My New Ford Figo Titanium - 2100 Kms and Going

[a.ramkee]

Hey all,

After so many ifs and buts I have finally got my figo baby on 06.10.13 from cauvery ford. I should definitely thank TAI members whose suggestions and guidance helped me to take a final decision.

The Pursue:
The moment I decided to take a car only two hatchbacks (considered only hatchbacks due to Financial limitation) were in my picture, 1) Swift and 2) Figo. To be honest I have not gone through other brand cars as my heart was always saying FIGO and mind SWIFT.

However I had some real headaches when choosing between diesel and petrol and finally gone with diesel as my daily run would be around 60kms and two long trips per month.

1) SWIFT: Initially my family and friends insisted me to go for Swift because of the brand MS. Also most of my friends are owning this and gave a good feedback about the car and ASS. However since my heart was with Figo and the ORP of an high end Swift when compared with figo (gave importance to safety features like ABS and Airbags) was almost 1.3L higher and hence I dropped the idea to go with swift even though it is a very good one (My personal opinion).

2) FIGO : To start with most of my friends gave their own verdict that ford has below par ASS and especially figo has low GC, poor FE, low initial pickup, difficult to maneuver at high slopes/hilly/ghat sections etc etc. Inspite of all these negative feedbacks my heart was still saying GO for FIGO as I have read some ownership threads in TAI and others where most of them were positive ones. So decided to go with Figo, took a test drive and I really liked the ride and visibility and went ahead to book my dream car.

After booking, I went through the thread by one of our fellow member whose figo was giving very low FE supporting the claims made by my friends and was in dilemma, but again the suggestions from the fellow members supported my stand and stood by that.

Dealership Experience :
Overall it was good. Here I wanted to make a special mention for the committed support from Cauvery Ford. They delivered the car as committed and gave free accessories like seat covers, reverse parking sensors, floor mats and mud flaps as promised. However there were some minor issues most of which are due to lack of knowledge to me on buying a new car like I should have asked them the manufacturing date of the car before signing the registration documents which I didn't and got a 4month old car which is still acceptable and the same is with tyres which are also 4months old. It was purely my fault not to ask for a 2-3month old car before signing documents and here I felt they could have told me about that which they didn't.

On the delivery day, the ODO was at 7 kms and the car already had more than 5 ltrs of diesel and was delivered with number plate.

Finally to sum it up a right decision in choosing the car and dealer (for atleast time being, have to see how ASS goes).

Ownership Experience :
Done 2143kms so far. Ah what a feeling to drive this beauty. Its just amazing to see not getting tired even after a drive of 400kms (the most by me so far). There are loads and loads of pages already written praising/criticizing this little beauty. I am not going to write in detail about them again. Well let me share some of my personal negative experiences that I have come across in this short span:

1. Feeling bumpy and some rattling sound is coming from dash board when going on rough roads (depends on tyre pressure I feel, presently I m maintaining 34psi which I fell is on higher side). Any experts advice please.
2. Rattling sound is coming from rear door when front door is closed.
3. Bluetooth audio is not at its best off late. some additional sound is coming along with the song which is very irritating.

Also some small portion of my front bonnet got burnt due to incense sticks I feel. Made pooja at a temple in my native on 2nd day of buying the car and the poojari had put some incense sticks in the space between bonnet and bumper which I didn't noticed and went away driving the car. The next day when I opened the bonnet to remove the flowers to my shock I noticed top portion of the bumper got burnt. felt very bad to see it like that. Its a lesson learnt and request other members also to take care of this.

Going to give it for first service on Monday which by then ODO would be reading around 2700kms. Hope to get the above rectified during service.

Apart from the above its a pleasure driving this baby. And now coming to FE, I was really amused / shocked to see the mileage given by a new car. It gave me 24.5km/l on 90% highway drive and 10% village drive (very worst roads) with speed constantly maintaining around 60-80km/h with 50% AC mostly at position 1 . It was checked on tank-full to tank-full method but at two different petrol bunks (IOC and HP) as I am frequently travelling from one place to other. Total travel distance travelled during this period was 829kms.

And DTE after this fill-up was showing 1023kms.. Is it the same for other cars too? As far as I know the max. FE would be around 18km/l for a new car. I m very much surprised to see the 24km/l mark. Have I done any wrong calculations? Is tank-full to tank-full method the correct way to judge FE? Comments are welcome.

 

[amit1km]

And DTE after this fill-up was showing 1023kms.. Is it the same for other cars too? As far as I know the max.

First of all congratulation for owning up this diesel work horse. I am too an owner of the same stable.

I am really surprised to see the DTE figure is showing as 1023. My car never shown up more than 900 DTE for any driving condition. But yes I almost every time see 800 to 870 after every refill. It also depend on the driving condition like city or highway etc.

