Ford Figo Aspire - First Impressions!

Ford is a brand one always relates with powerful cars, be it Ford Endeavour or Ford classic. Their presence on the road is something to talk about.

Source

When Figo Aspire's first teaser was launched a few months back, it was seen as a sub 4 metre sedan targeted to replace the Ford Classic. It doesn't disappoint. This car is made from scratch especially keeping Indian conditions in mind. The fact that the indicator stalk is positioned on the right and wiper stalk on the left, tells you all about it!

At first glance you will notice the Aston-Martin like front grille with good treatment of chrome and a fairly aggressive chin. The stance is aggressive though the car looks a bit out of proportion when you compare it with the likes of Honda Amaze and Hyundai Xcent. 

Rear profile is simple and plain with tail lamps, Ford badge and a broad chrome strip running across which makes it appear broader than it really is.

Source

It is equipped with a similar dash which we are used to seeing in the Ford EcoSport i.e button heavy. What surprised me was the quality of the plastic used on the dash and overall fit and finish, it is unlike the European standards for which Ford is known for. 

Source

It will be offered in 3 engine options : 1.2 litre petrol mated to a 5 speed manual transmission, 1.5 diesel mated to a 5 speed manual transmission and a 1.5 petrol engine mated to a 6 speed dual clutch automatic transmission. Alongside 3 engine options, it will be offered in 4 variants to give people a wide range to choose from. The 6 speed DCT will be a segment first and personally I would be looking forward to this one for my daily commute in NCR(National Capital Region) 

Source

Engines are tuned up to give more power than they give in the Figo and Fiesta. The 1.2 litre petrol which makes 70 bhp in the figo, is uptuned to make 87 bhp which makes city drive-ability a breeze. The oil burner on the other hand, the same 1.5 TDCi engine makes 98 bhp which is more than the 90 bhp it produces in the EcoSport. The turbo lag is minimum because at 1400 rpm all the available torque is granted to the wheels and city driving becomes quite easy. Body roll while cornering is persistent which will disappoint the enthusiasts. This car is meant to be both a city ride and is a good highway cruiser.

Up tuning the engines, designing the car from scratch, black and beige upholstery for dashboard, all these points prove that Ford is taking Indian market seriously and have given it their all.

One small feature that I liked the most was Ford MyDock which can hold a smartphone in your view and can be used for navigation.

Source

Pricing will be a key factor as it will go against the likes of Maruti Swift Dzire, Honda Amaze and Hyundai Xcent. If priced right, it can set a new benchmark in the segment as it has options for different types of prospective buyers.

More info when the car is launched.

Loose weight the Healthy Way! #HoneyDietIsHere

Crash dieting is the new trend in weight loss. Appearing to be an easy and quick way to loose that extra flab on our body, we often do not consider the side-effects of such diets. Although they make us loose some weight early on, thereby inspiring and enhancing our belief in them but after a while the toll on our body becomes apparent.

Source

Some side effects that we can see just after a few days of trying such diets are:

1) Feeling fatigue and lethargy: The first symptoms that appear are a reduction in our activeness. We feel lethargic and often times sleepy, quite in contrast with our natural self.

2) Loss of concentration: When we suppress our hunger, we try our best to ignore those grumblings of our stomach but while we may succeed in not eating anything, the hunger makes us distracted. We are unable to concentrate on anything leading to loss of quality in our work life and rifts and dissatisfaction among our loved ones towards us in our personal life.

3) Mood Swings: When we are hungry. We dont have the energy to do anything. We feel lazy, sleepy, distracted and all this leads to mood swings because food is a great mood balancer. Try going hungry and you will see how sometimes you get angry then suddenly you feel like crying and even at the most unexpected gesture you feel so happy that it feels like anything is possible!

4) Low immunity towards diseases and infection: Crash diets not only hamper our mood, they severely harm our body. Our immunity gets weak. We start getting sick easily and are unable to get well easily too because our body’s weakness makes it difficult to fight against the diseases and infections.

5) Loss in vital nutrients: Different food products provide our body with different nutrients. All these vitamins and minerals make us healthy, strong and happy. When our body doesn’t get these nutrients, it is unable to function properly leaving us unhappy, sick, listless and weak.

Source

So to have a glowing face and a healthy body, it is necessary that we eat healthy with more fruits and vegetables in our diet and exercise every day. By combining these two, we can not only loose weight but also maintain it.

Source

Talking about healthy food, I incorporated honey in my diet (Honey Diet) and am impressed with the results. I feel more happy, healthy, energetic and less prone to eat junk.

1) Honey is a great source of nutrients, minerals and it also provides our body with energy. 

2) Known to be helpful in loosing and maintaining healthy weight, honey has been used by people since ages. 

3) It also is a natural sugar substitute with no side effects and also doesn't increase our weight unlike sugar. 

4) Honey provides us energy and keeps our stomach feeling full for a long time, thereby reducing our chances of over eating.

5) When used in face packs it cleans our skin and naturally heals it, leaving it glowing and supple.

6) Honey is also used to cure cough and cold because it is a natural immunity booster and helps our body fight against infections and diseases.

7) Aids in digestion.

8) Is tasty and we can eat it guilt-free!

