Quote:
Originally Posted by blue_pulsar  I wholeheartedly agree with your views on considering the Fabia as the hatch version of Octy. But... What about the engine? I don't mean they are bad at all. But we expect more powerful engines at that price. Atleast the 1.9TDI.
Agreed these sedans might not have many features. But..
Fiesta P-out and out driver's car
Verna D-same as above
SX4 - Loaded to the tooth at a throwaway price. Just wait for the 1.9DDiS
The above cars are targetted at different audience. |
Well about the engine thing I dont think most people in India are performance freaks. The 1.2l and 1.4l engines are good enough (according to road tests & reviews that I have read so far). In India FE is more important criterion than Performance (and with fuel costs increasing like anything every year it is going to be even more important in future) so I believe Skoda has got that right. These smaller engines are quite frugal and they would have helped bring down cost of the car. Just an Octy without a boot would have cost not less than 10 lakhs and that would not have sold at all!
Just as you have put it - this car is also targeted at different audience. Small families who need a luxurious, small, safe city commuter (highways once in months types) within 10lakhs budget. If you need performance you can always go for Verna etc. Why should every car be a high performance car? How many roads we have where you can drive cars at 150 kmph+ or accelerate without any obstructions? In an around delhi there are no such roads. In fact having seen (and heard of) so many high speed accidents on DND flyway & Greater Noida Expressway here you can say that I have developed an aversion for such cars. Speed is thrilling but it can also lead to fatal accidents. In Delhi in fact the speed limits for cars is just 50 KMPH! Even a 800 engine can easily pull you in Delhi!
As I said, Fabia is meant for different set of people. I am quite sure cars like that are the future of Indian car industry. Skoda probably are making lot of money on every Fabia sold (I sometime back learnt that maruti only pockets about Rs. 5000-10000 for every M800!). So if Fabia becomes even a moderate success (which it should as increasing congestion & fuel prices will force people to go for smaller cars) then others will also come up with similar models. already we've heard of Honda Jazz (though we still dont know when it will come... prob when it is old enough in western world to be dumped into a 3rd world country like India), Fiat GP, toyota (dont know what model/when), even Ford is also thinking of small luxurious car. Carmakers will actually make money on smaller luxurious cars in future in India!