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.
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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