So don't take shortcuts and go all the way to have that stable healthy weight. Eat healthy, exercise and include honey in your diet to get that ideal healthy you have always dreamed about! #HoneyDietIsHere

I use Dabur Honey which is 100% honey and a trusted product been used in my family since decades. :)

UC Browser ~ Lite, Fast and #YuviSurfsUC

Source

I am a fanatic Cricket lover and religiously follow all the matches and stay updated on all the latest news from the Cricketing world but with my hectic lifestyle and family responsibilities, I get little to no time to sit down peacefully and watch TV or read a newspaper to acquaint myself of all that is happening in the world and in Cricket. Sometimes it is the office, sometimes it’s household work, sometimes it’s the guests. Interruptions are always there and I often find myself away from my TV, unable to watch my favourite Cricketers playing. To compensate, I rely heavily on my smartphone and the Internet to surf the news and follow the matches. However, the slow Internet speed and the heavy web browsers make it difficult to surf, leaving me irritated and grumbling. I am unable to do anything because howsoever good the Internet package, the browsing speeds change from place to place due to factors like whether 3G has been launched at the place or if the service provider is present in that area and so on. So, I need a browser that is able to handle the slow Internet speed and adapt itself to give me satisfactory browsing without taking too much time to load and getting interrupted every time the speed changes.

Here the best browser till date that I have come to rely on is the UC Browser which is lite, fast and works like a charm even on slow Internet speed. It is available for free download for android, iOS, Java and PC. Apart from its ability to work on slow Internet speeds, it also has an added bonus for Cricket fans like me with its lite and fast Cricket Service, UC Cricket which enables us to follow the matches (Live scores with auto update, fixture and results), watch videos, read the latest news and even add reminders to get notifications before every match! I can also chat with other Cricket buffs using the optimized comment section. Isn't this browser with its cricket service just awesome!

The UC Cricket service gives us all the information at one place and so I don’t have to Google again and again to check the score or navigate to other Cricket based websites that maybe heavier and not load properly at slow speed. Since UC Cricket is lite, it works way faster and loads easily as compared to the other cricket services. The same goes for the UC Browser which loads properly even on 2G or edge speeds and enables the users to “Surf it All! Surf it Fast!”

Apart from this, some of the other amazing features of UC Browser are an easy interface, options to change the themes and have fun with add-ons etc., seamlessly switches between UC Browser across our devices by syncing open tabs and bookmarks and even has a resume option to resume our download if we get interrupted!

Have you used UC Browser and UC Cricket? Do share your thoughts with me in the comments.

Singing to the tunes of the all new Honda Jazz!

Different colours but all with that same oomph. Here stands the new Honda Jazz!

The prospect of witnessing and driving a new car, before it is available to the dealerships is very exciting. Add the opportunity to drive it on the only track in India to host Formula 1 championship, the Buddh International Circuit and the proposition turns into an irresistible one!

I was presented with such an opportunity on 4th of July to witness such an event organized by Honda "Hangout with Honda" to showcase their premium hatchback offering, the All New Jazz!

Stylish and Jazzy is the new Honda Jazz!

Step into the car and you are greeted with an all familiar cabin of the 4^th generation Honda City. The steering wheel with audio controls and Call answer and disconnect options, Touch panel Automatic Climate Control, AVN and Space (Loads and loads of it), all similar to the Honda city which gives it a very premium feel.

After driving both the Manual and Automatic with CVT & Paddle Shifters petrol 1.2 litre i-VTEC engine models on the circuit for 2 laps each, cornering nicely and gaining straight line speed on the back straight of the track, I fell in love with the Jazz.

Sitting comfy in the new Honda Jazz

Here are the few features of Jazz which made me sing to it’s tunes, Literally!

Honda Jazz lined up, ready for us to take them for a ride!

a) 1.2 litre i-VTEC and 1.5 litre i-DTEC engines:- Jazz is offered in two engine options, a 1.2 litre petrol motor capable of generating 90 ps power and a 1.5 litre oil burner producing 100 ps of power. Petrol engine is the same unit as found in the Amaze and Brio. Diesel unit is the same as found in Mobilio, Amaze and City. I-VTEC engine is a free revving engine capable of going all the way to 6500 rpm ( tested the same thing on the track) and if driven sedately claims an ARAI fuel economy of 18.7 kmpl for the manual and 19 kmpl for the CVT variant. The diesel engine is the one to watch out for as in India, the soaring prices of petrol and long commuting distances often urge buyers to go with a diesel car. It claims a class leading ARAI fuel economy of 27.3 kmpl! Now this is impressive. A good mix of power and fuel economy, delivered by one engine.
b) “Magic Seats”:- These seats are not per say magical in the “mystical and supernatural” way and won’t help you disappear either. It is a term by Honda which means these seats can adapt to various needs of a person. It features 4 modes – Tall ( rear seats fold upwards) , Utility ( rear seats fold to form a flat bed), Refresh ( both front and rear seats fold to give so much of space) and Long ( where 60:40 split can be used).

More space with these 4 modes in the MAGIC Seats.

c) Design :- Based on the “Exciting H” platform of Honda, the sharp lines and aerodynamic design, 3-D effect LED tail lamps, good usage of chrome gives it an upmarket feel. The doors open wide and the tailgate extends to the bumper to make loading of luggage easier with a massive 374 litres of boot space.

Exterior Design Concept

Interior Design Concept

 

d) Gearbox :- The 6 speed transmission of the diesel engine offers good sorted out ratios for a relaxed drive and good fuel economy. The 5 speed manual is the tried and tested one which also does the duty in other cars like city and mobilio. The CVT torque converter was the one which caught my eye. It has 7 ratios and paddle shifters so that we can have greater controls over the gears. Although I won’t term it as exactly sporty but it is a good enough gearbox for everyday use and for the enthusiast which comes out of us every once in a while.

It is a great practical car with enough options for every type of hatchback buyer from diesel engines to CVT, It makes for a compelling practical use buy.