[Skyline GT-R]

After months of going through various TBHP posts, I had decided to book Figo 1.4 TDCi ZXi. Kairali Ford had a ready car in white colour (production date 25.3.11). Arranged finance in a jiffy "IN GOLD WE (Mallus) TRUST" & took delivery on 14.4.2011 evening. Did around 3500 Kms till now.

TYRE UPGRADE:
Upgraded to Lenso Raiden Project D alloys & Bridgestone MY01 Sports Tourer 185/65R14. Total damage: Rs 28K + they kept my OE tyres/rims. I think the rates were on the higher side but no other shop had MY01 in stock. The tyres are harder than Michelin but "Sport Tourer" badge got me. I intend to use the "Tourer" part more.

DRIVE/HANDLING:
Drove about 2000 kms in total. My regular drive for past year was my M800, so Figo definitely has a very solid feel compared to it. While cornering @ 70-80 kmph the car does not pitch & roll & i quite like it. Long trips are less tiring than my friend's Swift. Did moderately long trips to Coimbatore & Bangalore. Car sticks to the road @ 120 kmph irrespective of road undulations.

LIGHTS:
The headlights are just about sufficient although some had reported otherwise. The foglamps help in illuminating the kerbs/dividers. Theatre style dimming interior lights feel good. The dummy rear fogs are a disappointment.

MUSIC SYSTEM:
I was expecting a "Ordinary Enough" quality sound system but Ford has given a pleasant surprise by providing this decent quality music system. Voice clarity is superb & Bass is reasonable.

OTHER ACCESSORIES:
Kairali Ford offered me free foglamps+ 1 year extended warranty & the corporate discount Rs 3,500/- was adjusted towards 3M underbody coating (done primarily for sound insulation). The foglamp shroud was painted white (FOC) because i felt the car looked more mature with that. Garware Icecool shield was selected for front windscreen & Autographix Olive Green 35 for sides & rear (5,500/-). Both are performing good until now. A "ZXi" (MGP 50/-) & "Duratorq"(120/-) monogram was stuck on rear LHS of hatch door. My Sheldan "squash" (Rs 200/-) car perfume is the best i have smelt. There is no comparison for the fresh feeling it gives. Waxol polish (Rs 1500/-) was done @ 2.5K service.

BUYING EXPERIENCE:
I had been to both Trivandrum & Kochi showrooms. Selected Kochi because i am staying in Kochi as of now & my SE was a nice guy. The Trivandrum SE seemed bored with his job. Kairali Ford helped me to get the car registered in Trivandrum through their agent without any hassles & payment in 1 day. Did not go for Fancy number because i thought every second car in Kerala has some sort of Fancy number.

UNDERBELLY SCRAPING:
Till now this has been the only issue. I pity Bangalore car owners because i felt the humps were engineered with the sinister intention of clipping mudflaps & breaking the sump.

ROOF LINING:
The roof lining has a portion which sags as if the packing has come loose. Checked with the Ford Service engineer & he confirmed it is for the rear wiper wiring & hose. Have to cross check with another car in the showroom.

SERVICE:
The oil/filter change cost 1500/-. Seems reasonable as they are using Shell 5W30 semi synth.

ENGINE NOISE:
Engine noise is on the higher side compared to similar sized engines. I hope it will subside after the full run in.

SEATS:
The seats are comparable with cars in the next segment. 1 reason to go for ZXi was the better seat material & bolstering offered. I am 182 cms & the seat position is not a botheration even with rear passengers. The height adjustment helps in finding a comfortable position.

AC:
Chilling would be a understatement. Even during noon time the AC cools the cabin in no time & i have never felt the need to increase fanspeed above 1. The temparature control is always turned a quarter towards the heater side during night drives.

MILEAGE:
The mileage obtained with 4 passengers (tankful to tankful) was 18.76. Speeds maintained were 90-120 kmph

Although outright power is less than Swift & design is less catchy than i20/Beat, useful features like lane change indicators helps during highway drives & i am thoroughly satisfied by my decision until now.

[DRIV3R]

Congrats on the Figo. It's the jack of all trades in it's segment.

Nice alloys but could have done without the red lip. Why are the fog lamp housings in white, instead of the regular black?

[ghodlur]

Congrats @skyline on the new buy. Figo is a true VFM car and I am sure you wont regret it.

BTW what was the fuel type you opted for - petrol/diesel? The alloys looks real good. By the looks of the Financing was it "muthoot gold or Mannapuram Finance"

Happy mile crunching, drive safely and we defintiely need some more good pics of the Figo.

[Vid6639]

Better pictures please. Especially with the alloys. I never knew you get these in silver, I thought white and bronze only.

[Skyline GT-R]

Thank you.

Originally Posted by DRIV3R

Congrats on the Figo. It's the jack of all trades in it's segment.

Nice alloys but could have done without the red lip. Why are the fog lamp housings in white, instead of the regular black?

They were not available without red lip. Fog lamp housing was painted white FOC by dealer on my request.

Originally Posted by ghodlur

Congrats @skyline on the new buy. Figo is a true VFM car and I am sure you wont regret it.

BTW what was the fuel type you opted for - petrol/diesel? The alloys looks real good. By the looks of the Financing was it "muthoot gold or Mannapuram Finance"

Happy mile crunching, drive safely and we defintiely need some more good pics of the Figo.

