HELP me decide...!

[Rtech]

Guys,

I am seriously going outa my mind here trying to decide what I should get..! Here's my pro's and con's for all the choices

1. 2nd hand Indian performance car such as a City 1.5 or a Palio 1.6. The sensible choice!
Pros:
Easy to find
Easy to maintain
Easy to sell again
Parts availability
Finance available
cons
Everybody has one!
erm...

2. Older import (early 90's Civic/Celica/Prelude)
Pros:
I love them!!
Fun to work on ..if you can get the parts - see cons
Exclusive
Cons:
Parts
possible electronic devils appearing
What I can afford are usually too Old and ratty!!

3. Import Bike (CBR600)
Pros
aaaaaamaazing performance
aaaaamaaaaaziing fun/thrills
easy to park!
decent fuel consumption
I LOVE BIKES
Cons:
can seat only half a person!
you tend to get wet when it rains
More expensive to buy than some of the cars
reduce my life by a few decades (that could be a pro for some ppl!)

So you see my dilemma! Personally, I'm inclined towards the bike coz thats what I ride most of the time...but everytime I see a nice car for sale, at a decent price...i get those thoughts in my head..."hmmm that looks like a good project"!!

What would you do!?

cheers!

[GTO]

Dude,

With 1.5 Citys available here, I dont see any reason why you ought to go for a second hand Civic. Not only will it be much older (read more time on the roads), but the Civic you will get should be an early 90's example...a full generation older than the Honda City. Plus theres too many hassles with imports such as paperwork, insurance, history behind the car etc.

My suggestion is to pick up a City 1.5 or a Palio 1.6. You should be able to source one with full documentation and get it checked from a pro to ascertain no accidental damages.

The only con you have listed is that everyone has one. So what? Modify it, dress it up with some neat body kit and paint it blood red. You will have a head-turner with that much more exclusivity.

Maintaining these will be a pleasure as compared to the pain with an import. Parts are available off the shelf and with the customisation market opening up so very much, the only limit to how fast you want to go is the size of your wallet.

GTO

[manticore]

rtech my choice wud be either a vtec or a palio 1.6. prob with imports (cars and bikes) is that the parts wud be scarce and quite expensive too. indian cars wud be much more easily available and serviceable too. it'll be lighter on the wallet too. plus i think the extra dough that u might put for an import cud be very well utilized in modding the vtec or the 1.6. imagine a really good coat of dupont, a killer sound system, leather interiors and deadly set of alloys and rubber. u'll have much less headaches than with imports, especially bikes. thats my 2 cents. cya.

[0-100@2.7sec]

Dude if u gonna use it everyday the Bike is a bad option, on the other hand what u can do on a Superbike its unbelievable, u can beat any car in a Drag race (CBR600 does 0-100kmph in 3.2secs) and u will look good on it.
About car it depends how long u gonna keep it and whats ur Budget.
Will suggest u after that.

[Aditya]

The Honda City 1.5 / Fiat Palio 1.6 is the best option. They have enough performance for our roads and are easy to maintain. They are even more practical and safer on the road during the monsoons than the Honda CBR600.
If pure passion is your target, go for the bike.
One more thing. If you get a performance bike, be sure to take a security guard along with you, because when you park the bike and leave, you don't want all sorts of people will be fingering it.
An old imported car may turn out to be a disaster.

[Dippy]

Rtech pal

The best option is a used City or Palio . Look around and you should fine a good pre owned example . Even I used to think imports before but now if I ever buy another car it will be a used City 1.5
Its your best bet
Cheers

[Rehaan]

I totally agree with GTO.

Plus the advantages to a car is that u can drive it in the monsoon and stop at a signal without dying in the heat!

City 1.5 it is.

-R

[v12]

A 2nd hand Prelude/Celica isnt a bad choice if u get one in a good condition. Parts are available but are expensive. They are available at townside spares shops.

A second hand City is the best choice. You cud get it modded so that ur car is exclusive.

Now the fact that you are also considering a CBR600 [import] means that u have a budget of atleast 8-10 lakhs. So why dont you go in for a brand new Civic.

[bevada]

Go for the CBR 600. You r gonna forget the cons everytime u start it up and feel the bike throbbing under u. U can consider it as a small two seater car only much easier to park.

alap

[vishnugnair]

look bussy daily use of the bike not possible especially the cbr.
and india ncars like evrybody said easier to maintain.
and abt hteimports well man i dont seriously recommed a second hand import. who know what the other owner didn with it.

anyways go fo rthe second hand indian cars with good history like the vtecs and mondeos.
or may be those palio and all that.

[Rtech]

Thanks for all your advice guys...really appreciated! To answer a few questions though...

Originally Posted by [b

Quote[/b] ]I dont see any reason why you ought to go for a second hand Civic. Not only will it be much older (read more time on the roads), but the Civic you will get should be an early 90's example...a full generation older than the Honda City. Plus theres too many hassles with imports such as paperwork, insurance, history behind the car etc.

Well, GTO, although the 90's civic's may be old, their suspension (double wishbones) provides dynamics the basic suspension of a City can just never come close too. But I agree about the hassels with paperwork etc. The only good thing about looking at the older imports is that (hopefully) any problems would have been sorted out by now!

Originally Posted by [b

Quote[/b] ]One more thing. If you get a performance bike, be sure to take a security guard along with you, because when you park the bike and leave, you don't want all sorts of people will be fingering it.

Thats all too true aditya! I forgot to put that down as a con!! It may be easier to park, but I guess I won't rest easy and would always worry about it!

Originally Posted by [b

Quote[/b] ]Now the fact that you are also considering a CBR600 [import] means that u have a budget of atleast 8-10 lakhs. So why dont you go in for a brand new Civic.

Well, actually, CBR's, atleast the F3's which I was looking at can be had for about 4.25. About the price of a used City. A Palio would be cheaper, leaving me more money to modd it though...hmmmm

So it seems that the sensible option is what everyone recommends huh. I guess no matter what I eventually decide upon...i'll think the grass is greener....! only solution is to get all of the above

anyone know what the lottery numbers were last night?

[S350L-E240]

City...

[VTEC11]

4.25lac for a used city? That's not bad, go for it. Its a honda, so resale value will always be good no matter how long you decide to keep it.

[Rtech]

Yea, the old look city's can be had for that amount. I wonder if its worth the extra dosh to spring for the Vtec??? Seeing that there is only a 6 Hp diff....

[adityapd]

Originally Posted by [b

Quote[/b] (rtech @ May 06 2004,13:51)]Yea, the old look city's can be had for that amount. I wonder if its worth the extra dosh to spring for the Vtec??? Seeing that there is only a 6 Hp diff....

rtech,

If i recollect correctly shan2nu had mentioned a while ago that he knew of a 2002 vtec which was up for sale for around 4.5 L in bangalore.

You can check if the car's still available.

~A