[WanderNomad]

Originally Posted by abhijeetsng

Go in for santro xing. Its one of the best hatch available. I have been driving a santro for 5+ years with no issues of luggage or parking or whatsoever. My friend has a wagon, though it also has upright seats but it somehow doesn't feel confortable. Experience the drivability of santro and wagon R. You would by default select Santro. It's just wow.

No offense, if you intend to fit in four 6 feeters, Santro is definitely ruled out. My bro in law as well as a close friend own one each and I have driven it extensively. I feel its very very cramped. Imagine I have to drive at the same seat slider level (floor movement) as my friend because it wont just go back anymore. Ultimately I have to recline the back of the seat to make little room for myself. And I am 6'1" plus whereas my friend is only 5'7".

Also though I own two Accents myself, the general opinion is that the cost of maintenance (especially parts) is higher for Hyundai than Maruti.

Please no Santro vs WagonR debate here.

[pedrolourenco]

Wagon R is an excellent car-if the only other car you've driven is an 800! This seems to be a common problem. Most maruti owners stick with the brand. So you have an 800 and then go and buy a WagonR or Alto or Estilo. It's an excellent car (compared to your previous car). Next upgrade, a Swift. Again it's an excellent car (compared to your previous car). Next upgrade, a SX4. Same story. My point is, why not try a Santro. It's much better than the Wagon R. But you won't know that if you don't check it out. FE of the Santro & Wagon R are more or less the same.

[benbsb29]

Jay, since you seem to have kinda narrowed down your choice to the Wagon R, let me not try to confuse you any further by putting forth more choices.

I do not own a Wagon R, but had the chance to borrow my friend's car on a few occassions when my car was away, and i had urgent need for a car. I would rate my experinces with the car based on this, as well as the few times i have travelled in the car as a passenger.

Originally Posted by jaysmokesleaves

The need > to putter around inside the city, for the everyday run to the malls, errands, movies, occassional intercity runs far and few in between.

Very well at home here. Check.

Must be able to seat 4 adults, 6' tall, in comfort.

In terms of headroom, this should be your best bet among the hatches, i believe. At the rear, i am not too sure about legroom for a 6 footer, but others can comment. Short distances shouldn't be an issue, i suppose.

Must have decent luggage space to haul bags from the airport.

Check. Much better than the Swift.

Has to be easy to park & manouvere.

Being a hatch, and with power steering, shouldnt be an issue. Also, absence of any curved surfaces on the doors and wheel arches ala the Swift, judgement of vehicle dimensions shouldnt be difficult.

The AC must be very very good.

Not sure about the added 'very' in there, but i believe it is good enough. I think there is some power loss with the A/C turned on, but others can clarify.

Seating must be more upright. Im not very much in favour of vehicles with low seating(esteem or honda city style).

Easy ingress and egress as well as upright seating, thanks to the tall boy design.

Has to be compact, utilitarian, robust and cheap to run & easy & cheap to maintain.

Maruti traits save the day here. No worries.

Aah, budget should not exceed 5 lakhs onroad. Has to run on petrol or petrol/cng/lpg.

Well within budget and fuel requirements.

To me, the only issue with the Wagon R would be the looks, especially when it was launched. Now, i have come to accept it. The Estilo faces my wrath in the looks game now.

Hope that helps. Good luck with the purchase.

[DCEite]

Originally Posted by benbsb29

Not sure about the added 'very' in there, but i believe it is good enough. I think there is some power loss with the A/C turned on, but others can clarify.

Agree with you. The AC is not *very* chilling. Its just about OK. Infact Alto's AC is much more chilling than both the WagonR and Santro. Power loss with AC definitly exists. Can't expect it to behave like 100bhp cars.

[siedo]

Hi all one Q.
Is wagon r ax still on sale , just spotted one brand new unregistered ax on road.

[vnabhi]

Originally Posted by DCEite

Agree with you. The AC is not *very* chilling. Its just about OK. Infact Alto's AC is much more chilling than both the WagonR and Santro. Power loss with AC definitly exists. Can't expect it to behave like 100bhp cars.

That's because the volume of air in the Alto is a lot less when compared to a Waggie. The AC unit in both cars is the same. The perceptible drop in power is more in the Alto owing to its smaller capacity engine

[anupmathur]

All of which makes a good case for a dual zone AC Versa with its 20 odd horses extra on tap!

[siedo]

Originally Posted by greenhorn

the WR is an entirely city creature. the spark, heck, the alto handles highways and triple digit speeds more confidently than the WR.

+1
but with wider tiers and the zen 1.1 engine can serve both city and highway duty

[DCEite]

Originally Posted by siedo

+1
but with wider tiers and the zen 1.1 engine can serve both city and highway duty

Zen never had a 1.1 L Engine.
Estilo, Alto 1.1 and WR share the same engine.

[benbsb29]

Originally Posted by greenhorn

the WR is an entirely city creature. the spark, heck, the alto handles highways and triple digit speeds more confidently than the WR.

The Alto certainly handles well, i got to realize that when i was throwing around the car on the curvy roads in Kerala. It didnt feel like it was going to lose control. All this on stock tyres.

As compared to the Wagon R, the Alto would definitely have an edge in handling as the tall-boy nature of the Wagon R goes against it. Not surprisingly, the tall boy stance of the Wagon R is what makes it a fine city car.

[sanjayatarizona]

If you need a better Engine+ Drivability stick to the Santro. Everything else stick to the Wagon R. Both are equally ugly..

[csentil]

You don't want to rip on a Wagon R. Becoz of its engine power its pretty easy to drive and to overtake even in cities. However above 120 kmph you are in trouble. Being a tall boy it doesn't take cornering too well and also emergency braking. You could be dragged left, right, centre.. wherever !! Also the EPS during braking leaves a lot to be desired.

I've driven the Wagon R extensively over long distances and its quite an easy vehicle to drive though sometimes the ergonomics leave something to be desired. You can do 140 on that car easily but if you do not know how that car reacts to braking or sudden twists to the steering then you shouldn't be doing those speeds.

[anupmathur]

Gosh, how everything gets interpreted for SPEED and handling here!!
Guys, there's more to a car than that!

[csentil]

Originally Posted by anupmathur

Gosh, how everything gets interpreted for SPEED and handling here!!
Guys, there's more to a car than that!

Well as everyone had said about the other aspects of the car I thought I'll cover this ! Anyways what's there to say about a Wagon R, same Maruti plastics and build quality, easy to maintain, looks bad, VFM....

[DCEite]

As if other small cars like Santro/Spark/i10/Indica etc. handled and sped like a Ferrari on highways.