[a4anurag]

Originally Posted by kilireddy0

The background is I am looking for a monthly city commute of around 1000 kms and a highway run of another 1000 kms.

My question is a diesel punto worth additional 1.8 lakhs ? or should I just stick to the brio given my monthly mileage and the fact that I am on a very tight budget.

For your commuting standards, diesel it is!

Punto is a beautiful car but not sure of the FASS. That is an unknown territory.

Do look at Swift / Ritz.

Do give us your budget and space needs, so we can short list cars.

Anurag.

[auto_enthusiast]

Originally Posted by ramzsys

At the starting of every week, a person has to start from a town nearby a hill-station, drive 20 km in normal 2 lane road, climbs 40 km through 40 hair pin bends(elevation from 240m to 1000m), drive through broken roads(motorable) in the tea estate, then return to the town after a few days.

Which diesel hatchback for him?

According to me the car which suits him is Figo TDCi. I know that it looks old school and the engine lacks top-end punch but, for every thing else its upto the mark. For those hair pin bends its got a brilliant steering, ready torque at the tap of a throttle for the uphill climbs and the well tuned suspension for the broken roads.

Hope this helps.

[a4anurag]

Originally Posted by ramzsys

At the starting of every week, a person has to start from a town nearby a hill-station, drive 20 km in normal 2 lane road, climbs 40 km through 40 hair pin bends (elevation from 240m to 1000m), drive through broken roads (motorable) in the tea estate, then return to the town after a few days.

Which diesel hatchback for him?

Swift D it is.

It will be FTD on all most all the roads and ghat sections.

Anurag.

[kilireddy0]

Originally Posted by CountMe91

If your monthly commute should cross>1000 kms (in your case, it is 2000 kms), you should consider buying a diesel. Therefore the Punto 1.3 MJD would make a good choice. You can also consider the Swift Diesel if you are worried about the Fiat After Sales Service. Both comes with the same engine.

The Punto is far more spacious and is more planted on the road as compared to the Brio. The Brio is more suited for city commutes. If you are planning to hit the highway more, then Punto is any day a better car than Brio.

Advantages of diesel heart:

1. Good Mileage when you are planning to run 2K kms/month.
2. Good Resale Value after 4/5 years.

Thank You CountMe91.

1. Do you think the additional money (~1.6 lakhs) is worth for the diesel ?

2. The 1000kms on the highway is a round trip once a month to my parents home, I might have to take it on a spin if I cant find space on a bus/train.

[CountMe91]

Yes you can recover the additional cost in 4/5 years. But then again do lookout for other options as correctly pointed out by other members.

[kilireddy0]

Originally Posted by a4anurag

For your commuting standards, diesel it is!

Punto is a beautiful car but not sure of the FASS. That is an unknown territory.

Do look at Swift / Ritz.

Do give us your budget and space needs, so we can short list cars.

Anurag.

Hello Anurag. Yes I agree that punto is beautiful and I am in love with that vehicle. My budget is in the 7 lakhs range for a diesel and would like to keep it to a minimum ( Sub 5/6 lakhs) if its a petrol.

Space is not a front runner, its just going to be me. I just relocated to bangalore from hyderabad, mostly city miles will be put on it and my parents place is 500 kms from bangalore, so there might be the occasional monthly run to their place.

[a4anurag]

Originally Posted by kilireddy0

Hello Anurag. Yes I agree that punto is beautiful and I am in love with that vehicle. My budget is in the 7 lakhs range for a diesel and would like to keep it to a minimum ( Sub 5/6 lakhs) if its a petrol.

Space is not a front runner, its just going to be me. I just relocated to bangalore from hyderabad, mostly city miles will be put on it and my parents place is 500 kms from bangalore, so there might be the occasional monthly run to their place.

If you love the Punto then do get the top-end with all bells and whistles that does include safety features which are a MUST as you have highway drives planned!

If space is not an issue then why not look at a top-end Ritz / Swift ZDi?

Anurag.

[kilireddy0]

Originally Posted by a4anurag

If you love the Punto then do get the top-end with all bells and whistles that does include safety features which are a MUST as you have highway drives planned!

If space is not an issue then why not look at a top-end Ritz / Swift ZDi?

Anurag.

Heard Ritz might be discontinued. And as far as swift goes the only bummer is that there are way too many on the road.

I have decided on the Diesel Punto given my mileage, as you guys said.

Thanks for the help.

[srikanthns]

Originally Posted by kilireddy0

Heard Ritz might be discontinued.

How did you come by this information? I also asked this question an year back based on the lower sales numbers. Thread was closed as it is hypothetical.

[a4anurag]

Originally Posted by kilireddy0

Heard Ritz might be discontinued. And as far as swift goes the only bummer is that there are way too many on the road.

I have decided on the Diesel Punto given my mileage, as you guys said.

Thanks for the help.

Good that you have decided on the Punto D.

AFAIK, there is no such news on the Ritz getting discontinued. Why would Maruti do so when it is getting some kind of income from that car. It is not a market dud totally for them to get rid of it.

