Ford Figo First Drive Road Test Review

A few years ago, Ford gave us a small hatch back based on the Fiesta Classic platform and I thought it was brilliant. So much that my family and I actually bought one. Having some of its roots from America, it likes to binge on fuel, even Ford admits the fuel economy of the petrol or the diesel wasn’t the best and after a while, with the competition introducing newer cars over the course with updated engines, it was down on power as well.

Now however, there is a new Mr. Cool. Ford has launched an all new Figo hatchback in India. While the previous one was only manufactured in India and exported to South Africa and Mexico, the New Figo is actually all new from the ground up. Internationally it’s called the Ford Ka. But in India, Ford decided to go with a much loved and well established name plate.

Designers at Ford need to be applauded for the job they did with the styling of the car. Some might say that the grille is a lot like an Aston Martin, and I’m sure they are tired of hearing about it. But compared to the Cygnet small car Aston Martin came out with, the Figo is gold. I think it’s the best looking hatchback money can buy right now in the Indian market, but I also feel the rear is a bit under styled. They could have gone a bit more aggressive with the chisel at the back.

The interior has been changed completely from the old one as well. The cabin is laid out identical to the Figo Aspire. While the Aspire gets a dual back and beige interior, the hatchback gets a more laid back all black interior. But instead of the dust attractive piano black finish accents, the hatch back gets, an OCD friendly, grey coloured plastic accents on the dash and steering wheel. The door handles and gear stick console get the same treatment. While leather upholstery is available on the Aspire, the new Figo settles for beautifully stitched soft fabric upholstery over the supportive seats. At the rear, it’s much of the same story, you get pretty comfortable rear seats with ample head room, and knee room where three regular people can easily fit. hile the old Figo lacked interior storage space, the new one has so much of it that you might just run out of things to put in them. There is ample room in the door pockets, under the climate control system, and cup holders and cubby holes along the centre console between the front seats. Apart from the top Titanium+ variants, all other variants get a MyDock mobile phone cradle on top of the centre console that can charge and house a Smartphone and act as a semi sat-nav / infotainment system connected by Bluetooth, USB or an Auxiliary cable. While the Titanium + variant don’t get the MyDock, you do get Ford SYNC with AppLink. 

For safety measures, Ford took a bold step with the Aspire by providing front dual airbags as standard and 6 airbags in the top variants, the hatch back does get the same treatment of 6 airbags in total on top trim but as standard only a driver airbag is available. Across the chassis and the structure of the car, Ford says most of it is high strength steel and opening and closing the door you do feel they didn’t take any shortcuts as the door feels thick and chunky.

Just like the Aspire, the Figo aslo gets the same powertrain family. A 1.2 litre petrol engine, a 1.5 litre diesel both mated to 5 speed manual gear boxes and a 1.5 litre petrol engine with a dual clutch automatic transmission. For this drive, we drove the 1.5 litre petrol automatic and the 1.5 litre diesel powered cars.

1.5L Ti-VCT (Automatic)

 We drove the automatic petrol version first. The 1.5 litre 4 cylinder turbo charged engine produces 110bhp and 136Nm of torque. Mated to the 6-speed DCT gearbox the engine is extremely smooth and so are the gear changes. In ‘D’ the car is ideal for city conditions while keeping a check on fuel consumption. But with 110bhp on board, it’s not as fast as it sounds. Set the gearbox in ‘S’ and everything livens up, shifts are quicker, acceleration is improved. You can also shift gears yourself with the help of a +/- buttons on the gear lever. The regular sequential system would have been better and a lot more satisfying, but it’s more focused on city conditions than winning races. Ford has other cars to do that. And hence with the automatic gearbox, the Figo has a certified 17kmpl fuel economy. 

1.5L TDCI

Replacing the 1.4L duratorq engine from the old Figo, the new 1.5L TDCI engine is a peach. With almost a 100bhp at its disposal and 215Nm of torque, this engine inches this little ford into semi hot hatch territory, just 4bhp less than the Polo GT TDI and it does one better by being a full lakh cheaper than the German.

To drive, we found the diesel the best option in the Aspire, and the same with the hatchback. With the turbo kicking in at just 1500rpm, you get instant acceleration in any gear, at any time, at any rpm. There is no sluggishness in the power delivery. The 5 speed manual gearbox is a bit clunky at first but over time you get accustomed to its nature. I can recall my gear box was just like that when it was new in the old one and now I think it’s one of the best gearboxes with its short shift throws. It’s not clunky, nor is it just buttery making it less responsive to the tough and feel. It’s in the middle between clunky and perfection, just where it’s supposed to be. The clutch seems to be really well weighted.

One of the best characteristics of Ford is their stability. We found a good stretch of empty road in a controlled environment for the test and were able to max out both cars and test them right on the limit. While the Automatic Petrol managed to clock around 190kmph, the diesel maxed out at 180kmph. Both cars just sat on the limit with no hesitation, glitch, or anything falling apart. The Figo’s stability on the limit is staggering. Even the engine felt comfortable sitting at the top.

The ride is good, the steering is well balanced, the top variant gets lots of safety features, it looks good and the standard petrol version is the most powerful engine in its segment and the diesel too has more power that you would know what to do with. So from my evaluation, the Figo is a proper contender in the competition and with such competitive pricing and Ford completely rectifying their after sales service and bringing down the costs, it is definitely worth the offer… and then some.