[Gilead]

Originally Posted by Damu

"Body roll" - that's the key word, Gilead. Both of us don't like body roll at all. With the Ikon, we've learned to our delight that a stiff ride at low speed makes for a great ride at cruising speeds. And we've gotten used to that quality of ride over the last 6 years. So the 'S' should be okay with us.

You will get all this and more in the 1.6S.
- Lesser body roll
- Better handling
- Far more safer
- Better seats
- Lighter steering but more feedback. Might sound contradictory, but it will be clear in a TD.
- Better brakes
- Better mid and top end power

The only place where the Ikon 1.6 fares better is low end power delivery.

I am not sure how long the S will be available though. Volumes are quite low. The next gen Fiesta should be here in about 18 months. No one can say whether the current Fiesta will continue after that one is launched.

[anachronix]

Gilead,

The Ikon is better for:

1. Front & rear seat comfort. Long trips have never been tiring in my Ikon. I feel a lot more tired when I do equally long trips in my S.
2. The Ikon had the best steering feedback. It was different between the 1.6 & the Flair models. The 1.6 had a more smooth and precise feedback.
3. Handling has been the best part except for the body roll compared to the S.

However the general refinement of the car & the brakes were awful compared to the Fiesta!

[Gilead]

Originally Posted by anachronix

Gilead,

The Ikon is better for:..

I think Ford must have done some serious cost cutting on the Flair compared to the earlier Nxt models.

The Flair I drove last week had

- Very bad seats.
- Very heavy steering with feedback that was definitely not as good as the S.

I have driven the Ikon 1.6 only once a long time ago and the only thing I remember was the ease with which it hit 80. The Fiesta is definitely not as fast to 80. But then the hounds of hell get really unleashed only after 3000 RPM in the Fiesta.

[Damu]

Originally Posted by Gilead

You will get all this and more in the 1.6S.
- Better brakes

Sounds good!

Originally Posted by Gilead

I am not sure how long the S will be available though. Volumes are quite low. The next gen Fiesta should be here in about 18 months. No one can say whether the current Fiesta will continue after that one is launched.

Well, am up to my neck in payments for my flat, so the 'S' will have to wait till September at least.

Originally Posted by anachronix

The Ikon is better for:1. Front & rear seat comfort. Long trips have never been tiring in my Ikon. I feel a lot more tired when I do equally long trips in my S.

By long do you mean about 12 hours, Anachronix? That's about what we do usually in day

Originally Posted by anachronix

2. The Ikon had the best steering feedback.3. Handling has been the best part except for the body roll compared to the S. However the general refinement of the car & the brakes were awful compared to the Fiesta!

Thanks for the inputs Anachronix! BTW, with Gilead's permission, can you link me to your thread, I've lost it.

Regards
Damu

[anachronix]

The NXTs had much better character compared to the Flair.

It was a whole new driving experience for me when I started driving the Fiesta. I was missing the low end grunt of the Ikon and usually messed up on gearing during my initial Fiesta days. Now, I am more used to the Fiesta and able to extract the best performance

I sold my car to a colleague & a good friend of mine. I will try & get the car if possible for any of the weekend meet. Experience it

By long do you mean about 12 hours, Anachronix? That's about what we do usually in day

I usually drive to Kerala from Chennai which is nearly about 800KMs with travel time upto 12 Hrs.

Thanks for the inputs Anachronix! BTW, with Gilead's permission, can you link me to your thread, I've lost it.

Here it is!

http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/test-d...esta-1-6s.html

[Gilead]

Originally Posted by anachronix

I sold my car to a colleague & a good friend of mine. I will try & get the car if possible for any of the weekend meet. Experience it

That would be awesome. Better still, let's take it on the Tambaram bypass if possible.

[M5_fan]

Hey, Is this color still available on the fiesta? I love this color! I noticed that it gives different shades in different lighting conditions.

why dont more people buy this color?

[Gilead]

Originally Posted by M5_fan

Hey, Is this color still available on the fiesta? I love this color! I noticed that it gives different shades in different lighting conditions.

why dont more people buy this color?

No, it's not available any more and yes, it's iridiscent. This color was available only on the S, so you don't see too many on the road.

[sanjayc]

Gilead, did you do tyre rotation/balancing during 2nd free service?

Last Sat, had an appointment with Poonamalle Ford at 12 noon for the service..was able to reach only by 2pm due to last minute work pressures...wasted another 45 mins becos of lunch time, the guys finally attended but they wanted to keep the full day (all 8 bays were occupied) and deliver only next day. Came back to Arumbakkam..same story - finally, the floor manager Sundar I think, suggested me to come on Mon (today) at 8am in the morn - told me everything except car wash will be done within 2-3 hrs, in front of me, if I come early morning - appointed Satish - the same SA as last time (one way good, which I missed @MPL, known devil is better..).

Missed the appointment today as well, since my kids school opened today.. needed to car to drop them at 9:30...too late to go post that..am going tomm by 8:30am or so.

Okay..now the Questions are:

- Advisable to do tyre rotation post 7K kms?

- Wheel balancing reqd? Facing a little stiffness in the right arm during drives spanning > 30 mins of so (this I had even felt in IKon days, but that was then - knew too little about such things)..could this be a result of straining a little to keep the car in a straight line - tested out on 100ft road and couple of stretches while going to Pnmle a.s.s - vehicle will stay in a straight line for some 5 secs or so at a moderate speed of 40Kmph. Am a little paranoid on this becos don't want to attempt fixing stuff which ain't broke!

