[Omtoatom]

Seeing the Punto take an overwhelming lead is not surprising at all. It is as much a testament to Fiat's superior carmaking and the underlying legacy. Pity despite all this, the car does not manage to clock even decent numbers here. Again goes to show how other factors e.g. after sales, reliability etc. are a big big part of Indian buyer's consideration psyche.

[sups]

Originally Posted by diffsoft

If I have to correctly answer the "Hatchback with the best ride quality on bad roads?" then I should have run all the hatchbacks listed above on equally bad roads under more or less similar circumstances. Then I should have similar standards against which I measure their individual performance
Cheers,

Precisely the reason why I did not vote. I am yet to drive all the hatches mentioned above on similar (if not same) tracks.

However, let me put down my experience, as I was looking for a diesel hatch with best ride quality at back and good ***.

Micra diesel: Lot of body roll at the back. Feels little unsettled over not so good roads. Spongy brakes with gem of a diesel heart.

Sail UVA LT diesel: Very good ride with supportive seats. On a typical concrete road which looks good, but actually has lot of undulations, it could not soak the undulations as I expected. But its way better than micra, i10. It took broken highway tarmacs very well at a speed of 70 km/hr. People looking for a car with good ride quality should test drive this.

Liva diesel: I drove this on a similar track where I drove UVA. I had very little expectation as it is more than 150 kg lighter than UVA. This car surprised me with its ability to soak bumps at ease with its 14 inch wheels. It was nicely planted on roads. Both me and my wife felt better in Liva than in a UVA at the back seat. The comparison is upto a speed of 70 km/hr, as I could not go above that speed. But at a higher speed, I have a feel that UVA would be better than a Liva. Noise insulation is much better in UVA. People willing to buy Liva should keep aside a budget of about 8K-10K for investing in after market sound deadening material.

Figo diesel: Seating at the back, I asked my driver to drive on the pot-hole filled undulating road at about 80 km/hr without applying any brake. This will be very uncomfortable in my Getz, but Figo stayed planted. Very impressive indeed. Could not test this in Liva or SAIL at that speed. If we are talking about speeds less than 70 km/hr, I think Liva/Sail will take the cake, above that speed it would be Figo and may be Sail as well.

i10 petrol: Ride is much much inferior to Sail/Figo/UVA.

One more point, if you are driven, then a car with minimal lag/linear speed build up would cause less discomfort to passengers rather than a sudden speed buildup at some rpm. Liva and Figo has an edge over Sail on this.

Did not check Punto due to fear of ***, and Polo due to fear of expensive maintenance. And cannot wait for 6 months for a Swift, so did not check it.

My above points are strictly based in ride quality and not based on interiors, features, looks etc.

People looking for a good ride quality in hatches, should test drive Sail/Liva/Figo.

Hope this helps.

[sgiitk]

The Jazz is missing. That will get my vote.

As for bad roads there are a lot of sub-4m MUV/SUV type hatches now.

[CrAzY dRiVeR]

Originally Posted by sgiitk

The Jazz is missing. That will get my vote.

Any particular reason why? Jazz is known for a slightly stiff suspension. I'm surprised you feel it has the best ride quality on bad roads!

Here's what our official review had to say on its ride quality -

The Jazz' ride quality is sufficiently compliant over most road surfaces, but you can feel the stiffness of the suspension. This is all the more evident at lower speeds. Big potholes will see it crashing through.

[vb-saan]

Originally Posted by CrAzY dRiVeR

Any particular reason why? Jazz is known for a slightly stiff suspension. I'm surprised you feel it has the best ride quality on bad roads!

In the case of Jazz, I will say that the ride quality is really nice on good roads – less movement for the passengers in highway speeds. And yes, its quite bumpy on bad roads. I personally prefer slightly stiffer setup (Jazz-like) than those super-soft ones.

[GTO]

All-round ride quality : The Europeans without a doubt. The Punto & Fabia are equally good, while a 1/2 level down is the Polo. I'm hearing good things about the Chevy Sail too.

Low-speed ride : Typically, the ones with a soft suspension (e.g. the Toyota Liva).

