[arvind71181]

Originally Posted by vb-san

If it’s not the top-end 1.6 S-Cross, I would suggest sticking to the Ecosport. The Titatnium+ is so well-loaded on comfort and safety features.

Yes, the EcoSport is well loaded and the S-Cross has space. Dilemma!!! The S-Cross Zeta misses out on

1. Leather seats (nice to have)
2. 6 Airbags (Very nice to have)
3. Auto headlamp (not needed)
4. Auto wipers (immensely useful based on my experience)
5. DRL (makes the car looks cool)

The S-Cross Zeta gains with the touchscreen infotainment, navigation and video playback.

I might test drive the EcoSport and the S-Cross again, this time back to back and probably make the decision.

[CrAzY dRiVeR]

Originally Posted by arvind71181

I might test drive the EcoSport and the S-Cross again, this time back to back and probably make the decision.

Please try a highway stretch as well. SCross has excellent high speed manners striking a good balance between ride and handling, while Ecosport is a bit too stiff.

[girishglg]

Originally Posted by arvind71181

Yes, the EcoSport is well loaded and the S-Cross has space. Dilemma!!! The S-Cross Zeta misses out on

1. Leather seats (nice to have)
2. 6 Airbags (Very nice to have)
3. Auto headlamp (not needed)
4. Auto wipers (immensely useful based on my experience)
5. DRL (makes the car looks cool)

I might test drive the EcoSport and the S-Cross again, this time back to back and probably make the decision.

Just to add from a recent personal experience on the solidity of the EcoSport.

This Sunday was rear ended by a crazy biker with considerable force out of the blue. Seemed like that guy either twisted his accelerator instead of brakes or was completely out of his mind

There was a big thud at the back and I did feel that something really bad had happened to my EcoSport. I could not stop in the evening heavy rush hour after Hebbal flyover (return from airport side) and came back home expecting something broken or dented badly.

To my surprise when I checked the rear, everything seemed to be ok. On closer look only the number plate was cracked into two. Just goes to say the solid build of the EcoSport and the unspoken safety feature that is the mounted rear wheel saved the day! Any other car would have a bad dent or broken part with that kind of impact.

Have also read posts in TBHP of bus rear ending an EcoSport but resulting in minimal damage (only wheel mountings broken) before I purchased one. This gave me a lot of confidence about how safe the vehicle was.

[CarMind]

Originally Posted by ToyotaFan

I will be giving you a whole new perspective to your car dilemma. Considering the 10+yr ban on diesel cars in NCR I think you should go for the Baleno Petrol. If you have parking space you can retain the esteem as well as it will help you during odd even days which the government wants to implement for 15days every month. A diesel car in NCR will lose its resale value very fast and it will be very difficult to sell it after 6-7 years as you intend. If you are sure you will be covering 1L+ km in 5 years then a diesel makes sense. My choice in diesels for you would be Baleno diesel or the tiago. Figo's recent recall does create doubts in a slow moving model. Hope this helps.

Precisely summing up the concerns for Delhi NCR. For a running that warrants a petrol motor with a given budget of around 10Lacs, the 'Baleno Vs Brezza (in 1.0 turbo petrol)' would be an interesting look out. Though from different categories (as also the tread suggests- Hatchback vs CSUV), will it be worthwhile to wait for Brezza turbo petrol, not forgetting the concerns generally associated with the turbo petrol motors (read relatively high turbolag at low RPM's; equivalent pricing to the diesel counterparts; the questionable refinement for a 3 pot engine and the variable mileage depending on the driving styles). Came across a similar comparison on Overdrive http://overdrive.in/opinions/does-th...er-the-baleno/

[arvind71181]

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Finally have reached a decision and booked the S-Cross 1.3 Zeta today. Thanks to all of you for helping me identify the strengths and weaknesses of the cars which I had shortlisted. I should get the car within a month, according to the SA. Will update this thread when I take delivery!!

[CarMind]

Originally Posted by arvind71181

Finally have reached a decision and booked the S-Cross 1.3 Zeta today. Thanks to all of you for helping me identify the strengths and weaknesses of the cars which I had shortlisted. I should get the car within a month, according to the SA. Will update this thread when I take delivery!!

Congratulations on your new booking. Perfect decision. I am in exact same scenario, albeit, the choice is a petrol than a diesel.

