[Pankaj_Ahlawat]

Well gentlemen , I too need to pick up a hatch to replace indica turbo for my wife. It would be hardly driven 600 to 800 kms in a month. Hence leaning towards a petrol. Now choice is Swift vxi or zxi or i10 grand . OTR 5.5, 6.4 and 5.0 L respectively. More inclined towards swift cause of interiors, ride quality(most important after having stiffer ride of Verna, indica, xuv in the house), space and bulletproof reliability
ICE upgrade ( rainbows and DD amp) and alloys with Michelin 185/65/15 is must
However split between vxi and zxi. Any thoughts. Thinking of 3-4 lacs down payment and rest finance.
Any thoughts welcome, wish to close it next week

[shankar.balan]

Originally Posted by Pankaj_Ahlawat

Well gentlemen , I too need to pick up a hatch to replace indica turbo for my wife. It would be hardly driven 600 to 800 kms in a month. Hence leaning towards a petrol. Now choice is Swift vxi or zxi or i10 grand . OTR 5.5, 6.4 and 5.0 L respectively. More inclined towards swift cause of interiors, ride quality(most important after having stiffer ride of Verna, indica, xuv in the house), space and bulletproof reliability ICE upgrade ( rainbows and DD amp) and alloys with Michelin 185/65/15 is must However split between vxi and zxi. Any thoughts. Thinking of 3-4 lacs down payment and rest finance. Any thoughts welcome, wish to close it next week

Consider the Pulse, Micra, Ritz and Stingray too! All very nice cars indeed.

[a4anurag]

Originally Posted by Pankaj_Ahlawat

Any thoughts welcome, wish to close it next week

Swift ZXi it is. Just add the speakers + Amp you want and enjoy. It is a complete package and overall a classic ownership.

Anurag.

[Pankaj_Ahlawat]

Originally Posted by shankar.balan

Consider the Pulse, Micra, Ritz and Stingray too! All very nice cars indeed.

My wife does not like any of above, last rejection being brio for coming across as fragile and cramped. So it's actually more of swift, zxi or vxi being the question.
Zxi has ABS , airbags, alloys, climate control.
Nicely integrated HU , however not sure if it is a good one to do justice to rainbow comps and DDc4c,
Am I better off with vxi that leaves room for choice of alloys plus Michelin , nice 2din dvd led HU capable of juicing out SQ
However this would be without abs and airbags , not sure if that would be that relevant as my wife drives very modestly.

[90BHP]

Firstly I would recommend you check the service network for both Volkswagen & fiat in the area. They are not yet known to have the most widespread network so that might help you cut your choices. I personally own the i20 & the reason I bought it was the space & the luxury that Hyundai gave me at that price. However given a second choice & probably a shorter height I would have gone for the polo. I still the design but the only grouse is that I am 6ft and the car just doesn't fit me well.

[0xTKB]

^There are all the showroom in my hometown barring Volkswagen which doesn't have a single showroom in the whole state. Another reason that we're not interested in Polo is that it has 3-cylinder engine whereas the Polo GT TDI is out of his budget (8-lakh).

[F150]

Mileage shouldn't be too low & should be a diesel car.
Spares should be easily available.
He prefers a sedate driving style, not like us enthusiasts, so handling won't matter that much.
For him, Safety > Comfort > Features > Handling.

With the above parameters, i20 seems to be sole contender.

Grand i10 may not be able to accommodate the occasional 5th passenger and it doesn't have powerful heart that propels the i20.

On contrary, had he been an enthusiast, PUNTO 90HP would have been the sole contender

[julupani]

I think your friend is better off with one of the FIATs.

Some of the reasons are:

1. He will be driving on ghat roads, which are never in good condition for long. The FIAT's have SUV like ground clearance of 185mm and comparatively stiff suspension. So there is not much chance of bottomming out or scraping anything. The i20 with its low GC and soft suspension will run this risk a lot.

2. Even if he is not an enthusiast, driving around in mountain roads, he will feel the confidence that the FIAT twins will give him, compared to the vague steering of the i20.

3. FIAT dealers are a hugely improved lot and are getting even better. So you dont need to worry too much about that.

[asit.kulkarni93]

Hello,
Did your friend consider the Amaze? I myself have not been in one, but a friend who recently got the amaze diesel keeps telling us about the space, comfort and the ease of driving the 100ps Diesel engine. You can get one your budget and It has ABS standard across all its variants.
As you suggested he needs no enthusiasts car why don't you suggest him a verito/vibe? They are the ideal workhorses we have in our market. The D6 variant comes with abs, end and air bags and is priced at 6.66lakhs ex-showroom ( Shimla).