Originally Posted by kaush666

Extremely OT but why didn't the VW Polo make it to the list? Have heard a lot of good things about its ride quality and highway manners.

Originally Posted by Sommos

However, the VW Polo should have made it the select list. I think it is the only car that can compete with Punto in this aspect.

VW Polo added to the poll.

[suhaas307]

Originally Posted by sgiitk

The Jazz is missing. That will get my vote.

vb_san and crazydriver are quite right.

Like I'd mentioned before, we'd just done a 2000 km B'lore - Goa round trip in our Jazz and I found the ride to be quite bumpy. Off-camber corners will throw it off, on smooth-tarmac-yet-uneven highways it feels choppy, AND over rough surfaces you do feel much of it and if it's deep it will be felt and heard in the cabin. Road noise crept into the cabin often, but that's probably due to the MRFs.

** 95% of the roads were pretty good.

[agambhandari]

After the Punto, the Tata Vista has the most votes. And i am not surprised. It is VERY comfortable even in the rear seats. Probably, one of the main reasons, it is a hit with the Taxiwallahs

[sups]

Originally Posted by GTO

Low-speed ride : Typically, the ones with a soft suspension (e.g. the Toyota Liva).

I felt that Liva does not have a very soft suspension, its somewhere in between the hard and soft one.

By the way, when you say low speed ride, is it in the range of 40 km/hr or about 60-70 km/hr?

[fiat_tarun]

Of all the cars on the list, I've been in the Swift, Punto, Figo, Vista, Brio, Ritz, i10 & the Liva, though have not experienced all of them on bad roads.

Of these, the Punto is by far the best, even some Coorg roads are handled brilliantly by the Punto. The Figo & the new Swift are also quite good. My Liva experience has been mostly in cabs on pretty good roads, but I do remember lot of suspension noise filtering inside.

[ramzsys]

Haven't driven the Punto. But i have driven the Palio extensively, and the ride quality over the bad roads(or roads that has only loose gravel) is simply the best.

So i assume the Punto to be even better. Those who did the P2P updates, can confirm.

[sgiitk]

Let me add my bit on the Europeans. The French (and to a degree the Italians) will have better bad road behaviour than the Germans. The reason, the French D roads are as good (or rather bad) as many of ours.

[tictactoe]

Originally Posted by coolboy007

Voted for Punto, its got the best balance between having a good ride quality and impeccable handing. Dismisses bad roads without a hint of nervousness and no pitching, bouncing etc.

Originally Posted by Rufus_M

Voted for the Punto.

It simply blows away the competetion when it comes to ride & handling. Very comfortable to drive in. I'm happy with the suspension.

While I have not driven Punto, I have owned a Linea for over 3 years now. The suspension while being really good - it has a major ground clearance issue. Has the GC issue been fixed with Punto? If not, it is a major problem on bad roads.

[Rufus_M]

Originally Posted by tictactoe

While I have not driven Punto, I have owned a Linea for over 3 years now. The suspension while being really good - it has a major ground clearance issue. Has the GC issue been fixed with Punto? If not, it is a major problem on bad roads.

The GC has been beefed up for the 2012 versions of Punto & Linea. Pre 2012 Punto had an acceptable ground clearance. The issue is with the length of the nose of car.

I drive on rural roads (actually you can't call them roads!). Initially I had a lot of trouble with the GC. My Punto had taken quite a few hits. Very soon I learnt the art on driving over them without any trouble. Slow down, & approach in 1st or 2nd gear & it works well. Additionally, it's got a good sump guard which can take a lot of abuse.

After 17,000 kms, I now know why it leads the poll results. TBHP can't go wrong!! :-)

[nkg77]

Originally Posted by tictactoe

While I have not driven Punto, I have owned a Linea for over 3 years now. The suspension while being really good - it has a major ground clearance issue. Has the GC issue been fixed with Punto? If not, it is a major problem on bad roads.

Yes the GC issues fixed for Punto produced from 2012 onwards. Frankly speaking the GC issues on Punto is not that pronounced as that was in Linea. For older Punto there is an upgrade kit available to increase the GC. It costs around 14k for the kit and labour.