[bandlimitedlife]

My choice would be alto anyday.

Reasons:

Maruti service center anywhere as compared to a very few chevy service centers. (4 in Bangalore as of today)

Resale Value anyday Maruti is the best.

[supremeBaleno]

Originally Posted by ObsessedByFIAT

With three years/1 lakh KM warranty and 3.20 L for the top model, I do not think any other car of this segment can beat the deal

I am not sure which car's top model you are referring, but you are definitely not getting the Spark's top model for that money. It is 4L+. You won't even get the AltoK10 top-model for 3.2 lakhs.

[bandlimitedlife]

With three years/1 lakh KM warranty and 3.20 L for the top model, I do not think any other car of this segment can beat the deal!

The bare basic skeleton model of Spark will cost you that much on road. What you see in the papers is just the ex-showroom cost. And there is a 5K or so fee involved which they charge for the warranty. Nothing comes free .

The top model 3.2L is again ex-showroom. By the time you get the car you would have hit the 4L ceiling atleast.

[Latheesh]

Yes, Spark LT O with air bag costs 4L+ on the road in Bangalore. LT costs around 3.7 L on the road (around 3.9 in Bangalore). Other than resale value I did not find any other +ves in Alto when I was looking for an entry level car.

NB: My daily drive is Spark and drive Alto when I visit my hometown.

[Aroy]

Alto K10 any day. With 30K+ Altos selling every month, there is economy of numbers in every thing - spares, service etc. The resale value of MUL products are one of the best in the industry. As such the cost of maintaining an Alto for 3 years 1L km, would be around 3K/service = 30K + clutch + brake pads + coolant ~ 50k, and tyres (do not think GM will give them). That would be made up in its better resale value.

[pvgeorge]

Did a TD of both the K10 and Spark yesterday. areas that I couold compare based on the test drive are
1) Space --> Spark
2) Engine --> Spark (Found the K10 needing to be kept in the power band while Spark pulls from low rpm
3) Re sale --> K10 for sure
4) Interiors -> Spark
5) Built --> Spark
6) Features --> Spark
7) Cost -> with the new spark discount, K10 Vxi costs 3.38 and spark LS@ 3.35
8) Masculinity --> Alto (while both doesnt feature here, cpmparing the two spark is too girly)


overall if I leave hte Maruti name, I would rate the spark way better than Alto

George

[harishnayak]

Originally Posted by pvgeorge

Did a TD of both the K10 and Spark yesterday. areas that I couold compare based on the test drive are
1) Space --> Spark
2) Engine --> Spark (Found the K10 needing to be kept in the power band while Spark pulls from low rpm
3) Re sale --> K10 for sure
4) Interiors -> Spark
5) Built --> Spark
6) Features --> Spark
7) Cost -> with the new spark discount, K10 Vxi costs 3.38 and spark LS@ 3.35
8) Masculinity --> Alto (while both doesnt feature here, cpmparing the two spark is too girly)


overall if I leave hte Maruti name, I would rate the spark way better than Alto

George

So which one did you zero in on? or was the TD just for the comparison?

Yes, spark is girly. I had bought it for my wife but kept the following conditions -

Black color spark
Black filming ( including the windshield )
Alloys
175 Tyres ( Broad look )
& a LTD sticker

She agreed , this entire set up has made it look really cool.

[rajeev k]

With the offer valid till March 30, the Spark becomes even better an offer. Rs 3.20L for the top end version.
Mouth watering.

[pvgeorge]

Originally Posted by harishnayak

So which one did you zero in on? or was the TD just for the comparison?

Decided to go for the LT version, White one. Black, I m worried abt the Maintenance costs
tomorrow will be doing a pre Inspection and giving a go ahead.

In dielemma whether to go for the service plan for 13K. My wife is going to run not more than 5K in 3 Yrs.. and that means 6 oil services in 3 Yrs.

So if an average service doesnt cost more than 2K, I think this doesnt make sense. Anyway the usual warranty is provided by Chevy anyway.

Any suggestions whether to go for this or not?

