[ankit_chd]

Originally Posted by AmarPaithankar

The Liva driver also quoted that the Liva is not as refined as other diesel hatchbacks (Swift, Figo diesel) that he has driven but is much smoother than the Volkswagen Polo and Skoda Fabia that use identical oil burners.

I wholeheartedly agree to the point that the Polo and Fabia 3-cylinder diesels are the most unrefined and noisy diesel engines. Even the 4-cylinder 106 bhp engine of the Vento is a horrible unit when compared to a Manza's 1.3l Quadrajet or the Fluidic verna's 1.4 / 1.6 diesel. People pay Rs. 10 lakh+ just because the car comes with a VW badge!

So So true. I remember when I went for a test drive. As soon I started the car , my dad rejected the car same second saying ," Is this a 10 lakh car ?" If yes then i'm not spending my money on it.

[Durango Dude]

With complaints of poor NVH characterstics of the Etios Petrol pouring in. I think Toyota can given away cotton plugs to be stuffed in the ears for the drivers and passengers as a low cost solution to better NVH.

[swiftnfurious]

Hormazd confirms launch date of BOTH, Etios & Liva as Sep 9, 2011.

Toyota launching Etios diesel AND Liva diesel on September 9th. 1.4 diesel; Power somewhere between 70 and 75bhp

[amalji]

Originally Posted by swiftnfurious

Hormazd confirms launch date of BOTH, Etios & Liva as Sep 9, 2011.

Even though, the launch date is September 9th, booking starts from 1st onwards. That's what the Cochin Nippon dealer told me.

[suhaas307]

I'm not even a little surprised.

In fact, I won't be surprised if they advance the launch-date to September.

With the improved and more VFM Jazz at 6.5 lakhs, the Etios Liva will have a tough time in the market. You now have a premium and solid hatch in the Jazz at 5-7 lakhs. Why would anyone buy a petrol Etios Liva, which, when compared to the Jazz (fit-finish-quality-refinement-space) is a bit of a sorry story.

It's the diesel Etios that will save the day for Toyota. Even the diesel variant will have the going pretty tough, now that the new Swift is out.

[mayank10]

Originally Posted by suhaas307

I'm not even a little surprised.

In fact, I won't be surprised if they advance the launch-date to September.

With the improved and more VFM Jazz at 6.5 lakhs, the Etios Liva will have a tough time in the market. You now have a premium and solid hatch in the Jazz at 5-7 lakhs. Why would anyone buy a petrol Etios Liva, which, when compared to the Jazz (fit-finish-quality-refinement-space) is a bit of a sorry story.

It's the diesel Etios that will save the day for Toyota. Even the diesel variant will have the going pretty tough, now that the new Swift is out.

Regarding your first question, I bought the Liva (you can kill me for that) because it just made more sense to me. It is obvious that Etios family is not at all having tough time in the market and each expert's review verifies this (Please check the MOD's review as well). Etios is already the segment leader, so we can assume that how well would the diesel variant be welcomed in the market.
Though, since the Jazz has reduced the prices, only the top end petrol variants of Liva would suffer IMHO. But so will happen with top variants of Swift, Fabia, Polo, i20, etc.

Liva has one of the best in class interior space and one of the best paint quality. The only department it lacks is the interior finish, which can be spruced up to an extent. I don't expect a car to look like a cockpit, and so do 90% of the people in this country. Handling and suspension are great and none of the people who drove my Liva complained about NVH, i am not sure about Etios though.

To add on to it, Liva comes with safety features with middle variants also (G+ onward) That is an exception in this segment (Jazz IMO is a segment higher, and Swift has all these features in top end only) Middle variants of Liva are 5-5.5 lakhs OTR in Kerala (G and G+ respectively). So almost 1 lakh difference with Jazz OTR (base version).
IMO, for people with budget of approx 5 lakhs, Liva is a good car. It is a T afterall.

Last but not the least, i just love the Jazz as well. I just can't own it.

[amalji]

Originally Posted by AutoIndian

Could you get the details on the specs, especially the power output, max torque (@ what rpm band)? Are they continuing with the same transmission as on the Etios petrol or chances of the 6 speed tranny as on the Altis? Quite eager to know all these details. Also when can we expect the official TD review of the Etios D on TBHP?

