[yogeshnaik]

You may consider Indica eV2, that has a good DiCOR Diesel Engine, great mileage and TATA claims 25Kmpl. People who own it say the claim is correct. Will be less in bumper to bumper traffic which is the law of Nature. As you said the roads are rough, Indica can withstand it. New Indica have evolved better from the past. Indica is the car made for India!

I also read GTO's precise calculation, that is correct. The formula of economical usage of a Diesel Car vs Petrol Car is not generic and may not be applicable to most of the manufacturers. I own an Indica too.

[speedmiester]

Originally Posted by Thilak29

Finally the day has come!

I'm gonna purchase my first car and now I understand what it is like to be really being confused and being pampered with multiple options(?) and tech specs.

Also add Indica Vista to your list, this is the most spacious of all the hatchbacks and will fit your needs perfectly whether it is a petrol or the diesel one.

[infotech58]

please suggest a suitable car:

for who: my cousin; female: height 5'4".

driving skills: learnt driving at a driving school twice, but never actually practiced.

monthly run: mostly highway - approx. 120 kms round trip twice a week. she has very very limited time to fix any issues which may crop up, hence the vehicle must be utterly reliable.

budget: 4 lac if used, 6 lac if buying new.

what i suggested her: (since she is new to driving and won't get much time to practice too) a new Hyundai i10 AT or a new A-Star AT or a brand new Honda Brio or a used Punto diesel (found a 10 month old with 45k on ODO with asking price of 3.9 lac - negotiable).

what she's keen on buying: a diesel car. 2-3 yrs. old Ritz Vdi with 45-55k on ODO are available in abundance here (in punjab) for 3.5-4.0 lac. same case with Nissan Micras in used market.

[djay99]

@infotech58,
Punto is a heavy & big car and is not easy to drive when she is kind of still learning.
Best option is i10 for following reasons:
1] Easy to drive around city and highway. Has good power and torque.
2] Has AT transmission and hence she can concentrate more on the roads rather than changing gears.
She can also consider a MT because her usage is more on highway. Buy a variant with airbags & ABS as budget permits.
3] i10 has overall good quality exterior and interiors and is economical to maintain.
4] Very refined and efficient engine.
5] Fits in your budget.
Her usage is less than 1000 KM which does not justify buying a diesel car. Also remember that a diesel car is expensive to maintain than a petrol car.

[CowlFlap]

Originally Posted by infotech58

please suggest a suitable car:

driving skills: learnt driving at a driving school twice, but never actually practiced.

monthly run: mostly highway - approx. 120 kms round trip twice a week. she has very very limited time to fix any issues which may crop up, hence the vehicle must be utterly reliable.

infotech58, IMO and OT, whatever car you decide on, those two factors together can end in disaster. I would recommend you get a driver for atleast a couple of weeks; if not more. If nothing else, let the driver occupy the passenger seat while your cousin drives. IMHO, no matter what safety devices you add to the vehicle, the greatest safety lies in driving safely itself .

[RadiantKarma]

Originally Posted by infotech58

please suggest a suitable car:

My two cents based on your needs

• "Utterly Reliable" - Your cousin would best stick to a Japanese car (Toyota, Honda, Nissan, Suzuki) or a Hyundai. A pre-owned Punto doesn't exactly sound like it.
• A run of about 1000 kms a month: she's in a zone where she has luxury to choose either diesel or a petrol. IMO, a petrol would be better for a novice for easier driveability. A diesel clutch is also typically a tad heavier to operate.
• An AT hatch: could be ideal, except for her apparent concern about mileage - she's looking for a diesel for running cost, right? An AT A-star or i10 would give lower mileage. Moreover, AT is great for city driveability and her usual run is on highways.
• A pre-owned car is a good idea till she develops confidence. For that, even an Alto or a Santro would be a good idea. She can next graduate to a better car - whether new or pre-owned. Ritz is a great car except its raised inverted dash can be rather intimidating for a novice driver of that height. If indeed a new car it is, I would recommend a petrol Liva of the entire lot - easy to drive and maintain, sound fundamentals - good braking, ride quality, adequate handling. But if premium feel of interiors is important, just go for Brio - everything is great except for ride quality.

