[gemithomas]

This is what i would say.

Santro - If you dont mind a small car image with more of city behaviour. AS you said i dont think it feels good to drive this on a highway. But since most of your travel seems to be in the city this should be one of the top contenders

Indica Xeta - If you dont mind the taxi walla image and also if you dont mind small quality/finishing issues and service centre visits for small niggling problems. But for that Price i would say its a steal.

Alto - No man. Grow up.

Palio - Another Top contender i would say. But here i would recommend the 1.6 engine for sure. This combines safety, comfort, power, control, and not so bad looks (except the new interiors!!!).Its a really good higway/city rider which would never make you feel you made a wrong choice. But here you need to be willing to wait for a few days in case you need some spares. But i would never say that you would frequently need them. If you like the new looks, If you dont mind a few days wait in case you are in need of some major spares and if you are not crying for F.E. Just go for the 1.6. You wont regret it.

Getz - Dont know about it. But i think you yourself was not impressed with it.

Swift - Personally, I would not suggest the swift. The exteriors are too big and the interiors are not so big. I would even say that the back seats are too small and very bench like. I have never seen a swift wthout a small scratch in the exterior wheel arches. I dont think that all swift drivers dont know how to drive so i would think its something about the design where you sit almost towards the middle of the car while the car bulges around you. But in terms of handling this design wins hands down.

Zen Estilo - Again. Why do you even think of such things!!!

Wagon R - Only Good vehicle by Maruti for a acceptable price. But you really need to like the design. I think you dont.

Esteem - Good one if you like the very low seating and the old looks. But i would not suggest this one.

Indigo - More than the Indigo i would suggest the Indigo Marina. I feel its a really good looking one from the tata's after the safari. The price also is too attractive. Would be a really good vehicle to own. But not sure if they have a petrol version. Even if they have i would suggest you try out their Dicor version.

Ikon Flair - Expensive to maintain but too good to drive.

[tsk1979]

5 People?How big people?
If you don't go for Palio the cars which can seat 5 are
1. Indica Xeta
2. Indigo Petrol
3. Getz
4. Swift(with some difficulty).
Since your budget if 5.5, not 3.5 indica does not make sense.
So go for Swift fully loaded, or the Indigo Petrol. Indigo petrol engine is not that bad now, but don't expect a swift or a getz.
Drive these and see.
As for Santro or WagonR, I would suggest take a test drive. Own a santro, and have sat in a wagon R, its a good car for 2 people, not good for 5.
Santro service support is excellent, and I think you will have similar experience with Maruti also.
Tata service is not too good, but you can get by.

[benbsb29]

Originally Posted by svedurmudi

Friends,
Here are my requirements and I am to make a choice before 24th of this month. I'd appreciate any advice from the more experienced (than me) fraternity.

On weekdays, only me and my wife travel. But for long drives, it is either 5 people or 4 people with some luggage.
My budget is a max of upto 5.5L.
Diesel models are out of race because I dont like the hard clutches and accelerators and mainly the noise.

Hi Sriharsha,
Looks like you seem to have some issues with all the cars you have mentioned. What exactly are u looking for in your car?

Coming to the choices u mentioned.

Ikon Flair : You may have had a poor initial experience, but i own the Flair (2006) myself, and my experience has been more than good. Please check out the other threads on the same wherein i have put forward my views and experiences.

Indigo : You feel there may be issues with the car... Any particular reasons?

Esteem : A tried and tested workhorse, which has its share of merits and demerits. Take a test drive, and decide. A>S>S should be satisfactory.

Wagon R : Quite a practical car, if you can go beyond its looks. There are quite a few content owners of the Wagon R on this forum. You can also find Long Term Reviews on the same. Think about it.

Estilo : Personally i strongly desist this car. Somehow, i dont feel it is worth the price it commands. A disgrace to the Zen brand. I would suggest the Wagon R over this anyday.

Swift : Easily the best in its segment in terms of VFM. The diesel is a pleasure to drive, although it way overshoots your budget, and also has a waiting period of 6 months. The petrol VXi version is the ideal choice.

