India-bound Ford Figo, Aspire facelift revealed

The South African market is soon going to get the made-in-India Figo and Aspire facelift. While we have seen the Figo facelift from its European unveil in February, 2018, it’s now the first time that its sedan sibling has been revealed. The South Africa-spec Aspire is longer than the sub-4m version we get in India, but the overall exterior design should be similar to look at.

Up front, the changes in the updated Ford Figo are borrowed from the Freestyle, which is essentially a cross-hatch based on the Figo. From the front, the updated Aspire will look identical to the hatchback, as was the case before.

Up front, the changes in the updated Ford Figo are borrowed from the Freestyle, which is essentially a cross-hatch based on the Figo. From the front, the updated Aspire will look identical to the hatchback, as was the case before.

The SA-spec cars get smaller 14-inch wheels and these are sans chrome inside-out. They also don’t get the new 6.5-inch SYNC3 infotainment system that the Freestyle gets in India. Even the Euro-spec Figo facelift gets it. However, the SYNC3 unit, which supports Android Auto and Apple CarPlay, should be there on the India-spec Figo facelift.

We also expect the Figo in India to come in the range-topping Titanium variant that gets dual-tone 15-inch machined wheels and chrome highlighters, like on the Euro-spec model. The updated Aspire too will get bigger wheels as seen in the spy shots before.

Apart from aesthetic changes, the updated Figo and Aspire will get a new 3-cylinder 1.2-litre petrol engine. It is the same Dragon series engine that does duty on the Freestyle. This is the most powerful 1.2-litre naturally aspirated engine (96PS/120Nm) in the country at present. The 1.5-litre diesel, on the other hand, will be same as before. Also, the old iB5 5-speed manual transmission will be replaced by a new MX65 5-speed manual with both diesel and petrol engines.

The only mechanical bit about the updated Figo-duo that’s unclear at this moment is the availability of an automatic transmission. The outgoing Figo and Aspire had a 1.5-litre 4-cylinder petrol with a 6-speed dual-clutch automatic. Now, however, it could be replaced by a new 1.5-litre 3-cylinder Dragon petrol engine coupled to a 6-speed torque converter automatic like in the case of the EcoSport facelift. The SA-spec Figo, its sedan counterpart and even the Brazil-spec Freestyle get the new engine with torque converter. There’s also a possibility that Ford might offer the new 6-speed AT with the 1.2-litre motor in India to benefit from the tax on smaller cars.

Both the updated Figo and the Aspire are expected to be introduced here in the coming months. The Aspire is expected to be launched first followed by the Figo, as was the case before.

Source: CarDekho.com