[.anshuman]

both the cars are really good cars and deliver good performance and mileage for cars of this class and are relaible.

my observations-
-----------------
indica-
1.will bend rims
2.suspensions good for a lakh kilometers
3.unresponsive below 2k rpm,driveablity in 5th gear after 80kmph superb.
4.no doubt about ride(a bit rattly at slow speeds)and stability
5.superb mileage
6.only 3 colors available

swift
---------
1.great acceleration
2.prone to rattle
3.awesome looks
4. can be fitted with good upsize rims
5.proven engine

[aseem]

Originally Posted by Stratos

As most of the people here have talked about Diesel vs Petrol, I wont talk on that. If you consider comfort, the Indica comes with a very good suspension and a much better back seat than the Swift.

that diesel engines are not all that reliable after certain kms.

I own a Swift and daily go to my office in an Indica/Innova cab. Trust me, to compare the two in terms of comfort is like comparing apples with oranges. Swift is miles apart in comfort, driving pleasure, ride quality, zippiness than Indica. The front seats are also way way better than Indicas seats.
I have driven Indica many a times, though not the turbo Indica, but as far as normal Indica is concerned, its very slugish.
Swift definitely has rattle problem, but its a manufacturing defect of the rear seat, which has been fixed in the newer lot, and fixed in my car as well. So rattle free now

[turbo_v12]

Hey Kiran,

Though I am a car enthusiast, I woul suggest you go for the Indica.

A lot of people have been having problems with the SWIFT (you will see a lot of thread here posted for the same). I think the Indica will be more maintainence free, and will also give you better mileage.

However, do some sound research befor going in for the car you want.

[aseem]

Originally Posted by turbo_v12

Hey Kiran,

Though I am a car enthusiast, I woul suggest you go for the Indica.

A lot of people have been having problems with the SWIFT (you will see a lot of thread here posted for the same). I think the Indica will be more maintainence free, and will also give you better mileage.

However, do some sound research befor going in for the car you want.

What kind of problems? Rattling noise? I have seen many a indicas with rattles, bent rims and black smoke. Other than the rattles, Swift is a problem free car, and is a benchmark for b+ segment cars. Its fun to drive and the front seats are much much more comfier than Indica.
Indica will have higher maintainence probs than Swift, as the Esteem engine is a proven workhorse that gives no trouble, whereas Indicas do have niggling quality issues.

[Stratos]

Originally Posted by aseem

I own a Swift and daily go to my office in an Indica/Innova cab. Trust me, to compare the two in terms of comfort is like comparing apples with oranges. Swift is miles apart in comfort, driving pleasure, ride quality, zippiness than Indica. The front seats are also way way better than Indicas seats.

Atleast the Indica in which I sat had a much larger legroom than the swift.

[hari_rama]

If it were for me then i wud be going for the swift.My friends swift constantly gives him above 13.5 kmpl in city with ac always on & also he drives it a bit harshly.He also has chjanged the tires & alloy wheels.In highways he get above 16.5 km.So a stock swift with a light foot can give you much more fe.Though i should admit tht rear seat spacing is a letdown in swift & in indica theres more & more room.So ultimately it boils down on how many commuters u usually have.If ur family consists of tall members then indica is better

[Zappo]

Originally Posted by aseem

What kind of problems? Rattling noise? I have seen many a indicas with rattles, bent rims and black smoke. Other than the rattles, Swift is a problem free car, and is a benchmark for b+ segment cars. Its fun to drive and the front seats are much much more comfier than Indica.
Indica will have higher maintainence probs than Swift, as the Esteem engine is a proven workhorse that gives no trouble, whereas Indicas do have niggling quality issues.

Aseem, I was trying not to get into this but now that you brought it up here are a few facts. Unless you are talking about one of those pre-V2 day Indicas I have not seen Indicas rattle. And I can vouch for that after 3-4 years of experience with Indicas. Black smokes are again the hallmark of badly maintained cabs maybe. A well maintained Indica won't spew out black smoke. On hard acceleration all diesel cars do spew out some black smoke if the tail pipe has not been decarbonized in a while. But thats about it.

Yes, swift is zippy. No one doubts that. But that does not make it "much more comfier than Indica". And even you know that... right? In fact in the hatch segment you will be hard-pressed to find a car which is as comfy as Indica is.

And maintenance? You think so? You think wrong mate I once had a problem with my older Indica getting stuck in a remote place in a hot summer day with a burst oil seal under the bonnet, spewing oil jets. I got a mech who repaired various diesel vehicle. He had a look at the whole thing, went and bought an original Tata seal which are available everywhere (thanks to those millions of Tata diesel vehicles runinng around everywhere) and replaced it. For a good measure he even gave my car a wash under the hood to wash away all the black oil marks. For the whole exercise he charged me just Rs.250, i think. Most probably rs.150 was the oil seal and rs.100 for his labor (or some such break-up). That was more than a year back and the seal is fine since then. So much for your higher maintenance. No other car gives you this peace of mind. If you get stuck on a remote highway far away from city with your swift with a similar problem you can bet anything that it won't be this easy.

[aseem]

Zappo, I cant comment about the rear seat as I drive my Swift and go to office in front seat of Indica. Therefore as far as front seats are concerned, Swift has much more comfortable front seats.

[venkatrx]

FTD - Swift
FE - Indica
Maintenance - Swift
Front seat comfort - Swift
Rear seat comfort - Indica
AC - Swift
Looks - Swift

you prioritize your requirements and see which is better.