Getz : Going by feedback on this forum, i do not remember anyone having any complaints about this car (1.3 version). I would suggest a test drive of the Prime to decide.

Palio : Not sure, so no comments.

Alto : A good car in the starting category. Since your budget permits, you can safely ignore this for now.

Xeta : There have been instances where people posting in the 'What Car' section after evaluating the competition went ahead and booked the Xeta. Please go through the threads on those, how they went about their decision. Would surprise you for sure.

Xing : A car suited for city driving, and for occassional highway use. Since you complain/fear for it being unstable over 100 kmph, take a test drive, and SPECIFICALLY ask for testing it at higher speeds. From my knowledge, there is a hyundai outlet on the KBR Park road. Take the car from there, and rip it on the KBR road, or else along the Jubilee Hills roads. You would have a fair idea of its high speed characteristics.

These are what i felt about the cars you mentioned. In order to confuse you further, may i add the Chevrolet Spark as well as the U-VA to your list.

[svedurmudi]

Friends,

thanks a ton for all the wonderfully drafted advices. After going through all your responses, I have narrowed down on the following choices.

1. Ford Ikon Flair 1.3
2. Maruti Esteem Vxi
3. Santro xing with alloy wheels and tubeless tyres.

I am going to take a test drive tomorrow of both Ikon and Esteem.

I was quoted 4,13,500 for a Xing XO with all accessories (Autocop Remote locking, Sony Xplode player with four sony speakers, floor mats, mud flaps, fabric seat covers, leather steering wheel cover, car cover, perfume, teflon coating, under-car anti-rust tar coating, sun control film and reverse horn)

A fully loaded Ikon (need to clarify yet from the sales guy what he meant by fully loaded) is nearly 5,50,000.

Yet to find out about Esteem.

I have discounted others because of the following reasons:

Logan: Because I dont want to take risk with a new entrant, who's not proved yet in the market
Indigo: The dealer himself was discouraging it. "Dont go for the petrol version sir, its useless" were the words from his very mouth.
Indica Xeta, Zen E and Wagon R: Personal dislike for the models.
Fiats: As of now they are dependent on Tatas for sales/service. So, dont want to take a chance (what happens if the Tatas desert them later). Surely, their service network is not even reasonably strong.
Swift: Dislike the looks.
Accent: Liked only ViVa CRDi, but way beyond my budget.
Alto: Never qualified in the race anyway. I mentioned it because it existed as a car within 5.5L.
Aveo UV-A: Liked the Aveo better but beyond my budget.

I will post the semi-finals results when I finish my test drives tomorrow . Adieu till then.

BTW, I am also following the dectec's posting if "which car" where Esteem and Ikon were in the sparring ring.


Cheers,
Harsha.

[svedurmudi]

Friends,
I also need what all to ask for during negotiations. Cos, I want to finalize something tomorrow as I'll not be free until the next saturday if tomorrow slips.
I have the following list (please add anything important that I forgot):
(Some may be standard with some cars)
1. Remote Locking and Reverse Horn. Autocop (any specific model?)
2. Seat covers. (Fabric? Leather? Or is it a strictly personal choice)
3. Mp3/Dvd Stereo (Sony? Panasonic? Blaupunkt? Kenwood?)
4. Insurance (1 year) (ICICI? Any better one?)
5. Extended warranty (1 year beyond standard)
6. Floor mats, Mud flaps
7. Alloy wheels
8. Tubeless tyres
9. Rear spoiler
10. Sun control film (adviced?)
11. Teflon coating (adviced for Hyderabad? I've seen the thread on whether it is needed or not, but honestly couldnt decide after going through it).
12. Under car tar coating (anti rust).
13. Permanant registration with Number plates
14. Perfume
15. Toolkit
16. Medical kit
17. Steering wheel cover
18. Antenna (What is Power Antenna?)
19. Scratch-proof rail scrubs on sides
20. Car cover

Cheers,
Harsha

[Akshay1234]

1. i havent heard too many good things about autocop. but see what the accesory people have then decide according to your budget and the features. as for a reversing horn my personal opinion is not to get one.