Which Petrol car?
I believe we already have very limited options when we talk about a good petrol car that could prove to be nice overall package. Yes, Honda's iVTEC (1.5) and Suzuki's 1.2 K Series wins the engine battle here (not considering the the turbos). Contemplating over the choices for a petrol car, that could seem to be an upgrade from the 2009 Hyundai i10 1.2 Magna. Though i10 is in top condition, a need for bigger space is the major push for looking out for an upgrade.
Essential requirements from the upgrade:-
1. Petrol motor (considering less than 1000km monthly running. Although, few of the cars i really like are better in diesel and then some are only available in a diesel).
2. Less than 4m (to get the ease of driving and parking in a Metro city).
3. Space, specially the rear seat space and comfort is on high priority along with a really effective air conditioning.
4. Manual transmission
5. Jack of all trades (since this will be the only car for whatever - city/ highway usage).
6. Budget - 8- 10Lacs
7. Safety- To include air bags, ABS.
Options considered:-
1. Suzuki Baleno- All in all an excellent choice and hence first on my list. Looks, well sorted drive, all creature comforts that one could ask for with an excellent K Series engine. Though, after reading the entire thread of Baleno, i am concerned about some of the issues- Light body shell prone to dents (one thread also mentions lot of dimples due to hail storm), no underbody or engine protection, rear sagging issues, bouncy/ bumpy rear seat ride.
2. Vitara Brezza- Have not driven one yet but totally like the looks and the overall package. Problem- only diesel option as of now. Though the news has a 1.0 turbo petrol option coming in soon, would it be gamble to wait and watch for this new motor?
3. Hyundai elite i20- Excellent car, but a lot left to be desired in its petrol form.
4. Ford Ecosport Ecoboost- Lack of rear seat space a concern here. Also, facelifted version due to arrive in 2017.
5. VW Polo- Limited rear seat space.
5. No Compact sedans considered- so its just between a Hatchback Vs CSUV.

Please suggest, i firmly believe that as much as i like a car (read Brezza/ Elite i20), going in for a diesel will not be justified for me due to the running, concerns over diesel in NCR and an impact on the resale due to 10 year life for diesel. Would really appreciate your views on the listed options as well as open to other options too. Thanks.

[arvind71181]

Originally Posted by CarMind

Congratulations on your new booking. Perfect decision. I am in exact same scenario, albeit, the choice is a petrol than a diesel.

Which Petrol car?

How about the Honda Brio or the Tata Bolt? Brio looks to be a sweet package with the ivtech engine. Not sure about the rear space though. I have only seen the Bolt and it looks well put as well and should have good rear seat space.

Ecosport is a good contender as well but the space is at a premium and the diesel engine is better.

[CarMind]

Originally Posted by arvind71181

How about the Honda Brio or the Tata Bolt? Brio looks to be a sweet package with the ivtech engine. Not sure about the rear space though. I have only seen the Bolt and it looks well put as well and should have good rear seat space.

Ecosport is a good contender as well but the space is at a premium and the diesel engine is better.

Honda Brio will not be an 'upgrade' from i10. Agree for Ecosport being a nice contender, but always felt wanting for some more space at the back plus a whole lot better diesel in it. Bolt, although a competent product, somehow not able to convince to take plunge for Tata.

[autorahul]

Originally Posted by CarMind

Essential requirements from the upgrade:-
1. Petrol motor (considering less than 1000km monthly running. Although, few of the cars i really like are better in diesel and then some are only available in a diesel).
2. Less than 4m (to get the ease of driving and parking in a Metro city).
3. Space, specially the rear seat space and comfort is on high priority along with a really effective air conditioning.
4. Manual transmission
5. Jack of all trades (since this will be the only car for whatever - city/ highway usage).
6. Budget - 8- 10Lacs
7. Safety- To include air bags, ABS.

Your first choice of Baleno is very good. Its the all rounder you are looking for. Waiting period is actually coming as Maruti increases its production.

Apart from this, you could also look at Honda Jazz. It has a very smooth 1.2 i-Vtec engine, very spacious and is feature packed too.

With your budget, you could also look at automatics. Both Jazz and Baleno have one. They would further aid in driving in the city.

An outside choice would be Ford Aspire 1.5 DSG. It has excellent engine and has DSG AT gearbox, but you can expect lower resale value down the years.

[arvind71181]

Originally Posted by arvind71181

Finally have reached a decision and booked the S-Cross 1.3 Zeta today. Thanks to all of you for helping me identify the strengths and weaknesses of the cars which I had shortlisted. I should get the car within a month, according to the SA. Will update this thread when I take delivery!!

Much water flown under the bridge. Booked on May 26th and the S-Cross 1.3 was nowhere to be seen. 1.6 variants continue to be produced though. I am assuming this is because the 1.3 engine is shared with the Baleno and the Brezza and priority is being given to them.