[vb-saan]

Originally Posted by Pankaj_Ahlawat

Am I better off with vxi that leaves room for choice of alloys plus Michelin , nice 2din dvd led HU capable of juicing out SQ
However this would be without abs and airbags , not sure if that would be that relevant as my wife drives very modestly.

I would say go with the ZXi. IMO, airbags/ABS are much more important than choice of alloys or music system. Your wife maybe a modest driver, but our roads are full of not-so-modest drivers. Please don't discount on safety.

[a4anurag]

Originally Posted by Pankaj_Ahlawat

Am I better off with vxi that leaves room for choice of alloys plus Michelin, nice 2din dvd led HU capable of juicing out SQ. However this would be without abs and airbags , not sure if that would be that relevant as my wife drives very modestly.

Every time you or your need not be at fault. The other road users will compel you for thinking about safety features. It is better to go with the ZXi variant and retro fit what all music system parts you want. At least you have the safety features and a peace of mind which is more important than music.

The saying: "Jaan hai to Jahaan hai!"

Originally Posted by vb-san

I would say go with the ZXi. IMO, airbags/ABS are much more important than choice of alloys or music system. Your wife maybe a modest driver, but our roads are full of not-so-modest drivers. Please don't discount on safety.

+1000!. You echo my mind.

Anurag.

[Pankaj_Ahlawat]

Originally Posted by a4anurag

Every time you or your need not be at fault. The other road users will compel you for thinking about safety features. It is better to go with the ZXi variant and retro fit what all music system parts you want. At least you have the safety features and a peace of mind which is more important than music.

The saying: "Jaan hai to Jahaan hai!"



+1000!. You echo my mind.

Anurag.

Lol ..agree completely, dunno why one needs other folks telling you that . pure incident of how mind gets hijacked for bling stuff at the price of logic

[Aroy]

If you can afford it, get the SX4. You get high GC, better space and a more powerful engine, the ideal combination for hill roads.

[0xTKB]

Originally Posted by julupani

I think your friend is better off with one of the FIATs.

Some of the reasons are:

1. He will be driving on ghat roads, which are never in good condition for long. The FIAT's have SUV like ground clearance of 185mm and comparatively stiff suspension. So there is not much chance of bottomming out or scraping anything. The i20 with its low GC and soft suspension will run this risk a lot.

2. Even if he is not an enthusiast, driving around in mountain roads, he will feel the confidence that the FIAT twins will give him, compared to the vague steering of the i20.

3. FIAT dealers are a hugely improved lot and are getting even better. So you dont need to worry too much about that.

This was my initial recommendation to him. And, I went today to the showroom of Fiat, there, the salesman told me that he'll waive off Rs 70,000 + Free insurance + some accessories on a 2012 model Fiat Punto Dynamic 75 BHP (with ABS but no airbags). So essentially, this model will be of Rs. 5.5 lakhs. So what do you say guys? Should we go for this 2012 model Fiat Punto?

And regarding the dealers of Fiat, yeah they have improved a lot. Fiat showroom is under the same guy who has Chevrolet showroom here & his customer care & ASC are highly spoken of.

Originally Posted by asit.kulkarni93

Hello,
Did your friend consider the Amaze? I myself have not been in one, but a friend who recently got the amaze diesel keeps telling us about the space, comfort and the ease of driving the 100ps Diesel engine. You can get one your budget and It has ABS standard across all its variants.
As you suggested he needs no enthusiasts car why don't you suggest him a verito/vibe? They are the ideal workhorses we have in our market. The D6 variant comes with abs, end and air bags and is priced at 6.66lakhs ex-showroom ( Shimla).

He did not consider Honda Amaze because somehow, he didn't like the build quality of the vehicle. Regarding Mahindra Verito/Vibe, they're hugely practical but downright ugly too.

[Pankaj_Ahlawat]

Originally Posted by a4anurag

Swift ZXi it is. Just add the speakers + Amp you want and enjoy. It is a complete package and overall a classic ownership.

Anurag.

Well looks like gravitating more towards vdi now and then going for zdi would take it to whole new territory ..so thinking of vdi, would also test drive I.10 grand today