[theEnd]

IMHO

Looks: 1. Fiesta 2. Verna 3. City
Engine performance: 1. Verna 2. City 3. Fiesta
Dynamics: 1. Fiesta 2. City 3. Verna
Space: Not sure.. never sat in a Verna. City feels more refined than Fiesta

Dont buy a Swift Diesel if you already have a petrol, unless you really really love the petrol version.

If it was up to me I'd buy the Fiesta because the City looks terrible and the Verna's selling point (that fantastic CRDI engine) is something you can enjoy very rarely. The Fiesta is a well sorted car (though i would pick the 1.6 petrol)

[aseem]

Thanks for so many replies guys. I dont mind waiting another month for Baleno (new) launch, but I heard they are not going to launch deisel version initially. Swift Deisel I guess is ruled out... I will take TD of Verna again as the car I drove was pretty badly used.
Currently Fiesta/City are in contention. Only grouse I have against Fiesta is that it looks the tiniest of the cars I am considering (width wise), and just looks like a new model of Ikon. Secondaly, the engine specs just dont look good on paper. Driving the car though was a totally different experience. I guess I would take TD again to make up my mind.
I will be finalizing purchase in July. So I do have a few months to do some research.

[Jaggu]

Originally Posted by aseem

I will be finalizing purchase in July. So I do have a few months to do some research.

then wait for the time when you are ready for booking:

a) you might land up with more options that might get all the current options out dated

b) you will anyway require test drives then coz you will be as confused as now, since regular human beings cant virtually keep test drive experiences fresh that long.. lol

c) the dealer guys will be nagging you day in day out till then once you have test drives

unless the excitement and the itch cant keep you off test drives, i surely cant

Meanwhile keep researching on the current models that are in contention.

I vote for Fiesta Diesel (since you want diesel) otherwise City

[benbsb29]

Aseem, the more research you do, the more you end up confused is what i feel when it comes to spending your money on cars. Not that i am saying NO to it.

As far as the Fiesta looking like a newer version of the Ikon is concerned, i beg to disagree. During its development Fiesta took into account all/most of the negatives from the Ikon experience, so as not to repeat the same.

[sandeepsankhla]

I own a Verna 110bhp Diesel top end. It gives me 14 KM per liter with AC in city. It is a power house and the engine is excellent. The gear box could have been better. The 2nd gear is short of power at low RPM which is common in all Hyundai cars. But at high RPH the Turbo Buster kicks in and the car literally flys on road. I have had an excellent expereince using this car for about 11 months now. The top end comes with ABS which is a must with a car of 110bhp - i mean it.

Verna negatives - rear seat leg space is very less

Prior to choosing this car I test drove Fiesta, Swift dzire, Logan, Tata Safari Dicor 140 bhp and Magnum.

Fiesta
Positives - Excellent driving comfort, Perfect Gear Box, You dont feel short of power, mileage, cheaper than Verna
Negatives - I read a lot of blogs which said its service cost is very high as its spare parts are expensive, I am 6.2ft tall and so my leg use to hit the dashboard even when I have pulled my seat back until I can comforatably reach the steering, 85bhp only

Swift Dzire
Positives - Value for money, ABS, Excellent Interiors, comfortable drive, climate control AC, Alloey wheels, mileage, air bags
Negatives - looks and power

Logan
Positives - mileage, spacious, less expensive
negatives - i drove the one that had airbags and the steering was very stiff so stiff that i would not even think of buying it. this could be coz it is a test car... which many times gives wrong impression

Safari Dicor 140 bhp
Positives - what a SUV - excellent, Amazing power, Excellent view while driving, very receptive engine
Negatives - I was worried about the services costs which is always an issue with TATA cars as they tend to keep giving problems after a few years, to huge to drive in city.

Magnum
Positives - 121 bhp excellent power, spacious
negatives expensive

Originally Posted by aseem

Its been ages since I opened a new thread in TBHP, goes to show I havent had the moolah to buy a car off late. Finally the loan on my Esteem is finished and I am in the car market to buy a car. I will spell out my requirements and possible choices below and will await your opinion to help me decide.

In the market to upsize my ageing (3 years old) esteem to a bigger 3 box car or Swift Deisel.

Usage: I have driven my Swift 30k in 2 years. So I drive around 1500 KM per month. This is probably going to go up by 500 kms, so around 2k per month.

Budget: Max stretched I can go around 7.5 lakhs. This is assuming that my 3 year old Esteem will fetch me 2.75 lakhs. I plan to pay 2 lakhs, and finance the rest (around 3 lakhs).

Cars shortlisted:

Hyundai Verna (Diesel):

The car is over my budget by 50k. I had high hopes for this car, as 110 BHP was like adrenaline rush dream for me being a BHPian. I personally didnt like the looks of the car that much.

I test drove the car today. My impressions were that the car is slightly clausterphobic (this coming from a Swift owner), or maybe it was just my feeling. I didnt like the power delivery (maybe I had higher expectations), nor did I like it on the refinement front. It was jerky, fast, but somehow just didnt make me feel to shell out 8 lakhs on it.

I am not sure on the mileage front how this car will fair? How much Bhpians are getting? Is it that I just had bad experience with the test drive, should I test drive it again with a new dealer? I had the highest hopes for this car, so much so that I was willing to digest the looks, but the test drive was a big letdown

Swift Diesel:

Probably can buy it cash down without any finance. I havent test driven it, but I own the petrol sibling and it brings a smile to my face every time I drive it. Of course I wont get the upmarket feel if I buy it, but buying this would let me focus on other priorities in life and I can begin saving on tution fees of my future kids
Whats avg that can be expected? Is the Diesel engine more refined than Verna?

Ford Fiesta Diesel:

This is a perfect underdog. I had very low expectations from the car. Its the smallest of the other C segment cars I was considering (except Swift), really cramp on inside and smallish from outside. The 65 BHP engine made me think it would be worthless. Boy was I wrong. I found during my test drive the engine to be a zillion times smoother than Verna. Though it made you felt its a diesel beyond 3k RPM, but the turbo lag was lot less noticeable when compared to Verna and the power delivery was a lot smoother. I could just take the car to 90 kmph, but it was a joyful experience.
Concerns... Is it worth 7.5 Lakhs? The sales guy told me there are some vibrations above 110 kmph... Is it true? Whats the avg ppl get in real life?

Honda City (Only Petrol in contention):

Went with moodswings (fellow bhpian) to get his CRV serviced at Honda motors. Was drawn towards City. The EXI is 50k cheaper than Ford Fiesta Diesel at 7 lakh 7 thousand on road. The car though as common as 800, still carries more road presence than Fiesta or Swift. But is it really practical considering my usage? Doesnt my usage warrant a diesel?
I would hate to put CNG on my Swift or Santro, but I buy City, than I would have to consider CNGing one of my existing cars. In addition I have heard/read at TBHP that a new City is due late 2007, how true is this? Are folks 100% on the news. Is it a totally new platform or just a cosmetic change? What Fuel economy can be expected?

Logan:

Heard its not as good.

Baleno (new):

Any news on this? Is Deisel version coming soon?

These are some of the things that are haunting me. I need your opinions to help me make the correct decision. Thank you all in advance. BTW, I am not considering Chevy Aveo (as no Deisel), so lets focus on the cars in contention.


PS: Mods can you please add a poll for the 4 cars, I missed it!

[nairrk]

Go for fiesta.
Ford is now in a mood to compete in the INdian market (see the sales figures of september 2009). Understand that after sales services also improving.
Cheers

[live2drive]

@nairrk, sandeep: You guys have revived a two and a half year old thread.