[chennai-indian]

When I'm out looking to buy a vehicle and if one of the Indian brands - be it Tata or Mahindra come out as top 3 in my list based on parameters that I list, I would go for a Tata or Mahindra purely because they are Indian brands.

Hyundai, Kia etc did not become global brands overnight - they became global brands because Koreans bought them by the truck loads giving preference to them over foreign brands and gave them enough local market depth and cash flow for them to venture out overseas. Even now, it still remains that way in S. Korea. Same goes for Japan too to a large extent.

[Miel]

I own a Tata Vista Quadrajet. It is a car made by an Indian marque, has an Italian engine and gearbox (Fiat's), a German audio unit (Blaupunkt), and tires from an American company (Bridgestone). Now how Indian is the car itself? Definitely not 100%.
Most of the cars from both Tata and Mahindra have parts which are from manufacturers of foreign origin. Likewise, many of the foreign marques here have a localized parts bin. So how Indian or foreign are the cars themselves?
I bought the car for its features. For me, a machine is a machine and the nationality of its design or manufacture is rarely a quality by itself.

Originally Posted by smartcat

... after watching many episodes of Top Gear - where the presenters point out all that's wrong with British cars (Jaguar, LR, Rolls, Bentley, Mini), but still declare them as the winner because they are "British"

So its not just me. Others feel it too about Top Gear!

[arup.misra]

My last car was an Indica and the sole reason I selected it was the unbelievable waiting time for the just-launched Swift.

Cheap, rugged, space were a few other positives that made me choose the Indica. Only during the time of ownership did I experience the total lack of quality & refinement. I dont even want to get started with the service horrors.

Would I ever buy a Tata product again? Not unless I can afford a JLR.

[anujmishra]

While buying a car, my preference is comfort, space, power, ruggedness with appropriate pricing. These preference lead to me to buy Safari as my daily and outstation drive. I am not very comfortable with low slung sedans like Civic etc. I cannot take it to any road that I want.

I am also not very big fan of lots of electronics inside, but yes some creature comfort like AC, Power Windows are must. I am not that concerned about handling as I do not drive more than 100-110Kmph on highways and Safari perfectly fits on my requirements. There was no thinking of patriotism involved into but the things that I wanted into a car, which Safari had.

Another reason (strong through), that lead me to buy Safari was its character and image. It made permanent mark on my mind since childhood.

[coolclouds]

My brother bought a Tata Indica DLG in 2008, may be he was convinced with their quick delivery, low maintenance, better mileage, cheaper spares, service network... what not.. against our advise to go for a Swift VDi. Now the noise is too much, doors are not closing properly, rust....overall, terrible!

Today, he plan to upgrade the vehicle but unfortunately, no takers even for 1.3lakhs!
He may have initially spent little compared to Swift but now what he is getting too less than an used Swift of same age.

I feel, "Patriotism" never brings down your service bills, no better mileage, no better resale value.... better go for best product of any make in the price range than regretting later.

(Its my personal opinion about Tata Indica Turbo/this particular car: I drove it solo from Jaipur to Kochi once, Bangalore-Kochi, Bangalore-Chennai several times along with other cars of different manufactures on same routes. I also must admit that there are good products from Tata)

[invidious]

I know Koreans buy Korean cars out of patriotism but they are probably the only ones. I doubt the rest of the car buying population factors in patriotism. And even if they do - how does a car qualify as belonging to a country? They Hyundai i10, i20 are made in India but the company is Korean, the Jaguar is made in UK but the company is Indian - Rexton is made in Korea but the company is Indian - does that mean the Jag and Rexton are more Indian than the i10 or i20?

[diffsoft]

Interesting poll that makes one think. I had the choice to go for these cars but avoided them because it did not meet my needs. Never occurred to me to think that I should have "patriotism" as an attribute in my choice set.

But then if I think harder, what does it really mean? That the brands originated in India? Or that the founders were Indians? Suppose there was a brand that met this criteria but imported all its components from outside India, paid no taxes in India, employed no Indians, then how should I think about it? Americans were grappling with the same questions a couple of decades ago in manufacturing.

