[ghodlur]

Hi Vijay,

Nice writing, kept me glued all the way to each and every word. felt good to know that you showed the Ford dealer that the customer is the king and with the Ford India's top honchos looking at the the problems, I am sure more people will opt for the Ford vehicles.

Please be kind enought to post some pics of the Figo.

[VikrantD]

Nice review. I liked the fact that you showed those guys their place. And you are very lucky to get the big guys email. Some customers are not and they literally succumb to the dealers. Nice once again and congratulations with you Figo.

[figo_united]

Great write up vijay! loved reading it.
Happy figoing, and keep the updates coming.

Originally Posted by vij4all

There's a creaking noise from the right rear side. I removed the parcel
tray to see if that was the culprit but the noise still persists.

Its a universal problem with most of the figos. check the figo official review thread or gemithomas's ownership thread for the solution.

Originally Posted by vij4all

The mild dashboard humm is back.

Get the cluster assembly checked, I had a minor sound in the dashboard, and it was found to be from the cluster and they put some 2 way stickers inside to avoid that.

Originally Posted by vij4all

That's it for now. Has completed 700 kms in a week (actually 600 since the odo was already at a 100 during delivery) and have filled in about 40 litres so far and the DTE is now at 18.

How trustworthy is the DTE? The sales guy informs that even after the DTE shows 0, the car will have 4 to 5 litres. Really?

err...you mean the mileage is 18 right?
The DTE, although approximate, is really helpful. It takes a while to settle down, based on your usage.
I usually get a DTE around 650-670 for a tankful.my usage is usually 50% highways and 50% bumper to bumper city traffic.
And, dont wait for the DTE to reach zero Better to fill up once u hear the double alarm after DTE drops below 40.

[vij4all]

Completed 1000kms (900 actually) yesterday in exactly 2 weeks from the delivery date.

I took it upto 3 digit speeds for the first time yesterday and boy ! was the car flying?

I'm tall and hence have finally found the right seat adjustment however I feel I will need to customise a lot of paddings/cushionings in certain areas that'd make me feel better. For example, the small area between the lower back and the seat. I tried using my kid's small cushion and other stuff but it's still not comfortable. I could also do with some support under the stereo system where my lift knee usually rests. I know it sounds crazy but just thinking of ways to make it more comfortable.

The only problem seems to be getting in and out. Not much of a problem but the shoe marks are visible on the door panel very prominently everytime I do that.

The dashboard humm / mild vibration is consistent and I've given up on the morons at Bhavna Ford. Like someone from my other fordfusion forum said, they just don't care.

The complimentary USB that they'd originally provided never worked either. And i just asked them to remove it. Read in another thread that the owner is going through a similar pain.

Saw a black swift VDI parked in the building today and was wondering how it'd have been to own one. It is one of those things a few years into marriage

[SMK_BLR]

Originally Posted by vij4all

The dashboard humm / mild vibration is consistent and I've given up on the morons at Bhavna Ford. Like someone from my other fordfusion forum said, they just don't care.

I too have observed this in my Figo - any solutions experts?

Also, when idling I get vibrations in the seat. Has anyone experienced this?

[Deep Blue]

I too have the dashboard buzz/humm. When I gave the car for second service, they said there was slight gap where the dashboard meets the windshield on the left side and they have added some foam to fill the gap. The sound was not there immediately after service, now after a week or so it is again manifesting itself.

[vij4all]

Completed 2600 on the odo and realised it was time for the 1st service. Called up Bhavna ford to schedule an appointment.

Mailed them with a copy to the customer services head at Ford. Promptly got a call from Saravanan from the customer care confirming the appointment etc etc.

Went to Bhavna ford yesterday and the service manager came up beaming and introduced himself. He said he'd been asked to go on a test drive with me. I said i didnt have the time and that i had only one complaint. The dashboard noise on uneven surfaces. While i could understand a little noise, this was too much for a new car. Also added for good measure about how bad the feedback for his service centre was and that his reputation was at stake . He surprisingly accepted the feedback and said that he would resolve the issue.

Called up the service centre in the evening and they said "sir the noise was not from the dashboard but from the doors". My heart skipped a beat. After 2 months of driving and spending time with the new car, i was absolutely sure what the noise was and now they spoke about a problem that never existed. Anyway, collected the car late and drove back home with the cricket commentary on so didn't figure out whether the noise was there or not.

Just an hour ago, went with dad for some errands and realised that the dashboard hum was still persistent. As dad went into a couple of stores and i was idling with the ac on, realised that there is a new problem. That of the engine getting raised every 40 seconds or so. You know the fan noise that goes up a few decibels and again settles down. That keeps happening every minute. I'm worried. I know this isnt a major thing but how the hell did that happen? Anything i can do on my own or again (sigh!) go to them?

Copying the bhavna ford guys on this one so they know how seriously customers get impacted by their lack of professionalism and carelesness.

