Jan 31, 2010 05:56 PM
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(Updated Jan 31, 2010 07:06 PM)
Ford Fiesta "Go Fida". Yes it was in 2006 in Bangalore I boarded a Fiesta(Diesel) owned by a close relative. At that point in time my purse wouldn't permit me to get upgraded, but it made its way into my Sedan shortlist for future acquisition. I was a not so proud owner of Fiat Uno(my owes in another review please).
Then comes the 6th pay commission and a bigger car was affordable. I started seriously considering buying a new car. If it were to be your second car, you have got to upgrade. isn't it? It is over seven eight years and family also got bigger(children grew) and a bigger car with more boot is what I was looking for. I test drove SX4, Ford Fiesta Petrol and Diesel and Verna. I waited for some time for Tata manza( the name was yet to be announced) and Fiat Linea Petrol. It took me repeated visits to different show rooms and lot of Internet research to arrive at Ford Fiesta as the choice, that too petrol 1.6 Duratec SXI.
Advantages of Ford Fiesta over the Rivals:
Better aesthetics(only Linea is slightly better looking outside); yes you have seen Fiestas and liked it on road.
Horse Power above 100 BHP( Linea is under powered, others are on par); 1.6 Duratec petrol gives 106 bHP
Air bags and ABS( only Fiesta comes with airbags at an on road price of about Rs. 7.5 Lacs).
Budget 7-8 Lacs for a fully Loaded Petrol, with ABS, Airbags, Good interiors, Alloy Tyres, Motorized Mirrors, Stereo, Power Steering, Power Windows and what not.
In built Stereo( Ford's Bezel 2 DIN music player is the best in matching the car interiors and custom designed for car interiors)
Soft feel Interiors( Fiesta gives smooth leather finish beige interiors with matching seats and chrome inside handles); the Sx4 gives a boxy look while Verna has a badly designes Dash board.
Good maneuverability( Ford Fiesta has the lowest in class turning radius of 4.9 Mtrs(5.2 to 5.5 for others) .
Power steering, power windows etc are of course common in all but the price tag for the overall package is lowest for Fiesta( Sx4 and Verna petrol with equivalent features would cost about a Rs. 1 - 1.5 Lacs more).
The boot Space of Fiesta @ 430 Ltrs is lower than SX4 and Linea @ 500 Ltrs but better than Verna @380 Ltrs. In addition, the back seat is foldable in SXI.
Color Choice I could not get Gold(or similar shade) at the time of my purchase( Oct 2009) in both Verna and Sx4. Fiesta comes with a subtle gold color called Platinum.
Petrol for noise free personal driving and ease in Mtce.( All except Linea were coming in Petrol at that time). Fully Loaded Fiesta 1.6 Duratec petrol was not the latest Technology(Unlike Linea's FIRE) but the car was the most cost effective as already mentioned.
Last but not the least is Mtce( My relative owning it for over 4 years says there was virtually no mtce required). Earlier the spares were being imported but with new Ford factory at Chennai, the spares are more easily and cheaply available.
I have driven it scratch free for about 5000 KM and only regret is the fuel consumption which is about 10 KMPL in city and 14 KMPL on Highway. It could have been better.
The driving experience has been exceptionally satisfying and I fully recommend it to anyone in this budget.
Now about the Owner vs Driver thing, I personally prefer the latter designation as far as the Fiesta is considered. Drivers are strictly prohibited.
