It is by now clichéd to say that India and China are the future growth markets for the automobile industry. And yet, when you look at the lineup of cars that are being launched here this year, one can’t help but be reminded of how this market has become the new found obsession of the global automobile industry.
 Every car maker now wants to be in the ‘volumes’ segment here and this year promises to be the ‘best in class’. Joining the small car fray here this year is the Ford Figo, a car which is significant for the market here, as it is for the company.
 Underscoring the significance of the Figo to its future plans in the country, Ford is going all out to make sure that the car gets its due attention even globally. I finally get to drive and fully experience this serious B-segment contender and here are my first impressions.

Ford’ design DNA
 When you look at the Figo there are two traits that hit you instantly. One is the Ford design DNA that comes through subtly in the front and strongly at the rear. The other trait that you discern when you look at the car’s exterior design is the air of familiarity. Yes, there is good reason for that and it comes from the number of parts that the new Figo shares with other Ford cars such as the Fiesta sedan.
 Clearly, there has been an attempt by Ford to indulge in a bit of frugal engineering here. But, I think this shouldn’t be confused with it being an attempt at cutting costs by cutting corners. By dipping into the Fiesta’s parts bin, Ford has managed to cut sourcing costs and ensure that tried and tested quality is employed for this small car too.
 The Figo has aggressive, yet pleasing looks at the front. Peeled back headlamps and the over-sized airdam in the front bumper are two features that strike you. The bonnet edge line running into the headlamp is a nice design touch. The Blue Oval Ford logo sits in the middle of the small bonnet grille with a single chrome slat.
 With a sloping bonnet and a relatively raised seating position, the Figo manages to offer the driver good road visibility like the tall-boys in the market, though from the side the Ford hatch doesn’t look like one. The Figo’s flared wheel arches further accentuate its wide stance when looked at from the side.

Dimensions
In terms of dimensions, the Figo’s overall length is 3,795mm, not the longest in the hatch segment in India. However, by pushing out the axles to the extremes of the car, Ford engineers have managed to leverage an above average wheelbase of 2,489mm for the Figo. However, this has led to a dramatic increase in the amount of legroom at the rear of the car.
 But, from the outside, Ford engineers have worked around the issue of differently sized doors and both the front and rear doors seem to be evenly proportioned. What the door sizes have led to is easy entry and exit for rear passengers. Other exterior features that are a good fit with the Figo’s design are the grab-type door handles, the Fiesta-style exterior mirrors and the vertical tail-lamp design at the rear, which is very reminiscent of the Fusion.
 The roof of the Figo slopes downwards at the rear, but not so much as to intrude into the headroom for the rear passengers. And with a deeply curved hatch door, the design also ensures that there is considerable room for luggage at the rear. Relatively large rear quarter glass and large rear windows mean that the inside of the Figo is well-lit and airy.

Interiors
Step in to the Figo and it immediately feels like you are sitting in a bigger car. Of course, there are a lot of design elements that remind you of the interior of the Fiesta and the Fusion. In a way, it has Ford written all over it. But, apart from the choice of colour themes for the interiors in the pre-production models I drove, and which weren’t to my liking, there was much to appreciate in terms of the quality of the interiors.
 Fit and finish quality, the choice of dashboard plastic and the quality of the materials used overall felt good, though not exactly in the same league as some of the B+ segment cars. The coral and black dual-tone interior theme didn’t go well with the metallic fluorescent green paint that my test car came with.
 Seat cushions are bolstered well and a four-hour journey was very comfortable in the Figo. Premium seat fabric, matt-silver inserts and a blue-tooth enabled music system are some of the additions in the top-end variants. Storage options abound inside the Figo. The three-spoked trademark Ford steering wheel is chunky and nice to hold with thumb grips and the horn honks easily with a light press.
 Instrument cluster and the curved housing have also been designed well. The remote hatch door release button on the dashboard to the right of the steering column is a nice touch. But, the fact that the turn indicator stalk is still to the left of the steering column is a negative. Though this is a Ford India trait that hasn’t changed since their first cars, because re-engineering something as seemingly small as this can be very expensive, it still pokes your eye.
 Drivers will get used to this, but the feature that can be more irritating is the bonnet release lever, which is located at the extreme left and below the dashboard. So, if you are alone in the car and are entering a hotel or other establishment where a thorough security check will need to be done (one is faced with a situation like this very often now), then it will be quite a stretch for the driver to try and reach the lever.

