling and brilliant chasis - something which very few other cars in India can offer on this side of 20 lakhs. Ask Ken Block, who drifted around San Francisco in a heavily modified Ford Fiesta for his Gymkhana 5 video! It is a joy to drive in the hills, and on the highway. In the city, the firm suspension keeps the car from bottoming out, though ground clearance isn't the highest.

2) The 6 speed Powershift gearbox, which is super smooth when compared to other auto boxes in this segment. In most places, it will outpace a manual car because the shifts are lightening quick and seamless.

3) The noise insulation is extremely effective; roll up the windows and prepare to travel in your personal cocoon. It would have been better with tinted windows though!

4) The factory fitted leather seats in the Titanium version are form fitting, especially in the front. You can drive for hours (I've done max 14 hours) without fatigue.

5) Lots of pockets and compartments in the front cabin. I've safely stowed away my documents, Swiss Army rescue knife, Maglite torch, pepper spray, shopping loyalty cards in these compartments, all out of plain sight.

6) The OEM sound system, which beats a lot of aftermarket systems.

7) Feather light steering, which is a boon on crowded roads, and super sensitive brakes. Two of my friends who owned a SX4 and i20 took 10 minutes just to learn how to correctly brake on my car!

8) The voice command is a pretty cool feature. Sometimes convenient to change radio station or fiddle around with climate control when in heavy traffic.

9) Headlamps adjustable at five levels at a turn of a knob.


Now, the negatives:

1) The L mode. I never understood why Ford put this in the gearbox at all. Its functionality is extremely limited. Yes, overtakes and hill climbs are sometimes easier with the L mode, but it does with a great deal of engine noise and lurching, which is very annoying . And in the city, L mode might as well be called the 'Ladai mode' since you will probably get into a fistfight after rear ending one of the other cars.

2) The way the rear looks. The Ford Fiesta looks best from the side and front, but look at the quirky rear, and it doesn't gel in with the rest. But it has grown on me over the last year, and I don't mind it as much.

3) Rear armrest, which was put in as an afterthought with ungainly metal hinges.

4) Unergonomic power window switches on the driver side. Even after all these months, I either end up rolling down the rear windows when I want the front, and vice versa.

5) Engine noise. I think the engine is a bit noisy for, a uh, petrol engine.


The Fiesta would be a complete package if:

1) The spare wheel was a full size alloy instead of a downsized steel rim one.

2) I did not have to stretch my thumb to press the horn while driving.

3) The rear cabin was better done up, with trims like in the front.

4) the rear view mirror and side view mirrors had glare reduction features.

5) the rear wheels had disc brakes.

6) the central console was designed to be able to fit an aftermarket sound system. I know it can be done, but it is a mighty pain!

7) The gearbox had markings on the right instead of the left (US side)

[GTO]

Thread moved from the Assembly Line to the Initial Ownership Section. Thanks for sharing!

[Shiv_1984]

Allow me to congratulate you for owning one of the best looking cars (IMO) out there. wishing you many happy miles ahead.
Could you pls post some pics of the interior space, upholstery, boot space and seats if you don't mind ?

Thanks

[Sheel]

Hi Rahul!

Am so glad to have you on board I believe this is the first Fiesta AT on the forums.

I know you pen your thoughts a bit late, but still they aren't lost & the count stays fresh.

Please keep the thread updated & share the logs with Cars as well as otherwise here.

Thanks :-)

OT : -So what about two-wheels? Got something after the 250R?

[sgiitk]

L mode is more for Descents that Ascents as you get engine braking.

[vb-saan]

Congratulations, and thanks for the excellent review.

I did a TD of the Fiesta Titanium diesel recently, and car felt brilliant to drive. I had a look at the Titanium AT, and what you mentioned is so true – the black leather interiors lift up the whole ambience inside the cabin. Much more classier feel than the fabric seats in MT variant.

When I started driving the steering felt very non-Ford-like, extremely light but once on the highway, it weighed up nicely. The rear headrest design is quite a deal-breaker though (for those who care)

Enjoy the car, and do update the thread regularly. Drive Safe!

[Santoshbhat]

Congratulations kamen_rider on a great choice of car. Correct if I am wrong, yours may be the first Fiesta AT on the forum!

Thoroughly enjoyed reading your well written review.

An Automatic car makes a lot of sense in Bangalore these days. You would'nt believe if I told you that I enjoy driving my i10 AT in the city more than my Laura TSI. The rate at which vehicle population is increasing is alarming. There is virtually no road left where one can drive smoothly in a single gear for a continuous block of time. Add to that a million speed breakers. I can't understand the logic in adding speed breaker after speed breaker. On some roads new breakers are being put where there's another one just 30 mts away . The roads are already choked, why slow them down further??!!

Originally Posted by Kamen_rider

And in the city, L mode might as well be called the 'Ladai mode' since you will probably get into a fistfight after rear ending one of the other cars.

[dsvikki]

Was waiting for your review after reading your comments in the Official review thread. I was surprised too on not finding a single Ownership review of the Fiesta AT. Thanks for sharing. I have booked my Fiesta AT (Style - Kinetic Blue) this week with delivery promised next week. Hope to share notes given that we seem to be a minority on T-BHP (Fiesta AT owners).

[arup.misra]

Congrats on your milestone...both 10k & the new Fiesta.

Nice to see a niggle free auto box performing so well. Between the Cruz & Fiesta, was parking the only sore point for having left out the Cruz.

Please do share your adventure and keep the thread updated.

Wish you many more miles of trouble free experience. Drive safe!!

[StarScream]

Excellent review of an unappreciated and underestimated car. Thank you.

If I didn't have a driver I would definitely be looking for an automatic and this would be my top pick. After reading the review, I'm hoping the driver quits

One other thing about the Fiesta AT - it's the only car this side of 16-17 lakhs that offers ESP, which you can only get if you buy a top-end Elantra, XUV5oo or petrol Fluence.

[vb-saan]

Originally Posted by StarScream

One other thing about the Fiesta AT - it's the only car this side of 16-17 lakhs that offers ESP, which you can only get if you buy a top-end Elantra, XUV5oo or petrol Fluence.

Just a small correction – ESP is there in all variants of the Fluence, including the base E2 diesel. But yes, Fiesta AT is the only C-segment car (in India) with this important safety feature.

[vnabhi]

Congratulations for your new ride and many thanks for the excellent review. I wish you many, many happy miles on it.

If I were to buy an AT sedan today south of 11 lacs, it would certainly be the Fiesta. The Honda City has a CVT tranny that puts me off.

One thing you've not covered is the F.E. on highway drives. And how difficult is to drop to L mode while over-taking? I'm sure it won't be as smooth as with paddle shifts, but was just curious.

Originally Posted by sgiitk

L mode is more for Descents that Ascents as you get engine braking.

Yes, that is normally the case, but Ford has provided a 'Hill descent control' for such cases.

[anachronix]

Congrats K_R! Drive safe and wish you many more trouble free years with the Fiesta.

Simple and straight forward review of a nice car that was killed by Ford themselves!

[pamishra]

Originally Posted by Kamen_rider

The L mode. I never understood why Ford put this in the gearbox at all. Its functionality is extremely limited. Yes, overtakes and hill climbs are sometimes easier with the L mode, but it does with a great deal of engine noise and lurching, which is very annoying . And in the city, L mode might as well be called the 'Ladai mode' since you will probably get into a fistfight after rear ending one of the other cars.

Thanks for the good review!
Just a question - While overtaking, for getting that extra power, it is necessary to shift to the L mode?