Hi-Figo!

In my garage

An amazing thing happened. I gave up my editorial rights and gave the Mercedes-Benz C 230 long-termer to Srini, the associate editor of Business Standard Motoring to drive. In its place came the Skoda Laura — the VW Jetta’s illicit sister that makes mincemeat of Indian driving/road conditions. I was just about starting to enjoy the Mercedes experience when I lost the big badge on the grille to vandals. Trust me, a C-Class in avant garde trim is ugly without the big three-pointed, chromed badge and I could not bear the sight of mine without one. Logical enough? The associate editor is not complaining.

On my mind

Caught up with Sundar Sundarrajan K, chief programme engineer-product development, Ford Asia-Pacific and Africa. “So what?” you may ask. Well, dear readers, Sundar is one of those few Indians anywhere in the whole world who can sign off a production car. Sundar has been working with Ford India since the Mahindra-Ford days and was made in charge of the One Ford programme to make an affordable and economical hatchback with developing markets in mind.

For a change, Sundar was not adapting a car for the Indian market; instead, his team was trying to get the right quality from a wide group of Indian suppliers at the right price. He had access to Ford studios and R&D centres across Europe and Australia. So how was the reaction of his colleagues from other markets? “It was difficult to communicate exactly what we wanted from our parent company — now that they have understood the size of the market, we have better access to new age design trends. Expect more!” he says. His only regret? Can’t be part of evaluation teams anymore because he is too busy with other things.

Car of the week

General Motors India has launched the Beat and Ford has followed it up with the Figo. Get the message? While Toyota and Honda are busy showcasing concepts at the auto show, the American giants with questionable financials have already launched their small cars meant for emerging markets like India! Now that is what you call taking a lead. The Figo, by the way, is a brilliantly conceived car that is going to receive a special price tag when it is unveiled to the public soon.

I was part of the launch drive at Goa and the Fiesta-based small car impressed with its ride quality, handling and slightly traditional yet sporty design. The 1.2-litre petrol engine is refined and economical, while the 1.4-litre diesel can benefit from some sound deadening. Spacious interiors, comprehensive instrumentation and essential safety kit complete the car. Not impressed? Paint shades that go by the name Squeeze and Chill certainly will.

Bike of the week

A quick visit to my hometown of Thiruvananthapuram allowed me to catch up with my good friend Surjith. He restores British motorcycles amongst other things and wanted to show me some of his gems. Spent an afternoon ogling at Norton Dominators and Triumph Twins and generally breathing in the smell of burnt oil at his “British only” garage. A fully-restored Norton Dominator racer is up for sale (as he has two of them) for — hold your breath — Rs 8, 50,000. Good money for what was a heap of scrap not so long ago.

Question of the week

How many of the 136 pre-production Ford Figos were subjected to crash tests?

Twenty of them were crash-tested. A total of 7, 00,000 km of testing (that equals two million customer km) was done before the car was signed-off for production.