Anurag.

[kilireddy0]

Originally Posted by srikanthns

How did you come by this information? I also asked this question an year back based on the lower sales numbers. Thread was closed as it is hypothetical.

Don't know how true this is, heard from a friend and didn't want to take a chance is all.

[CountMe91]

Even if the Ritz is discontinued its parts will be available in plenty and abundance. So no worries for that matter. Parts of erstwhile Zen and Esteem are readily available with most Maruti dealers. Advantage of owning a Maruti I suppose.

As far as my thinking goes, Maruti would not discontinue the Ritz all of a sudden without actually introducing some new juice in the B2 segment. Otherwise it would leave the Swift unrivaled. One buyer of Ritz would esentially mean one less Swift customer. But then again, this equates to one less customer of Hyundai. As long as it is contributing to Maruti's sales charts who cares! Plus with the new updated Swift round the corner, the Ritz would sell even less IMO.

[aquashankar]

This topic must have been discussed so many times by so many prospective car buyers in this country. My post here is to invite satisfied owners of both brands also to pitch in so that I can make an informed purchase.

We have a Maruti Zen MPFI 2005 model which is a nifty car for city and occasional long drives. As we have begun doing long drives (in excess of 200 kms) with family, our requirements have changed. We are looking at a strong, safe, family car. As we love hill stations, our preference is for a good hatchback which has good climbing ability, a good AC and decent luggage space. For city rides, we will be using the Zen as we find it to be the best in its segment in terms of its small size, easy servicing, decent mileage and ability to nip into confined spaces.

The two new cars in question have very different characters. It is like comparing a butler and a friend. Both can be trusted, both have integrity but provide very different psychological benefits.

My better half and I took detailed TDs of both cars and found the following:

Fit and finish: The Polo definitely scores here as everything is brilliantly put together. Fitting gaps are minimal and the interiors are the best in its class. The Punto seems put together in a hurry although the interiors are a notch above the outgoing model. Some of the handles in the Punto feel flimsy although the mechanics look good

Build quality: Both are excellent and solid grade steel used but the Punto felt stronger, albeit by only a margin over the Polo.

Family space: The Punto wins here with better rear legroom. The Polo has adequate space

Steering: The Punto is excellent although the Polo is close. But the Punto has razor sharp feedback that back it a joy to ride in the city. My better half saw the grin on my face and agreed herself that the Punto feels more driver friendly.

Handling: The Punto is wow. Throw it around a corner and it grips like an iguana. The Polo too is good but not as sure footed as the Punto

Safety features: Both are excellent. Airbags and ABS.

Braking: Again the Punto wins here. It is much more sure of itself and stops in a straight line. The Polo is excellent too but the Punto inspires braking confidence.

Engine: Now here is where the duality begins. The new Polo 1.5 is marvelous. Pickup is linear but really quick. Very little turbo lag which makes it wonderful to use in the city as well as the highways. It is so quiet and has such a different feel from the earlier 1.2 TDi. My wife and I both found the performance to be beyond expectations.

The Punto 93 ps on the other hand has adequate performance and acceleration. Even in the second gear, it is quite comfortable puttering around in traffic. Quite frankly, we did not understand the turbo lag that everyone seems to be talking about. There is a bit of lag but not so bad that it holds up traffic. Maybe we’re just getting old and have lower expectations.

The main concern now is that we have read horror stories regarding both cars everywhere when it comes to servicing and mechanical issues. My other concern is that inspite of being a great car, the Punto just doesn’t seem to be selling much. And I would like to retain the car for atleast 4 years. I don’t want to be stuck in a situation where Fiat service centres close down one by one in India. It looks like no matter what they try, the sales are not happening.

The Polo on the other hand too seems to be suffering from high maintenance issues. But I have friends who swear that their regular services are cheap for a car of this brand. And then I see that VW seems to be actually listening to Indian customers and bringing about changes where required while Fiat is still plonking the same tried and tested engine with slightly upgraded interiors.

Frankly, my wife and I like the Punto at this stage for its adequate performance, excellent braking and road manners, a joyous steering and good rear legroom. Not to mention the rock solid build. But will Fiat last? It is the number one selling brand in Italy, but we’re a little far away and our mindset is still Maruti.

We like the Polo for its attention to detail and engine. We know we cannot go wrong with either of them. The question is longevity of the brands and after sales service.

Can someone please advise?

[TheTeacher]

I don't have the Punto, but have owned a Linea T-Jet in Bangalore for about 15 months. Fiat's warranty support is superb, going above and beyond without asking a single question. They are also ramping up dealerships and service centers and making additional investments in India.

Am I happy I bought a Linea? Absolutely.

My $0.02.

[CliffHanger]

There is no solid Yes or No for this question.

It depends on what sort of person you are. There are some who blindly follow the heart, some don't mind taking a reasonable risk, and some always like to be on the safe side.

Just re-look at what all stuffs you are Ok with and not. You can come at a decision.

You have already stated everything about both the cars and the brands and still if you are going to look for other's opinion, I would say it is not something wise to do!