Performance
Ford’s choices of engines in the Figo are the ones that complement the design and abet the big car feel of this new hatch. The new 1.2-litre petrol engine and the 1.4-litre TDCi diesel engine give the Figo the necessary excise duty benefits, but they are also matched well with the focus audience for the car.
 The four-cylinder, 1,196cc petrol mill from Ford’s Sigma engine family, is peppy and delivers a peak power of 71 PS at 6,250 rpm and a peak torque of 102 Nm at 4,000 rpm. Statistically speaking these figures are not higher than some of the others in the hatchback segment, but felt adequate for the Figo, which is just over a tonne in weight.
 Sequential fuel induction has been used in this petrol mill and when coupled with drive-by-wire electronic throttle technology it provides improved low-end efficiency and acceleration, a key characteristic for slow moving traffic and sudden open roads conditions in many of our cities. The engine is quite refined and is said to be capable of delivering mileage of 15.6 kilometres per litre (company rated).
 The diesel mill is the same 1,399cc TDCi engine that we are all familiar with and is already offered in Ford’s Fiesta and the Ikon. Refined, tried and tested, this is an engine that many will love to own. With an all-aluminium construction and common rail injection, this engine is relatively light and tips the scales at 98 kgs. The Figo’s bonnet bay has sufficient space to accommodate this engine. The diesel mill delivers 69 PS of peak power at 4,000 rpm and a peak torque of 160 Nm at a low 2,000 rpm.
 With its ready-to-roll, torquey performance, the TDCi engine in the Figo is an easy driving diesel. Contributing to the low friction characteristics of the engine, roller cam followers are used, and longevity is ensured with other features including the glass reinforced high-nitrile butyl rubber belt that drives the assembly. In addition to the camshaft, the toothed belt also drives the water pump and fuel pumps. The 1.4 TDCi engine is said to be capable of delivering a fuel efficiency of 20 kmpl (company rating).
 The engines are mated to Ford’s IB5 five-speed transmission. The gearbox has been around for some time. In the Figo, the gear shift quality has been optimised and the clutch pedal characteristics has been tweaked to make it more suitable for the Indian driver who expects lower clutch pedal effort while shifting gears. The short throw stick shift is also quite isolated from vibrations from the engine and gearbox.
 Ford’s engineers have done a lot more work to make the Figo a very Indian small car. Pointers to that effort include the new rubber seal designs (including double seals in the diesel) that reduce wind noise in the passenger cabin, the larger 154cc air-conditioner compressor, the high 168mm ground clearance for the car, the rapid deceleration warning for trailing drivers and the fact that it has water wadding capability of nearly two feet.

Bottomline
For Ford, with the Figo, it is a question of being ‘better late, than never’. It has taken this automotive biggie and one of the first post-liberalisation, multi-national entrants into India, nearly 12 years to enter the mass market cars segment.
 But, after all those years of experience, the Figo is an example which shows that Ford has learnt its lessons about the uniqueness of the Indian market well. And the best part is Ford India is clear that it will not lend any room for a repetition of the mistakes that may have been the reason why the Fusion (its first hatch in India) flopped.
 The prices for the Figo’s four variants hadn’t been announced yet when this issue went into print. But, it is expected to be aggressive, thanks to a very high-level of localisation of parts for the Figo and Ford’s resolve to take on the competition in the B-segment.
 If Ford manages to translate its focus on quality with frugality, to include the after-sales ownership experience, it could have a winner in the Figo.

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