Meanwhile, the heart starting playing its part and I took a test drive of the 1.6 yesterday. I wanted to check how bad the lag was. Surprisingly, it was manageable to me, maybe in bumper to bumper traffic it would be a bit more difficult. I could not gain any high speed but the medium speeds which I gained left me grinning. So, the decision has been revised and the variant has been changed to the 1.6 Alpha

Hopefully will get the vehicle by the first week of August. At the risk of repeating the emoticon, this is how my face looks now

[vivekgk]

I am in a similar situation as the OP, but I was far more confused to begin with. I had no idea whether to go for a hatch, sedan, crossover, CUV, SUV or even MUV, and also had no idea about what my budget should be, other than that it should be less than 10L. I've already posted a bit of this in another thread, in this post. I'm from Trivandrum, Kerala. My monthly running should be between 1000-2000 kms on average, including the semi-regular long-ish weekend trips. We have a Nano for city use, and this would be the big car for longer trips and for special occasions when we want to be seen in a nice car.

To sum up, I've driven (in no patricular order), the Punto, Baleno (Petrol and Diesel), Brezza, Ecosport, Aspire, Polo, Sunny, i20 Elite, Duster, Lodgy, TUV3OO, Nuvosport, Zest, Ciaz and S-Cross. Originally, my budget was 8L and then it went upto 12L (for consideration). I've booked the Brezza and the Baleno since I don't want to add to the waiting period once I've reached my decision.

Petrol vs Diesel: While a petrol might make more sense considering my low running (estimated less than 15K per year), I found that I can't quite manage to drive a petrol car efficiently, and I manage to get 13-15 kpl from our Nano (my Dad gets 18-20 regularly). A diesel on the other hand, gives a minimum FE no matter how heavy-footed the driver is.

Thus, even if the fuel prices are equalised, I'll end up spending a lot less on fuel, with the additional advantage of occasionally indulging in a bit of guilt-free hooligan driving. With one service a year, modern diesels aren't that expensive to maintain any more.

Plus, there is a lack of good petrol motors in this price range. The only one I liked was the Zest's Revotron 1.2, which didn't need to be revved hard for response. On the other hand, almost every diesel engine in this price range makes excellent power and torque.

Eliminated so far:

Punto/Linea: While these are excellent choices IMO, especially the newly updated models with the retuned MultiJet motor, there is no ASC in Trivandrum. Nearest one is 70 kms away at Kollam.

Figo/Aspire: Both of them were considered early on, but then we decided not to go with yet another CS, period. It just didn't seem like an upgrade.

Sunny: Top end diesel is out of our budget, it was considered only because the dealer offered a 2L discount on their showroom display car. A similar case was there with the Renault Scala, but that one turned out to be a May 2015 VIN. Although the car looked good in pictures, it was in a yard 500kms away from TVM, and I would have the chance to make an inspection only after making full payment and billing the car in my name. Dropped the idea after some discussion here. Have to say, these two cars were seriously loaded.

TUV300/Nuvosport: After going through the niggles reported on the official review thread, and worse, being warned off by a Mahindra ASC staff, I ruthlessly removed these two from the list, though I loved the SUV feel, the low end torque and the driving position. I went through the irritating niggles game already with our Indigo, and didn't want to play it again. Maybe next time, once Mahindra comes out with the next gen TUV.

Lodgy: While this was and is a great deal with the discounts on offer (fully loaded RXZ 110PS for 10.9L, Stepway for 11.4L), better sense prevailed and we decided we didn't need all that space. Plus, it was super inconvenient to park in the city.

Final Choices:

Ecosport Titanium: This costs 10.67 lacs OTR. There are discounts of course, and the pricing will come down a bit with some negotiation. I like the driving position, the engine response, the steering accuracy, and behaviour at speed, and the size that makes it easier to park. I'm okay with the looks. My concerns are the lack of space at the rear, slightly hard ride, the weird ICE, and the fact that the facelift is coming next year. This is my prime candidate. While I feel the Trend+ is the most VFM variant, some features like the Smart key, voice control, 16 inch alloys, leather covering on steering and gear etc cannot be added from outside with the same quality or will end up costing more.

Baleno Zeta DDiS: My delivery is expected to be done this month itself, as the color I've booked (Urban Blue) seems to be in low demand for some reason. The Zeta is priced at just below 9 lacs OTR, and has everything except the projector lights, touchscreen ICE and the auto headlamps and wipers. I think it's the best VFM variant, considering what you get for only 70K over the Delta.

Brezza ZDi: Initially, I booked the LDI(O) variant, but then changed to the ZDI as it offered the maximum value. I liked the looks, the stance, the excellent mid range response of the engine, as well as the space on offer. While it isn't as good a driver's car as the Ecosport, it certainly isn't bad, and I'm sure it will retain its value and also provide a trouble-free ownership. Not to mention, it will turn heads everywhere for at least a few months more, as it isn't as common as the Ecosport yet.

