[arakhanna]

Originally Posted by rakeshkalli

Guys I am planning to buy a new car in next month a petrol car and after stretching my budget to 6lac, i decide for the new liva g, will start the TD's after Christmas of
1.swift vxi
2.Brio
3.Liva
The good i am seeing in liva are space and reliability
Can any one put some light on the 2014 model cons?
Ford tdci was actually my pick of a car but friends using it have suggested against it after the niggles they are facing.

Hi Rakeshkalli,

I was in the same boat as you. Have test driven, or my better half test drove the swift, brio and liva. Actually we test drove the punto evo, ford figo and the i20/i10 also.

Largely bought it down to the Liva ,Brio and Punto evo.

The Punto evo design is leaps and bounds above the other two but my wife did not enjoy driving it. Prefers a lighter steering set up. Hence was ruled out.

The Liva interiors are extremely frugal to look at, not that the Brio has well appointed interiors but in comparison, better. Given its the third car in the family, boot space was not a requirement at all.

To cut the story short,we concluded on the Brio and have booked the refreshed Brio but the 2014 model due to the lower excise duty levels. Should get delivery in a week.

The Brio does look small, but looks are deceiving. The back leg space is actually quite good. But the design needs to grow on you, either hate it or love it. Not much indifference, coming from the way its constructed especially the way the rear of the car is designed.

All the best in your search. If the excise duty cut is indeed rolled back expect a 4% increase in OTR price.

[rav11stars]

Originally Posted by schakravarthy

Though your account has some truth in it, on the whole I feel its grossly exaggerated.
Punto has short gearing and it takes a bit of time getting used to it. But once you are in sync, its not a pain to drive it in the city.
Its not as good as the 75hp in city traffic, but it definitely isn't as bad as you make it sound to be.

I've been driving a Punto Evo 1.3MJD for the last 4 months and the driving was distributed between city and highway on a 70:30 ratio. I can vouch for it's drive-ability in B2B traffic in the city. It'll just amble along in the third gear, but like @schakravarthy mentioned it needs getting used to.
Not that I'm an ardent fan of FIAT or something, but of all the cars I've test driven and having driven a Swift Dzire, I felt the comfort in the Punto to be really good. The driving posture takes time to get used to, but it's comfortable. I'd suggest that you take a nice and long test drive.

For a not-so-techy review and pics have a glimpse of this initial ownership review.
http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/test-d...-1-3l-mjd.html

[nevertouchme]

70 KM a day in Bangalore Traffic | 6 to 10 laks, what car? My friend has a hard time deciding a car and thus posting on this behalf.

Excerpt from his Email:

I am seeking recommendation from experts to decide on buying a hatchback to manage my 70km/day office commute in bumper to bumper Bangalore traffic .

Must have & non-negotiable : Air Bags, ABS, Bluetooth;
Budget - Anything from 6 to 10 lakhs on road price.

My initial preference was for AT/AMT variant but unfortunately there is not much choice. AT/AMT's explored -
Grand i10, Zest, Celerio (no airbags)
Brio AT & Micra CVT (Ugly looks)
Ecosport AT and Polo GT TSI (Long waiting period, noncommittal and unresponsive dealers).

With no feasible AT potions, now I am open to look at Diesel cars which are very easy and most suitable for city drive with very minimum gear changes.

I own an Innova for Highway & family use and hence the much needed 2nd car is meant for City commute.


Which amongst Grand i10, Swift, Polo, Elite i20 is best for city commute? Are there any other cars that I could consider or wait for in 2015?

Can experts on this forum recommend?

[Grand Drive]

With 10 lakhs as a maximum budget, your friend can test drive and consider Elite i20 Asta Diesel, Swift Zdi, Ertiga Vdi ( No Airbags ), VW GT TDi, VW Tdi Highline, Jazz ( Expected launch March 2015 ) and Zest Diesel XT.

If your friend on a tighter budget , he can consider Ritz Zdi, Grand i10 Asta (o ) Diesel, Bolt Diesel XT and Zest Diesel XMS.

[ampere]

Originally Posted by nevertouchme

Can experts on this forum recommend?

Two points:

- 70km/day
- Bumper to bumper traffic conditions?

What takes precedence here? Fuel bills or driving comfort? If driving comfort, then it translates to a petrol AT. If fuel bill, then a good diesel.

- Look at the top end Grand I10/I20 Diesels. Good and comfortable for city traffic. I20 would also add punch to the highway.
- I would say the I20 diesel top end hands down. He would get the best of every thing, provided he is OK with a manual.

- If AT needed: I would say reconsider the Micra CVT.

[CountMe91]

Originally Posted by nevertouchme

Which amongst Grand i10, Swift, Polo, Elite i20 is best for city commute? Are there any other cars that I could consider or wait for in 2015?

