If the diesel versions of the Volkswagen Ameo and Ford Figo Aspire are the top contenders on your compact sedan shopping list, there’s a good chance power and performance are high on your list of priorities. Because with 110hp and 100hp from their respective 1.5-litre diesel engines, the Ameo and Aspire are the most powerful diesel compact sedans on sale, and for many, that’s a major point of distinction in what has become a crowded segment. Before you ask, we’ve given the 100hp Honda Amaze a miss because it’s a car that does little to stir up emotions for the driver. For this duo at least, it’s the experience behind the steering wheel that gets more weightage than overall practicality. Yes, we’ll be going over their practical bits too but today the driver’s seat is the one in focus. Here goes.
110 on 100
Do a cursory brochure-to-brochure comparison, and you’ll know the Ameo is the more powerful car here. Its 110hp and 250Nm easily betters the Aspire’s 100hp and 215Nm. Dig a bit deeper though and a figure that should stand out is these car’s kerb weights. Weighing in at just 1,048kg, the Figo Aspire is a full 115kg lighter than the Ameo! How do all these numbers translate to real-world performance? There’s only one way to find out and that is to bring out our trusty Vbox timing gear. True, the conditions aren’t ideal (we tested on a damp road), but the performance figures are still telling. The Ameo gets to 100kph from a standstill in 10.74 seconds, or 0.4 seconds quicker than the Aspire. But it’s the in-gear timings that give the Ameo the clear edge. It is good at low revs but VW’s latest tweaks to the 1.5 engine seem to have added more punch in the mid-range. Sure, power delivery has become spiky but it’s quite exciting to see how readily and quickly revs rise from 2,000rpm to 5,000 and beyond. The Ameo feels genuinely powerful and what only adds to the experience is the crisp-shifting five-speed gearbox.
The Aspire may be the slower car here but it is still quick as small diesel cars go. It’s just that the power delivery is more linear and the engine isn’t as quick revving as the Ameo’s, and this tends to mask its performance. Power does come in nice and early making the Ford a bit friendlier to drive at lower town speeds, but press on and you don’t get that meaty mid-range surge the Ameo provides. Further, the Aspire’s rubbery gearbox also doesn’t like being hustled. The Ford motor does run quieter for the most part (the VW has the busier sounding idle too), but cross 3,000rpm and the decibel levels go up drastically. Whilst the Ameo’s powertrain pushes you to drive with more vigour, the Aspire’s inspires you to adopt a more relaxed driving style.
Left, right, left
You may not expect family-oriented compact sedans to shine on your favourite set of twisty roads but both still do a good enough job. The Ameo feels very Germanic, very Volkswagen in the sense there’s a good feeling of control at all times, but you know there are some electric motors involved between the steering and the front wheels, and this takes away some connection with the car. The VW does turn in well though and the slightly firmer setup helps to this end. The Aspire is clearly the more agile of the two with a sharper turn-in and a quicker steering. A fly in the ointment is a bit of un-Ford-like looseness in the steering at the straight-ahead position and a bit of body roll too. Also, the Aspire isn’t quite as adept at dealing with mid-corner bumps as the Ameo.
Even out cruising on straight highways, it’s the Aspire that moves around more. Not uncomfortably so, but it doesn’t feel as planted as the Ameo at triple-digit speeds. However, again, it’s when you tone things down that you see the best of the Aspire. It’s got the more absorbent low-speed ride and rounds off bumps really well, despite running on smaller 14-inch tyres. The Aspire’s lighter steering also calls for less effort in town.
Suraj Viswanathan
Lenny D'sa
Dipan Sur
Saptarshi Mondal
Uday Singh
