[reignofchaos]

My personal opinion is that the XUV looks like an ugly wart. I can't stand the styling from any angle. My vote goes to the Brio for being spectacular fun to drive at a low price tag. Once Honda's production issues get sorted out, I should have one in my garage.

The car I really lust for on that list is the Volvo S60. Its the most mental car launched in that segment ever. However the price is too hard to swallow for me :-(.

[iliketurtles]

Originally Posted by 2cents

Didn't vote for any! I think the poll count must not be visible till the result is finally declared. The running count has a strong chance of biasing us!

That thought crossed my mind too.

Originally Posted by noopster

What does that mean? Either you think a vehicle is COTY or it's not. What do other people's votes have to do with it?

I agree that you believe a car is worthy or not, but seeing what everyone else is going with can tend to affect your own decision making. Psychological theories and all that, none of which have a place on here, but people sometimes do consciously or unconsciously tend to go with the herd just because it's de rigeur.

I do hope and believe that members on here are offering honest opinions when voting though. I know I did, just wanted to vote for the XUV straight up after some 30 seconds consideration

[dkaile]

I am certainly surprised by the horde mentality at work here at Tbhp. I thought we were more analytical at our research here. That we have been voting blindly for the XUV certainly strengthens my belief the 'bling' sells for us Indians.

When I see such comments on the forum for the said vehicle from its 'owners'-

I took W8 delivery on Saturday and Monday i spend latterly fustrating 6 hrs at work shop to fix below issue..

1 :- The front doors just wouldn't shut properly,and needed at least 2-3 tries to close it (After check somehow its ok)
2 :- Touch screen get locked (hung) untill i switch off and switch on ( RM don't have any clue how to answer this)
3 :- Cruise control is not engaging (they took 2-3 hrs to figure out how to fix this and at last i was told switch is not working)
4:- Found marginal Gap between rear bumper (right hand side) and body; same for Bonnet too; same left hand side is ok ( RM says as bummer need to remove completely hence we do this in first service)

Xuvi is off to Goa again with the driver,will post the FE and any other related issues.
I picked up a innova G which is 11K run and to my suprise,the gear shifts are silk smooth,suspensions are much better than Xuv.
Althouth the OEM HU of XUV is loaded to the gills I find the pioneer 4250 double din fitted in my innova does a much better job;To be honest the XUV oem HU sucks big time.
Even the Flip key of XUV does not operate from a long distance,whereas the innova keys with built in lock,unlock buttons operate from a very long distance.

The clutch is pretty heavy and is giving me a huge kick back. Have pointed out to the Relationship Manager ( they have an exclusive guy who is your single point contact ).

-There seem to be a dark spot on the headlight throw. Its a triangular spot on the RHS. It is not visible in high beam. Will have to get it checked.
-The shining console leaves a strong reflection which is very disturbing

I had a tyre puncture. It cracked on the side. Surprising, as i wasnt doing any hard bad road driving

So the first issue was as I crossed Lonavla,the tyretronics gave an error for both the rear tyres.I checked the air pressure and it was ok 32 at the front and 30 at the rear.Then I called up my relationship manager and he said that there seem to be a problem in the sensor.It was very annoying to see the errror message on the infotainment screen every now and then.Strangely at lower speeds it didnt show the error.However will take her to the service ceter and get it sorted out.

Second issue was when the front co passenger door refused to close.It was quite embarrassing that after several attempts the door just would not close.So I called up my RM again and he said he will arrange a service vehicle with the mechanic,boy and immediately i got a call from the Goa service on road team and they despatched their team to my hotel,in the mean time I checked again and all of a sudden the door got closed.I called up the Goa team and asked them not to come as the issue got sorted out on its own.I was quite impressed with their service network.But after a few days again the problem started and I spoke to the service manager in mumbai and he said that when I come to Mumbai he will change the door lock and get it sorted.

The infotainment system got hung a couple of times and then it worked flawlessly for the rest of the time.The time on the HU after setting numerous times shows weird time,it showed 70.68 hrs and stuff.And lastly the rear AC switch stopped working,although the rear ac was working it did'nt switch off though.I will take her to the service center and get the above issues sorted out and hope they dont pop up again.

Now if that is the 'Car of the Year' then God save us. And another launch which quickly races to 4K units a month is termed as 'below average' is beyond my comprehension. We certainly need to be more analytical then by being swayed by outer looks so soon.

Engineering finesse cannot be replaced with outer bling under any circumstances, in my honest opinion...

[cityvic]

I voted for the Swift 2011.Its a beast be in its Diesel Form or Petrol.Its a dream car for many kids out there.Many want a Swift for their first cars.Brilliant Looks,Awesome Engine,Mindblowing Handling and Good Features.
Only -ve is the Long Waiting Period which is not a bother for me.

[mayankjha1806]

Originally Posted by GTO

I usually vote for cars that either brought tremendous value to their respective segments, or contributed to changing the game.

Originally Posted by dkaile

Now if that is the 'Car of the Year' then God save us. And another launch which quickly races to 4K units a month is termed as 'below average' is beyond my comprehension. We certainly need to be more analytical then by being swayed by outer looks so soon.