[ghostrider]

Originally Posted by djay99

@infotech58,
Punto is a heavy & big car and is not easy to drive when she is kind of still learning.
Best option is i10 for following reasons:
1] Easy to drive around city and highway. Has good power and torque.
2] Has AT transmission and hence she can concentrate more on the roads rather than changing gears.
She can also consider a MT because her usage is more on highway. Buy a variant with airbags & ABS as budget permits.
3] i10 has overall good quality exterior and interiors and is economical to maintain.
4] Very refined and efficient engine.
5] Fits in your budget.
Her usage is less than 1000 KM which does not justify buying a diesel car. Also remember that a diesel car is expensive to maintain than a petrol car.

While your assertion that an i10 is easier to drive than a Punto is correct, your logic for not buying a diesel car is wrong because his cousin is spending the same amount of money regardless. Also, when this car will eventually be sold, a diesel will command much higher resale.

My suggestions would be:

1. New Swift LDi
2. Preowned Swift / Ritz LDis / VDis.
3. Beat Diesel

[AbhishekB86]

Originally Posted by infotech58

please suggest a suitable car:

for who: my cousin; female: height 5'4".

driving skills: learnt driving at a driving school twice, but never actually practiced.

monthly run: mostly highway - approx. 120 kms round trip twice a week. she has very very limited time to fix any issues which may crop up, hence the vehicle must be utterly reliable.

budget: 4 lac if used, 6 lac if buying new.

what i suggested her: (since she is new to driving and won't get much time to practice too) a new Hyundai i10 AT or a new A-Star AT or a brand new Honda Brio or a used Punto diesel (found a 10 month old with 45k on ODO with asking price of 3.9 lac - negotiable).

what she's keen on buying: a diesel car. 2-3 yrs. old Ritz Vdi with 45-55k on ODO are available in abundance here (in punjab) for 3.5-4.0 lac. same case with Nissan Micras in used market.

Why not consider the Chevy Beat. If you have doubts about the visibility factor for ladies then the vehicle would not have been such a hit among them, but the fact is, it is. You would agree, you get used to it. I know I did.

Chevrolet is not far behind in terms of reliability and with the Chevy promise of 3 years, anything untoward can be taken care of.

I learnt driving on this car and I must tell you I literally made her off road in the learners' driving parks available around here when I was learning.

My car took it with a smile on its face and I never faced any issues.

The Beat Diesel will offer a killer mileage and your sister would be happy with the looks and the colors available on this car.

I have done 26,000 kms without any issues. My service bills are nothing to crib about.

As far as the highway run goes the mileage might keep her purse heavier, so why not? Give it a thought. Please TD it. Maybe you can drive the car and she can sit in the passenger seat and decide for herself.

Edit : Some members would rightfully suggest a pre-owned car, but on the flip side, I learnt driving on a new one. What your sister can do and is a suggestion from someone who's been in the same position, is to hire a driver for a month. She can practice during early hours in the morning, slowly graduating from empty roads to better ones as her confidence increases. The driver can be done away with, once she has enough confidence to zip it around by herself. This way the driver can take over when she needs it for her initial highway commutes or peak hours while she learns during the early morning/late evening timings.

[blackbeast]

Originally Posted by GTO

Therefore, people generalise in saying that only 2000+ kms a month would help you in recovering the additional costs you incur with a diesel car.
GTO

Gone are the days when 2000 kms made the difference. It's 1000 k with today's prices. Add the resale value to the equation and dream to own a petrol again is far from near.

dsrins, if you are following the replies, take GTO's words and pick up indica diesel. It's improved a lot since its inception. Staying outskirts in bangalore makes Tata service centres very close to you.

Originally Posted by DieselFan

Just to give a simple math -
...........

Well, one's loss is other's gain. This math applies to those who buy new and to use it as a work horse. The situation is different in used markets. You can pick a sx4 with full options at 4L where as a diesel+abs+airbags with goodies
would cost 8L for a similar aged vehicle.I'd put my 4L into buying fuel eyes closed.
The situation tilts drastically towards petrol for cars on this side of 10+ L. one to two year old Accords/superbs at ~12 to 13L. How tempting is that ?

[djay99]

Originally Posted by ghostrider

While your assertion that an i10 is easier to drive than a Punto is correct, your logic for not buying a diesel car is wrong because his cousin is spending the same amount of money regardless. Also, when this car will eventually be sold, a diesel will command much higher resale.

A petrol car is cheaper to buy and maintain than a diesel car.
A usage of around 1400KM + per month warrants buying a diesel car.
Punto diesel's get more depreciated than an i10. Check yourself in used car market.
I own a spark petrol and getz diesel. Based on my experience with P/D, i jotted down my comments.