2. fabric would be more practical. leather would cost you around 30k for something like stanley. you could also get the fake leather seatcovers.

3. look in the ice section. youll find all your answers. if you dont start a new thread.

6. try to get them free along with the car. in any case they wouldnt cost much.

7. you can go for brands like neo, hr, plati, league, aura, lenso. depending on the size they can cost anything from 13k to 30k. search the tyre and alloy wheel section section for more info.

8. depending on whether you want comfort or performance. again search the tyre and alloy wheels section.

9. the manufacture would have one. you could also get it done from outside.

10. sunfilm will reduce the heat inside your car tremendously. make sure its legal. look at brands like 3m, llumar, dupont or if you have the budget v-kool

11. if they give it to you free then why not?

14. get ambipure. goes into your ac vent and works well.

15. you should get a basic one with the car. same for the medical kit.

18. the normal antennas are good enough.

19. according to me they really dont help.

20. you can get one from the manufacturer.

[ashwin_seattle]

Ok man, here you go.
Now i purchased a Santro XING XL(PS, front PWs) model in Nov 2006 (4 months back) color-metallic real earth, with on road price of 3,50 something which after discounts came up to 3,36,000.
In addition, I managed to get hyundai seat covers, mud flaps and car cover.
I got the stock tyres and wheels replaced the same day with tubeless tyres and alloys. Alloys for 10,000 and 5 tubeless for 4000 more(got a good deal). Then fitted sony mp3 player with remote, with front and rear xplod speakers for about 10k with some additional accessories like rear curtain,perfume, autocop, gearlock, etc. for another 5000
All in all: 3,36,000+13000+10000+5000 = 3,64,000, and you get an almost loaded car.
So it all depends on what deal you are getting from the dealer. I would say go for an XL model and with the remaining amount, get all accessories and you have a loaded car, that too a fast cute fuel efficient one.
Go for it!!You wont regret it.

[ashwin_seattle]

Oh yes and I forgot to mention, I got 1 year insurance FREE from Hyundai. The dealer was KLG Hyundai Chandigarh. Got the financing done in less than an hour. And took delivery of the car the same day.

The very next day that I went to the dealer for some loan papers, I saw 3 new anniverary edition Satro XINGs standing in the showroom.Cursed my luck here as these were some special edition XINGs with all aluminim garnish and aluminium inside door handles. I guess this was an XO model.
You can inquire about this too. Interiors were really cool in this edition. Dunno whether it was a limited time deal....this was in second week of Nov 2006.

As for the suggestions on accessories:
1. Remote Locking and Reverse Horn. Autocop (any specific model?)
Autocop
2. Seat covers. (Fabric? Leather? Or is it a strictly personal choice)
3. Mp3/Dvd Stereo (Sony? Panasonic? Blaupunkt? Kenwood?)
4. Insurance (1 year) (ICICI? Any better one?)
5. Extended warranty (1 year beyond standard)
6. Floor mats, Mud flaps
7. Alloy wheels
8. Tubeless tyres
9. Rear spoiler
10. Sun control film (adviced?)
11. Teflon coating (adviced for Hyderabad? I've seen the thread on whether it is needed or not, but honestly couldnt decide after going through it).
12. Under car tar coating (anti rust).
13. Permanant registration with Number plates
14. Perfume
15. Toolkit
16. Medical kit
17. Steering wheel cover
18. Antenna (What is Power Antenna?)
19. Scratch-proof rail scrubs on sides
20. Car cover

[ashwin_seattle]

Oh and forgot to add:
The very next day that I went to the dealer for some loan papers, I saw 3 new anniverary edition Satro XINGs standing in the showroom.Cursed my luck here as these were some special edition XINGs with all aluminim garnish and aluminium inside door handles. I guess this was an XO model.
You can inquire about this too. Interiors were really cool in this edition. Dunno whether it was a limited time deal....this was in second week of Nov 2006.

