SA Road Tests

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This is the home of automobile road tests in South Africa. I drive South African cars, SUVs and LCVs under real-world South African conditions. Most, but not all, the vehicles driven are world cars as well, so what you read here possibly applies to the models you get where you live.

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Easy going: 2018 Ford Figo Trend sedan

Subtle changes

Posted: 11 November 2018

The numbers
Price: R197 950
Engine: 1498 cc, DOHC three-cylinder, 12-valve petrol
Power: 88 kW at 6300 rpm
Torque: 150 Nm at 4250 rpm
Zero to 100 km/h: 11.8 seconds
Maximum speed: 175 km/h
Real life fuel consumption: About 6.1 l/100 km
Tank: 42 litres
Luggage: 445 litres
Standard tyre size: 175/65R14
Spare: Full size steel wheel
Turning circle: 10.2 metres
Warranty: 4 years/120 000 km with 3 years roadside assistance
Service plan: 4 years/60 000 km at 15 000 km intervals

“Much better,” declared the owner of a previous-generation hatch as he ran his hands over the dash of our test car, a 2018 Ford Figo Trend sedan. “It’s so much neater,” he continued, “and the buttons and screen are a lot tidier. Those on my car are a mess. I almost didn’t buy it.”

It isn’t only the new display - not quite a touchscreen, yet neater than the old dot matrix device - but everything else that came with the mid-2018 facelift. New cloth for door panels and seats make the interior look more modern. The stylish honeycomb grille looks good, as do the reworked bumper and chromed accents around the fog lights. Trend models have restyled 14” alloy wheels while Ambiente boasts new caps for its steel rims. Subtle changes to tail lamps and rear bumper play their parts in making that end look more contemporary.

Apart from that, measurements, brakes, suspension and weights remain much as before, while the range has been trimmed from nine models to five. There are no longer any diesel hatchbacks and Titanium level is History - for now at least. Your choices consist of one engine; two trim levels (Ambiente and Trend), three hatches (one of which offers a six-speed automatic) and two five-speed manual shift sedans.

The final change is a completely new 1.5-litre motor that’s similar to its predecessor only in that both displace 1498 cc. Ti-VCT valve control helps it to produce 88 kW of peak power and 150 Nm of torque. According to a Ford of India statement, “Along with improved performance, the new engine offers a seven percent reduction in CO2 emissions and a similar improvement in fuel efficiency through reductions in weight and size, as well as the application of innovative technologies.

“The engine downsizes from four cylinders to three-in-line, resulting in decreased weight, lower friction and an overall 10-percent reduction in bulk. Its aluminium engine block and cylinder head contribute to substantial weight reduction and better fuel economy. The exhaust manifold integrated into the cylinder head helps to heat the catalyst faster, thus decreasing emissions. A new variable oil pump can operate at lower pressure at slow speeds with reduced friction loss, so improving fuel economy,” the statement concludes.

Ford India’s engineering team steered development of the new engine with key inputs at every stage – from design through to development and then production. More than 80 percent of its parts are sourced from Indian suppliers.

Is it any good? Apart from the fact that power, versus the old motor, is up by six kilowatts at the same revs, torque improved by 14 Nm from 136 to 150. Reduced losses to friction, and greater combustion efficiency, have something to do with that.

The phone dock features a powered USB socket

To put it into perspective this engine shares honours with Honda’s 1497 cc multipurpose mill as the most powerful, naturally aspirated, 1.5-litre motors in South Africa at present. It drives smoothly, the gearbox is pleasant, there’s good midrange thrust, it never feels stressed and it returned better real-world fuel economy than the old one did. We reckon it’s a winner.

But you can’t have everything. This is Ford’s entry-level range with prices hovering around R200 000. That means things like a telescoping steering column; height adjustable driver’s seat and the last word in luxury are best forgotten. If you want “fancy”, with more sophisticated safety systems and upmarket gadgets, buy a Fiesta. They sell in similar quantities, as Ford SA’s joint passenger car champions, while serving similar demographics. It’s just the wallets that differ.

Bearing that in mind, Ford’s mass market Figo does what it’s designed to do. It carries a medium-sized family with lots of baggage over indifferent surfaces confidently, quietly, economically and without fuss. We’re pretty sure that previous-generation owner will return for an encore.

Test car from Ford SA press fleet
We drove a Figo Titanium automatic in 2016

We drove a Figo Freestyle CUV in 2020

What We Do

This is a one-man show, which means that every car reviewed is given my personal evaluation and receives my own seat of the pants judgement - no second hand input here.

Every test car goes through real world driving; on city streets littered with potholes, speed bumps and rumble strips, on freeways and if its profile demands, dirt roads as well.

I do my best to include relevant information like real life fuel economy or a close mathematical calculation, boot size or luggage space, whether the space is both usable and accessible, whether life-sized people can use the back seat (where that applies), basic specs of the vehicle and performance figures if they are published. In the case of clearly identified launch reports, fuel figures are of necessity the laboratory numbers provided with the release material.

If ever I place an article that doesn't cover most things, it's probably because I have dealt with a very similar vehicle already, so you will be able to find what you want in another report under the same manufacturer's heading in the menu on the left.

Hope you like what you see, because there are no commercial interests at work here. There are no advertisers and no “editorial policy” rules. I add bylines to acknowledge sponsored launch functions and the manufacturers or dealerships that provide the test vehicles.  And, as quite a few readers have found, I answer every serious enquiry from my home email address, with my phone numbers attached, so you can see I do actually exist.

Comments or questions?
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