re: Review: 1st-gen Ford Figo (2010) Quote:
Originally Posted by rohing Mustang 101 - It is great news that 1 lakh Figos have been sold. With the success of the Fiesta and the Figo, Ford has become a main stream car manufacturer in India. My question/Concern is around how Ford is planning on servicing this number of cars presently on road + future. Are there any plans to increase service network? I am guessing if one wants to be a volume vendor then servicing capacity is key. Currently, atleast in S.India, this is the scenario:
- Many big/medium size cities have only 1 Ford service center. There are always problems around getting appointments etc. Also, the lack of competition makes the dealer very complacent. Case in point - the addition of a new Tata dealer in my city totally changed the attitude of the existing dealer.
- No small town/small city here has a Ford dealer. So every Ford owner in the nearby towns have to come to the big cities for service - this further burdens the already heavily loaded dealers.
Would appreciate if you could share or illuminate on how Ford plans to ramp up its service network. Thanks! |
Yes absolutely. Chennai (hub of FIL) has 2 SC's but MPL has more workshops to handle. Worst case is in Coimbatore where there is one dealer. Heard that one more guy is contacting FIL to get atleast a SC opened up, but facing stiff competition from present SC. If you do not have an appointment and there is a need to have an immediate checkup, thatsall need to run corners to get this done. Quote:
Originally Posted by Mustang.101 2. New dealerships are being planned in cities/towns and will be opening very soon. As far as i can see the real rush problem is in big cities where as the people in smaller cities that have a ford dealership are enjoying pretty good service. However, there will be a lot of complaints (like you mentioned) in these small cities if the dealership owner thinks that he is a monarch  |
Since most of the sales are Diesel figos, the mileage was done pretty fast in smaller towns/cities and the problem of getting a service appointment is certainly difficult. In fact I made an appointment 1 week before for my 10k service and reminded two times. Quote:
Originally Posted by Captain Slow Metro ford here did not rotate the tyres on my figo during the second service
When I asked the SA he told its to be done only at 20,000KM
The Annoying rear rattling sound is back again. Exactly 1000KM after the last service. |
Absolutley. SA says tyre rotation is at only 20k, but all the tire companies recommend to do at 5k or atleast 10k. I think still there are no permanent fixes for rattling noises and squeaks by FIL. My rear windows still roll down after placing the lever as per the TSB by FIL. Quote:
Originally Posted by rohing Today I was low on Diesel and was going to work, so switched off the AC as I did not want to cut it too close (I have pretty much never driven the Figo without AC before). To my suprise the performance of the car was in a different league:
- There was almost NO turbo lag even in low rpms
- The acceleration on 2nd & 3rd was much better
- The car could be driven 1 gear higher than the norm in my route
To summarize, it was like driving a petrol car!! It is addictive - now even after filling diesel, I am tempted to switch off the AC...only that it gets unbearable hot (I don't roll the windows down).
I have driven the old indica where you switch of AC to overtake and this is nothing like that. Figo's performance is very much acceptable with AC on. However, the power delivery without AC is superb and makes driving in the city so much easier. Now naturally having experienced it, I want the same with the AC on too
Not sure how the MJD performs without AC. |
-The compressor noise is completely shutdown, so you get a feel of less sound from the engine bay.
-1.5 Ton compressor resulting in more load and loss of power
-When AC is switched on, the increase in engine idle rpm is around 100-200 (i dont know whether this is done electronically or mechanically) and certainly gives a difference in all the three points you have mentioned. Yes driving without AC gives a feeling of more pickup.(Adds a psychological effect also)
As far as I have driven diesel vehicles, I did not feel this difference only in Innova.
I was driving towards the east direction in chennai around 11am and it was terribly hot. AC was functioning well, but I got a different plastic smell especially from the dash.
In the earlier part of this thread, some guys were mentioning the dash effect in the Figo. The dash was certainly hot than most of the cars and also a different smell is felt. |