the Bucket: Small Car

Friday, February 1, 2019

Bucket Seat: Ford Figo Sedan

It's been a while since we had a Ford to review but I'm glad we eventually got one, even though the Figo isn't much to write home about in terms of aesthetics and appeal, it still is a very important car for the brand and for the market in general. The Ford Figo has come a long way as a car, from being just a reboot of the old Fiesta to giving itself it's own identity in the market. With the local launch of the Figo taking place mid last year, I was finally given the opportunity to drive one, albeit the sedan and not the hatch, around for a week towards the end of the year and go to say, Ford have really "leveled up" with this one.

DESIGN

The Figo was always an odd looking car but with this new model its finally coming into its own. I love the front of the Figo, that new grille with like a 3 dimensional design to it finished in brushed aluminum gives the car some level of elegance and dare I say, luxury appeal. The grille sits prominently but low and is the first thing that gets your attention of the car. The front bump is shaped well and its outlined by a splitter also finished in brushed aluminium that goes around the fog light housing, it just adds more dimension to the front end and really does like quite smart. The headlights have been redesigned and bares resemblance to the Fiesta a bit but has an elongated fin type finish to it. The general shape of the Figo is "bubble shaped" but works well unlike other models which tried this approach. The reason for it is to maximise space in the cabin. Moving along to the back, is where most budget hatch come sedan's tend to struggle with the addition of the boot. Most of them can be quite painful to look at but kudos to the design team at Ford because the boot flows quite well with the overall design of the car. The lines extend on the side profile upwards to the back and extends to the boot space. My only grip would be that the tail lights could have been finished better but that is just me.

PERFORMANCE

The Figo comes powered with the 1.5TiVCT naturally aspirated 4 cylinder petrol engine. It's a strong motor from Ford and at the coast it performs exceptionally well. With 88kW and 150Nm of toque at its disposal, it makes easy meat of city travelling. The car is compact and light which helps the engine a lot in terms of performance, so even if you're on the open road, there really isn't a struggle to get the Figo up to speed. The 5 speed manual gear box is a treat and slotting it into gear is like slipping a hot knife into butter, this is helped by a smooth clutch. The combined fuel economy is listed in the brochure of being 5.7L per 100km, which is very achievable as I was hovering around the 6L mark with quite a variant of driving. The Figo isn't going to win you any drag races with its 0-100km/h time coming in at 11.8 seconds and its top speed capped at 175km/h but that's not what this car is made for and I'm guessing their target market knows that as well.

COMFORT

As mentioned before that the overall shape is catered to increase the cabin space and it's pretty comfortable for four adults travelling in the Figo sedan. The car comes with cloth seats which are decent size and quite comfy, doesn't feel hard or rigid. Interior comfort is enhances with a manual air-conditioner. It has electric windows with a one touch power down for driver only. The in-car entertainment features a four speaker system with bluetooth and USB connectivity. Safety wise, the Figo comes fitted with two airbags, one for the driver and the front passenger and has anti-lock braking system.

VERDICT

Overall the Ford Figo Trend is a great offering for the price tag it has, it's loaded with most of the essentials that one needs in a city car and the ride quality along with fuel economy just justifies its presence in the market as one of the better budget cars to get. While the car won't win any beauty contests, Ford have done a great job with the details on the Trend spec to make it look appealing.

SPECIFICATIONS

Engine	1.5L NA
Gear Box	5 Speed Manual
Power	88kW
Torque	150Nm
0-100	11.8 seconds
Economy	5.7 L/100km
Price	R 197,950

Wednesday, September 27, 2017

Bucket Seat: Toyota Yaris Pulse

With the ever fluctuating price of petrol, and the increasing price of cars now, many are opting for smaller and more fuel efficient vehicles. In South Africa, the B-Segment category is one of the popular ones, with small hatches being top of the list. A firm favourite with the majority is the VW Polo but with it's popularity over the years, comes a price as it is, according to insurance companies an extremely high risk car. Fortunately for the consumer, there are many other models to chose from the B-Segment range, and the next model that ticks all the boxes is made by one of the most reliable names in motoring, Toyota. The Japanese outfit first introduced the Yaris to our markets in the early 2000's, ever since then it became one of their popular smaller models. While it didn't have all the bells and whistles, it had everything a little run around would need at the time. Aircon, Power Steering, USB and ABS, moving onto today, the Yaris has evolved into a city car of the future, as I discovered recently while driving around in the new Yaris Pulse.

DESIGN

The design of the Yaris has taken a great turn for the better, it's new ultra sleek, modern Japanese look really suits the car, it almost looks like something out of a Manga cartoon. It has adopted the X style front end and spindle type grille from it's smaller brother the Aygo and knits into the new front head lights perfectly. The head lights and rear lights have been elongated from the previous model with edgy lines, adding to the Yaris sharp looks. The model came with two tone paint, with a dark maroon at the bottom and black on the roof and side pillars which really accentuated the car's design and appeal. The car comes with a multi-spoke 15" alloy wheels, which add's to the cars sporty appeal. Moving onto the inside, the layout is clean and neat. I particularly liked the instrument cluster, it's well laid out and easy to use. The large touch screen infotainment system is also pretty user friendly that has everything you need at a touch of a button.

PERFORMANCE

The engine in the isn't the most powerful one around but has sufficient power for the Yaris. It's a 1.5 litre, inline 4 cylinder motor which producers 82kW of power with 136Nm of torque. The model I had came with a seven speed CVT gearbox, yes you read right, the Yaris CVT has 7 gears and paddle shift. This did surprise me when I first saw it but it proved to be quite useful, not to mention quite fun to use you on windy roads. A warning though, making use of this function in sport mode (yes it has sport mode too) does tend to make the car a bit thirsty but overall the car is very fuel efficient.

COMFORT

The Yaris is a small car and you not going to fit a circus in there but it is ergonomically designed for maximum comfort. Front passengers have tons of space for themselves, the rear passengers also have a decent amount of leg room given if the people in front reach some sort of compromise. The boot space has improved from the first gen model as well, you can get a decent amount of luggage in there. The car doesn't comes with climate control, which is a pity, I would have hoped that this one being a top of the line model would have it. The ride quality is good enough for a car like this, meaning you do feel the road if it's a bit bumpy but generally gives a good ride around most roads. The cruise control is pretty stock standard as well, does the job and with the 7 gear transmission really increases it's economy.

VERDICT

Overall the new Yaris Pulse is a great city car, be it for going to and from work or for a kid going to college. It's small, has a great turning circle, has most of the tech that the younger crowd would want in a car. The engine is nippy and it is light on fuel. The looks are a bonus if you ask me, as there are many cars in the market which fit into this segment but don't really look that appealing. The car is well priced too, quality and finishes wise, the Polo does pip it in that department but Toyota's reliability and great resale value come into play.