Need for cheap speed: zen vs santro

greenh0rn · 15th March 2005, 19:57

Ok that 1 L honda city is out of my reach.

Now i gonna buy a cheap, small but reasonably fast (aka peppy) car. My budget is 2.5 for a used car and 3.75 Lakh for a new one. My considerations are chiefly zen and santro xing, but i may not mind wagon R if you guys really insist.

Order/Ranking of my criteria:
1. Performance
2. Looks
3. VFM

What do i go for?

simran · 15th March 2005, 20:11

Performance (Zen, Santro, Wagon R)

Power to wt: 78.4 (60 at 6000rpm), 73.7(63 at 5500rpm), 75.1(62 at 6000rpm)
Torque to wt: 10.4(8 at 4500rpm), 10.6(9.1 at 3000rpm), 9.9(8.2 at 3500rpm)

Looks:
Tall boys are tall boys, Zen looks more like a car (Personal opinion)

VFM:

Money: Santro, Zen, Wagon R (Descending order)
Value:
1. Silent cabin: Santro
2. peppy ride: Zen
3. Flexibility: WagonR
4. Service: All at par
5. Engine: Zen seems to be best due to the Al engine ... but am not sure ... others may pls comment
6. ergonomics: Santro, easier to turn
7. Reliability: Zen has proven the engine is good over many many years

Hope this helps,
Simran

greenh0rn · 15th March 2005, 20:24

thanks simran! that's really helpful!

libre sito · 15th March 2005, 20:32

if ur lookin for peppy ill say that i prefer my 8 yr old zen to my new santro xing except for all da rattling of some sort.

greenh0rn · 15th March 2005, 20:43

ah ok here's something i thought i'd add...

1. I just need the cheap thrills for like 2-3 years, when i go for a hi-performance 1.6L midsize car.

2. I'll be alone in the car mostly, and otherwise with all seats filled. so balance at 80+ speeds is also to be considered.

3. I don't intend to measure top speed of my car, but once in a while i may go berserk and decide to race with a 1.6 L ford or 1.5 OHC (far powerful cars, but then when has power made a driver a good racer?)

shravan316 · 15th March 2005, 20:45

Well, for a small peppy car, Zen fits in the bill perfectly. There are many Zen owners who swear by their machine. But, having said that, the Santro Xing and Wagon R are more modern, the interior space is more when compared to the Zen.

drifter · 15th March 2005, 21:07

Zen it is anyday for performance.

Santro for a practical no nonsense car. Performance decent.

Go for the zen.

Drifter

DCEite · 15th March 2005, 21:23

Well... if you could specify your height... if you are above 5,9... definitly i would recommend wagonr... reason being performance slightly better than santro (at higher revvs that is) and you can get a second hand wagonr definitly at a lower price than a similarly aged Santro. Thats because wagonr has lower resale value.
(not to forget the rocking A.S.S of maruti cars in Delhi)

If at all height is not a consideration, go for Zen. I dont think either of the three cars can sit more than 4 comfortably, since all are narrow...

So i guess it all comes down to your height now!!.. but IMO Santro/WagonR are more safer and modern than Zen...

gamerno1 · 15th March 2005, 22:54

zen baby zen. you can go for a used one 2k2 model (old design) for around 2lacs & spend 50k on some mods since you plan it to use for a max of 3 years.

normally_crazy · 15th March 2005, 23:12

This is no brainer - has to be the ZEN

nothing else will do

sorry mahindra

manson · 16th March 2005, 00:29

dude i d say go for the zen ,

if you don't mind the age why don't you look out for a 2000 model baleno , might get a good one in your budget .

manson .

greenh0rn · 16th March 2005, 10:45

thanks guys! the vote is overwhelmingly in favour of zen. So I'm done with the decision part! Now the hunt starts...

speedsatya · 16th March 2005, 11:01

Quote:

Originally Posted by greenh0rn

Ok that 1 L honda city is out of my reach.

.

Order/Ranking of my criteria:
1. Performance
2. Looks
3. VFM

?

dude,

whats this 1L honda city????????

now for your hunt for the right car----

1.performance ------ palio GTX(8/10),zen mpfi(6/10),
wagon-r(5/10),santro(3/10)
the wagon-r gets lesser points here ,due to its height,

2.looks------------- palio(8/10),new zen(0/10),old zen(5/10),wagon-r and the santro just do not qualify for the looks ratings.

3.VFM-----------if its comfortable driving along with performance without caring for FE,its the palio .

if FE is not an issue ,then its the palio GTX to go for.otherwise go for the old zen mpfi.

also ,you can get a mpfi esteem in your budget.

sandeepdeshmukh · 16th March 2005, 11:44

GTX all the way...2001 second hand decent one will cost you ~2L. The FE difference can be bridged with purchase price (GTX against Zen,Santro et al)

askulkarni · 16th March 2005, 12:03

I would say Indica V2 Baby!! All the things that you want and more. Well I am biased. Pune is labelled as an Indica City ;-)!

But I would definitely like to hear the reasons for why it should not be considered.

