If ever there was a single noteworthy indicator to suggest that the Ford Motor Company was not just determined and willing but also wanting to use finesse, cutting edge design and technology while having the gumption to burst in on the cut throat small car class of what is actually turning out to be the world's largest small car market it had to be Ford CEO Alan Mullaly jetting in to India to reveal his company's first ever modern B-segment offering in the world.
Well for India and for Asia-Pacific, Ford hasn't had a small car, preferring to use badge-engineered Mazdas for the purpose. However the grim economic reality in the developed world has forced Ford, like many other brands, to focus more closely and actively on Asia.
We have to be here because it is all happening in India as far as small cars are concerned," said Mullaly speaking exclusively to ZigWheels.com. "The global small car projections speak for themselves, and we don't want to miss out on a segment which could be as large as 70 to 80 per cent of the world's car production."
Mulally has confirmed that the small car will go on sale in the first quarter of 2010, between January and March. The new car will be called the Figo and is expected to function in the cut-throat Indian hatchback space. Pricing of the Figo will be very competitive on the same lines, and Ford is expected to go up against firmly rooted and established small-car competitors in terms of the product and its pricing.
The all new Ford B-segment offering is an all new car on a completely new platform which has been engineered by Ford using a global team but with its Indian arm spearheading much of the execution. This new car to be built as hatchback, notchback, even a small MAV (multi activity vehicle) and any other configuration which could slip into finer niches, is to be built at various Ford manufacturing facilities in Asia-Pacific and also in Europe but the programme gets underway first in India. This is by far the most significant detail which illustrates that Ford is now turning its attention even more fiercely with a determination which it hadn't displayed in its over 15 year journey in India.
The new small car, will be powered by either a 1.2-litre petrol or a 1.5 litre diesel engine, the right displacement sizes to make full use of the excise tax benefits earmarked by the Indian government for cars of its types and length. Alan was bullish not just about the proportions of the car but also its dynamics and more importantly the interior which would surely be a step forward for cars of this genre and class.
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