Trumping Competition - Ford Figo Aspire

I have now completed close to 7000 kms run on my Figo Aspire and this post captures my feedback for the car and the brand. Driving Aspire has being total fun over the last five months, I have never relished my driving experience so much before owning this machine.

When I was finalizing my buying decision, I was not placing much emphasis on fuel efficiency figures which Maruti Suzuki and Honda are pushing these days in most of their cars, I was anticipating 17-18 kmpl mileage in city based on my driving style. I have never driven a Ford vehicle before and have read how some brand enthusiasts have critiqued Ford on diluting it's ride and handling DNA to please mass market buyers. The way I look at it is that a company cannot cater to enthusiasts forever and if they do not imbibe features that pull mass market buyers towards their brand it would get difficult to survive in the long run under a scenario where new launches have taken the Indian car market by storm.

Figo Aspire has got the goods in terms of engine power that allows you to drive stress free in the city and does not disappoint on the highways, and I don't think all of us go out so frequently on road trips that we need a muscle car that can run fast and be comfortable being thrown around corners. I am itching to take my Aspire on a long road trip to check how does it fare while driving across different terrain/road conditions. During my 2nd expressway trip up to Lonavla I felt the engine has freed up a notch and does not grunt even while revving up to 3500 RPM mark and I had to literally tame my greed to enjoy high speed driving to keep speed under permissible limits as the car now touches 140kmph mark without much effort.

I also keep finding curious onlookers on the road trying to catch a good enough glimpse of the car at signals and pillion riders on bike who do not miss looking at the front grille for the second time when they pass by my Aspire, more satisfying part is when I receive stares from Maruti Sheep's . Talking about competition both Figo and Figo Aspire have a tough task scaling up numbers after the launch of Baleno which would be like a third homecoming for Maruti Suzuki after long and ongoing success they have enjoyed with Swift and Dzire.

My car has being serviced at 2500 kms schedule with zero charges incurred under first free service, post which suspension, handling, braking and ride quality has improved however the suspension still feels tad stiff while encountering rough potholes. When it comes to after sales service feedback I am satisfied with the overall follow up calls I have being receiving from Ford after purchase and first service, even Talera Ford representatives have being swift in their communication and have attended to my queries and concerns on time.

Sharing some news that strengthen credibility for Ford Figo Aspire as benchmark setting product in it's category:

1) VBox speed test (0-100) run by MotorBeam places Figo Aspire as the fastest Diesel compact sedan, check the video below.



2) Another Drag Race test run by MotorBeam with the closest competitor in terms of engine power and torque - Honda Amaze, clearly left behind!



3) CarDekho and Gaadi.com jointly ran fuel economy test and car performance review conducted by Bunny Punia on Mumbai-Pune-Bangalore highway stretch, Figo Aspire set a new record of covering 994.84km in 20 hours 34 minutes with an overall average fuel economy of 42.02kmpl beating previous best record held by Renault Scala, read more about this here

Details of monthly drive and mileage recorded.
Sep'15 - 1136 km, 18.0kmpl
Oct'15 - 1270 km, 18.5 to 19kmpl
Nov'15 - 913 km, 17.6 to 18kmpl
Dec'15 - 1431 km, 19.3kmpl
Jan'16 - 1309 km, 19.0 to 20kmpl

If you drive with a constant speed on the range of 70-80kmph you can get mileage of 20kmpl easily in the city and close to 26kmpl on highway and I have tested this personally.

This is precisely the kind of balance I was seeking when I decided to upgrade from Beat and did not want to end up compromising on power and performance for the sake of fuel efficiency. There is a driving enthusiast amongst all of us who would not mind stepping on the gas given the right conditions in city/highway and switch back to the pleasure of sedate stress free driving in normal conditions/city traffic, if I had to put it in words it would definitely steal the catchphrase used in an SX4 advertisement - "For the Man in every Gentleman"

Chevrolet Beat (LT Petrol) - Beyond 55,000 km

My Chevrolet Beat LT has touched a running distance of 31,500 Km. and no better time than this to put my thoughts around how enjoyable the overall ownership experience has being over the past  2 years and 8 months.

