Ford Figo Titanium TDCi : Initial ownership report

joethomasv · 19th March 2010, 19:25

Finally took delivery of my white Figo. Ford wanted to make it a major event so around 31 cars were delivered by Nigel Wark, executive director, Marketing, Sales & Service, Ford India. My lucky number was 13. As soon as I got the keys I went looking for my car. There were only two whilte Titanium TDCis so it wasn't difficult finding my car: I chose the ugly red dash. I'm not too sure why I chose it and luckily no one in the family seemed to mind the color either.

The pressure of delivering 31 cars were showing on everyone's face. I wanted to get the fog lamps but nobody had a clue where it's available. I felt sorry for the guys and decided to get it later.

The car was spotless clean on the outside. The interior seemed fine too. But they conveniently forgot to vacuum the interior. The carpet below the driver side mat was soiled. The sales guy said he 'forgot' to tell me that. Except for that the car was pretty neat.

The odo read 24 kms. And there was around 10+ litres of fuel in the tank. That was a pleasant surprise. I drove around 150+ kilometers before the low fuel warning came on.
The first thing I tried after turning on the key was to try pairing the audio system with my phone (Nokia E71).

I am not into instruction manuals so I jumped right in. The phone asked for a pin. The sales guys didn't have a clue what that was so I took a guess and keyed in 1234. The key worked! When the audio system prompted me to allow pairing with the phone, I accidentally switched it off. When I turned it back on, it was displaying 'connecting' and it was stuck there. Tried turning it off and then back on several times but nothing happened. Called up the service and they said they haven't reached that level yet!! Looked up the manual of the audio system but couldn't find anything on a system reset. So removed the system's fuse and reinserted it after 10 seconds and everything was fine. Keyed in the security code and the phone paired. Best of all, everything just worked. It synced all my contacts, received calls, dialled calls etc. It even displays the coverage and battery levels. Audio streaming worked fine too. Loved it. The system sounds pretty good too for an OEM unit. I would say it sounds way better than the one that came on my Civic.

I straightaway went to new Bharath Pitstop (after making sure that the wipers worked fine at the u turn ) to get the tyres changed. The car came with Goodyear 175/65 R14 tyres. Most of the cars were shod with Appollos. The car was begging for a decent set of alloys and tyres. I tried Global tyres as well as the newly opened Tyrex but they didn't have many with 108 PCB. I settled on 185/60 R14 Michelin XM1+ and a set of league alloys.

I preferred 185/65 but they didn't have it in stock. They tried their best to convince me to buy Bridgestones but I was already sold on the Michelins. My Civic's running on the second set of Michelins.

I also opted for garware Icecool Grand sunfilms. It cost me around 6000 Rs. (or was it 6500? I'm not sure) I know garware is not the most popular brand on team-bhp but I was pretty happy with it on my Civic. Also, it was the only brand available at Pitstop.

By the time I got the car it was 9pm and home was 60 kms away. The road was deserted and I enjoyed the drive. I have a few fiestas in the family and have driven them quite a lot. I found the noise levels quite similar to that. My brother in law owns one and he also confirmed it. He felt the Figo is more sportier than the Fiesta! I'm not too sure about that though. Maybe it's the better visibility and the lower profile of the tyres. The ride is a bit on the stiffer side but it becomes better when you pick up speed. I found it hard to keep the speedo below 80kmph. The engine felt a little sluggish below 1500-2000 RPM. It's no trouble keeping it above it but I think I'll be a little gentle till the first service, which is at 2500kms/3 months. Subsequent services are at 10,000kms/12 months. That's a big relief. I'm not sure if the fiesta's service schedule is revised too. I have a habit of shifting early into second when I'm not in a hurry. It doesn't work too well in the Figo. Maybe there's too much gap between the 1st and 2nd gear ratios.

I got a few calls and the audio system handled them beautifully. The music automatically pauses on incoming call and resumes when the call ends. The only problem I found was, even when the system is off (standby?) and when I receive a call and hangup, it starts playing!

I'm very happy with the car so far. I wish the driver seat had a little more lumbar support. Wish it was a little bigger too. Maybe I'm spoilt by the Civic's.

