[COMMUTER]

This a dream I always had but never dared. Please do keep updating us of the ownership. It will assuage us all about the inherent fears one has towards performance mods. Please do try to use an app to get the acceleration figures. Have you been asked to continue using the same engine oil? Are you planning to continue getting your car serviced at the FASS?

Is there any limit to the possibility of remap with respect to the total kms covered?

[shashi792]

Like you said, what I did not like from the new Figo (including the Blu edition) were those bumper designs. I still like the design of Figo S.

I like your modified bumper more than the stock one. Remap has been in our (we have two Ecosport S TDCI) mind for several months now. But, both myself and my brother wanted to experience a remapped TDCI car before diving into the remap world.

Like others have pointed out, according to Ford, Figo 2019 was their Freestyle. Iv'e driven Freestyle, but somehow for me Figo seems to be more planted to tarmac than Freestyle.

[Highh5]

Congratulations man!! For many this could be a downgrade, but a true bhpian can only tell that it's an upgrade.
One of my favourite hot hatch along with perfect upgrades. Make use of silver colour, as GTO said get the roof wrapped along with side view mirrors.

Just one question why didn't you opt for ford freestyle, would have come in your favourite set of alloys and Sync 3 is available as well.

[Ranjith812]

Beautiful crisp review! Figo is an all rounder, perfect in every sense especially the steering position and gear level is spot on as you said.
Good that you went for a remap!

Congrats and wish you many many happy miles!!

[arvi86]

Congratulations on acquiring this fun set-of-wheels! With the thoughtful modifications that have gone in, your Figo should keep you entertained for many years. Wish you a happy, safe and fun ownership.

It's a shame we Indians have let cars like the Figo and Aspire down. Be it safety, features, power, fuel-efficiency or total cost of ownership, these Fords delivered everything asked of it. Yet, there were hardly any takers. I'm glad you were different.

[Achilles]

Thanks for sharing your modification details. Very nice changes and great writing.

Originally Posted by joe_lightspeed

Tweaking the car to my needs


Performance Remap

After 7 months of ownership, the only problem I faced was the black smoke coming out from the engine at high Revs. The amount of smoke was thick, and I’ve approached ford’s service centre to check if it’s an issue and I came to know that black smoke is common for all diesel engines.
Also discussing this issue with a friend of mine, who is an expert with cars taught me that the reason for said black smoke was that with more throttle, more fuel than needed is dumped. Unlike petrol engines it doesn’t have any throttle body to control the air and fuel, The imbalance in this air to fuel ratio results in black smoke. A carefully calibrated remap can reduce this issue. He also advised me to close the EGR valve as well.

Is the black smoke issue completely fixed after this performance remap? Apart from a reduced fuel efficiency, any other issues to expect?

Annoyed with the black smoke issue on my Aspire TDCi and exploring solutions!

[alphahere]

Good review. I have done a remap on my i20 CRDi from Code6. The map performed very well and the vehicle felt really different and effortless to drive. After driving it for a year like so, I wanted to go one step further in modding and got a full exhaust system custom built from Code6 from the turbocharger downwards. Design of the exhaust was their recommendation. Good news was that this further noticeably enhanced the low end torque and it does not feel like a heavy i20 anymore for the most part. FE also remains unhit. But somehow the new exhaust has cost me performance in the upper end of the rev band. The car 'lost' about 10kph of it's top speed (in 5th and 6th gears) and feels decidedly strained above 4k rpm towards 5k rpm which is the red line in all gears. I have still not gotten around to figuring what's the bottleneck in the upper revv bands, but long story short; Code6 does a good job but maybe they lack enough practical experience with the wider market to foresee issues like what I have described.

[Tachyonites]

An all-rounder, Figo is truly India's most fun to drive hatch. A very detailed review sir, the list of modifications just makes an already nice package even better. Probably a blackened roof would definitely turn more heads on the road. But, the remap that you went for is a very nice decision and I congratulate you and I wish you many happy miles with this fabulous car.

[TheHelix0202]

Brilliant car this. Once took a ride in another Blu variant (on a track) and even at 180 KMPH it didn’t feel too unsettled- no mean feat.

[viXit]

Originally Posted by joe_lightspeed

Better Audio!

Replaced the OEM speakers with Focal Integration ISC 165 Coaxial speakers for all doors. Clarity of the audio is way better now

LG V20 B&O Play and some Wharfedale speakers,
Quite the audiophile, eh?

Love your review and it was a great decision to change the rear bumper.
Looks way better that the unwieldy facelifted one.

Ford cars always have the best backlight colors.
I remember the amazing soft green instrument cluster with red needles on my grandfather's 07 fiesta.

