Automatic car for my wife

[geeash]

if GKS wants practicality with safety which is also VFM, he should look no further than an i10 asta A/T Or i20 1.4 AT asta (o)

1+ to that

I 10 At is a great car. Only if it had better FE

[flyingspur]

Originally Posted by pachchu

Fear that if something goes wrong with AT transmission, the road-side guy won't be able to fix it.
Finally, AT's not perceived (rightly) to be as thrilling as manual rides.

Funny thing about this example I'm stating here.

The DSG gearboxes found on VW's and Skoda's are fantastic fun to drive, sometimes surpassing manuals in driving excitement, however they are also the most unreliable of A/T gearboxes around.

Regular A/T's as such are hardly what can be called unreliable.

[rageshgr]

Well, she wants a Scorpio, Scorpio has an AT. So you can check it out. It is a 6-speed AT! What is your budget? Else you have the Civic AT for ~ 14 lacs

[venkman]

Originally Posted by GKS

dear Pachchu, blackasta and jkdas,



By the way, how come automatic is not so popular in India?. Surprised with the limited options available, is it because of fuel efficiency or something else.

GKS as you may already know The value of a new automatic is much higher than its geared counterpart but in the used car market it may be difficult to find buyers for the automatic and the price is more based on the year of manufacture.
I have driven the i10 AT and it feels good the A/c the Power and the Comfort trust the same with the Hyundai and the Wagon R - suggest you test drive all the possible vehicles before you finally decide. Cheers

[pachchu]

Originally Posted by venkman

in the used car market it may be difficult to find buyers for the automatic and the price is more based on the year of manufacture.

I would disagree there. I too was apprehensive 2 weeks back before I sold my Santro AT.

I just sold my 3 year old Santro AT, and I'd say there were so many queries, I had to pull out the ads to prevent more people from calling me. I was able to sell it at the price that I had posted in the ad.

My learning out of past 2 weeks is, if you maintain the car in good condition, it will sell well, no matter whether it is manual or AT. I see more and more people switching to AT now.

[sgiitk]

Do not expect a DSG type box in an econobox. All we can hope for is considering now that there is a demand, we may see boxes with a torque converter lock up. I am wondering whether a CVT with TC lockup is possible or available with some manufacturer! A CVT is really compact saving on space and weight. It may be the ideal choice.

[GKS]

Dear All,

Thanks for all your advise. Will be calling up Hyundai tomorrow. But couple of friends say Civic is better than i20. Also please note that I am planning to keep this car till she gets used to driving in Indian roads. for me safety comes first. second is comfort and user friendliness.

[jkdas]

Originally Posted by GKS

Dear All,

Thanks for all your advise. Will be calling up Hyundai tomorrow. But couple of friends say Civic is better than i20. Also please note that I am planning to keep this car till she gets used to driving in Indian roads. for me safety comes first. second is comfort and user friendliness.

Civic is big car for a starter; very pricey for that money IMHO. It has ground clearance issue. Its is very lazy at low rpm. It isnt loaded as i20 is wrt even air bags.

[rageshgr]

Originally Posted by GKS

Dear All,

Thanks for all your advise. Will be calling up Hyundai tomorrow. But couple of friends say Civic is better than i20. Also please note that I am planning to keep this car till she gets used to driving in Indian roads. for me safety comes first. second is comfort and user friendliness.

Well both are almost incomparable. i20 is a premium hatch in the 5-8 lac segment. Civic is a sedan in the 14-16 lac segment. So there you go. If I had that money, I will definitely go for the Civic. It is the dream car for most of us. A good drivers car too. It is the winner ( arguably ) even in its segment, the D segment.

[Axe77]

I don't think a Civic and i20 can be compared at all. They are completely different products; diff segments; engine cat; size ... everything.

Whatever suits your requirements is obviously better but I really can't see how an i20 can be rated better than the Civic. Drive both and you'll know the difference immediately.

[Sn1p3r]

Something in between i20 and Civic should do. What about the ANHC with AT? Your wife will be happy once she gets to learn the Indian roads (as you mention). Decent car size not too long as Civic, not too short as a hatch.

Cheers!

[rageshgr]

Apart from ANHC AT, Verna AT is a contender too.

[riteshritesh]

Check out the Honda City 1.5 S A/T ! Its around 10 Lakhs ex showroom. Have been using the City CVT for 4 years and you can't go wrong with the Honda A/T's.
Also A/T's are less prone to getting stolen ( joking)

i20 in any form is an awesome vehicle.

IMO, if this is the first car she would be driving in her life, don't use an auto transmission. It will make her brain dead and she won't be able to adjust to a manual transmission very easily.

[pachchu]

Originally Posted by riteshritesh

IMO, if this is the first car she would be driving in her life, don't use an auto transmission. It will make her brain dead and she won't be able to adjust to a manual transmission very easily.

pardon me ritesh for going offtopic here.

if an AT car were your first car, would it make you 'brain dead' too?

[shankar.balan]

I 20 AT without a doubt. Easy to park, Easy to Drive, Cool looking, Great Service network, Not so expensive to maintain. Given the requirement - Groceries and School Run - this is a heck of a stylish and practical option.

I wouldnt even bother to consider any other option given the above requirements.