1) This is what is rumored - 1.4L 4 cylinder 68ps @ 3800 rpm, 170 NM ( between 1800 to 2400 rpm )

2) It's 5-speed.

[AutoIndian]

Originally Posted by amalji

1) This is what is rumored - 1.4L 4 cylinder 68ps @ 3800 rpm, 170 NM ( between 1800 to 2400 rpm )

2) It's 5-speed.

Thank you once again Amalji. Though the engine specs don't seem to be that exciting (compared to the other C segment diesels currently available in the market), the (supposedly) lower kerb weight, should turn the tide in the favour of ETIOS-D.

The engine is quite comparable to the one that comes in the Fiesta Classic 1.4 TDCi. Wanted to share some quick comparo between Etios-D & Fiesta TDCi. Assuming the Etios D weighs @ 950 kg (20kg more than its petrol sibling), the power & torque figures compared to Fiesta 1.4 TDCi would look somewhat like below.



All of us know how fun to drive is the Fiesta 1.4 TDCi. I guess the Etios-D should not just match the Fiesta, but exceed it by quite some margin. Well all this is just speculation. Only a TD of the Etios D could make it in black & white

[mohan41]

Looking at the good power to weight ratio, expecting good city driveability (similar to the petrol version), spacious interiors, I was looking forward to the availability of Etios D. But the recent reports of poor build quality in some other threads have dampened my eagerness. I need a good sedan at this time, but if I think whether this car will serve me for next 7-8 years without issues, I am not sure.

[nurni76]

I think the Liva Diesel will dent sales of Figo, Swift and polo. The fact is that Liva has not done so well as its sedan version in Petrol. But diesel is a different story altogether. The next few months is going to be exciting for Indian hatch buyers.

[AutoIndian]

Originally Posted by mohan41

Looking at the good power to weight ratio, expecting good city driveability (similar to the petrol version), spacious interiors, I was looking forward to the availability of Etios D.

+1 These are indeed the USPs of this car & for this very reason, I too am very keen on getting my hands on the Etios D. Not to forget the good FE, Japanese reliability, good after sales service etc.

Originally Posted by mohan41

But the recent reports of poor build quality in some other threads have dampened my eagerness. I need a good sedan at this time, but if I think whether this car will serve me for next 7-8 years without issues, I am not sure.

Even I am a bit concerned on this front, however I have not come across any such threads by Etios owners, which report of poor build quality. If you know some please share here. Even my next car should serve me 8 years at the least. I am not very concerned about the plastics or looks for that matter, however the strength of the material used, the NVH levels (or the sound dampening), the durability of parts do matter a lot.

I think Etios is a well engineered car especially for India & Toyota has confidence in it, else how would TKM had given a standard company warranty of 3 years or 100K kms on Etios Petrol, when other companies feel shy of giving even half of that as standard warranty.

[ahuja365]

Etios diesel is important and affordable toyota is good news.Earlier i was sure than when etios diesel comes i shall buy one,but now i have heard certain reports regarding the shoddy build quality and poor plastics i am having second thoughts.Instead look at tata manza its quality is improving and i find it of higher quality than toyota.
Is it the begining of tata finally taking off and who knows if tomorrow if we see tata as the biggest threat to existing automakers.

[amalji]

Originally Posted by nurni76

The fact is that Liva has not done so well as its sedan version in Petrol.

I'm not sure on what basis Etios has not done well. It's a very practical car and I guess, they have 30,000 pending orders for Etios Petrol Variant.

[nurni76]

Originally Posted by amalji

I'm not sure on what basis Etios has not done well. It's a very practical car and I guess, they have 30,000 pending orders for Etios Petrol Variant.

@amalji, what I meant was that Etios Liva has not done so well as the Etios sedan. The first months sale was around 2K (IIRC) while Etios sold around 5k.

[amalji]

Originally Posted by nurni76

@amalji, what I meant was that Etios Liva has not done so well as the Etios sedan. The first months sale was around 2K (IIRC) while Etios sold around 5k.

Ahh, I missed that part. It seems, I was not in my senses after breaking my fast.

True, the Liva Petrol was a disappointment in terms of engine. It is no match for either the K-series or Kappa 2. Had they got the engine right, it would have been a hit. But, with the Diesel release, it's going to dent the sales of Figo in particular. And maybe the Swift and Ritz as well.

Sad thing is that Toyota's main enemy is they themselves for their conservative projection and inadequate production facilities.