Regards,
George V

[Lucas_2007]

Originally Posted by pvgeorge

Did a TD of both the K10 and Spark yesterday. areas that I couold compare based on the test drive are
1) Space --> Spark
2) Engine --> Spark (Found the K10 needing to be kept in the power band while Spark pulls from low rpm
3) Re sale --> K10 for sure
4) Interiors -> Spark
5) Built --> Spark
6) Features --> Spark
7) Cost -> with the new spark discount, K10 Vxi costs 3.38 and spark LS@ 3.35
8) Masculinity --> Alto (while both doesnt feature here, cpmparing the two spark is too girly)


overall if I leave hte Maruti name, I would rate the spark way better than Alto

George

Hi George, I agree. I have a spark too along with a wagonr and a Padmini. I would prefer the spark from my own experience. It has 24000 in odo in 2 years. had a few oil changes till now during regular servicing. no major issues. You'll love the engine response and its smoothness even more after crossing the 5000km mark approx. Particularly I love the way it overtakes the highway traffic in 3rd gear. This is a practical car. Forget the resale value. You buy it to drive it. After driving a Spark I am not going to buy a WagonR or Alto beacause of more resale value. Go for it. You'll never regret. I am a happy owner of Spark.

Regards,
Saurav

[greatmana2000]

My friend bought a K-10 alto and it has done around 7,000 kms till date . I somehow have a feeling that the alto 800 has more top speed and acceleration than a K-10 . The K-10 also is too noisy in the high revs . Has anyone driven both the cars and compared ?

[Gansan]

Originally Posted by greatmana2000

My friend bought a K-10 alto and it has done around 7,000 kms till date . I somehow have a feeling that the alto 800 has more top speed and acceleration than a K-10 . The K-10 also is too noisy in the high revs . Has anyone driven both the cars and compared ?

I have the 800 LXi model, and drove a friends brand new K10 VXi on the highway for 50 KM. My car does not have the acceleration of the K10, will accelerate smoothly till 100 KPH, but acceleration beyond that is not quick. I was constantly nudging past the 100 mark in the K10 without even noticing it, even with the AC on. I felt the AC load did not make much difference to the K10, unlike the 800.

I felt the K10 engine was buzzier than mine around 85 KPH speed, my comfort zone. And I felt the 800 is torquier than the K10 at low speeds. Surprisingly, I learned the 800 is more fuel efficient as well, though I expected the K10 to return more FE.

[HammerHead]

Originally Posted by supremeBaleno

Agree about the interior space and overall quality part - I am sure the Spark scores over the Alto there. But there isn't really much difference in safety unless you are referring to the top-end OptionPack version of Spark, which no one buys anyway. I think we discussed the safety part earlier on in this same thread.

Like in any other reviewer, me too comparing top end AltoK10 to top end Spark.

As mentioned earlier, I think it is not right to compare these 2 cars as they are too different. The Spark should be compared to the Estilo or A-Star.

I totally agree.

BTW, if you have been on tbhp for sometime, you would know that winning a poll here means nothing in the real world. All cars that win polls here have been duds in the marketplace and those that lose polls are usually the ones that rake up sales. Case in point - the Alto that loses here sells about 32K units a month, while the winner Spark sells 4K odd.

But when rightly compared to Estilo or A-Star, Spark is no dud

[SPARKled]

I am a Spark owner and frankly I am not too happy with the reliability of the vehicle in my last 1.5 years of ownership. GM service though responsive are unable to diagnose or solve problems that are not the simple regular problems that they encounter every now and then. Its fine as long as I have the 3 year warranty with me but what after that? From what I have seen so far the Alto surely is better in reliability and has lesser niggling problems. In interior space, power and comfort surely the Spark scores over the alto but I would still be an Alto owner in the long term.

[supremeBaleno]

Originally Posted by HammerHead

Like in any other reviewer, me too comparing top end AltoK10 to top end Spark.

Still its an inter-segment comparison. Sort of like comparing the A-Star_Zxi to the i20_topEnd and saying that the i20 is safer due to its 6-airbags.

Originally Posted by HammerHead

But when rightly compared to Estilo or A-Star, Spark is no dud

True. But what about when compared to the sales of the WagonR or i10 ? And this is inspite of the Spark having price-advantage and the 3-year maintenance offer.