Choosing Chevrolet Beat petrol over Ford Figo was not an easy decision when I planned to upgrade from Maruti Alto VXI.  I also had Swift and Ritz on this list however multiple instances of bad experience in getting my Alto serviced with Kothari Wheels had steered me away from Maruti already.

At the time when I purchased Beat, Pashankar Auto sales was the only dealer for Chevrolet in Pune, Shreyans Talera motors had closed down their dealership with the company during that period so I was lucky to get the car without much waiting period.

Okay leaving behind these retro thoughts and getting down to how my car is performing!

Ride quality: Ride quality has improved significantly post car running crossed 15,000 Km. after the first oil change was done; I avoid revving car engine beyond 2000 RPM unless I have to overtake on road for a short distance in city on 2^nd gear. I had a habit of racing my Alto on 2^nd gear which was one of the changes I had to adapt while driving Beat; service center staff had done an ECU remap to the engine for improving 2^nd gear handling performance.

Beat’s suspension handles body roll well with minor bumps or bad patches if you are driving at normal speed, slowing down on very bad road increases body roll for the passengers seated in the front section.

I noticed this low power feel on 2^nd gear helped in heavy traffic conditions and prevented the car from knocking or stalling when moving slowly, it allows you enough time to decide if it’s right to move into 3^rd gear which in turn reduces the frequent gear changing issue. Gear shifting while in traffic is not difficult however it still feels stiff sometimes.

I never had to do wheel balancing with Beat even once in past 2.5 years, compared to 3-4 instances of wheel balancing I had with Alto. Service staff at Pashankar Auto and Singh Motors both advised me never to go for unnecessary wheel balancing unless you find your car shifting in one direction, no hassles with suspension or ground clearance until now.

Highway driving has being the most pleasant experience with Beat; I have taken my car to few long road trips beyond Pune, have observed minimal drag with heavy luggage and full passenger load while driving through ghats with A/C  on else it runs smoothly. One has to be mindful while taking turns on highway as small tyres on Petrol Beat are not very stable at high speed. Good NVH has still being maintained in the cabin and I can comfortably touch a speed of 140-150 Km/h while on highway without feeling the engine being cranked hard or any other kind of car body vibration in the front section.

Interior/Exteriors:  Plastic quality used by GM for Beat’s interior proves its superior quality because I have not seen it getting dull in any area of the car namely around door exits, the main car dashboard, storage areas provided or the doors, I had opted for a 3M package at the time of purchase which gave me car under body coating to prevent rusting with 5 year warranty and 3 free body coating services.

I do not have a covered parking for my car and there were times in last 2 years when car washing was almost halted for few months in our society due to water problems in Pune, otherwise alternate day car wash with cleaning of the interiors every 15-20 days has helped me maintain the car in good condition.  Beat gives you a big car feel and not a typical hatchback look common to i10, Wagon R, Spark etc. even though it falls under the same segment.

Fuel Economy: During the initial 2 years I got fuel economy between 12-14 Km while driving in the city and 17-18 Km on highways, this has now improved to 15 km/l average in the city and 18-19 km/l on highway during past 6 months. I noticed increasing tyre pressure to 34 PSI has helped me to improve fuel economy and also the engine does not feel sore while revving above 3500 RPM after the car crossed 25,000 Km. mark. This is definitely not a racing machine even with its bold looks and a sporty tachometer so never drove Beat that way, it performs very well as a city car and comfortable during long highway drives for my family of 3.

After Sales Service:

Beyond the initial hiccups with Pashankar Auto after buying Beat, I have being impressed by their service a lot and happened to try Singh Motors which is close to the vicinity I stay in Pune, as dealers both of them have met my expectations and exceeded some.  I have being regularly reminded about my car servicing by both dealers, used to get calls asking about the performance of the car, being informed and invited to service camps.