As for the suggestions on accessories:
1. Remote Locking and Reverse Horn. Autocop (any specific model?)
Autocop (get the one with the latest remote(water proof remote) this would cost around 3500
2. Seat covers. (Fabric? Leather? Or is it a strictly personal choice) Got these from Hyundai dealer(free). These were seude/rexene ones, but look great and the color was also matching with interiors.
3. Mp3/Dvd Stereo (Sony? Panasonic? Blaupunkt? Kenwood?) Your choice...go in for a mp3..DVD wont be utilised in a car like santro..if u plan to go for it)
4. Insurance (1 year) (ICICI? Any better one?) I got FREE insurance from the dealer. Most of the dealers offer one. Negotiate!!
5. Extended warranty (1 year beyond standard) They carge you something like 3500 for extended. I didnt take it. Didnt feel the need for a smal lmaintenance
6. Floor mats, Mud flaps Got these Free from Dealer
7. Alloy wheels You can get good enuff alloys for <13000. Go for thai ones or for HR.
8. Tubeless tyres I went in for Apollo Accelere...though there are other options too
9. Rear spoiler No need, at least in Santro. The brake lights do their job pretty wel and the spoiler is not that worth.
10. Sun control film (adviced?) Yes, go for a light colored film from 3M
11. Teflon coating (adviced for Hyderabad? I've seen the thread on whether it is needed or not, but honestly couldnt decide after going through it). Is good, but solely personal choice. I would not go for it.
12. Under car tar coating (anti rust). Does it rain that much in Hyd..??I dont think so...so not needed much.
13. Permanant registration with Number plates Strangely, I got front and rear no lates from the dealer himself...so just got the permanent no embrossed on these.
14. Perfume Ambipur(its refilleable)
15. Toolkit Comes by default, in the spare tyre section.
16. Medical kit
17. Steering wheel cover get it from outside dealership. you 'll get a cheap leather one.
18. Antenna (What is Power Antenna?) Get a normal antenna. The stereo wala will fit it when fitting the stereo etc. Just 70-100 rs
19. Scratch-proof rail scrubs on sides I didnt get these. Theese are really good but when the stick on comes off, these start eating the paint beneath.
20. Car cover Try to get this from the dealer.One suggestion: Apart from the accessories you are getting from the dealer as part of the deal, dont get anything else like tyres, alloys from the dealership...the prices will be very steep. FInd a good car and tyre shop outside and get these fitted there.
All the Best.

[ashwin_seattle]

1. Remote Locking and Reverse Horn. Autocop (any specific model?)
Autocop (get the one with the latest remote(water proof remote) this would cost around 3500
2. Seat covers. (Fabric? Leather? Or is it a strictly personal choice)
Got these from Hyundai dealer(free). These were seude/rexene ones, but look great and the color was also matching with interiors.
3. Mp3/Dvd Stereo (Sony? Panasonic? Blaupunkt? Kenwood?)
Your choice...go in for a mp3..DVD wont be utilised in a car like santro..if u plan to go for it)
4. Insurance (1 year) (ICICI? Any better one?)
I got FREE insurance from the dealer. Most of the dealers offer one. Negotiate!!
5. Extended warranty (1 year beyond standard)
They carge you something like 3500 for extended. I didnt take it. Didnt feel the need for a smal lmaintenance
6. Floor mats, Mud flaps
Got these Free from Dealer
7. Alloy wheels
You can get good enuff alloys for <13000. Go for thai ones or for HR.
8. Tubeless tyres
I went in for Apollo Accelere...though there are other options too
9. Rear spoiler
No need, at least in Santro. The brake lights do their job pretty wel and the spoiler is not that worth.
10. Sun control film (adviced?)
Yes, go for a light colored film from 3M
11. Teflon coating (adviced for Hyderabad? I've seen the thread on
whether it is needed or not, but honestly couldnt decide after going through it).
Is good, but solely personal choice. I would not go for it.
12. Under car tar coating (anti rust).
Does it rain that much in Hyd..??I dont think so...so not needed much.
13. Permanant registration with Number plates
Strangely, I got front and rear no lates from the dealer himself...so just got the permanent no embrossed on these.
14. Perfume
Ambipur(its refilleable)
15. Toolkit
Comes by default, in the spare tyre section.
16. Medical kit
17. Steering wheel cover
get it from outside dealership. you 'll get a cheap leather one.
18. Antenna (What is Power Antenna?)
Get a normal antennae. The stereo wala will fit it when fitting the stereo etc. Just 70-100 rs
19. Scratch-proof rail scrubs on sides
I didnt get these. Theese are really good but when the stick on comes off, these start eating the paint beneath.
20. Car cover
Try to get this from the dealer.