I opted for Diesel & the mile crunching has already started, doing around 200+ kms on a daily average. I have uploaded some pictures taken in a handycam. Not quite up to TBHP standards. I got the gold loan from a Nationalized bank. I do not have any trust towards so called "easy gold loans" from private banks. (Personal opinion)

Originally Posted by vid6639

Better pictures please. Especially with the alloys. I never knew you get these in silver, I thought white and bronze only.

These were available in Silver & White (red lip) with my tyre guy.

[gemithomas]

Congrats. Please put pics of the tyre thread and a side view of the car that shows the alloys.

THe philips white streak kit ford offers gives better spread and depth to the lighting. You could try to source it from outside. I think ford rates are on the higher side.

[Skyline GT-R]

Thank you,

Originally Posted by gemithomas

Congrats. Please put pics of the tyre thread and a side view of the car that shows the alloys.

Side view image has been already uploaded.

THe philips white streak kit ford offers gives better spread and depth to the lighting. You could try to source it from outside. I think ford rates are on the higher side.

I will try to go on with the present bulbs for some more time & then change. Ford bulb rates are insane especially when i found that it is not even co-branded but bought from Philips & price jacked up. I also doubt if the outside electricians can change the bulbs.

[vigneshram]

I ve put 100/90 rally bulbs all myself.big pain.that day i felt bad on getting the figo.For the driver side,the coolant tank has to be removed.But whatever we do,finally the hand has to go in a very cramped area to change bulbs.i was bleeding because of the thin sheet metal used in the car.it scratched my hands many times.

[gr8guzzler]

Congrats Skyline, welcome to the Figo owners club. Nice Alloys.

Can you elaborate more on the performance of the Bridgestone tyres. How is the grip in Dry/Wet, Roadnoise and Ride Quality.

Cheers!!!

[Skyline GT-R]

Thank you,

I am planning a "gift" for the Ford electrician to change the bulbs to 60/55W Osram Nightbreaker during his day off.

My impressions on BS MY01 with pressure 30psi on all wheels are:

Ride comfort: It is not a soft tyre but the ride is not jarring either. I felt the ride to be balanced. Initially tyre pressure was 34psi & was little hard for comfort.

Road noise: Noise is present in older road surfaces where the bitumen has eroded due to rain & usage. But in Toll roads & freshly laid roads there is absolutely no noise even @ speeds above 100 kmph.

Grip: The grip in dry is good enough. During the B'lore drive, I missed the turn at Salem & drove into Salem city. The circular exit (or is it entry?) was taken at around 90-95 kmph (involuntarily) but the car was totally under my control. No tyre squealing at all.

Wet grip is not tested yet because a drive in the rain was before the 2.5K service & i was driving sedately. Noticed nothing unusual.

I am happy with the tyre although i am a hardcore Michelin fan.

[dhanushmenon]

Originally Posted by Skyline GT-R

ENGINE NOISE:
Engine noise is on the higher side compared to similar sized engines. I hope it will subside after the full run in.

I don't think you will be in for a good news of this presumption. Have done 19000 kms till date and the engine noise still remains the same as from the day i had purchased.

[figo_united]

Congratulations!
The alloys look great, and the foglamp shroud painted with body color is also super cool.
Were the zxi and duratorq monograms official figo accessories?

[basilmabraham]

Congrats on the Figo. Thats some mods done on the car already, all of them looking good.


Kairali Ford is doing quite good. I had booked my Fiesta at Trivandrum, took delivery at Cochin, the day before Christmas last Year. Had taken it to Kottayam for a tail lamp replacement, my bad forgot that the car had a boot . And then finally to Trivandrum for first service. They did really well, no problems with a car booked/delivered elsewhere. Hope you get the same service.

Originally Posted by Skyline GT-R

I got the gold loan from a Nationalized bank. I do not have any trust towards so called "easy gold loans" from private banks. (Personal opinion)

Totally agree with you.

[antorquetik]

Congrats on your car. Drive Safe


OT: This is my first post

[Skyline GT-R]

Thank you all.

Originally Posted by dhanushmenon

I don't think you will be in for a good news of this presumption. Have done 19000 kms till date and the engine noise still remains the same as from the day i had purchased.

19000 Kms? that's some usage man! i thought that by 10K the noise would subside.

Originally Posted by figo_united

Congratulations!
The alloys look great, and the foglamp shroud painted with body color is also super cool.
Were the zxi and duratorq monograms official figo accessories?

The ZXi is Maruti genuine part Rs50.00 Duratorq is Ford genuine part Rs 120.00

I was having 2 minds about foglamp shroud painting, but some amateur trials in MS Paint later made me go for it.

Originally Posted by basilmabraham

Congrats on the Figo. Thats some mods done on the car already, all of them looking good.


Kairali Ford is doing quite good. I had booked my Fiesta at Trivandrum, took delivery at Cochin, the day before Christmas last Year. Had taken it to Kottayam for a tail lamp replacement, my bad forgot that the car had a boot . And then finally to Trivandrum for first service. They did really well, no problems with a car booked/delivered elsewhere. Hope you get the same service.

Totally agree with you.

It is because TVM, EKM & KTYM is same dealer. But the staff usually think otherwise especially when there is no payment involved benefiting them.

OT: A family owned gold loan/money lending equity getting over-subscribed 3 times. Where are we heading to?