 

[Figoian]

Apart from the above its a pleasure driving this baby. And now coming to FE, I was really amused / shocked to see the mileage given by a new car. It gave me 24.5km/l on 90% highway drive and 10% village drive (very worst roads) with speed constantly maintaining around 60-80km/h with 50% AC mostly at position 1 . It was checked on tank-full to tank-full method but at two different petrol bunks (IOC and HP) as I am frequently travelling from one place to other. Total travel distance travelled during this period was 829kms.

And DTE after this fill-up was showing 1023kms. Is it the same for other cars too? As far as I know the max. FE would be around 18km/l for a new car. I m very much surprised to see the 24km/l mark. Have I done any wrong calculations? Is tank-full to tank-full method the correct way to judge FE? Comments are welcome.

First of all congratulation for owning up this diesel work horse. I am too an owner of the same stable.

I am really surprised to see the DTE figure is showing as 1023. My car never shown up more than 900 DTE for any driving condition. But yes I almost every time see 800 to 870 after every refill. It also depend on the driving condition like city or highway etc.

As Amit mentioned, I am seeing 1023 as DTE for the 1st time. Congrats...

If you have measured it with Tank-to-Tank, that's the best and only reliable method. Congrats again on that mark. And yes, 24 KMPL for the mentioned conditions is a good number.

1. Feeling bumpy and some rattling sound is coming from dash board when going on rough roads (depends on tyre pressure I feel, presently I m maintaining 34psi which I fell is on higher side). Any experts advice please.
2. Rattling sound is coming from rear door when front door is closed.
3. Bluetooth audio is not at its best off late. some additional sound is coming along with the song which is very irritating.

Also some small portion of my front bonnet got burnt due to incense sticks I feel. Made pooja at a temple in my native on 2nd day of buying the car and the poojari had put some incense sticks in the space between bonnet and bumper which I didn't noticed and went away driving the car. The next day when I opened the bonnet to remove the flowers to my shock I noticed top portion of the bumper got burnt. felt very bad to see it like that. Its a lesson learnt and request other members also to take care of this.

Bumpy ride maybe due to over inflated tyre. 32 is good for 1-2 persons and 35 (Front) & 40 (Rear) for fully loaded.

Rattles & BT, get it checked by FASS.

Sorry about the bonnet! See if you get it touched up @ FASS.

 

[amit1km]

dash Board rattling will be rectified at service center.I had the same problem. They just opened up the section where the Odometer,warning light etc are there(Don't know what that area called) and did some taping inside and issue gone for forever.

Bumpy ride will be due to inflated air pressure or when tyre rubber become hard.

About BT not sure about this, but check the initial source of the media stream like mobile or tab etc. Check if noise is happening from there itself.

Tank full method is the correct way of getting the exact mileage figure. DTE is just a assumption.

 

[a.ramkee]

@figoian: its nice to see u in this thread. If u remember you were the one who encouraged me to go with figo when i was in dilemma regarding FE concerns. Thanks for that. Yes with regards to FE presently it is a good one, but need to see it once again to reconfirm. Also i dont know if i will get the same conditions again to check. Lets see.

@amit: thanks for your inputs. Regarding BT i have checked my phone when not connected with BT and songs are clear. The problem starts when connected with BT. Also it operates fine at times.

This monday i am giving it for first service. Are there any specific things i need to check apart from my problems?

 

[Figoian]

@figoian: its nice to see u in this thread. If u remember you were the one who encouraged me to go with figo when i was in dilemma regarding FE concerns. Thanks for that. Yes with regards to FE presently it is a good one, but need to see it once again to reconfirm. Also i dont know if i will get the same conditions again to check. Lets see.

This monday i am giving it for first service. Are there any specific things i need to check apart from my problems?

Yes, happy that my suggestion worked well for you. Keep checking / calibrating FE under various situations / scenarios. 14-16 with AC in City like Bangalore & 18+ in Highway is good figure for TDCi. Happy Figoing...

First service is merely a Full Wash now, as they have moved the 1st oil change to 2nd Service (10K KMs). However, some do recommend to change the oil despite the FASS recommendation as it's healthier. I am no expert, so will leave it to experts' opinion.

Otherwise, you may ask them to attend to these issues.

 

[GM88]

Heartiest congratulations on your new acquisition a.ramkee. Ford Figo is still one of the most VFM cars in its segment. Titanium variant has all the basic safety features along with other bells and whistles. Good choice.

Regarding rattling issues from the rear door and dash-board, you should get it checked with the Ford's workshop. In today's world, any rattles from a brand new car are really un-acceptable. Please let us know as and when you get it corrected from them.

