[LilBimmer]

I bought a brand new Hyundai Eon maybe in 2011-12. It was an unrequired purchase just to keep an allotted parking space in the building. I recently sold it to make space for a new car.

Now this car, it wasn’t in the greatest condition bodywork wise, but mostly was mechanically sound. The first 2-3 years of ownership I babied it and got it fixed every time there was a (frequent) dent or scratch caused by an errant autorickshaw or 2 wheeler. Finally, I just stopped with the cosmetic repair. I serviced it, paid the insurance, and just drove it.

The Eon became my “go anywhere, leave it parked anywhere” car, mostly to be used around the crowded western suburbs of Mumbai, where I would absolutely not take any of my other cars. It could get scratched, dented, and I couldn’t care less. As long as it worked mechanically, I was fine with it.

NOW. 2 months post selling this car, I really miss it, and I was wondering what it could be replaced with today at reasonable price. Brand new would be preferred, but I’m open to preowned too.

My prerequisites for the car are - Small hatchback, Aircon, manual transmission, electric front windows, adjustable steering column and Bluetooth for phone calls. Anything else is a bonus. If I were to choose further, fold down rear seats. No exotics, diesels, Tata or Mahindra cars. I simply don’t have the patience.

Please help me with any opinions or ideas. I was at one point 3 years back seriously thinking Renault Kwid, but is there something even lower cost?? Open to all ideas. Ideally don’t want to spend over 3-4 lakhs (can be increased if that’s unrealistic)

[GForceEnjoyer]

You'll have to go a little higher on the pricing part if you want something brand new; the Maruti Ignis immediately comes to mind. If you're okay with used, then you can get something like a Grand i10/Swift/Tiago. Or you could go the tried and tested Alto/Celerio route.

[windrider]

It is clear that you are looking for a beater car. Stop thinking about what brand to buy and get a maruti . You held onto the eon for a decade so I'm guessing you intend to keep your next car also for this period of time. If you are buying brand new the alto would be my number one choice. Sad that they discontinued the pocket rocket k10 but the 800 is still around. I own a k10 myself as a secondary car. If you are not concerned about looks, the s-presso is a very good alternative and much more spacious than the alto. If you want something from a class above these, pre owned is the way to go. You can find many 2-3 year old swifts or Hyundais in the used market but I have noticed that post covid, prices have skyrocketed in the used car market. I would advice you not to go for brands such as Renault since there is no guarantee if they will even be in India in a couple of years . Cheers

[GreyNomad]

I’d suggest the SPresso auto. Small on the outside, decent inside; has all the features you’re looking for plus some. Very frugal and quite a hoot to drive around in the city. Take TD. It’ll impress you.

[KPR]

Since you are open for used car try selecting an Alto K10 AMT or MT. I've driven Ignis as beater car in narrow lanes, congested roads and parking places in my town. Now I'm driving an Alto. Alto is simple and a lot easier than an Ignis as beater car purpose.

[LilBimmer]

Originally Posted by GForceEnjoyer

You'll have to go a little higher on the pricing part if you want something brand new; the Maruti Ignis immediately comes to mind.

Thanks. For some reason, I thought that the Ignis is/was discontinued?? Way beck when it was launched, I already owned an Alto K10, and a Swift. I feel the Swift is too large for the purpose. Car has to be small since leaving it parked in Bandra by lanes has to be feasible.

[fhdowntheline]

I am in the same boat right now. I did a test drive of an Ignis AMT yesterday in a quest to look at a second, beater, small lane city car option. While the car itself was comfortable, I observed that the AMT response was not to my liking. Furthermore, the -AMT-Manual mode didn't feel too great either, kind of neither-here-nor-there. And there were two more negatives: 1) No steering return to centre and 2) a sort of a blind spot on the left if you are turning right from a small lane to a busy street, this blind spot is because of that exaggerated C pillar slant where there would normally be a quarter glass . On the positive side, the driver seat was good, and there is additional flexibility for 40/60 in the rear seat and of course, Maruti frugality.
But on the flip side, on a whim, I tried the Grand I10 Nios. Now they had a CNG Sportz manual version only for a TD. But I was pleasantly surprised. The cabin ambience felt a level better in many aspects, the visibility was excellent all-round, and the car was such a pleasure to drive with its slick gearshifts and light clutch. No, it was no scorcher, but that isn't the purpose anyway. In fact, it felt so refreshing and liberating to drive a manual car after some time at a personal level, and especially after that rather moody AMT on the Ignis. The suspension also felt quite ok, and build quality was acceptably decent (GNCAP notwithstanding). The only small issue I observed that the rear seat had less legroom at my driving position, and while the seat squab was better than the Ignis, the seat was rather low, therefore the rear door sill was rather high for someone to do a quick egress.
I have driven the SPresso AMT earlier, and I felt that AMT was better and more predictable than the Ignis one. And mind you, these are all showroom Test drive cars, so I would conclude that the AMT behaviour also reflects the driving style of a driver, much like a manual gear/clutch. In comparison, the other ATs are a bit more user-agnostic over long term. I want to try out the Wagon R especially the 1.2 , before taking a call. But now I am more inclined towards manual transmission if it is slick enough like the Grand I10.

[swoosh]

Originally Posted by LilBimmer

My prerequisites for the car are - Small hatchback, Aircon, manual transmission, electric front windows, adjustable steering column and Bluetooth for phone calls. Anything else is a bonus. If I were to choose further, fold down rear seats. No exotics, diesels, Tata or Mahindra cars. I simply don’t have the patience.

All your requirements scream a S-Presso. It's peppy, easy to maintain, and has good GC with effortless maneuverability. Check out S-Presso VXI (O) or VXI plus. Both these variants have Bluetooth but VXI plus has a touchscreen with android auto and apple car play, voice command, and steering mounted controls in addition to other features available in VXI (O).

[AGupta]

Get a pre-owned Grand i10 with ABS and Airbags. Mostly 2016 and later models have these. It's one of the best entry level hatchback with feel good interiors.
The maintenance is also easy on pocket. You should be able to get one decent example in your budget.

[learning_cars]

I think you can go for a pre owned car in this budget. Alto/ Spesso are the only ones you can find around your budget new.

The best I can think of after reading that you think Swift would be too big would be Honda Brio. Looks good, runs well and is reliable. The other car in my mind is Etios Liva, a good car for beater purpose. You should be able to find plenty of Brio in the used car market.

[saion666]

Get a pre-owned celerio or the previous gen wagonR, the current ones are lot larger for the intended usage.
3-4 lakhs should get decent ones

I speak from my own experience of driving in the central and north calcutta bylanes.

[vijay_jambu]

I was in a similar situation in 2018, was seriously considering Kwid for city runabouts. A casual visit to our usual secondhand car dealer (clean cars at a tad higher asking cost than other dealers), walked out with a neat 2012 model 60k on odo Hyundai I10 automatic at 3 lakhs.
I felt the deal was amazing because it was a 1.2 Kappa Asta variant which meant it had 2 airbags and ABS when it comes to safety and other feel good factors like sunroof, fog lights and surprisingly good looking interior for the price. Although it’s just a 4 speed automatic, it performs really well in city with a punchy and silky smooth 1.2 ltr engine.

Maintenance wise usual Hyundai upselling during regular service but I switched to my trusted Škoda FNG guy and now servicing costs ante next to nothing. Only major issue I found is the fuel consumption which is around 10 KMs per litre, pinches too hard especially when fuel prices has sky rocketed, but convenience wise it’s priceless.
All in all, when I look back, I couldn’t have been more happier at my decision of not going for a Kwid.

I would suggest you to lookout for something similar.

-VJ