Engineering finesse cannot be replaced with outer bling under any circumstances, in my honest opinion...

Car of the year does not imply its supposed to be a perfect car, there are problems in every car some engineering, some marketing and some lack of necessary features for the price.

Also i don't think its a mass mentality at play here, folks genuinely believe that XUV is a game changer and also has potential to disrupt the scene even more so whats wrong in voting for XUV. If one disagrees then one is free to choose some other as an option here.

Just as an example Ford Figo was selected as Indian Car of the Year (ICOTY) 2011. Do we believe it is a perfect car?

[Tats07]

I voted for Hyundai Verna.

I'm not much of a SUV fan, so XUV was ruled out for me. Else it was a choice between Swift and Verna. I have driven both, and must say that I was more comfortable with Swift. However, it is the same car in a new form (and I like this one much better than the previous version!). But logically thinking it had to be Verna - a fresh looking sedan with a flair and top class equipment; good engines and reasonably good ride. Have heard that it's not the best of handlers, but an overall allrounder in the city.

[ashish22]

My vote goes to the Mahindra XUV500 for being a true game changer in its segment.

This is followed by Skoda Rapid which gets my 2nd vote. Its well equipped, reasonable powerful and more VFM in comparison to Vento. My 3rd vote will go to Audi A6 for its styling, refinement and absolutely wonderful power and pickup.

So my top 3 for this year:
1. Mahindra XUV500
2. Skoda Rapid
3. Audi A6

[rajess_in]

Originally Posted by GTO

It's the XUV500 for me. Reasons : A HUGE step ahead for Mahindra, an absolute all-rounder, great engine, superb ride & handling balance and a jaw-dropping equipment list. Best of all, a VFM price-tag that makes everything from the Aria to the Fortuner seem over-priced.

Same with me. I think the Mahindra XUV500 clearly is a huge success and a real big leap for not just Mahindras, but the Indian auto market itself.

[CoolFire]

Easy to vote this time. One glance at the list of the poll and clicked XUV5OO. Just refine this offering a bit more, perfect the electronics and you got a real iconic success in your hands.

[volkman10]

Impressive votes for Rapid with just a month after launch!

[ssh1979]

Voted based on what I wish to own one day. Some day.

The Volvo or the Audi. The safety features of the Volvo are simply un-matched. But looks & performance:- it has to be the Audi. I dream on about the A6 allroad quattro. Sigh!

[Fordmanchau]

Originally Posted by dkaile

I am certainly surprised by the horde mentality at work here at Tbhp.

Would seriously request you to please refrain from making such a sweeping statement.
Before harping on the built and engineering quality of the XUV5oo, I would request you to give this product some time. The posts you have quoted are just temporary niggles which I am sure would be sorted out in time.

And I think , at least on a online forum people will have guts to say what they think and not follow the herd , as you say .And I am sure this is why this forum is so vibrant and valued.

Edit: Just FYI, before the TBHP COTY 2011 are declared, XUV has already won two BBC TopGear India Awards
1. The best value for money COTY &
2. Reader's choice COTY

[SDP]

Originally Posted by dkaile

Engineering finesse cannot be replaced with outer bling under any circumstances, in my honest opinion...

Precisely! I do consider the touch-screen, tyretronics, navigation, Hill-descent, hill-hold, cruise-control, LEDs, theatre-lighting, rain-sensing wipers, auto-headlamps as bling. The bling does not matter, including whether it works or not. If the vehicle starts having issues with core components and core parameters like ride, safety, performance; even I would be worried. Besides the front-passenger door not closing, I haven't seen any core issues reported.

[travelwriter]

I vote for Skoda Rapid.

Agreed that it is totally new and we do not have results to actually see the response. I have voted for Skoda simply because of the quality it has managed to provide in an already crowded segment. The brand has quite a few issues with after sales support but there is nothing to say that this hasn't improved.

Just that a manufacturer has given a quality product at a lower (VFM) price without compromising on the brand promise is a strong enough statement for me to rate it as the launch of the year.

[swaroop_babu]

Originally Posted by dkaile

I am certainly surprised by the horde mentality at work here at Tbhp. I thought we were more analytical at our research here. That we have been voting blindly for the XUV certainly strengthens my belief the 'bling' sells for us Indians.

When I see such comments on the forum for the said vehicle from its 'owners'-









Now if that is the 'Car of the Year' then God save us. And another launch which quickly races to 4K units a month is termed as 'below average' is beyond my comprehension. We certainly need to be more analytical then by being swayed by outer looks so soon.

Engineering finesse cannot be replaced with outer bling under any circumstances, in my honest opinion...

Oh c'mon, we all know that the first lot of cars do come with lot of niggles and glitches. You can't take that for granted and pass on a comment like that. Even Toyota messed up with Liva (with water seeping inside the car ). So let us give Mahindra some time to fix it. Except for the glitches i think its a great car. And hence my vote goes for the same.

When i saw it in flesh my jaws dropped. It is a stunner to look!