S-Cross 1.3: The Delta 1.3 @ 10.4L comes in this budget, but is really under-equipped compared to the others. It lacks some basic features such as rear wash/wipe, which I feel should be standard in any car costing above 8L. The real VFM variant though is the Zeta, which comes with everything you'd need, including the touch-screen infotainment. I liked the ride quality, the interiors, the build, and the conservative styling. The engine is quiet and capable, but not really peppy under 2000 rpm. The Zeta would exceed my budget by over 1L however, and I'm not sure if it's worth the premium over the Ecosport or the Brezza.

Ciaz VXi+/VDi+: I test drove the diesel model with SHVS, and I was impressed by the FE shown. The hybrid system perfectly complements my style of driving in traffic, as I tend to shift to neutral at every opportunity rather than hold the clutch. But it does lack some equipment as compared to the Ecosport Titanium, and is priced similarly at 10.42 lacs (before discounts). Another possible option is the VXi+ at 9.6L, which seems to have an FE near 15kpl in the city. I found the performance of the Ciaz to be quite good, and the handling was also fine, but nothing special. This is the sensible buy, I feel.

Zest XT Petrol: Though this is a wild card in the mix, I'm throwing this in because of the enormous savings, and the fact that it has great looks, a nice engine, and truly awesome ICE, can seat 5 in comfort, and will give good mileage. There's also an AMC that will result in ridiculously low service costs. The lower EMI and downpayment means that we can also consider upgrading our 2012 Nano to a newer Nano with PS, and still stay within the overall budget. The AMC on the Nano (regular, not Gold AMC) has saved us a bundle over the last 4 years, with every service costing less than 1500 bucks.

Cons: Possible Tata niggles, No segment change, lower performance, too many Zest taxis.

I'm having a hard time choosing, and I'd appreciate your suggestions in this regard. TIA

[rajeev k]

Originally Posted by vivekgk

Baleno Zeta DDiS: My delivery is expected to be done this month itself, as the color I've booked (Urban Blue) seems to be in low demand for some reason. The Zeta is priced at just below 9 lacs OTR, and has everything except the projector lights, touchscreen ICE and the auto headlamps and wipers. I think it's the best VFM variant, considering what you get for only 70K over the Delta.

It is a smart choice to stay with the Baleno booking and with the delivery very near appears to be better overall.
The Breeza can be the second choice. With a booking in hand you are in a much better position in choosing the ultimate one.

[IshaanIan]

Originally Posted by vivekgk

I'm having a hard time choosing, and I'd appreciate your suggestions in this regard. TIA

The S-Cross is truly in my opinion, among the most enjoyable cars out there this side of the D-Segment. Add to that the fact that it is also extremely versatile, is built well and comes with loads of space, and it becomes a no-brainer to me; if you see yourself owning the car for a long time and you can afford it, go for the S-Cross. It may not be fronting with loads of features or snazzy styling, but it still offers a lot of car, I feel it poses value for money.

[autorahul]

Originally Posted by vivekgk

Baleno Zeta DDiS: My delivery is expected to be done this month itself, as the color I've booked (Urban Blue) seems to be in low demand for some reason. The Zeta is priced at just below 9 lacs OTR, and has everything except the projector lights, touchscreen ICE and the auto headlamps and wipers. I think it's the best VFM variant, considering what you get for only 70K over the Delta.


S-Cross 1.3: The Delta 1.3 @ 10.4L comes in this budget, but is really under-equipped compared to the others. It lacks some basic features such as rear wash/wipe, which I feel should be standard in any car costing above 8L. The real VFM variant though is the Zeta, which comes with everything you'd need, including the touch-screen infotainment. I liked the ride quality, the interiors, the build, and the conservative styling. The engine is quiet and capable, but not really peppy under 2000 rpm. The Zeta would exceed my budget by over 1L however, and I'm not sure if it's worth the premium over the Ecosport or the Brezza.

The 2 cars are of completely different segments. Yes, the S-Cross may not seem as VFM on the first glance at the feature list, its the premium experience thats provided by the S-Cross, that makes up for it. Top quality interiors, and way better build quality when compared to the Baleno and Brezza. Space offered at hand is another factor. While others are satisfactory, this is supreme. Yes, you lose few gadgets, which you can learn to live with, but you gain quite a few other things.

My choice would be to either get the Baleno Zeta or S-Cross Delta.

[vivekgk]

Which is the better driver's car, out of the Ecosport and the Ciaz? I'm asking,. In terms of handling, road holding, and general behavior when pushed through a nice winding road. I haven't had the opportunity to drive either of these through such roads, and wild appreciate three feedback from someone who has.

I know that a sedan is supposed to be the better handler, but the Ciaz reviews all say that it's not a good handler, while the Ecosport reviews say it is.