Elantra GT vs Elantra Crdi(Was skoda vs elantra)

[azifali]

hello Team Bhp Members

Last week I booked the skoda but my financier (cholamandalam DBS) came back with high EMIs, high Downpayment with low tenure (4 years) that left me disappointed.

I was then advised to look for a new car as interest rates are low.

A quick check with Kun Hyundai revealed that the loan tenure is 5 years but with reasonable interest rates.

Now I am still keen with Skoda and I gotta sign my papers soon as the loan is ready but I am also interested to know what are the average servicing costs of Octavia.

The car that I have booked has run a mileage of 65k and is a July 2002, Ambiente model @ 7.3 lakhs (i know the price is high but thats the price you gotta pay in Chennai where market is tightly controlled by the used car dealers).

Running through Team bhp forums, I was shocked to see skoda servicing costs running into high 5 figure numbers..

Can someone tell me the costs of the maintenance, on average and whether insurance will cover part replacements if any ?

Also CRDi looks great VFM (for the engine only ) - the car 's intereriors are probably shared with a cheap KIA model and is just terrible.

The suspension, front grille looks, etc weren't that great as well.

Now my Qs are ..

Is skoda octavia worth it and is reasonable to maintain (read - 10k every 3months +-25%).

Or is it worth dumping it and just taking a CRDi.
In this case does Chevrolet optra petrol (1.6 - no safety features) come into picture ?

Appreciate your early replies

A confused Team Bhpian

[tsk1979]

A 65K done octavia will not be feasible to maintain at 10,000/3 months if you do more than 60-70km/day.
Insurance will not cover anything. Be prepared for Rs 1.5/km of maintaince cost and in some instances 4-5rs/km maintainance costs.
If the piece you get has not been kept well, you are looking to fill the coffers of your favorite skoda dealership.

Hyundai crdi you can get a brand new piece for 9L on road after discounts and it carrys a 4 year warranty too.

As for the 7.3L skoda. remeber you can afford to buy a 7 series BMW too if it is old enough, but your budget is of a 7.5L car owner so you can never maintain it. Skoda maintaining cost is up there with 15L+ cars. so if you can afford the eMI of a 15L car, only then buy a 15L car.

[jkdas]

Get the Hyundai. Thers not doubt that a Hyundai is cheaper to maintain. And dont go for looks! I knw someone who ended up selling his skoda coz of bils like 50k in 5months. He bought skoda coz Elantra's had a bad grill!!! ANd he was back on market to buy a new Elantra after selling his Skoda.

Elantra it should be. If you can spare some moolah, get the Pete's added to your Elantra.

[ECM]

Yeah Elantra I just love it and feel it is perhaps one of those under estimated cars in our market.go for it and forget white elephant!

[devarshi84]

I would back the statement of elantra maintainence being cheap if an owner vouches for it.

No offences to anyone but usually in this segment maintainence is bound to be high.

let some elantra diesel owner speak up.

take opinions from both the side and then decide.

BTW from my knowledge elantra would be cheaper but I like Skoda.

[Rtech]

Is skoda octavia worth it and is reasonable to maintain (read - 10k every 3months +-25%).

Whoa! Why on earth would you need to spend 10K every 3 months?

Depending on how much you run a month, you would need to get the oil changed a maximum of 2 times in the year. Skoda's only use fully synthetic remember, so that's why the costs seem that much higher than other cars. The oil alone costs you Rs.3,200-3,500/-. Oil/fuel filter runs about 500 and 1,100 respectively. An OE air filter costs about 1,500.

Those are you regular costs for a basic service.

However, seeing that the car you are looking at is 4 years old and run 65K kilometers, you should check the condition of the brake pads and discs, sway bar bushings and clutch. If all those are ok, you should be safe. But, isn't 7.3 lakhs way too high for a 2002 model? You get 2004 models for that price here.