Looking forward to more posts and maybe an ICE UPGRADE THREAD?
Expect a pretty balls to the wall system from you.

[@dr_figo]

What a fantastic read. I own a 2016 1.5L Diesel Titanium figo. My car will complete 5 years next year(driven 60000 km till now,car still in warranty). Serious mods are planned. Love that stance with the lowered springs.

[joe_lightspeed]

Originally Posted by GTO

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

What a sexy little hatch! Love your modifications. Would suggest a blackened roof to complete the aesthetics. Your car is going to our homepage .

Thank you very much GTO for helping me from the assembly line. your support is really appreciated

Originally Posted by Thanos-VV

That is a Real Beauty!! Wishing you many many years of association with it! You have turned it into a real stunner on road. Neat and well executed modifications! Job well done Joe!!!

Thank you Thanos.

Originally Posted by BZ25

Congratulations sir, what a lovely review! The Figo screams value & has a good amount of safety features too. But I wonder why Ford didn't include the Sync 3 system in the facelifted Figo, as it would have become the near-perfect package for any buyer looking for a fun to drive hatchback. Ford has made and continues to make goof-ups like this. This is why many of its offerings, that were pretty good, never sold the way they should've.

The Figo may not be the prettiest hatchback out there, but it is one of the most sensible ones to buy. And it's pretty low cost in terms of maintenance too. Hope you have some wonderful miles with this beast.

Take care & do keep updating the thread.

Thank you BZ25. Sure, i'll be keeping this thread upto date.

Originally Posted by Gannu_1

Lovely report and some great modifications Joe!

C'mon now, where did that pic of the parking space (with the dining table view) go? Dude, that looked wicked! But how do you ensure that the tires are clean everytime the car enters the tiled space? Or do you simply clean it later on?

Thank you Gannu. I'm planning for a separate detailed review about the garage attached to my home. Yes, i have to make sure the tires are always clean before getting on the tiles.

Originally Posted by vivekji05

Joseph, that's a lovely review you have compiled. I know how much you love your cars having seen your Polo, Civic, City etc and good to see the Figo is getting the same love.

Have to give it to you for your attention to detail and using OE parts like the Freestyle rims and the older rear bumper. That bumper gives it such a clean look to the rear.

Thank you Vivekji! You're the first POC for all my car related doubts

Originally Posted by skanchan95

Congratulations. Fabulous and crisp review for a fabulous looking car, Joe!!!

Silver suits the Figo very well. Some very tasteful mods have done, especially liked the spoiler and Freestyle alloys. I had got the same Figo S spoiler installed on on my 2016 1.2 Titanium+ as well. It adds to the looks greatly.

One little addition I would suggest is to get an armrest- the snugfit type( not the one where you need to drill holes to fit it). Arm rest in my Figo (Storm Shadow: 2016 Ford Figo 1.2L Ti-VCT Titanium+. EDIT: Now Sold)

Wish you many happy & safe miles with you Figo.

Thank you Skanchan95. Thank you for the info on the armrest.

Originally Posted by Reinhard

Fabulous thread & equally good mods there. Loved them. Congratulations on acquiring one of the most capable & most underrated cars around. Wish you unlimited safe, happy & adrenaline packed miles with it!
Especially loved your taste while changing the rear bumper. I also like the subtle pre-facelift bumper compared to the awkwardly protruding new one that has too much bling for my taste.
Thanks for the write up. Loved reading it. Rated it 5 Stars. Stay safe. Cheers!

Many thanks Reinhard. Happy to know you liked the way i modded the car

Originally Posted by hydraulicsteer

Great Post. Freestyle alloys are a good choice and transforms the character very well. One suggestion on aesthetics: see if you can replace the current long antenna with a micro roof one.

hydraulicsteer, First of all Thank you very much. Yes, i'll be buying a micro roof antenna soon for the car. The long one looks ugly to me as well.

Originally Posted by Highh5

Congratulations man!! For many this could be a downgrade, but a true bhpian can only tell that it's an upgrade.
One of my favourite hot hatch along with perfect upgrades. Make use of silver colour, as GTO said get the roof wrapped along with side view mirrors.

Just one question why didn't you opt for ford freestyle, would have come in your favourite set of alloys and Sync 3 is available as well.

Highh5, Thank you. Freestyle is well equipped and a VFM car. The black colored titanium+ TDCI would be my pick. Still I personally prefer the aesthetics of a hatchback more than a CSUV.

Originally Posted by Ranjith812

Beautiful crisp review! Figo is an all rounder, perfect in every sense especially the steering position and gear level is spot on as you said.
Good that you went for a remap!

Congrats and wish you many many happy miles!!

