My cool, cool Figo!. Review on Ford Figo

I am not an automobile expert, but have owned a Maruti Omni for 6 years and then moved to a Wagon R for the last 6 years. Both vehicles had done only about 40, 000kms in the six years. I love driving and so am not so concerned about mileage. I always thought that diesel cars are very difficult to drive and needs a lot of maintenance. So, I first decided to buy the Volkswagon Polo. The test drive was very impressive, but the price tag, lack of features and the unknown waiting period for the Emotion Blue colour gave me food for thought.

I then spoke to my automobile friend(He helped me choose the Wagon R) who worked briefly for Ford. He told me that today, there is no difference between a petrol & a diesel engine and no extra effort is required to maintain the diesel car. He suggested to test drive the Figo and the i20. I immediately ruled out the i20 because of the price and he arranged for a test drive of the Figo. I was really impressed by the features and the comfort of driving a diesel car. My wife and children were also pleased. Without a second thought, I booked the Figo ZXi Diesel.

I took delivery of the car on June 2nd. The staff at Rajshree Ford were very friendly and had even organised a cake(my birthday was on the 3rd) in connivance with my wife. In no time, my children had paired the bluetooth from my mobile.

Last week I got a chance to really check out the car. I drove from Coimbatore to Palakkad(60 kms) at 130 kms/hr. Never knew when we reached Palakkad. drive was smooth and the A/c effect was fantastic. We were 6 grown up people in the car with a total weight of 375 kgs, but the car took it beautifully. From there we drove to Guruvayoor, a distance of 100 kms. The road was bad halfway with a lot of potholes, so had to be in 3rd gear often. Here, I must mention that it is very difficult to pick up speed once you slow down and have to shift to lower gear. One has to keep this in mind while overtaking. Three adults at the back were sleeping comfortably and hardly felt the holes. Only problem were the speed breakers, which kept scraping the car. Had to come down to 1st gear and climb the humps to avoid the huge noise. It was raining continuously, but the wiper and defogger did their bit. But water was sliding in through the rear seat window, which kept sliding down little by little. Road visibility is great. We then drove to Cochin. Altogether, I had done 280 kms that day, but hardly felt tired. The headlights did not show up the road well at night and Ford does not allow the use of Halogen lamps because of warranty. Fog lamps should have been part of the features on the ZXi and not on additional cost. Have to fit them on my return. Another feature I miss on the Figo is the Spoiler. It would definitely enhance the looks. I had it on my Wagon R and it was really an eye catcher.

Next day, we returned to Coimbatore on a roundabout route. I attended all my phone calls from the car itself without having to hold the mobile phone while driving thanks to Bluetooth connectivity and played music from the mobile itself. No need to carry cd's, memory stick, USB cable etc.

I reached home and checked the tripmeter. I had done about 490 kms and had burned about 26 litres of diesel.(19 kms/ltr). Awesome considering that I had driven with 6 people through not very good roads and the A/c on all the time and a lot of stops.

If you are someone who wants to upgrade from a Maruti, seeking all the features and good fuel economy, but holding back because of your budget, Figo diesel could be a good choice. I still have to experience the Ford service so cannot comment about the maintenance costs. But my boss who owns a Fiesta says that it is very reasonable and is extremely happy.

If you are looking at a sporty zippy car, or for trendy looks this should not be your first choice.

Some tips from me for good mileage: Always keep the tank at least half full. Fill up the tank early in the morning. Use nitrogen for the tyres. Enjoy your drive and don't keep concentrating on the fuel indicator.

I am now really thankful to my friend for having suggested the Figo. Great car, great driving experience, and great space. Cool, cool Figo.