[DCEite]

Originally Posted by imjimmy

But otherwise the 1.4 feels fast. It revs up nicely. A tab at the throttle send the Rpm needle racing. It feels faster than the 82 horses and 1.4 engine displacement would suggest.

Just an observation...

,but i have always wondered, why we call a small B+ segment car with 87bhp as underpowerd, and when same amount of horses are plonked to a C segment car, we call it responsive/fast etc. Maybe we expect too much from small cars, and too little from Big cars (given those many and so good horses).. which makes us to think like that...

[GTO]

but i have always wondered, why we call a small B+ segment car with 87bhp as underpowerd,

Simply because you are comparing a premium small segment car to a base C segmenter.

GTO

[santosh.s]

dceite, I guess you are pointing towards swift?
Isn't it the weight that matters while deciding how many horses would be fast enough, rather than the number of boxes (2 or 3)? besides, we have to see how many horses obediently swing into action for you during normal course of driving. If many of them are lazy, sleeping most of the time and need to be stirred up hard to be awaken, they better not be counted

[ramkya1]

Hai PPL,

I find lots of guss work on the milage and perofrmance of the fusion in this thred. I have driven all kinds of Cars in the last 15 years which includes my dirving experience (Gypsy) for Popular Rally, Cochin for 3 years and navigating on yezdi roadking / yamaha 350 for the same rally. This is to establish the background .......

I have just completed 4752 KMs on a Fusion, burned 329 ltrs of petrol which gives it an ave. milage of 14.44 kms. Anyone interested could look into the excell sheet uploaded into the files section of the folder Ramky in the following URL: http://finance.groups.yahoo.com/group/indiahighways/

We covered 60% of the time western Ghats and on the highways / 4 track roads were averaging more then optimum speed. I could have nudged the milage past 15 under ideal driving conditions. So the milage is all right for 100 horses and a 1.6 L engine. OK, she's a bitch under the 2K rpm, keep the engine above 2K and you're in for a nitro........

The autocar review which says that "fusion crashes thro potholes and ruts jarring the passengers......" is pure bull.... Even on very bad roads because of the large rubbers and read shockers the comfort was incredible..... may I say more about motivated magazine reviews?

The fusion is again story of Ford's MKTG nincompoops inability to market a great product. If it was priced at 6 L to 6.5 L and the interiors were a shade better it would have blown the sedens away by sheer performance. With the 3 year warranty...... even maintenance is not such a costly affair ....... at leaslt for 3 years.

Sorry for the slightly off topic post......

--- AMR.

[DCEite]

Originally Posted by santosh.s

dceite, I guess you are pointing towards swift?
Isn't it the weight that matters while deciding how many horses would be fast enough, rather than the number of boxes (2 or 3)? besides, we have to see how many horses obediently swing into action for you during normal course of driving. If many of them are lazy, sleeping most of the time and need to be stirred up hard to be awaken, they better not be counted

Thats exactly what i meant. BUT.. some people just think that 87 BHP in a small car should make it a Rocket.. and end up getting disappointed with the actual performance.. wheras, in a big car, these 80 BHP odd horses arnt much, and therefore our expectations are already lowered even prior to actually driving it...

[santosh.s]

true... 1.4 duratec seems to have impressive low end performance for its size (like ikon 1.3 , but un-like bigger 1.6 duratec!)

[sivadas]

Any way, it is good sight that we are getting many new (not 'All New") cars. And Ford is having great hope on Fiesta since they believe it has what generally people (here) want. ie Great mileage, good VFM, decent space, and cheap spares(this I doubt though).
Let us see how it goes. Good luck Ford!

[brainscooper]

Since there is already a fairly comprehensive review on the Fiesta, I will just add my comments, and the points I differ with GTO on, using the same format as he did.

First of all, I drove only the 1.6 litre variant, as I felt I could compare it with my Fusion and make valid comments. However, I did check out the other variants in the showroom. Incidentally, the Calicut dealer had 38 booking within 24 hours of the launch of the vehicle, of which 30 were for the diesel version.

Looks

The car looks very muscular and pleasing from the front, definitely its best angle. The sides are nothing to write home about, and the rear resemble that of the Ikon, but does not obstruct your view as much while reversing. The tail cluster is pleasing, if not very distinguised.

In the 1.4 liter variant, the area around the headlamp, which is part of the headlight module, is black, and looks bad compared to the other versions in which this is chromed. The upper variant of the 1.6 litre version (cant remember which is ZXI and which is SXI) also sports a chrome lining around the side beadings, and both of them have chrome around the front grille, fog lamps etc. Does it look good? I guess that is purely a matter of personal opinion.

