The 2018 Ford Aspire (facelift) has been launched at
a starting price of Rs 5.55 lakh*. As reported on many previous occasions, the
mid-cycle facelift offers a host of cosmetic changes, additional features and
new petrol engines.
The standard safety kit on offer includes dual front
airbags, ABS with EBD, rear parking sensors and front seatbelt reminder (SBR).
The automatic transmission equipped models additionally offer hill-start
assist, ESP, and traction control. The fully-loaded variant provides 6 airbags
and an emergency assistance service.
The 2018 Ford Aspire is available with a new
1.2-litre three-cylinder petrol engine from the Dragon engine family. With a
peak power/torque of 96 PS/120 Nm, it has 9% more power and 7% more torque than
the 1.2-litre, four-cylinder unit it replaces. The entry-level sedan delivers
an ARAI-rated fuel economy of 20.4 km/l with this engine, and that's an
improvement of 6.19%. The earlier IB5 5-speed manual transmission has been
replaced with a lighter and more accurate Getrag-made 5-speed manual
transmission (codename: MX65).
The automatic variant is propelled by the new
1.5-litre three-cylinder petrol engine from the EcoSport. It has maximum
power/torque of 123 PS/150 Nm, which makes it 10% more powerful and 7% torquier
than the four-cylinder motor it replaces. With an ARAI-certified fuel
efficiency of 16.3 km/l, it's 4.1% less frugal than the outgoing motor. Instead
of the 6-speed dual clutch transmission of the earlier engine, the new powerplant
comes mated to a 6-speed torque converter unit. The 1.5-litre turbo-diesel
motor of the pre-facelift model has been retained, albeit, with a retuned ECU
to increase the ARAI-rated fuel economy from 25.83 km/l to 26.1 km/l.
The highlights of the refreshed styling include a
new mesh front grille, sportier bumpers, smoke-effect headlamps and new alloy
wheels. Inside, the sub-4 metre sedan has a new dashboard similar to that of
the Freestyle. The top-end trim offers a 6.5-inch SYNC3 infotainment unit while
the mid-range variants come with a 7.0-inch FLY infotainment system. The
high-end trims feature a push start-stop button close to the instrument
binnacle.
With the mid-cycle update, the Ford Aspire has
become more affordable. Its prices have reduced by about INR 20,000.
2018 Ford Aspire (facelift) - Prices*
- Ford Aspire Ambient 1.2 petrol – INR 5,55,000
- Ford Aspire Trend 1.2 petrol – INR 5,99,000
- Ford Aspire Trend + 1.2 petrol – INR 6,39,000
- Ford Aspire Titanium 1.2 petrol – INR 6,79,000
- Ford Aspire Titanium+ 1.2 petrol – INR 7,24,000
- Ford Aspire Titanium 1.5 petrol – INR 8,49,000
- Ford Aspire Ambient 1.5 diesel – INR 6,45,000
- Ford Aspire Trend 1.5 diesel – INR 6,89,000
- Ford Aspire Trend + 1.5 diesel – INR 7,29,000
- Ford Aspire Titanium 1.5 diesel – INR 7,69,000
- Ford Aspire Titanium+ 1.5 diesel – INR 8,14,000
*Ex-showroom India