Ford's 1.4 Tdci engine is famous for giving some brilliant fuel efficiency, no wonder your getting it from the initial days itself. I have a Ford Fiesta Classic with the same engine which returns over 20kmpl every time I am out on the highways.

P.S. - No review is complete without a few pics of the car. Please do upload a few exterior as well as interior shots of your beloved car.

Drive safe!

 

[a.ramkee]

@gm88: thanks for your wishes. Find below the car photos. Wanted to share these photos earlier but couldnt due to higher resolution.

Will be giving for first service tomorrow. Was on business trip and hence couldnt give it on monday.

I have one doubt, is crawling (making the car move in gear without acc input) or half clutch drive, which is good practice in traffic? Which driving practice causes most damage to engine? Please put some light on this.

 

[rakeshkn]

Congrats for your new ford figo. It is stunning in silver! happy miles :)

 

[Figoian]

I have one doubt, is crawling (making the car move in gear without acc input) or half clutch drive, which is good practice in traffic? Which driving practice causes most damage to engine? Please put some light on this.

Good question, neither is healthy but sadly inevitable in Bangalore.

I believe, riding in idle speed (crawling) is better than the half clutch ride. At least, you save the clutch, plus a bonus of lesser leg pain.

When I was new to Bangalore, about a year ago, I used to ride in 2nd Gear with half clutch. Later realized, riding in 1st instead without clutch & throttle is much better and less laborious, for both car and us. Moreover, you get the feel of driving an automatic transmission... Isn't it?

 

[nicepankaj]

After so many ifs and buts I have finally got my figo baby.

I used to ride in 2nd Gear with half clutch. Later realized, riding in 1st instead without clutch & throttle is much better and less laborious, for both car and us. Moreover, you get the feel of driving an automatic transmission... Isn't it?

Hey, congrats on Figo.

I'm new to driving, i too used to drive in 2nd gear with half clutch in traffic but later corrected myself and try to drive in 1st gear with minimal pressing of the clutch. Got inputs when I used to crack brains of friends who own cars and our own fellow TAIan - Dharmesh

 

[venkythaniks]

@a.ramkee,
Congrats on your new figo..Titanium variant is an excellent choice and VFM as it has all the safety, security features and bluetooth head unit as well. wish you many more miles with figo..

When I was new to Bangalore, about a year ago, I used to ride in 2nd Gear with half clutch. Later realized, riding in 1st instead without clutch & throttle is much better and less laborious, for both car and us. Moreover, you get the feel of driving an automatic transmission... Isn't it?

Good suggestion Figoian..riding in 1st gear with B2B traffic is always better than 2nd gear half clutch driving. I used to do the same mistake driving in 2nd gear which resulted in left leg pain. But later I corrected myself and started to drive in 1st gear...

 

[a.ramkee]

Hi,
Thanks all for your wishes and suggestions.

Here is my 1st service update:
a. Given the car for 1st service yesterday at 10.45am with ODO reading 2567kms and DTE 667kms.
b. Explained the problems and they promised to deliver the car by 6pm rectifying all the problems along with paint touch-ups for minor scratches.
c. As promised they promptly called me by around 5pm to collect the car.
d. Went there and observed the car for rectifications. My major concern was back door rattling which they have set it (atleast for time being i feel). They said that they have applied some lubrication. Apart from that they have touched-up the paint and everything was fine.
e. But when i saw DTE i was bit shocked. It was dropped to 353kms from 667kms with other parameters like fuel and ODO changed by only a fraction (i.e only around 1km). When i asked about this with SE, he said it will be fine and come to normal after travelling some distance. Is it so?? But it kept on decreasing linearly with the travelling distance the moment i left FASS.
f. Another thing which i forgot to check before i left FASS was my car mobile charger and some toll bills which i kept beside the driver's seat. But later when i realised and checked for them they were not found. And when i called SE and asked about them he said "sorry sir i have checked here also they are not there, please check again they could be somewhere in the car itself". Where in this small car??

Service was free but had to bear almost Rs.600 from my pocket due to my negligence.

 

[lxtreme]

Congrats on your new Ford Figo. It looks good with Silver colour. Take good care of your car.

Update regularly.


Regards
Lxtreme

 

[Gurrala74]

@Ramkee

Congrats for your New Figo !! nice write up buddy, but short of pics

So how is your feeling on the soft suspension issue reported on previous version Figo. How about lag in 2nd gear, is it the same in new model.

Oh !! I did not wanted Figoian to visit this thread and see those mileage figures but he already landed here

Please wait till the car completes its 3rd service or 10k kilometers to have a correct FE figures, till then they keep fluctuating