Their response will determine whether this should go to Mr Boneham too. Dont wanna spoil his weekend now

[vij4all]

the guys took the car and claimed to replace the condenser. i dont believe them. they returned the car after a full 9 hours. i sat in the car for 5 mins and realised the problem still existed. and to my horror a new issue. there was hissing sound from the ac vent. slow but audible all the same. wiht a gap of 30 seconds. called up the service manager and blasted him. seemed to have no effect on him. dashed off an angry mail to ford. and worried too !

[ghodlur]

@Vij,

Why haven't you tried other Ford service centres for correct and accurate diagnosis? Surely you could have tried the one in Thane.

I hope the issues get resolved ASAP. I would suggest do write to Ford customer care, I am sure your pains will be heard faster. Thats one way to keep the Ford dealers on their toes.

[vij4all]

Had to write to Michael Boneham, President of Ford and within no time had the director of bhavna ford and the ford regional manager at my office gate to understand the issue. Drove with them and realised that the problem vanished. Still kept the car with them the whole day under observation and finally last night at 8 pm they came back to deliver the car minus all the niggles. no noise. nothing. phew !

Am smiling again but its not fair that i have to reach out to the President of the company to sort out routine issues.

[ghodlur]

Originally Posted by vij4all

Had to write to Michael Boneham, President of Ford and within no time had the director of bhavna ford and the ford regional manager at my office gate to understand the issue. Drove with them and realised that the problem vanished. Still kept the car with them the whole day under observation and finally last night at 8 pm they came back to deliver the car minus all the niggles. no noise. nothing. phew !

Am smiling again but its not fair that i have to reach out to the President of the company to sort out routine issues.

Good to know that you car is now problem free.

Some people fall in the "Lathon ke bhoot baaton se nahin mante" category. hence have to use the powerful laath to get the work done.

[vij4all]

Hi All,

Thought I'd share my experience after completing 10,600 kms in about 6 months. Whoa ! i never thought i'd be using a car like this since all the petrol cars i owned in the past were sparsely used and most of the commute was on the bike. Now the bike which is 2 years old has done only 12,000 kms and only gets started to warm the engine once a week. Such is the diesel addiction.

Coming back to the Ford Figo, my first service woes with Bhavna Ford over the dashboard rattle and the engine noise issue never quite got sorted. I kind of decided to live with the former as i was convinced with the replies of other figo owners w.r.t latter. The only conscious decision i took was never to drive the car without any music on. And hence the last 5 months post the service have been stress free. Sometimes, the mind can also play tricks and one actually 'looks' for noise and sound where none exist.

The 2nd service was due and i decided to go to Shreeji Ford again since it's closer home. Reached the workshop and was made to wait for 30 minutes before someone attended to me. I guess most of them just go through their motions. Imagine checking a dozen cars everyday and each owner rattling (no pun!) off a list of issues with his car. These guys must have become immune to it. Ofcourse to the owner, his car is his baby and hence expects the best.

Told the SA about the dashboard rattle and the tightening of all the doors except the driver's. He jotted down the complaints and gave an estimate of 1600 inr. I returned in the evening and asked him about the dashboard rattle. I've been doing this since my fusion days just to check what they come up with and have never been disappointed in their choice of reasons attributed to the noise. During the 1st service, the SA had faked a laugh and told me "sir, there was a small nut inside the glove compartment and thats what caused the rattle". I smiled at him and shook my head and he'd understood.

Our man at Shreeji came up with another one. He said that the instrument console that displays the km reading etc had become loose but he had taken careof it by tightening it etc. I smiled again. Drove out and there..the vibrations were still felt. Back to my old resolution. Increased the FM volume to 7 and then couldn't feel the noise/vibration.

In the last 6 months that i've owned the car, i've kinda gotten attached to it a lot and so have decided not to complain the way i do if the issues are minor.

Have done 2 semi long trips. One to Shirdi and the other to Talegaon. The car really cruises on the expressway and also body roll is minimal as it's not a tall boy design. With 4 people onboard, have scraped the bottom on a few speedbreakers though.

I don't calculate exact mileage and usually go by DTE figures and have maintained a steady 14-15 in the city with 100% AC on + a hell route called Kalwa which is a very strategic spot between Thane and New Bombay. On the 2 semi-long trips, the car returned 17kmpl and a little more purely on DTE figures.

2 minor incidents involving the car. One where a moron in front of me suddenly turned right and i had to brake causing the car behind me to bump into me. Luckily a very minor dent which is not noticeable immediately but i learnt today at the workshop that it's damaged slightly from within which is why the boot door gets jammed and doesn't lock the first time and hence one has to thump it hard.

The other incident was when a tempo was taking a u turn, couldnt manage it in the first attempt and backed up. I slowed down but a biker was eager to get in through the gap between me and the tempo but couldn't so had his bike hit the spot above the right tyre but thankfully below the door.

Hope this was useful. Do ask me if you have specific questions and i'll be happy to answer.

[rajeev k]

Congrats and wish you many more smiling miles.
That is a whole lot of toys.
Tell me, did you shell out the 5K plus 350 per-diem parking.
Looking for your periodical drive reports.
Swift still attracts and which is why even stock clearances were without discounts.