[suhaas307]

Originally Posted by Vid6639

Don't worry. The wood trim, chrome door handles are all dealer accessories. That wood trim is a sticker, not even a new panel.

It certainly looks like a sticker. Reminds me of refrigerator magnets!

It's good if they're dealer options.

Just like the U-VA, this car is a capable product. It has some note-worthy traits like compliant ride-quality, decent handling / dynamics, proven engines mated to good gearboxes, and of course, extremely spacious interiors. It has the potential to upset the big-boys in the segment. Let's see how things pan out.

[Sommos]

Originally Posted by suhaas307

Just like the U-VA, this car is a capable product. It has some note-worthy traits like compliant ride-quality, decent handling / dynamics, proven engines mated to good gearboxes, and of course, extremely spacious interiors. It has the potential to upset the big-boys in the segment. Let's see how things pan out.

It has the exterior looks too and the interiors are not all that bad apparently.
The Extremely spacious interiors should be the USP of this car compared to Dezire.
But I think GM should have priced it more aggressively to make it a VFM proposition, atleast until you get some market volume. On top of that the diesel commands a premium of 1.1L approx. when GM does not have to pay anybody for the MJD engine.

I think GM has missed the mark again.

[jaysmokesleaves]

This SAIL looks like a Taxi. Very uninspiring and plane jane.

[narayan]

The centre console - especially the a/c vent area with its curves reminds me of the alien from the movie - Predator !

Also if the wood trim is actually a sticker, i think its a good thing. Dealers can probably offer affordable colour combinations for someone to keep changing the interior colours frequently like one changes the panels in a mobile phone

[Arch-Angel]

They timed the launch at a good time. That aside, this doesn't look like the typical run-of-the-mill sedan that some manufacturer's roll out with a stick a boot and sell it policy. From the front it is apparent that this is the sail, but its stance and poise reminisce of the octavia(a personal opinion here). Secondly the pricing i think will see this competing with all the heavyweights in the segment and good to see ABS @6.8L. Overall, i feel this car ha the potential to either make or break the sales charts for GM in its segment.

[k149in]

Recently, my in-laws bought the SAIL hatch. I drive these cars

2008 Swift Petrol
2008 Swift Diesel
2012 Swift Diesel
2009 Figo Diesel

I drive all these cars almost equally. I really find SAIL much better than the Swift, interms of build quality, linear acceleration, space, suspension, more importantly brakes. Inspite of the new Swift VDi having such terrible brakes, brakes being a crucial element of a car, people somehow continue to bash any new cars that are almost better than the Swift/Dzire. Most people think new cars which are better than Swift/Dzire should be priced much much below (people call it AGRESSIVE PRICING) the Swift/Dzire, how is this possible? When you a give a better product, how can one price it below the cost of a inferior product? I really dont understand the logic of expecting the pricing of SAIL atleast Rs. 75000 to be lesser than DZire or Swift when they are better than Swift/Dzire in almost every aspect. And after service for Chevrolet is not that bad too..

People forget that even the Santro had the window switches near the gear box, and then didnt complain so much. I am not sure why some people dont give credit to good products, and for such people, all they ever know is the Maruti.

All I am requesting is, put your comments with open mind.

[nik_kapur]

Im visiting the Middle East right now and i have a few Chevrolet Sonics in the last 2 days. The Sonic is great on paper but i have to say its terribly disappointing in real life. It looks small, the styling seems to be a bit too much for a small sedan and the car feels and looks 'Halka' (im sure a lot of people will get what im trying to say here). I guess Chevy took the right call by not bringing the Sonic to India as it would have cost more money and would have not been able to compete with the Sunny's, City's and Verna's. I was disappointed to see the Sail being launched in place of the Sonic but i totally get it now.

[invidious]

I wonder how many people factor in the exterior looks over interior comfort when purchasing a car? I tend to give more importance to interior comfort - driver adjustable seats, steering mounted controls, dead pedal and comfortable foot well - I care about these more and unfortunately the Chevy comes up short. The interiors look like they are straight out of the late 90s. They should have launched a Beat based sedan. Just look at the Beat's interiors and those of the Sail - it is hard to believe that both are contemporaries

[swiftnfurious]

Originally Posted by k149in

..Most people think new cars which are better than Swift/Dzire should be priced much much below (people call it AGRESSIVE PRICING) the Swift/Dzire, how is this possible? When you a give a better product, how can one price it below the cost of a inferior product?

