[nim_peter]

This may be a unique requirement, but I'm looking for a good car for 60K max. I hunted for some and found that FIAT uno, Cielo and a Zen is available. I will be using the car for maximum one year after which I'm planning to buy a Good Lancer. So I don't want to invest so much on a car now, hence the low budget. I'm looking for a powerful car(hence excluded maruti 800) and all these fit in. Any advice on which car to go for? A decent fuel average will do for me. Thanks for your help.

[ajmat]

You can't go wrong with a Zen. Parts cheap and will be easy to sel on.

[Saurabh M]

I second that. Dont go for an Uno and a Cielo as well. Getting spares may be a problem. With Zen, you will get the peace of mind and it is adequately powerful too. However, with a 60K budget, you might get quite old Zens, so, do a thorough check of the conditions before buying one.

[madan80]

zens are good- if you can find a 1995 circa one that is. i would suggest stay away from the celio- nice car- but the ones on the market are quite terrible.
you could also try looking into getting a ford escort.

[architect]

When you say "a Good Lancer", do you mean a new one? or a used one?

I agree, the Zen has one of the best re-sale values and its easy to maintain and cheap to run.

In Delhi, one can get a 1994-95 Zen which would have done about 1.5 lakh kms for that price (my friend just sold one for his Swift D). But I wouldn't know of Chennai, because anywhere outside Delhi, cars clock much less on the odo.

A Cielo could be good for that price too. But only if you are okay with cost of maintenance and trouble with parts as well as not so great FE.

At the risk of getting bashed from various knowledgeable people around, if you are getting Cielos, you could also look at high mileage Opel Astras for about a lakh. They are well built and often well maintained by their owners. It could last you for a year without major repairs (which can cost a bomb at Authorised GM service centres and a little less at a decent garage). Maybe, you would want to continue with it for longer.

[bhp1]

for 60k, you can get a m-1000. but these are less in numbers.
cielo is powerful car, if you can find a good piece, fuel average is not so good.
fiat uno - getting parts would be a problem & they wont come cheap.
out of your list zen shines the most, as maintaining a 2nd hand zen wont break the bank.
an alternate look could be a contessa, you might get it much below 60k & its powerful.

[AbhiJ]

Cielo is a great car... I used to own one...

And I am sure you ll get a decent one for around 50000. But the be prepared to hunt for spares and also pay exorbitant sums for some electrical ones.

[aah78]

While you have a whole second hand market open to you for Rs. 60K, it would be wise to limit your choices to a Zen or even an Alto. An older 800 will be even cheaper to buy and run.

You will get a Cielo, Escort, Astra, etc. but please don't fall for any of these especially as you're only going to keep it for a year - you don't want to spend your time and money on maintenance and petrol.

[theMAG]

The 1.1 Alto should be a good deal too. Its spares are also current in the Wagon R and the Estilo

[musicmanaman]

Zen is your best bet, I just sold my 99 carb zen in excellent condition with 55k on the odo for 55k, second hand cars are cheaper to buy and sell in Kolkata than down south I believe.

[sushrutha]

Originally Posted by theMAG

The 1.1 Alto should be a good deal too. Its spares are also current in the Wagon R and the Estilo

I really doubt of anyone selling an alto 1.1 for 60K

[Lalvaz]

I think the best bet would be a Zen. Its a lovely car, cheap to maintain, and pleasure to drive. Should fetch a decent resale too. Nothing else comes close enough for reasons below

M800 - Underpowered
UNO - High cost of spares
Santro - Hard to get a good specimen so cheap.
Cielo/Opel/Matiz: Higher spares cost, and lower resale.

[BaCkSeAtDrIVeR]

As already pointed out, why not a M 1000? Any other brand adn spares availability may be a problem. Both M1000 and zen have the same engine, AFAIK.

[Naga_SwiSan]

Its better to go for zen than uno/cielo if you want to use only a year, else you can consider santro arnd 80-90K of earlier ones(98/99 - 3rd/4th owner) if you can hunt and lucky

[rjstyles69]

Originally Posted by theMAG

The 1.1 Alto should be a good deal too. Its spares are also current in the Wagon R and the Estilo

Saar this is next to impossible. The 1.1's sell at a premium atleast in bangalore and in comparo to the other cities lets say a price difference of about 40k tops. So this is out.

The Carb Zen could be contender for that price range. You might have to stretch your budget a wee little.
Why not look at the M800/M1000 ?