Interiors

These are definitely much better than the Fusion. The colour combinations are good, and the top end version that I saw had beige interiors (was GTO mistaken?). In fact, I was wondering what the beige floor mats would look like after a Kerala monsoon, a thought shared by the service engineer. The AC vents look very upkarket, and also have chrome rings around them in the higher variants. The 1.6 L base version has a single CD player while the higher version comes with a 6 CD changer. Nothing in the 1.4 liter petrol version.

The gear knob and steering are borrowed from the Mondeo/Fusion, but in the 1.4L petrol these lack the aluminium finishing on the spokes of the wheel or on the gear knob, which give the car an upmarket look. A striking feature that is not seen on any other car at this price range is the Distance to Empty monitor on the dashboard, which tells you how many kilometres the car will run before the fuel tank goes dry. Very useful! Like other Fords, this one also has a single lever for both opening the doors as well as for activating the door lock. This can be dangerous with kids, unless you activate the child lock in rear doors.

The car is a little easier to get in and out of, compared to other sedans like the Accent, but not as inviting as the Fusion for anyone over 6 feet. Two of my pet grouses with other Fords pertain to this one as well-there is no dead pedal to put your left foot on, once it is off the clutch pedal. And the switches for the wipers and indicators are opposite to that found in all other Indian cars (they have not made any change to these while converting the car from left to right hand drive!).

Test Drive

Remember, I am talking only about the 1.6 L petrol engine.

This car will be a sweet surprise for all those weaned on the Ikon or Esteem. It has wonderful acceleration and is very easy to drive. The electronically controlled throttle is very good, and easy on your right foot. However, I did feel that the power steering was a touch too sensitive. In addition, the car as a whole does not give a feeling of confidence while turning at high speeds-maybe thicker rubber would have helped, but then the mileage would have suffered. With my Fusion, I range between 10 (city) and 13 (Kerala highways) kilometers per liter of petrol, and since this is a lighter vehicle, you should get better mileage than that. Apparently Ford is claiming that the diesel version will get you 20kpl.

Last thoughts

I wish Ford had brought out two trim versions on the 1.4 litre petrol as well
I wish this car had a dead pedal for the left leg
I wish the switches would conform to that used by all other manufacturers (except GM, which like Ford, sticks to the US way of doing things!!)
I wish they had used larger tyres and brake discs
I wish ABS+EBD was an option for every variant.

But despite all that, I think Ford got its act right once again, after a long break following the Ikon!!

[tsk1979]

Beige interiors means beige seats and floormats or beige dashboard also? I think GTO meant the the dashboard is grey colored

[GTO]

and the top end version that I saw had beige interiors (was GTO mistaken?).

I meant full beige (including door panels, dashboard etc.). And Shaman told me that the Fiesta does not offer it.

GTO

[santosh.s]

Originally Posted by brainscooper

And the switches for the wipers and indicators are opposite to that found in all other Indian cars (they have not made any change to these while converting the car from left to right hand drive!).

After all its "specially optimized" for india, you know! It may be intended to make an impression of a "foren" car.... straight for the US, exclusively for a few elite ones like you (I mean the buyer)!! ... just kidding

With my Fusion, I range between 10 (city) and 13 (Kerala highways) kilometers per liter of petrol, and since this is a lighter vehicle, you should get better mileage than that.

don't all fiesta models weigh around the same as fusion, as I had mentioned earlier?
all are approx. 1130Kg (+/- 20) if I remember correctly.

[brainscooper]

The seats and floor mats were beige, cant remember the door panels. Dashboard was definitely not beige

[ajmat]

why this obsession with beige - colour of toddler nappies who drinks lots of milk if you ask me

[brainscooper]

Originally Posted by santosh.s

don't all fiesta models weigh around the same as fusion, as I had mentioned earlier?
all are approx. 1130Kg (+/- 20) if I remember correctly.

Well, I could not get accurate figures for the weights of the 2 vehicles, and the comment was based on what one of the Ford officials said during the launch ceremony for the Fiesta at Calicut. Dimensionally, both vehicles share the same chasis and hence have identical wheelbases, but the Fusion is taller, wider and shorter. It also has a 3cm greater ground clearance.

[brainscooper]

Originally Posted by ajmat

colour of toddler nappies who drinks lots of milk

One man's meat is another man's poison!

Leather in beige is supposed to be synonymous with luxury, as up-market sedans use it, and the light color makes the interiors appear more roomy and bright.