Petrol-Powered Ford Figo Facelift Will Be More Exciting To Drive; Here's Why!

The new 1.2-litre engine will transform the lacklustre Figo petrol into a fun-to-drive budget hatchback 

The bleak fate of diesel engines and steadily shrinking price gap between petrol and diesel has helped the sales of petrol offerings bloom once again in India. To avoid being left out of the league, Ford upped its game with the introduction of its modular Dragon family of petrol engines here with a 1.5-litre unit under the EcoSport facelift. And its upcoming offering, the Freestyle, debuts the second motor, a 1.2-litre unit. This same engine will also, in all likelihood, power the Figo facelift in India. We have driven the Freestyle and based on our drive impressions, here’s how we think the new petrol engine will do wonders for the Figo. 

Pictured: Ford Figo Facelift 

A much-needed engine swap 

Pictured: New 1.2-litre 3-cylinder Ti-VCT Petrol 

The petrol versions of both the generations of the Figo lived under the limelight of the diesel. However, things are about to change for good. The new 1.2-litre 3-cylinder petrol will replace the ageing 1.2-litre 4-cylinder block, which was derived from the first-gen Figo’s petrol engine. The latter will go for good as it is sluggish and unable to put down the power to the road as it claimed on paper. The new, more advanced, efficient and powerful engine will be a welcome addition as it not only claims to be the most powerful 1.2-litre naturally aspirated engine in the country, but performs too!

Pictured: Pre-facelift Ford Figo 

With class-leading 96PS on tap, the new 1.2-litre unit is a gem of an engine. Drive it in city or on freeways, it never ceases to impress. It doesn’t bother you for frequent downshifts in the city as it pulls easily in higher gears at low speeds without protesting, thanks to the torquier nature of the motor. Keep it in the meat of the power band and the new engine will put a constant smile on your face! 

Ford finally has a competing engine against Maruti’s K12, Hyundai’s Kappa and Honda’s i-VTEC. Read in detail about its driveability here: Ford Freestyle: First Drive Review

New slick-shifting gearbox 

Ford’s ageing 5-speed box (codenamed iB5) has been replaced by a new and improved 5-speed manual transmission. The iB5 was introduced globally with the Mark 4 Fiesta (sedan version was launched in India as Ikon). Like the previous transmission, the new one is sourced from Getrag as well. Not just the petrol, the diesel engine too will get the new 5-speed manual transmission. 

The shifting mechanism has vastly improved over the previous unit and it now slots in much better. The old iB5 gearbox also had several issues, as reported by several owners, such as premature failure of synchronizers. In fact, I had the first-gen Figo diesel and had changed the same at around 70k. The new one promises to be better in all corners and I hope it’s better in this department too.

Improved fuel efficiency 

The new engine is not only more powerful than before, but fuel-efficient as well. The Ford Freestyle, which is around 60kg heavier than the Figo petrol and also rides higher off the ground, gets a certified fuel efficiency 19kmpl. That’s better than the outgoing Figo’s ARAI-certified figure of 18.16kmpl. The Figo Facelift should offer around 20kmpl, which is a straight 2kmpl improvement over the old model. This will get it closer to the new Maruti Swift’s claimed fuel efficiency of 22kmpl. 

A more potent Figo S petrol! 

While the current Figo S is impressive in its 100PS diesel avatar, the old, mediocre 1.2-litre petrol plays a spoilsport for the S badge. The Figo S, with its reduced ride height, stiffened suspension and fatter 195/55 cross-section tyres, should definitely be a hoot to drive with the new more powerful petrol. 

No two ways about it: the new engine is far superior than the one it replaces. The new Figo has been a slow seller compared to the first-gen model. But during that time, diesels were the more popular choice. Now, petrol versions are gradually overshadowing their diesel counterparts, especially in more affordable segments like the Figo’s. And until now the Figo lacked on the petrol front due to its mediocre engine. But things are about to change. 

Check out: 2018 Maruti Suzuki Swift: First Drive Review

Read More on : Ford Figo on road price