European launch expected in September this year.
Indian Autos Blog reader, Mr. Pankil Bhagat, snapped this export unit of the Ford Figo badged the Ford Ka+ on test on the National Expressway 1 (Vadodara-Ahmedabad). Ford India, which manufactures the new Figo and Figo Aspire models at its Gujarat plant, plans to export the hatchback to over 50 markets.
Certain markets including Nepal, South Africa, Middle East and Mexico have already received the Figo. However, for the European market, Ford plans on launching the Ka+ - as it will be called - in September 2016. Though neither Ford India or Ford Europe have confirmed that the hatchback will be exported from the Gujarat plant, Ford Europe has denied rumors of sourcing the car from Brazil, which is the only other manufacturing plant to make the new Figo (Ford Ka+).
For the European market, the Ford Ka+ is expected to cost from 8,000 GBP (INR 7.9 lakhs), and its positioning will be below that of the Fiesta hatchback. It is uncertain whether the current Ford Ka (based on the Fiat 500's platform) will be discontinued post the introduction of the Ka+, though it seems redundant to retain the older Ka which has lacked attention in recent years.
Also read: Next-gen 2017 Ford Fiesta - Rendering
According to reports, the Euro-spec Ford Ka+ will be offered with a 1.0-litre EcoBoost, a 1.2-litre Ti-VCT or a 1.5-litre Ti-VCT petrol engine. Transmission choices would include 5-speed manual and 6-speed PowerShift automatic gearboxes. When launched, the hatchback will rival the likes of the Opel Corsa, Dacia Sandero, Suzuki Celerio and the Hyundai i10.