Gilead · 19th March 2010, 19:29

Let me be the first to congratulate you AGAIN.

Fantastic pics. You have made even the red dash look palatable. Your garage floor seems to be a matching red too. Garware is utterly VFM. I have it on two cars and i have no regrets.

PS: I hope you got Nigel Wark's business card in case you need it for the future.

Mission_Safari · 19th March 2010, 19:31

Superb pics and car looks absolutely spottless in white. Nice choice of alloys too.

sdp1975 · 19th March 2010, 19:32

Congrats joe. The Figo looks beautiful in that color and with those alloys. Nice pics. The Titanium is absolute VFM.

Enjoy your ride.

joethomasv · 19th March 2010, 19:34

Quote:

Originally Posted by Gilead

Let me be the first to congratulate you AGAIN.

Fantastic pics. You have made even the red dash look palatable. Your garage floor seems to be a matching red too. Garware is utterly VFM. I have it on two cars and i have no regrets.

thanks again ! Yes looks like I'll have to paint the Civic's dash red now.

Utopian · 19th March 2010, 19:35

Let me be the first(oops third one) one to congratulate you for your #13th Figo. It looks quite soothing in white. Is the temperature Gauge missing from the instrument cluster??

HammerHead · 19th March 2010, 19:35

Hey congrats Joe,
Alloys look cool. I though the dash is a shade of maroon colour, in your pics it looks red.

anekho · 19th March 2010, 20:00

Amazing snaps! It's the first time i'm seeing a figo in white and it looks really cool much better than the "squeeze" green! Even the red dash looks pretty neat with white exteriors!

Please keep posting more snaps like those above

So when's the pete's box coming?

joethomasv · 19th March 2010, 20:02

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mission_Safari

Superb pics and car looks absolutely spottless in white. Nice choice of alloys too.

Thanks! Hope it remains that way. I didn't like the alloys that much when I bought it. There weren't much choice. I love it now.

Quote:

Originally Posted by sdp1975

Congrats joe. The Figo looks beautiful in that color and with those alloys. Nice pics. The Titanium is absolute VFM.

Enjoy your ride.

Thanks. Yes VFM indeed.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Utopian

Let me be the first(oops third one) one to congratulate you for your #13th Figo. It looks quite soothing in white. Is the temperature Gauge missing from the instrument cluster??

Yes there's no temperature gauge.

Quote:

Originally Posted by HammerHead

Hey congrats Joe,
Alloys look cool. I though the dash is a shade of maroon colour, in your pics it looks red.

Thanks HammerHead. Yes the dash looks better in the picture. It's a shade darker actually.

Captain Slow · 19th March 2010, 20:06

Very nice pics Joe and congrats, Your car looks beautiful.
what all did you get along with your car? How many remotes does the car come with ?
Drive safe

Brix · 19th March 2010, 20:08

White looks beautiful. Heavenly !!!

Very nice report too.

Nigel Wark came - that is a nice touch. Finally India as a Third world country is getting its due share of attention.

joe1980 · 19th March 2010, 20:10

Congrats again. I have a question to you. Did you try to enquire the dealer if you could fit an arm rest for the driver??

rajivn · 19th March 2010, 20:10

Congrats. Fantastic pics. White Figo looks great and Nice set of alloys there. Do post more pics and updates of your experience with the car.

fz_rider · 19th March 2010, 20:11

Boy, we already have an initial ownership review of Figo!
CONGRATULATIONS!
For me, Figo looks best in white. Those smoked headlamps look fantastic.
You could have tried Matt finished Black colored alloys, BTW the design you have chosen looks pretty good!

Gilead · 19th March 2010, 20:13

Quote:

Originally Posted by joethomasv

Yes there's no temperature gauge.
.

That's a bad miss. Even an 800 has one. How are you supposed to know if the car is overheating?

Quote:

Originally Posted by Brix

Nigel Wark came - that is a nice touch. Finally India as a Third world country is getting its due share of attention.

Isn't Wark based out of India? Where are these guys Wark, Boneham located? Delhi or Chennai?