- Are they supposed to completely drain the engine oil before replacing?

- Reverse gear sometimes does not fully engage with a smooth motion - some jugglery requires to be done (50% of the times)..Sundar said some oiling is required and is a minor issue, can be fixed ..not a problem.

Touchwood! no other issues - FE seems to have settled around 9ish - the DTE for past 10 days or so is behaving as it should - the reduction of DTE seems to be in sync with tripmeter increment - seems it has finally learnt the hard way!!

Personally, I will be happy with just the various oil changes, as long as nothing is taken apart, since everything seems to be working just about fine as of now.

[Gilead]

Originally Posted by sanjayc

- Advisable to do tyre rotation post 7K kms?

sanjay, the wheels were rotated but not balanced. You can ask them to do it if you want. They have the equipment there. Balancing is usually required only when you have had a puncture. Better to get this done at a reputed tire shop.

Originally Posted by sanjayc

- Wheel balancing reqd? Facing a little stiffness in the right arm during drives spanning > 30 mins of so (this I had even felt in IKon days, but that was then - knew too little about such things)..could this be a result of straining a little to keep the car in a straight line - tested out on 100ft road and couple of stretches while going to Pnmle a.s.s - vehicle will stay in ea straight line for some 5 secs or so at a moderate speed of 40Kmph. Am a little paranoid on this becos don't want to attempt fixing stuff which ain't broke!

Get the balancing and alignment checked. There will always be a slight drift to the left on our roads. I verified mine goes straight on a perfectly level road. This is a psychological thing so get it done for peace of mind.

Originally Posted by sanjayc

- Are they supposed to completely drain the engine oil before replacing?

Yes. And the filter is changed as well. They will also clean the air filter and brakes.

Originally Posted by sanjayc

- Reverse gear sometimes does not fully engage with a smooth motion - some jugglery requires to be done (50% of the times)..Sundar said some oiling is required and is a minor issue, can be fixed ..not a problem.

No issues with my gear.

The 'thud' on the drivers door on my car sounds different from the 'thud' on all other doors. I asked them about it and they said it sounds different as I am mostly using only that door and that all other doors are still 'tight' since they are hardly ever used especially the rear doors. Does that make sense?

[sanjayc]

Thanks.

Originally Posted by Gilead

The 'thud' on the drivers door on my car sounds different from the 'thud' on all other doors. I asked them about it and they said it sounds different as I am mostly using only that door and that all other doors are still 'tight' since they are hardly ever used especially the rear doors. Does that make sense?

LOL. Trust these guys to come out with creative answers! But, on the other hand, for the logically minded, this will make sense until proven otherwise;-} something logical there, ain't it?

That reminds me! I met the Waxoyl chap and reminded him of the free touch-up promised during the free services. He started dilly-dallying. (mind you, they do not provide free service coupons unlike 3M)..on reminding him that 3M guys do so, he says, since their products are inferior, they need to do the frequent touch-up!!!

Have spoken to Sundar (will confirm the name tomm)..about this..he just asked me to bring over the warranty card provided by Waxoyl and he will ensure those guys will do a free service..not than I am keen about the body paint part becos it was done at CarzSpa a month back..but need to check if the underbody coating touch up will be good in view of coming rains.

[Gilead]

Originally Posted by sanjayc

LOL. Trust these guys to come out with creative answers! But, on the other hand, for the logically minded, this will make sense until proven otherwise;-} something logical there, ain't it?

This answer came out as soon as the question was out of my mouth. And they were right. The other doors have hardly ever been used. The front passenger door gets used only twice a week at the max and the rear doors have hardly ever been opened. Not sure if the thud sound changes with usage. Can you check your doors?

[sanjayc]

Originally Posted by Gilead

This answer came out as soon as the question was out of my mouth. And they were right. The other doors have hardly ever been used. The front passenger door gets used only twice a week at the max and the rear doors have hardly ever been opened. Not sure if the thud sound changes with usage. Can you check your doors?

I have not noticed any difference in sound. All my other 3 doors are almost equally used! Wife at the front, 2 daughters at the back left/right, son in the middle. Would check out in a silent area asap.

Wild guess, but you can look a few places though:
- check if the door padding is tight - there will be a couple of screws in the inside door handle - see if tightening them helps

- if the glass window is fully up, is there any "loose play" if shaken with a slight force - maybe the rattling of the glass windows is combining with the thud sound

[ghodlur]

Originally Posted by sanjayc

Gilead, did you do tyre rotation/balancing during 2nd free service?
- Advisable to do tyre rotation post 7K kms? It is advisable to do tyre rotation every six months. This way increase the life of the tyres.

- Wheel balancing reqd? I feel wheel balancing should be done once in 6 months i.e once before the monsoons and once at the end of the year.
.

I had got the wheel alignment, balancing and rotation done last saturday, it costed me 800/-. Now geared up for the Mumbai monsoons and potholed roads.

[capt_rocker]

@Gilead and Sanjayc
even i have noticed a slightly different "thud" sounds between the front doors and rear doors.. the front doors shut with a positive thud but the rear door creates a rapping sound ( like 2 thuds!!) as if something inside the door panel is loose.. this i observed from the day i did the PDI at the stockyard.

I need some help guys.. about the paint protection and underbody coating part
1. which company provides the best coating? - 3M, Waxoyl, Teflon
2. Which is the best underbody paint protection?
3. How do I ensure they are genuine?
4. Whats the guarantee of 3 free services for paint protection?
5. How much does it cost (package and individually)
6. Also the best sun film? Does the front windshield need it?