[tsk1979]

A regular oil change service with no parts changed will cost around 7000rs. Considering the car is 65K done, there are bound to be some part changes. So the maintance costs, if the car is serviced from an authorized service center, are going to be that much.

[GTO]

I would back the statement of elantra maintainence being cheap if an owner vouches for it.

Valid point. We shouldnt assume that the costs are lower until an actual owner clarifies it based on actual experience.

[tsk1979]

I remember a thread about an elantra owner who drove the car for 3L kms and wanted to buy and elantra again. Regarding maintainace costs, a paid service with oil change costs less than 2000rs for the elantra. This information is not hard to come by.
Regarding maintaince costs and problems, I doubt it would be less reliable than accent crdi. Sadly there are too few elantras on TBHP or rather in India to really know how expensive it is to maintain the elantra

[200mph]

dude you are spending 7.5 lacs on a second hand 2002 skoda thats why too much ! get a fiesta diesel or a accent crdi in that price a brand new one !!! and they will have low maintaince cost. but if you want a car in the higher segment . ie then go for a ELANTRA btw the two choice you got .

[hawkeye]

azifali

I was in a similar dilemma a few months back. I had to choose between an Elantra and a Skoda and had done a decent amount of research on both cars.

If you are going to keep this car for atleast 2 - 3 years, I suggest simply pickup an Elantra. The Hyundai service network is to vouch for and you will surely not spend much on the Elantra's maintainence v/s a Skoda. Maintaining a Skoda which has done 65k will be outright expensive, whereas I had myself test-driven a 2004 Elantra which had already done 90k and still in decent condition and the owner wanted to keep it with him. It seems the only issue with Elantra would be bad resale (if bought new) and the maintaining quality of fuel used.

[200mph]

the last time i remember looking at my brothers elantra service bill , it was close to 2500 rs. at 40k . and i think its really cheap, coz even my crdi accent is almost the same.

[Mp421b]

I heard maybe a rumour or something that 40k service of the Skoda is 32,000??????

[tadukuttan]

Originally Posted by devarshi84

I would back the statement of elantra maintainence being cheap if an owner vouches for it.

No offences to anyone but usually in this segment maintainence is bound to be high.

let some elantra diesel owner speak up.

I have a CRDI elantra, bought it last March, a has done nearly 40K Kms. And the only thing I have spent maintanence money on is brake pads at 30K Kms, ie, other than regular service at 10K Kms. And service interval is 10,000 Kms.

I also know of another two cars, both done between 50K and 60K. Nothing other than regular service, brake pads and tyres.

Originally Posted by devarshi84

take opinions from both the side and then decide.

And why I think the Elantra is a better car -
1) Way more powerful. Drive one on a freeway to believe what it can do.
2) Airbags/ABS/EBD/TCS/Climate Control, and they all work properly.
3) 4 year/80K Kms bumper to bumper warranty, and I would vouch that Hyundai has absolutly no problems replacing anything which blows.
4) Showrooms and Service centers which dont take you for a ride, and they also treat you with respect, as is due for any paying customer.
5) Cheap to maintain, and even if I screw up something, I am sure I will be able to afford the repairs...
6) I know many guys with Skodas, and I have seen some of the bills. Extremly fuel efficient, but, the maintanence bills make a mockery of the money saved on fuel. There is simply no comparison between the Rs 2500 spent on a Elantra Service to what you could potentially blow up on an Octavia Service.
7) Yummy discounts while buying the car, since everybody else wants to buy Skoda?

Originally Posted by devarshi84

BTW from my knowledge elantra would be cheaper but I like Skoda.

Guess you already know the answer to the question you posted? Still want the Skoda, follow your heart dude. At least I would have...

[devarshi84]

@tadukuttan,

Fair enough. I certainly think your short owner's review would be helpful to the buyer.

As for my decision. I would buy a skoda outright just because I am a sucker for European cars(Though we own 2 japs right now). I wouldn't care if Elantra is cheap or better VFM or faster because I follow my heart which Says I love skoda. LOL