There was an instance when my petrol tank latch had got damaged and I had requested Singh motor’s to order it for me, when I took the car for this latch replacement they informed me replacement was not required as the latch was stuck inside and they fitted it again, this latch costed just Rs 125, they could have replaced it without even informing me.

it’s not just this but even with Pashankar auto a service engineer informed me about front viper wear out problem during one of the servicing visit, I asked him to get it replaced on which he suggested to do it after summer season as the rubber tends to wear out again a little under high temperature in summer , these are instances which instil confidence in you regarding the dealer and this was not the case with Kothari Wheels (Maruti). They just blindly used to do everything I ever asked for during servicing and put it on the bill and sometimes even suggest additional expenses which raised doubt in my mind if it was actually required?

Chevrolet dealers in Pune do not have a clean record though overall, as I have read various threads across forums of Chevrolet car owners not always happy with the way they have experienced after sales service with these vendors, however I have being fortunate enough that my experience with Chevrolet after sales service has grown stronger commanding a respect for the overall brand. I wish Chevrolet soon has one stable winner on hands to strengthen their position in Indian car market, as a brand it would stand to gain better loyalty and good second sale value for their vehicles.

Some Pro’s about the car:

• Still stands out in terms of design in the hatchback car category, easy to maneuver in the city, only Hyundai EON has brought in fresh design in the small car segment.
• It easily touches 60 km/h mark while driving in the city under 10 seconds and races to 100 km/h between 14-15 seconds.
• Rear seat legroom is very good and it’s not exactly “claustrophobic “sitting behind as this word appeared in most Chevy Beat reviews.
• Have incurred low maintenance and running cost compared to Alto LXI, A plastic front bumper replacement costed me more in Alto as compared to a fiber material bumper replacement in Beat.
• Under seat storage tray besides the driver seat which was stopped along with rear parcel tray in LT model, comes handy.

Some cons with the car:

• 170 Ltr boot is enough for small trips, 60:40 rear seat adjustments also helps in stuffing additional luggage in case there are no rear seat passengers accompanying on the drive, sometimes this boot space falls low when you have more than 3 big luggage items to carry, fitting in smaller bags is still possible above the large ones maybe additional 2-3 and that’s it.
• Small boot section also posed a challenge for me while going for slightly larger speaker replacement in the rear section, I got stock one's replaced with Illusion speakers which costed me around 9K.
• Hydraulic steering feels little outdated in an era where most hatchback cars have moved to electronic power steering.
• Lack of good thigh support on the front seat for driver and co-passenger could have made long road trips less stressful.
• Storage cups below the main dashboard could have being slightly wider.
• Adjustment to wide ‘A’ pillar does require some time for the driver to adapt and tends to obstruct peripheral view in high traffic conditions/rainy season.

Sharing some bill screenshots of 2^nd major servicing done after 30,000 Km running with majority oil changes done, belt replacements, filter changes etc.

***Aug 22 2015 - Update***
I have crossed 55,000 Km on the odometer between last month and now, also decided to bid my Chevrolet Beat a final adieu as it is time for moving up the chain to another upgrade.It has been a positive experience overall, as a product I rate this car as an efficient city hatchback, however I had no plans to retain this car beyond five years.

During my usage between 30,000 km - 55,000 km I observed that the engine had got more refined and it was able to rev freely without grunting out over 3000 RPM band, I feel Chevrolet could not capitalize on the success of this car to strengthen their brand value in the market, even as I took a risk of looking away from then popular Maruti-Hyundai duo in 2010 and ICOTY award winner Ford Figo (2011) I am parting ways with my Beat and Chevrolet Brand on a positive note.


This time I am shifting from a petrol vehicle to a oil burner purely due to increased distance of commute to my work place, changing times and with many feature rich cars launched this year resisting the upgrade temptation was just too difficult.