With its combination of a highway-friendly diesel engine, superb ride quality, and comfy and feature-loaded cabin, the Tata Zest has so far come across as the most-rounded compact sedan; one that offers everything a typical high-mileage diesel car buyer would want. Trouble for the Zest is, the new Ford Figo Aspire diesel’s list of strengths aren’t too different from its own. To sort out this diesel dilemma, we’ve brought the Tata and Ford together. Can the new Ford aspire to better the Zest to become the best?

Let’s give this comparison a rolling start by seeing how this duo fare against one another on the move. Well, the Figo comes into the fight with a displacement, power and weight advantage. Its 1.5-litre diesel engine makes 99bhp and 21.9kgm, and has to move all of 1,048kg. The Zest’s Fiat-sourced 1.3 turbo, on the other hand, produces 89bhp and 20.4kgm, while the car weighs in at a heavier 1,155kg. Unsurprisingly, the Figo is the quicker car here. But what is more telling is the margin by which it is quicker than the Zest, be it in the 0-100kph dash or through the gears. Thing is where the Zest’s engine comes alive only after overcoming the low rpm weakness it is universally known for, the Figo’s engine delivers strong pulling power from shortly after idle. In city traffic, there’s a big difference in the driving experience when you have access to power at 1,400rpm, as in the Figo’s case, versus when power comes in earnest only at about 2,000rpm, as on the Zest; there’s noticeably less need to shuffle through the gears in the Figo to keep pace with intermittent traffic. Both cars do have reasonably nice gearboxes but the Zest’s clutch is lighter. And while neither engine is particularly quiet, the Tata’s is the quieter of the two at city speeds. Out on the highway, once again, it’s the Figo’s engine that feels more responsive with a wider powerband to operate in. Not to say that the Zest’s motor is completely overshadowed here. Keep revs above 2000rpm and the engine will give sufficient punch to allow you to overtake other vehicles with ease.