Many Thanks Ranjith! Drive safe

Originally Posted by arvi86

Congratulations on acquiring this fun set-of-wheels! With the thoughtful modifications that have gone in, your Figo should keep you entertained for many years. Wish you a happy, safe and fun ownership.

It's a shame we Indians have let cars like the Figo and Aspire down. Be it safety, features, power, fuel-efficiency or total cost of ownership, these Fords delivered everything asked of it. Yet, there were hardly any takers. I'm glad you were different.

Thank you very much Arvi86. You said it right about the Figo and Aspire.

Originally Posted by Tachyonites

An all-rounder, Figo is truly India's most fun to drive hatch. A very detailed review sir, the list of modifications just makes an already nice package even better. Probably a blackened roof would definitely turn more heads on the road. But, the remap that you went for is a very nice decision and I congratulate you and I wish you many happy miles with this fabulous car.

Thank you very much Tachyonites. Black paint job on the roof and mirrors might be done after this lock-down.

Once again, thank you everyone and your support is highly appreciated.

Regards,
Joe

Originally Posted by COMMUTER

This a dream I always had but never dared. Please do keep updating us of the ownership. It will assuage us all about the inherent fears one has towards performance mods. Please do try to use an app to get the acceleration figures. Have you been asked to continue using the same engine oil? Are you planning to continue getting your car serviced at the FASS?

Is there any limit to the possibility of remap with respect to the total kms covered?

Thank you Commuter. Yes, you can have the engine oil changed from the authorized service center after remap and it is not required to replace the oil with aftermarket brands. As I've already changed the engine oil to Addinol Synthetic and its better continuing with the same engine oil.

I have no plans to get my car serviced from outside and I prefer to stick to the FASS except having the engine oil replacement. I will check with my connection and get back to you on having a remap respect to the kms covered.

Originally Posted by TheHelix0202

Brilliant car this. Once took a ride in another Blu variant (on a track) and even at 180 KMPH it didn’t feel too unsettled- no mean feat.

Wow! you're so lucky to have this car driven on a track.

Originally Posted by @dr_figo

What a fantastic read. I own a 2016 1.5L Diesel Titanium figo. My car will complete 5 years next year(driven 60000 km till now,car still in warranty). Serious mods are planned. Love that stance with the lowered springs.

Many thanks dr_figo. Update us once you're done with the planned mods and I wish you many many happy miles!!

[cjnigesh]

A Freestyle owner from Thrissur here.

First of all, let me congratulate you for the awesome mods that you have performed on your ride. I have been considering sort of same modifications on my ride for the last couple of months. What has kept me paused is the warranty (standard warranty of 2 years due in August this year) concerns. I am a novice when it comes to a brand new vehicle ownership and maintenance part.

***It seems like you have had no issues for parts replacement under warranty even after the mods especially the remap*** Please correct me if I am wrong...

Notes:

Mine has completed the 20000 mark recently and completed the third service last month.

No issues to speak of other than the slightest lag in second gear while tackling speed breakers and the same dark smoke under acceleration.

The service advisor had asked me whether the car has been modified due to the several TeamBHP stickers!

My concerns are listed below:

1.) Are the 195/55/15 tyres direct fit on the Freestyle stock rims (2018 Titanium+ Variant), since you have mentioned about your concerns regarding the spacers? Pros and Cons if you may address!

Note: Stock Tyres: Bridgestone Sportmax 185/60/15

2.) If yes, what would be the ideal brand of choice of tyres?

3.) Petes piggyback tuning box or Code 6 remap? Again Pros and Cons! I am in the same boat as you when it comes to the realisation of resale value of a ford in our market. Hence I would love to keep it for as long as I can...

4.) Since I have got Sync III, all I want to have my speakers upgraded to either ‘Focal’ or ‘Rockford’ along with dampening all 4 doors and the boot lid. No Subwoofer for me as this is the only car we have got. So, your recommendation about the same would be greatly appreciated (price and reputable shop to do the aforementioned).

5.) What have made you to choose ibac over Bilstein B6 (I have got ‘0’ technical clue about both)? All I felt that the rear stock suspensions setup are bit saggy under spirited drives. Is it necessary to change the entire setup or upgrading just the rear would work the magic?

6.) Further explanation on EGR valve closing requirement would be greatly appreciated.

[TheHelix0202]

Originally Posted by joe_lightspeed

Wow! you're so lucky to have this car driven on a track.

Haha, no! I didn’t drive it: was merely a passenger in the car (with 4 others + luggage, so it was fully loaded too).

[TwistOfFate!]

Hi joe_lightspeed,

Wonderful mods done to your car. Kudos! Would you be able to share a collage with Before & After pics of the car? It would be wonderful to see the transformation side by side.