15th March 2005, 19:57	#1
greenh0rn BHPian Join Date: Feb 2005 Location: New Delhi Posts: 427 Thanked: 149 Times	Need for cheap speed: zen vs santro Ok that 1 L honda city is out of my reach. Now i gonna buy a cheap, small but reasonably fast (aka peppy) car. My budget is 2.5 for a used car and 3.75 Lakh for a new one. My considerations are chiefly zen and santro xing, but i may not mind wagon R if you guys really insist. Order/Ranking of my criteria: 1. Performance 2. Looks 3. VFM What do i go for?
	() Thanks

15th March 2005, 20:11	#2
simran BHPian Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Gurgaon Posts: 171 Thanked: 13 Times View My Garage	Performance (Zen, Santro, Wagon R) Power to wt: 78.4 (60 at 6000rpm), 73.7(63 at 5500rpm), 75.1(62 at 6000rpm) Torque to wt: 10.4(8 at 4500rpm), 10.6(9.1 at 3000rpm), 9.9(8.2 at 3500rpm) Looks: Tall boys are tall boys, Zen looks more like a car (Personal opinion) VFM: Money: Santro, Zen, Wagon R (Descending order) Value: 1. Silent cabin: Santro 2. peppy ride: Zen 3. Flexibility: WagonR 4. Service: All at par 5. Engine: Zen seems to be best due to the Al engine ... but am not sure ... others may pls comment 6. ergonomics: Santro, easier to turn 7. Reliability: Zen has proven the engine is good over many many years Hope this helps, Simran
	() Thanks

15th March 2005, 20:24	#3
greenh0rn BHPian Join Date: Feb 2005 Location: New Delhi Posts: 427 Thanked: 149 Times	thanks simran! that's really helpful!
	() Thanks

15th March 2005, 20:32	#4
libre sito BHPian Join Date: Aug 2004 Location: Mumbai/Brooklyn/New Jersey Posts: 149 Thanked: 5 Times	if ur lookin for peppy ill say that i prefer my 8 yr old zen to my new santro xing except for all da rattling of some sort.
	() Thanks

15th March 2005, 20:43	#5
greenh0rn BHPian Join Date: Feb 2005 Location: New Delhi Posts: 427 Thanked: 149 Times	ah ok here's something i thought i'd add... 1. I just need the cheap thrills for like 2-3 years, when i go for a hi-performance 1.6L midsize car. 2. I'll be alone in the car mostly, and otherwise with all seats filled. so balance at 80+ speeds is also to be considered. 3. I don't intend to measure top speed of my car, but once in a while i may go berserk and decide to race with a 1.6 L ford or 1.5 OHC (far powerful cars, but then when has power made a driver a good racer?)
	() Thanks

15th March 2005, 20:45	#6
shravan316 Senior - BHPian Join Date: Apr 2004 Location: Bangalore Posts: 1,029 Thanked: 9 Times	Well, for a small peppy car, Zen fits in the bill perfectly. There are many Zen owners who swear by their machine. But, having said that, the Santro Xing and Wagon R are more modern, the interior space is more when compared to the Zen.
	() Thanks

15th March 2005, 21:07	#7
drifter Senior - BHPian Join Date: Sep 2004 Location: Bombay Posts: 1,488 Thanked: 75 Times View My Garage	Zen it is anyday for performance. Santro for a practical no nonsense car. Performance decent. Go for the zen. Drifter
	() Thanks

15th March 2005, 21:23	#8
DCEite Senior - BHPian Join Date: Sep 2004 Location: NCR Posts: 3,417 Thanked: 2,559 Times	Well... if you could specify your height... if you are above 5,9... definitly i would recommend wagonr... reason being performance slightly better than santro (at higher revvs that is) and you can get a second hand wagonr definitly at a lower price than a similarly aged Santro. Thats because wagonr has lower resale value. (not to forget the rocking A.S.S of maruti cars in Delhi) If at all height is not a consideration, go for Zen. I dont think either of the three cars can sit more than 4 comfortably, since all are narrow... So i guess it all comes down to your height now!!.. but IMO Santro/WagonR are more safer and modern than Zen... Last edited by DCEite : 15th March 2005 at 21:25.
	() Thanks

15th March 2005, 22:54	#9
gamerno1 BHPian Join Date: Feb 2005 Location: Andheri (w), Mumbai Posts: 408 Thanked: 0 Times View My Garage	zen baby zen. you can go for a used one 2k2 model (old design) for around 2lacs & spend 50k on some mods since you plan it to use for a max of 3 years.
	() Thanks

15th March 2005, 23:12	#10
normally_crazy Senior - BHPian Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: Mumbai Posts: 4,369 Thanked: 528 Times View My Garage	This is no brainer - has to be the ZEN nothing else will do sorry mahindra
	() Thanks

16th March 2005, 00:29	#11
manson Team-BHP Support Join Date: Oct 2004 Location: Bombay Posts: 3,934 Thanked: 4,169 Times View My Garage	dude i d say go for the zen , if you don't mind the age why don't you look out for a 2000 model baleno , might get a good one in your budget . manson . Last edited by manson : 16th March 2005 at 00:32.
	() Thanks

16th March 2005, 10:45	#12
greenh0rn BHPian Join Date: Feb 2005 Location: New Delhi Posts: 427 Thanked: 149 Times	thanks guys! the vote is overwhelmingly in favour of zen. So I'm done with the decision part! Now the hunt starts...
	() Thanks

16th March 2005, 11:44	#14
sandeepdeshmukh Newbie Join Date: Aug 2004 Location: Pune Posts: 18 Thanked: 0 Times	GTX all the way...2001 second hand decent one will cost you ~2L. The FE difference can be bridged with purchase price (GTX against Zen,Santro et al)
	() Thanks

16th March 2005, 12:03	#15
askulkarni Newbie Join Date: Nov 2004 Location: Pune Posts: 14 Thanked: 0 Times	I would say Indica V2 Baby!! All the things that you want and more. Well I am biased. Pune is labelled as an Indica City ;-)! But I would definitely like to hear the reasons for why it should not be considered.
	() Thanks