On the other hand if there were a brand that originated outside India but had more than 80% localization directly and indirectly employing people, paid taxes here, exported lots of cars from here and had an R&D center. Now how should I think that the Indian brand is less patriotic than the foreign brand? Or vice-versa.

I recall a telling picture many many years ago of a communist party gathering to decide to protest MNCs. The dais had Coke cans for the distinguished guests

Cheers,

[GTO]

I bought an Indigo in '07 simply because it was the most comfortable, spacious & efficient vehicle for 5.xx lakhs. Patriotism had nothing to do with it.

For the first 2 years, we were very happy. The later 3 years, very sad. The vehicle practically self destructed itself.

Family is not buying a Tata again for a long, long time. And that doesn't have anything to do with the company being Indian either.

[anu21v]

I haven't bought the Tata or mahindra when i had my opportunity to buy. However if i end up buying a tata or mahindra it will definitely be due to Patriotism as long as the "Trouble Factor" is within the 30% of an Established international player's "trouble levels"

[DieselDon]

My Indica DLS (just sold) was the only option I could consider in Feb 2003.
I bought it based on pure merit [space/service(then)/peace of mind].
It served me well for 9 long years (not without issues, but certainly above expectations).

Tata/Mahindra are corporate companies with Indian roots. Are we doing our country a service by buying from them ? With due respect, I am not considering 'Patriotism' as a factor in the real sense.

[johny_desparado]

if this very same question was asked way back in 60's , 70's or 90's , i would have supported our desi manufacturers by buying desi products . If someone asks me today its a big no. With all the protectionism practiced by India in the 90's what has happened today is not what exactly one would call an achievement . Example , mahindra thar ! . Mahindra released a vehicle in the market in todays day and age without an AC! ( am talking about the first release ) . Another example TATA, look at manza and ask yourself does it really stand out as a good looking car ? look at all those old underpowered trucks plying on our roads , i believe the only reason TATA thought of improving on their trucks and buses was after likes of volvo and man entered India. we indians look at a pajero and land cruiser or a navara with awe ! why , because they are priced ridiculously high to protect our mahindras and tatas. If India opens up its market and keeps a level playing feild , i believe tata and mahindras would either shut shop or have massive plans to improve their product and services which will benefit us , THE CUSTOMERS!

[ambivalent_98]

No question of patriotism in my case. If a foreign company is selling better products than Indian ones it is upto the Indian companies to beat those foreigners at their own game and make better VFM products which will naturally incline the buyers to patronise them.
These days people are very well informed when buying a car so what do the Indian companies have to show when a one to one comparison is done. One more factor is that most if not all foreign players are old hats at the vehicle business and have been doing it for more than 50 years at least. In that comparison perhaps Tata and Mahindra are recent entrants in this game. They have to be fast to catch up with the likes of the Europeans and Japanese.
Mahindra has probably realised it and the XUV500 is a result of that. I am sure it has lured many people away not only by the price but the solid quality of the product on offer.
Tata is waking up slowly as well but they need to match something to the XUV500 or do even better than that.
On the front of trucks to BharatBenz had shuddered that business awake.

Hopefully we will see better products in the coming years.

[agbenny]

None of the answers suits me.
I add my answer:

No. I bought a Mahindra/Tata because I liked to own one.

OR

No. I bought a Mahindra because I liked to own a Scorpio.

Neither patriotism, nor the quality too. :-)

[acidkill]

Look no further than germany, france and japan to see that Patriortism can be a big factor in purchase of cars.

As far as i am concerned, if all my considerations of purchase were met equally by an indian or MNC car, i think I would definitely buy Indian. However, most tata and mahindra cars do not meet them. The only Indian car that stands out as a real option for purchase for me is the XUV500.

By the same logic and on the other end of the market, I would like to say, that i consider Jaguar and Land Rover fit the description of 'global desi'! and if i could ever afford one, i would buy it over its german competitors.

[vinya_jag]

They are not all that Desi when it comes to Tata or Mahindra.
These cars are extensively designed elsewhere, borrow technology from all other global Giants, and probably they both are such global brands having Investments, manufacturing plants world over.
Money for these, come from all over the world. Investors are also from outside India, and they benefit as well.

As long as a Ford or a Hyundai sets up a plant here in India, bring money into India, employ Indians, we should be buying all brands, and not stick to Desi's.