19th March 2010, 19:25	#1
joethomasv BHPian Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: KL-44 , KA-12 Posts: 374 Thanked: 324 Times View My Garage	Ford Figo Titanium TDCi : Initial ownership report Finally took delivery of my white Figo. Ford wanted to make it a major event so around 31 cars were delivered by Nigel Wark, executive director, Marketing, Sales & Service, Ford India. My lucky number was 13. As soon as I got the keys I went looking for my car. There were only two whilte Titanium TDCis so it wasn't difficult finding my car: I chose the ugly red dash. I'm not too sure why I chose it and luckily no one in the family seemed to mind the color either. The pressure of delivering 31 cars were showing on everyone's face. I wanted to get the fog lamps but nobody had a clue where it's available. I felt sorry for the guys and decided to get it later. The car was spotless clean on the outside. The interior seemed fine too. But they conveniently forgot to vacuum the interior. The carpet below the driver side mat was soiled. The sales guy said he 'forgot' to tell me that. Except for that the car was pretty neat. The odo read 24 kms. And there was around 10+ litres of fuel in the tank. That was a pleasant surprise. I drove around 150+ kilometers before the low fuel warning came on. The first thing I tried after turning on the key was to try pairing the audio system with my phone (Nokia E71). I am not into instruction manuals so I jumped right in. The phone asked for a pin. The sales guys didn't have a clue what that was so I took a guess and keyed in 1234. The key worked! When the audio system prompted me to allow pairing with the phone, I accidentally switched it off. When I turned it back on, it was displaying 'connecting' and it was stuck there. Tried turning it off and then back on several times but nothing happened. Called up the service and they said they haven't reached that level yet!! Looked up the manual of the audio system but couldn't find anything on a system reset. So removed the system's fuse and reinserted it after 10 seconds and everything was fine. Keyed in the security code and the phone paired. Best of all, everything just worked. It synced all my contacts, received calls, dialled calls etc. It even displays the coverage and battery levels. Audio streaming worked fine too. Loved it. The system sounds pretty good too for an OEM unit. I would say it sounds way better than the one that came on my Civic. I straightaway went to new Bharath Pitstop (after making sure that the wipers worked fine at the u turn ) to get the tyres changed. The car came with Goodyear 175/65 R14 tyres. Most of the cars were shod with Appollos. The car was begging for a decent set of alloys and tyres. I tried Global tyres as well as the newly opened Tyrex but they didn't have many with 108 PCB. I settled on 185/60 R14 Michelin XM1+ and a set of league alloys. I preferred 185/65 but they didn't have it in stock. They tried their best to convince me to buy Bridgestones but I was already sold on the Michelins. My Civic's running on the second set of Michelins. I also opted for garware Icecool Grand sunfilms. It cost me around 6000 Rs. (or was it 6500? I'm not sure) I know garware is not the most popular brand on team-bhp but I was pretty happy with it on my Civic. Also, it was the only brand available at Pitstop. By the time I got the car it was 9pm and home was 60 kms away. The road was deserted and I enjoyed the drive. I have a few fiestas in the family and have driven them quite a lot. I found the noise levels quite similar to that. My brother in law owns one and he also confirmed it. He felt the Figo is more sportier than the Fiesta! I'm not too sure about that though. Maybe it's the better visibility and the lower profile of the tyres. The ride is a bit on the stiffer side but it becomes better when you pick up speed. I found it hard to keep the speedo below 80kmph. The engine felt a little sluggish below 1500-2000 RPM. It's no trouble keeping it above it but I think I'll be a little gentle till the first service, which is at 2500kms/3 months. Subsequent services are at 10,000kms/12 months. That's a big relief. I'm not sure if the fiesta's service schedule is revised too. I have a habit of shifting early into second when I'm not in a hurry. It doesn't work too well in the Figo. Maybe there's too much gap between the 1st and 2nd gear ratios. I got a few calls and the audio system handled them beautifully. The music automatically pauses on incoming call and resumes when the call ends. The only problem I found was, even when the system is off (standby?) and when I receive a call and hangup, it starts playing! I'm very happy with the car so far. I wish the driver seat had a little more lumbar support. Wish it was a little bigger too. Maybe I'm spoilt by the Civic's. Attached Thumbnails
	(1) Thanks

