Initial ownership experience - Fiesta zxi 1.4 tdci. Review on Ford Fiesta TDCI

Bought the 1.4 TDCi in Dec 2007 after test driving Verna CRDI, Logan diesel, Corolla and Honda City. I have had prior experience in driving an Innova diesel, and Santro.

I loved the suspension and seat comfort in the corolla, but dropped it since it was a petrol car. But the space in the corolla was extremely good. It acclerates well, although you tend to feel it perhaps has a mind of its own; verna which has comparable power takes off like a rocket, while in the corolla there is something controlling it and preventing the rocket like take off. Perhaps good from the point of view of safety. If you dont mind the petrol costs, then go for it.

The Honda City felt similar to corolla, very noiseless engine, smooth, decent power, though not as much as the corolla, and a bit spongy in acclerating. The insides are good too, but materials are very delicate, and the car is light too. The suspension does not feel solid. Need to handle this car like a baby.

The Logan was tacky inside, and seemed built to a cost, but the drive was not bad. It was certainly noisy, the suspension was good and took the undulations of the road well. But I could not drive it on bad roads. When I opened the boot, I saw nuts and bolts sticking out, and no insulation material at all. But the sheet metal seems strong and solid. Felt very safe - like sitting in a patton tank. The space inside is massive, can easily seat 3 ppl behind. Seats are big and comfy, but could do with some contours. I found the car cost and mileage great value for money.  However, I was not sure of the future of the JV renault-M&M, and hence dropped the idea after much deliberation.  To be honest, I was also worried a bit about my image that I would portray.

The Verna had amazing pick up after a brief turbo lag, the drive was exhilarating, but I found it a bit unsteady at speeds above 130/140 kmph. The suspension was okay too, and the seats were good - The rear seat was bit hard. However, I felt it was like driving a bigger/more powerful santro. The clutch and gear changing mechanism, and unsteady nature at high speeds felt similar. To manage the car at low speeds in heavy traffic would involve a lot of clutch/break activity, just to control it within the 0-20 km speeds. Although the Fiesta was not in my buying list, I just decided to test drive it, and found the experience great. ( I test drove verna twice, and the fiesta thrice.just to be sure I felt the sameevery time). The suspension is amongst the best, minimum body roll, takes up jelly stone roads and rough roads very well, cornering/handling is great, and it is a great drivers car. On paper it gives only 68 bhp, but does not feel underpowered. It moves well in city at slow speeds, without jerks, and can reach 140 kmph on highway(it is rock steady, can even do some high speed manouveres at 80+ kmph - handles beautifully), although a bit slow in acclerating. Most city driving can be done very smoothly in the 1000-2000 rpm range. For overtaking, you need to work the gears a bit, and get into lower gears and into the 3000 rpm range. But this is not  great problem, since the gear change mechanism is quick and precise. The engine is refined and sweet, although I found some noise above 3500 rpm(which I found in the innova too). Mileage is great so far - 15+ km/ltr with A/c in city.  Although  interior space is few cms less than verna, the seats are more comfortable. The rear seats are softer too. The headrests are the best, and offer best neck/head support.  The boot is certainly bigger than the verna. Hence I think iFiesta TDCi  is great value for money; Verna is more expensive, and you would not get all of the features you get in the ford. In the verna, you probably surely nee the ABS to stop the car without skidding/locking the brakes, so it all totals to an extra Rs 70K to 90K. Besides, for me I thought, I would never fully use the 110 bhp of the verna, hence settled for the ford fiesta. However, there are some irritants such as little noises here and there, which need to be set right. Cauvery Frd in bangalore did set right a minor problem with the clutch, by bleeding it. It is fine now. Later I need to check if they can respond well to the rattling noise from the door pads. The Innova never had such issues; the santro did have some such issues, but the hyundai guys are adept at detecting it and setting it right. Hope the same holds true for Ford.

1/feb: After 2000+ km: The car is much smoother, with mileage up to 17+ km/ltr, I am not getting the noise above 3500 rpm that I mentioned before. It is easily able to touch and maintain speeds of 150+ kmph on NICE road in bangalore. It is in its elements on curvy roads with bends.  That is where the top class handling of the fiesta at high speeds impresses. Only, while overtaking, dont get caught in the 800 to 1500 rpm range; make sure you are above 2000 rpm while overtaking; one should have absolutely no problems. Iguess this holds true for most diesel vehicles. In city traffic, just pop it to 1st gear and it can potter along at

5km/hr, no need to strain legs with ABC(acclerator/brake/clutch). Cauvery Ford has managed to set right niggling problems like rattling noise from the door panels etc. So. as of today, I'm quite please.