[devarshi84]

Originally Posted by kiranc

Hi all,

I want a car which is sturdy in its build and that which performs well on Indian roads with reasonable power or mileage .

I think two cars stand out in the lot, The Indica turbo and the Swift.

Which of the two would you recommend ?

I am a little worried on the mileage aspect of the Swift.
I would take the Swift as its a well powered car.
But, how much mileage is everybody getting on the Swift ?

As for Indica... If Cab drivers are using it, the vehicle must be damn good for the abuse they put it through.
The Indicas interiors arent so bad either.

So which of the two should I consider ?

1. Sturdiness:- That's the first thing you have mentioned and tata's beat Maruti cars in this respect. Maruti swift cant match the sturdiness of Indica.

2. performs reasonably:- Both car will perform reasonably. Swift is marginally good in city but Indica is much much better on the highway.

3. Mileage:- Indica is a diesel and swift is a petrol. Indica will certainly perform better in this regards. But swift as a petrol gets good FE. depends on the mileage you cover.

4. power:- Swift takes the indica diesel anyday. The petrol engine is overall very powerful.

5. Ineteriors are better on the swift but indica's have more space.


decide your priorities and then select. if you drive mostly in the city less than 40kms daily and an occasional long trip a month then swift may work

If you you drive more than 40kms daily in the city and 2-3 long trips then I thikn indica diesel turbo will work out nice for you.

[hari_rama]

Hey i dont understand one thing.how is swift not as good as indica on highways?? i thought swift had better rollon timings than indica.please clarify as i have not driven both on highways

Originally Posted by devarshi84

1. Sturdiness:- That's the first thing you have mentioned and tata's beat Maruti cars in this respect. Maruti swift cant match the sturdiness of Indica.

2. performs reasonably:- Both car will perform reasonably. Swift is marginally good in city but Indica is much much better on the highway.

3. Mileage:- Indica is a diesel and swift is a petrol. Indica will certainly perform better in this regards. But swift as a petrol gets good FE. depends on the mileage you cover.

4. power:- Swift takes the indica diesel anyday. The petrol engine is overall very powerful.

5. Ineteriors are better on the swift but indica's have more space.


decide your priorities and then select. if you drive mostly in the city less than 40kms daily and an occasional long trip a month then swift may work

If you you drive more than 40kms daily in the city and 2-3 long trips then I thikn indica diesel turbo will work out nice for you.

[ramkya1]

I have been thinking about the same question for some time now, what to buy in place of my old Santro and have decided on an Indica Diesal. All who own an Indica including fleet owners say the same thing; the engine has to be taken care of peoperly and you will have minimal costs. The VFM is great and its more roomy, you can see all round better than a swift and it's built tougher than a swift.

--Ramky
===============

[aseem]

Originally Posted by devarshi84

2. performs reasonably:- Both car will perform reasonably. Swift is marginally good in city but Indica is much much better on the highway.

Though I agree with most of your posts on most threads, however I found this one just very hard to digest. Swift is better than Esteem and feels more planted on higway than another other car in its segment. On top it feels stable at 150kmph which even the NHC cant, the Indica cant beat Swift in driving pleasure, stability, road grip, speed. Indica can probably beat swift in rear space, and cost of running.

[devarshi84]

Originally Posted by aseem

Though I agree with most of your posts on most threads, however I found this one just very hard to digest. Swift is better than Esteem and feels more planted on higway than another other car in its segment. On top it feels stable at 150kmph which even the NHC cant, the Indica cant beat Swift in driving pleasure, stability, road grip, speed. Indica can probably beat swift in rear space, and cost of running.

Why I said Indica is a better highway car is because of the following reasons.

1) Its a diesel. preffered for long distances.

2) Robust build makes it safer.

3) More comfortable than the swift making journeys a relaxed trip.

4) Its more spacious and hence you can sit with ease and carry more stuff.

5) It heavier and hence more planted on the highways.


But I never said Swift is not a good highway car.

1) I agree with you about it being more fun to drive. I have driven it once and its fun.

2) It is maybe more stable than the Indica at 150 kmph but I wont comment on this as I have not driven swift or Indica at high speeds. On top of that I dont think Indica even reaches 150kmph. but then how many actually take their hatches at 150kmph? Lets not bring NHC into the pic.

3)I find the stability and raod grip of both the cars to be competitively equal.

Its the above mentioned benefits of Indica which made me say that its a better highway car. Just the reasons why most of the travel companies buy Indicas for long trips.

[Zappo]

Originally Posted by ramkya1

I have been thinking about the same question for some time now, what to buy in place of my old Santro and have decided on an Indica Diesal. All who own an Indica including fleet owners say the same thing; the engine has to be taken care of peoperly and you will have minimal costs. The VFM is great and its more roomy, you can see all round better than a swift and it's built tougher than a swift.

--Ramky
===============

Yes Ramky... and even that "engine has to be taken care of peoperly" does not mean anything like jumping over the moon Lol. Its as simple as to just ensure that every 5000kms service is done without a miss and the oil change and the filter replacements are done as per the manual. Thats about it. Its amazingly VFM... whether you think of the FE (amazing, cheaper than running M800) or the maintenance costs or for that matter the no. of passengers that you can carry per trip (if you run a cab service ). And in my opinion no other car in its segment generates as much peace of mind as this one does. You feel safe and cocooned.

But one thing that you must always remember is that when it comes to city driving and those signal to signal drag races a Swift will beat you hands down. So remember that and then decide.