One suggestion: Apart from the accessories you are getting from the dealer as part of the deal, dont get anything else like tyres, alloys from the dealership...the prices will be very steep. FInd a good car and tyre shop outside and get these fitted there.

All the Best.

[rks]

Originally Posted by ashwin_seattle

One suggestion: Apart from the accessories you are getting from the dealer as part of the deal, dont get anything else like tyres, alloys from the dealership...the prices will be very steep. FInd a good car and tyre shop outside and get these fitted there.

On the other hand, the alloys supplied by the authorized dealer are likely to have the correct specs (offset, PCD...). You could get aftermarket alloys at a cheaper rate, but don't expect any help from the aftermarket dealers regarding technical specs. It becomes your responsibility to check those. T-BHP threads are a good source of information on the experiences (good and bad) with aftermarket alloys. The wrong specs can cause headaches with high-speed vibrations, fouling, braking, etc. Regarding tyres the correct upsize (if an upsize is sought) is important.

[benbsb29]

Originally Posted by svedurmudi

Friends,

I have narrowed down on the following choices.

1. Ford Ikon Flair 1.3
2. Maruti Esteem Vxi
3. Santro xing with alloy wheels and tubeless tyres.

I am going to take a test drive tomorrow of both Ikon and Esteem.

A fully loaded Ikon (need to clarify yet from the sales guy what he meant by fully loaded) is nearly 5,50,000.

Harsha,
Ikon comes in one and only one variant, the Flair.
Fully loaded here means, you get power windows all round, Power steering, Central locking, fog lamps, central fuel cap release. What you dont get is a remote boot opener which is one of my major grouses with the car.

Do keep us updated.

[svedurmudi]

Team,
I have finally zeroed in on Xing. Actually, the final choice was between Ikon and Xing. The deciding factors were:
If I wanted to show a status symbol, bear with slightly expensive maintenance and pay a higher initial cost, then go with Ikon, else go with Santro.

I discarded Esteem because the seats are too low (except the the adjustable driver seat) and also I did not like the towering antenna that was coming out to around 2-3 feet whenever you switch on the stereo (looks like a kids remote toy car to me). Plus, the parts looked real cheap (I felt so, they might actually be better).

I discarded Indigo because: it was slightly more expensive than Ikon (Im surprised), had a lot of rattling sounds (though the test drive guy assured me that they would go away during PDI, I was not comfortable listening to those sounds all the while). The suspension was slightly better than Ikon (but the Ikon guy said they are stronger and the difference would become obvious after a couple of years only).

Right now I am choosing the dealer and would finalize one today. The ones in race are Kun automobiles, Khairtabad and Talwar Banjara hills. I am to meet them this afternoon for knowing their final price. For now I am planning to put off alloy wheels and tubeless tyres (saving about 32K).
Sun control film is of some brand Garaware (or something sounding similar). I am bargaining for Iluminar or 3M. I left the choice of color to my home minister

Thanks everyone for your support !!

[benbsb29]

Congrats on your choice, Harsha. So, finally you got rid of the Santro fears over 100kmph? Did u take a test drive and rip it, as I had suggested?