For city commutes, you can consider the following options - Swift ZDi (overpriced) and Elite i20 CRDi Asta (more bang for bucks). You can also wait for the launch of upgraded Jazz which will receive premium updates and may get a diesel 1.5 mill as well. The Jazz may also feature a RS badge meaning a larger capacity petrol engine in line with existing foray of 1.2 Vtecs.

I would not suggest the Grand i10 diesel owing to a smaller diesel pot and the lack of steering feedback.

[sumitj]

hi all,

i need your expert advice in buying a car. i want to buy a hatch with important factors being:
1 fun to drive
2 good pick up
3 good power

final coices after enough speculation and test drives:
1 maruti swift zxi petrol
2 vw polo gt tdi diesel

at some point i want to remap the engine and increase bhp. do you guys think it is fine to do it to new car or should i wait for a few thousand kms?

also if and when i plan to remap which of the two above is better car to do it to?

thanks for all help.

[IshaanIan]

Originally Posted by sumitj

hi all,

i need your expert advice in buying a car. i want to buy a hatch with important factors being:
1 fun to drive
2 good pick up
3 good power

final coices after enough speculation and test drives:
1 maruti swift zxi petrol
2 vw polo gt tdi diesel

at some point i want to remap the engine and increase bhp. do you guys think it is fine to do it to new car or should i wait for a few thousand kms?

also if and when i plan to remap which of the two above is better car to do it to?

thanks for all help.

First break in the motor then go for a remap. If you have cash to spend and the facilities near you, go to a tuner with a dyno and you can have it done in less than an hour. I also recommend getting basic things like a cold air intake and a full exhaust setup with headers, before the remap in order to extract all your car's potential in stock form.

If all you want to do is remap your car, then you will get more results from the Polo GT tdi since it is a turbo-diesel car. With the Swift's normally aspirated K-Series unit, you will not see gains justifying the cost of remapping. However, if you want to do a heck of a lot more apart from remapping you car, a petrol motor is always recommended. You can go through this thread to get an idea of what I mean (turbo-charging is another option as well) : http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/modifi...d-112-bhp.html

[swiftnfurious]

Originally Posted by sumitj

...final coices after enough speculation and test drives:
1 maruti swift zxi petrol
2 vw polo gt tdi diesel

Confused why two completely different contenders? Any reason why the Swift D or the Polo GT TSi is NOT considered?

Originally Posted by sumitj

...at some point i want to remap the engine and increase bhp. do you guys think it is fine to do it to new car or should i wait for a few thousand kms?

also if and when i plan to remap which of the two above is better car to do it to?...

I think there is nothing wrong even if you remap a new car; it's suggested to do after some kms to appreciate the difference between the stock car and a remapped one. Of the two, GT TDi may NOT even warrant a remap. I would NOT consider this being a VW; I could be proven wrong - but I would be eaiser on German machines than a Japanese one.

[CrAzY dRiVeR]

Originally Posted by sumitj

1 maruti swift zxi petrol

2 vw polo gt tdi diesel



at some point i want to remap the engine and increase BHP.

Why spent all the extra money for a GT TDi if you are planning to remap it? Just get the normal 1.5 Polo. Unlike the earlier GT, now the only difference between the two seems to be in tuning. A remap can get the same results out of both.

http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/modifi...hy-buy-gt.html

[gsurya]

Originally Posted by sumitj

hi all,



i need your expert advice in buying a car. i want to buy a hatch with important factors being:

1 fun to drive

2 good pick up

3 good power



final coices after enough speculation and test drives:

1 maruti swift zxi petrol

2 vw polo gt tdi diesel



at some point i want to remap the engine and increase bhp. do you guys think it is fine to do it to new car or should i wait for a few thousand kms?



also if and when i plan to remap which of the two above is better car to do it to?



thanks for all help.

Wonder if you test drove the new Tata Bolt petrol, it's the MOST fun hatch to drive today with a manual transmission.

And being turbocharged, can likely be further remapped to go even beyond its "sports mode"

[sumitj]

Thanks everyone for your kind replies. Since my knowledge in the area of remapping is very limited I might appear dumb in my inferences so request you all to bear with me and maybe explain simple things a little more in detail if I am incorrect.

To conclude from your responses; please correct me if I am wrong in my assumptions here:

1. It is better to remap a stock vehicle. There is no negative impact of remapping on a stock vehicle in terms of engine life, performance and maintenance.

2. Before remapping modify your vehicle with a cold air intake and a full exhaust setup with headers.

3. GT TDI is better, more powerful & a fun car to drive than Swift ZXI in stock form.


Thanks Ishaan for sharing the modified Swift link.