[ghostrider]

Originally Posted by djay99

A petrol car is cheaper to buy and maintain than a diesel car.
A usage of around 1400KM + per month warrants buying a diesel car.
Punto diesel's get more depreciated than an i10. Check yourself in used car market.
I own a spark petrol and getz diesel. Based on my experience with P/D, i jotted down my comments.

With the current disparity between petrol and diesel, it makes economic sense to own a diesel even if you're doing 1000 km. In the four years that I had my Swift DDiS my maintenance costs were no more than the cost of the petrol Swift maintenance costs reported here on the forums.
Yes, a Punto will depreciate more than an i10, but other diesel hatchbacks (Swifts, Ritzes, Beats, etc) hold their value tremendously.

[infotech58]

Originally Posted by djay99

@infotech58,
Best option is i10 for following reasons:

Originally Posted by CowlFlap

infotech58, IMO and OT, whatever car you decide on, those two factors together can end in disaster.

Originally Posted by RadiantKarma

My two cents based on your needs

Originally Posted by ghostrider

1. New Swift LDi
2. Preowned Swift / Ritz LDis / VDis.
3. Beat Diesel

Originally Posted by AbhishekB86

Why not consider the Chevy Beat.

Originally Posted by djay99

A petrol car is cheaper to buy and maintain than a diesel car.

Originally Posted by ghostrider

With the current disparity between petrol and diesel, it makes economic sense to own a diesel even if you're doing 1000 km.

Guys, Many Thanks for your inputs.

Only reason she wanted to buy a diesel is the perception of low running cost; her running will vary from a minimum of 500 km to a maximum of 1000 kms a month and would not go beyond that anytime in the coming years.

I had her do a test drive of i10 AT and she liked it very much due to ease of driving. Another cars she test drove were Chevy Beat Diesel (felt comfortable with it), and Ritz (did not like it).

Decision not taken yet, purchase would take place sometime near Diwali - probably Brio AT too would be in market by then. She has started to practice driving within city limits on a Swift VDi that was recently purchased in the family.

[djay99]

Originally Posted by ghostrider

With the current disparity between petrol and diesel, it makes economic sense to own a diesel even if you're doing 1000 km. In the four years that I had my Swift DDiS my maintenance costs were no more than the cost of the petrol Swift maintenance costs reported here on the forums.
Yes, a Punto will depreciate more than an i10, but other diesel hatchbacks (Swifts, Ritzes, Beats, etc) hold their value tremendously.

You never know how long the disparity exists. Govt is trying hard to get out of this subsidy losses, example- Some states have already started charging a higher road tax for diesel cars.

You can go thorugh various threads to verify maintenance costs of diesel vs petrol cars in this forum and even if your usage is 1500KM per month, you need over 3 years to recover the additional investment made during a diesel car purchase.

Your statement "Swift DDiS maintenance costs were no more than the cost of the petrol Swift maintenance costs" sounds incorrect. I don't want to prove that i am right but check yourself part by part cost and diesel parts are expensive any day.

[shashank.nk]

Originally Posted by djay99

You never know how long the disparity exists. Govt is trying hard to get out of this subsidy losses, example- Some states have already started charging a higher road tax for diesel cars.

I just finished reading an article in ET where the petroleum minister said they have no idea of deregulating diesel,LPG or kerosene prices anytime soon.

States charging higher taxes for diesel cars is news ! Can you list out the states and the percentage of additional tax levied on a diesel car ?

[xbox360]

Hi Guys,
My Ford Ikon is now 8+ yrs old and am looking at replacing it with a small car. The usage will be typically limited to picking up my kids from school with the daily roundtrip around 10Kms with the odd weekend run of say 20-30 Kms.

My priorities are as follows --
1) Cost -- Ideally i would like to spend as little as possible towards this purchase but am not considering a 2nd hand vehicle.
2) Dependability -- The ford Ikon dwarfs my Tata Safari in terms of niggles but still i would like to explore the possibility of buying a vehicle which is totally hassle free
3) Resale -- Again a learning after buying a Ford and a Tata.
4) Space -As there are 4 adults and 2 kids in my family, there may be an odd trip where i need to stuff all of us in this vehicle if the larger vehicle is at its sasural (means mother's house in Hindi which in this case means TASS). With the other vehicle being a 5 yr old TATA, this may not be as remote as i made it look .
5) Good Mileage

Would appreciate if you can help guide me to the possible options and the right variant within the proposed option where you think one gets the best deal.

Thanks.