19th March 2010, 19:29	#2
Gilead Senior - BHPian Join Date: May 2009 Location: Chennai Posts: 2,142 Thanked: 60 Times	Let me be the first to congratulate you AGAIN. Fantastic pics. You have made even the red dash look palatable. Your garage floor seems to be a matching red too. Garware is utterly VFM. I have it on two cars and i have no regrets. PS: I hope you got Nigel Wark's business card in case you need it for the future. Last edited by Gilead : 19th March 2010 at 19:32.
	() Thanks

19th March 2010, 19:31	#3
Mission_Safari BHPian Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: Chennai Posts: 449 Thanked: 6 Times	Superb pics and car looks absolutely spottless in white. Nice choice of alloys too.
	() Thanks

19th March 2010, 19:32	#4
sdp1975 Senior - BHPian Join Date: Aug 2009 Location: Bangalore Posts: 1,700 Thanked: 1,273 Times View My Garage	Congrats joe. The Figo looks beautiful in that color and with those alloys. Nice pics. The Titanium is absolute VFM. Enjoy your ride. Last edited by sdp1975 : 19th March 2010 at 19:38.
	() Thanks

19th March 2010, 19:35	#6
Utopian BHPian Join Date: Feb 2010 Location: New Delhi Posts: 603 Thanked: 123 Times	Let me be the first(oops third one) one to congratulate you for your #13th Figo. It looks quite soothing in white. Is the temperature Gauge missing from the instrument cluster?? Last edited by Utopian : 19th March 2010 at 19:37.
	() Thanks

19th March 2010, 19:35	#7
HammerHead Senior - BHPian Join Date: Oct 2009 Location: Goan in Pune Posts: 1,247 Thanked: 641 Times View My Garage	Hey congrats Joe, Alloys look cool. I though the dash is a shade of maroon colour, in your pics it looks red.
	() Thanks

19th March 2010, 20:00	#8
anekho Senior - BHPian Join Date: Dec 2008 Location: . Posts: 1,995 Thanked: 684 Times	Amazing snaps! It's the first time i'm seeing a figo in white and it looks really cool much better than the "squeeze" green! Even the red dash looks pretty neat with white exteriors! Please keep posting more snaps like those above So when's the pete's box coming?
	() Thanks

19th March 2010, 20:06	#10
Captain Slow Senior - BHPian Join Date: Mar 2010 Location: Bangalore Posts: 1,549 Thanked: 1,957 Times	Very nice pics Joe and congrats, Your car looks beautiful. what all did you get along with your car? How many remotes does the car come with ? Drive safe
	() Thanks

19th March 2010, 20:08	#11
Brix BHPian Join Date: Dec 2008 Location: Chennai Posts: 585 Thanked: 24 Times	White looks beautiful. Heavenly !!! Very nice report too. Nigel Wark came - that is a nice touch. Finally India as a Third world country is getting its due share of attention.
	() Thanks

19th March 2010, 20:10	#12
joe1980 BHPian Join Date: Jan 2010 Location: Andromeda Posts: 336 Thanked: 155 Times	Congrats again. I have a question to you. Did you try to enquire the dealer if you could fit an arm rest for the driver??
	() Thanks

19th March 2010, 20:10	#13
rajivn BHPian Join Date: Jun 2009 Location: Chennai Posts: 332 Thanked: 33 Times	Congrats. Fantastic pics. White Figo looks great and Nice set of alloys there. Do post more pics and updates of your experience with the car.
	() Thanks

19th March 2010, 20:11	#14
fz_rider Senior - BHPian Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: World Posts: 1,148 Thanked: 766 Times	Boy, we already have an initial ownership review of Figo! CONGRATULATIONS! For me, Figo looks best in white. Those smoked headlamps look fantastic. You could have tried Matt finished Black colored alloys, BTW the design you have chosen looks pretty good!
	() Thanks