Thanks Swiftnfurious. Swift D is very low on Bhp and Petrol is better to drive in terms of faster pickup and more peppy engine. TSI is petrol but automatic and I love manual esp for a hatch with 100+bhp hence the choice being GT TDI.

Thanks Crazydriver that is an interesting point; will read the link from more details.

Thanks GSurya will test drive the Bolt to see the difference. However I also believe the waiting period is long for Bolt.

~Sumit

[lamborghini]

Originally Posted by sumitj

Thanks everyone for your kind replies. Since my knowledge in the area of remapping is very limited I might appear dumb in my inferences so request you all to bear with me and maybe explain simple things a little more in detail if I am incorrect.

To conclude from your responses; please correct me if I am wrong in my assumptions here:

1. It is better to remap a stock vehicle. There is no negative impact of remapping on a stock vehicle in terms of engine life, performance and maintenance.

2. Before remapping modify your vehicle with a cold air intake and a full exhaust setup with headers.

3. GT TDI is better, more powerful & a fun car to drive than Swift ZXI in stock form.


Thanks Ishaan for sharing the modified Swift link.

Thanks Swiftnfurious. Swift D is very low on Bhp and Petrol is better to drive in terms of faster pickup and more peppy engine. TSI is petrol but automatic and I love manual esp for a hatch with 100+bhp hence the choice being GT TDI.

Thanks Crazydriver that is an interesting point; will read the link from more details.

Thanks GSurya will test drive the Bolt to see the difference. However I also believe the waiting period is long for Bolt.

~Sumit

Hi Sumit,

I presently use a remapped Skoda Laura, remapped by T-O-T.
Some comments, and replies:

1) Typically turbo-ed vehicles show a better response (in terms of power gains) than a non-turbo vehicle. In this case, a remap on the GT TDi will have a better output than a remap on the Swift ZXi.
As for engine life - there will be a marginal increase in the rate of wear and tear, no doubt, so please keep that in mind. It will not be a significant increase however.

2) You can undertake the additional modifications post remap as well. My Laura is completely stock except for the remap. I am now toying with the idea of a better air filter to aid airflow.

3) The GT TDi is a very competent car, and with the right remap, can give a fight to some of the bigger and more powerful cars out there! It will also have a better ride + handling balance, and high speed stability than the Swift.

Some additional points:
- You should ideally get comfortable with the stock power and dynamics of the vehicle before going in for an increase in power. With the Laura, I waited till 17Kkm and then went in for a remap.
- Warranty can be void if the remap is discovered. They typically will not discover anything during routine services, but if the car needs some major work - there is a possibility of it being found out
- Be prepared for lots of black smoke under hard acceleration. Right now I am confused whether to stick with the remap, or get it tuned to stock just because I hate being that guy who literally smokes everyone at traffic lights
- Don't expect there to be a radical change. Yes, the car will accelerate faster and respond better, but it will not be a day/night difference.
- Get a good tuner! There are lots of fly by night tuners, and not so great products that can cause serious damage to the engine. It might cost a little more, but getting a tuner who understands what you want, has good experience working on similar cars, and is approachable at any time post the remap - is worth the additional cost!

Lastly - there are news of a Fiat Punto T-Jet in the works. Would be worthwhile waiting for that to launch as it will be a FAST Petrol with exemplary ride and handling, features, and stability. In terms of driving, the current Punto is easily a couple of notches above the Polo (barring the performance). The T-Jet will address the weak performance.

Alternately, if you are open to sedans - try the Ford Classic 1.6 Titanium. The car is hard to get your hands on, but the car is a gem in that price bracket! Compared to the GT TDi, you will get a sedan with enough change left over for you to play around with the engine a little (exhaust, air filter, etc.). It is a little dated no doubt, but the engine and handling of the car more than make up for its design!

[D4D]

Originally Posted by sumitj

at some point i want to remap the engine and increase bhp.

Go ahead and buy the GT TDI. It's a very powerful car. I REALLY don't see a need for remapping the car unless you want to take it on a track to race.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but the GT TDi comes with front disc brakes only. So I don't see a point in increasing power if there is no additional stopping power.

do you guys think it is fine to do it to new car or should i wait for a few thousand kms?

Ideally, just run in the engine following the owners manual religiously. Think of a remap after running in period.

To increase power, add a performance air filter/cold air intake, free flow exhaust. These are the better than spending on a remap right away.

[IshaanIan]

Originally Posted by D4D

Go ahead and buy the GT TDI. It's a very powerful car. I REALLY don't see a need for remapping the car unless you want to take it on a track to race.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but the GT TDi comes with front disc brakes only. So I don't see a point in increasing power if there is no additional stopping power.

That is still enough stopping power and if there are any limitations felt, upgraded brake pads are more than enough if the modifications we are talking about are simple ones