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-   -   The 15-20 lac Quick Car Guide! (https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/indian-car-scene/107782-15-20-lac-quick-car-guide.html)

This might overlap a slight bit with the 20-30 lac car guide. Anyway there are enough of threads for this price range too, so I thought I would create a list of cars available in this price with a few +s and -s for each, to help a person buying a car in this range come to a decision.

Skoda Laura TDI

+Great engine, either 110bhp or 140bhp depending on whether its a manual or DSG. Frugal enough too.
+DSG gearbox offered in all variants, makes driving that much more fun.
+Built well, reasonably good feature wise.

-A.S.S (depending on the dealer)

Skoda Laura vRS

+160bhp stonker, not much slower than the 200bhp version.
+Nice looking bodykit, interiors.
+Will be unique with the special colors offered.

-No 17" rims.
-Not a true vRS per se.

Volkswagen Jetta

+Good engine, again same as the Laura except 140bhp offered in manual and DSG.
+Space wise it is good, with a comfortable back seat.
+Nice ride and handling.
+Built well compared to the Japs, though some materials don't feel as plush as the Laura or the previous Jetta.
+Paddle shift + DSG = Awesome

-No Climate Control, and a few other features which should have been there.
-DSG only on Highline.
-Overpriced by a bit for what it offers.

Hyundai Sonata Transform

+BIG, for its price. And very comfortable too.
+150bhp Diesel is a good engine, better than the 2.4 petrol.

-No image.
-Auto box is nothing great.

Nothing more to say about it, its an average sedan.

Renault Fluence

+Looks, size and road presence.
+Good amount of features at its pricepoint. Things like keyless entry are only there in the Cruze.
+Ride

-CVT saps some power.
-Recently launched so too early to say

Chevrolet Cruze

+Very powerful 150bhp diesel. Quick.
+Again lots of features at its price point. Only car in this segment with a sunroof besides the Civic.
+New black interiors look very nice.

-Turbo lag in manual used to be bad, owners say it has improved.
-Plastics quality not upto the mark.
-A/T gearbox though convenient is not as much fun to drive as the manual.

Honda Civic

+Interiors, the futuristic theme still looks awesome today.
+Free revving engine + nice manual = fun to drive, even though a couple of these cars are faster.
+Good amount of space, one of the few that will seat 5 comfortably.
+Also offers a sunroof now.

-Due for replacement next year possibly.
-Honda build quality not comparable to the Europeans.
-Soft suspension = bottoming out a lot.

Corolla Altis

+Lots of features, touchscreen audio, Xenons with washers, power drivers seat.
+Added about 9bhp with an engine upgrade, and a new 7 speed automatic, a segment first. Will be much better to drive now.
+Good amount of space inside.
+Jack of all trades.

-Nothing really. OK fine, wish it was better to drive.

Suzuki Kizashi

+175 odd bhp engine means it is quick.
+Styling is excellent along with 17" rims.
+Again good amount of features like memory seats, etc.

-Overpriced.
-Some may not like similar parts to cars like the Swift, eg. Power window switches.



These are only my views, apologies if I have missed out anything. You are free to disagree with me. Thank you for reading.

Is this 15-20L range as per Bombay prices?

For eg, the top end Civic AT, Cruze AT, Altis AT are probably all below 15L OTR in Calcutta. Here the Kizashi would fall in this category too @18/19 OTR.

Good initiative for a quick comparo, Akshay. :thumbs up

Didn't understand what you wanted to convey in the above line! FTD part is fine but some of these cars are faster?!? (than what?)

You might wanna have a look at the line again.

Though you have already mentioned, let me reaffirm that yes the turbo lag in the manual cruze is surely almost negligible now. Drove one just 3 days ago and boy o boy is it a hoot to drive or what ! Soot ahead almost immediately ! I guess that problem has been laid to rest for the better.

Also, the bottoming out issue in the new civics is non-existent. I have been driving my civic for an year now and it is better than my fiesta, that I had earlier.

Nice initiative :) What about Captiva, Outlander, Endeavour? Also, are the prices of base models of Superb, Passat below 20L?

Civic now comes with in-dash touchscreen /DVD/nav system.

Yes these are approx 15-20 OTR Bombay prices. Aah I completely forgot about the Kizashi.

If mods could add this to the opening post

Suzuki Kizashi

+175 odd bhp engine means it is quick.
+Styling is excellent along with 17" rims.
+Again good amount of features like memory seats, etc.

-Overpriced.
-Some may not like similar parts to cars like the Swift, eg. Power window switches.




Thanks bud. I meant some may have more fun driving the Civic even though other cars like the Cruze are faster to the ton. When I said these cars I meant the other cars in the comparison.

That is great to know.

But it is still pretty soft, the rear suspension.

I'm not doing this on SUVs since the thread will just turn into which is better etc. The Passat Superb base models too are well over 20l, and I have covered those in my other thread
http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/indian...car-guide.html

That is an option if I'm not mistaken, and its from Caska, not factory fit.

Well no worries, so has the market lol:.

Neat thread, akshay. I was toying with entering this segment last year but "settled" for a Vento instead. The savings will probably enable me to get to a segment higher, the 20-30 one where all the REAL action is, faster! :D

Its sad, because the Kizashi is a very good car. If it was a bit cheaper I'm sure they would have done decently.

Ah yes, I remember telling you to get the Vento instead of the Laura TDI that you were thinking about.

From what I read in other thread its free without any cost to the buyer.

Great thread Akshay! Should be very helpful, especially since the segment is growing and the competition is getting hotter by the month.

I saw an advertisement in the paper today that says that the Civic and the Accord now come with a touchscreen-Sat-Nav Head-Unit that is Bluetooth compatible, iPod-ready, and can also play DVDs. And it comes with a reversing-camera that is wired to the screen. A great extra-option, I'd say. clap:

Now with the sunroof, it's quite a car to own, if you intend to use it sparsely. Otherwise, a diesel car in the same price bracket would be the ideal way to go!

Thats a neat thread you've started Akshay.
I agree completely, if the Kizashi was priced a little less, it would have sold really well. Maybe, its people perception playing in the mind. Though this one's from Suzuki (not MSIL), people perceive it be from Maruti.

Good thread. But i think you should add Skoda Laura Tsi Classic/Active in the mix as well. For 13.xx L you get a stonker of a engine with nearly all essential safety features. You can spend some of the money saved on things like Xenon's, Leather seats, body kit if you want and you will still save money over the other options. And it will still outrun most other cars on the road.

I can't do a separate thing for all the models right? Otherwise I would have to do it between all the models of the Laura, the Civic, the Altis, the Jetta. I have tried to give a few basic + and - of the car, and the other things like small features are subjective because while one person may think its very useful another might think its useless.

I can try and do a thread on SUVs if you guys want, I will try to make it as unbiased as possible.