If tomorrow, Micromax makes a phone with lot more features & price it close to iPhone, should people queue up to buy Micromax? In India, sales are driven to a major extent by "brand". By brand, I do NOT mean a premium image, but the years of trusted service. Maruti has LOADS of it while GM is still a baby in this context.

Originally Posted by k149in

When you a give a better product, how can one price it below the cost of a inferior product?

To you, a better product might mean more features, space etc. But for others, it may be better & wider A$$, (perceived) low cost of ownership, trouble free history of ownership reports etc. Preferences change!

If you ask me, I can NOT live with such a boring interior when I pay that much. So I will NOT buy Sail, as simple as that.

Originally Posted by k149in

People forget that even the Santro had the window switches near the gear box, and then didnt complain so much...

Do Santro & Sail sedan cost the same? Going by your argument, if a 10L car does NOT come with power steering, customers should NOT complain as M 800 also does NOT have a power steering?

[manolin]

Originally Posted by dass

All said and done.. the power window switches are placed right ahead of the gear lever. It is the same position in which the old Indica DLG had its placed, needless to say, the MOST uncomfortable position to place them and not to mention, the wider placement in the sail is downright sad to look at, a deal breaker for me.

Same here. One can make a cut price sedan, without shouting out that it is a cut price sedan. This isn't that. Exteriors are all fine, but interiors are similar to a a 2 generations old Accent - actually worse because of the power window buttons.

[suhaas307]

Originally Posted by swiftnfurious

Do Santro & Sail sedan cost the same? Going by your argument, if a 10L car does NOT come with power steering, customers should NOT complain as M 800 also does NOT have a power steering?

Your logic is absolutely spot-on!

But I think you're missing the point our fellow member k149in is trying to make.

I personally believe that there is nothing wrong with the positioning of the power-window switches for the Sail. For one thing, it is not ergonomically imperfect. One just needs to get used to the position of the switches, and when one eventually does, it's a breeze to use.

Originally Posted by k149in

Most people think new cars which are better than Swift/Dzire should be priced much much below (people call it AGRESSIVE PRICING) the Swift/Dzire, how is this possible? When you a give a better product, how can one price it below the cost of a inferior product? I really dont understand the logic of expecting the pricing of SAIL atleast Rs. 75000 to be lesser than DZire or Swift when they are better than Swift/Dzire in almost every aspect. And after service for Chevrolet is not that bad too..

Agreed.

But there is a reason why we expect a car like the Sail to be 75k cheaper than the Swift variant-to-variant.

The Swift is a product that revolutionized the market and kick-started to life the premium-hatchback-space, despite the Getz being the first to 'start' the segment. In some ways, it is the spiritual successor to the 800 / Alto. Competition does not affect these Marutis.

Even the Figo (which I believe is a better product than the Swift in almost every way except for the 'old engines' that power it) had to be priced in VFM territory to create any stir at all.

This is precisely the reason why the Sail ought to have been priced much cheaper. Even though it IS a better and more complete product in nearly every way, it will not be able to hold a candle to the Swift, purely because the Maruti is a far more accomplished product. Credit must go to the Maruti badge and the appeal that the Swift exudes.

It's for this reason why the Sail U-VA should have been priced cheaper. Also, we expected it to be positioned competitively given the obvious cost-cutting route GM had taken. but 8 lakhs OTR (Bangalore) is way too much money for a car that is unfortunately perceived to be a Chinese hand-me-down. *facepalm*

[figo_mba]

The sail sedan was seriously a looker compared to the dzire. Sail is definitely more desirable.

I agree there is this Chinese Tag on it and GM is trying to play it down by saying that it is their own design (corvette inspired dashboard is it ? )

Having said all this I think for sail to be a success it would have to price the product a bit lower for people to consider. I mean it is a good looking car and has a good feature list but then people consider brand, reliability also.
May be Chevrolet cars are reliable but they dont have the same image as Toyota or Maruti.

Chevy needs to understand this.

[sumeshmani]

When i checked out Sail Hatch, i found the seats to a bit hard. I wonder if the Sedan got the same seats.
I worry such seats might make highway travel tiresome.

[swiftnfurious]

Originally Posted by sumeshmani

When i checked out Sail Hatch, i found the seats to a bit hard. I wonder if the Sedan got the same seats.
I worry such seats might make highway travel tiresome.

Hard seats infact make highway drives better. Those offer superior levels of support (compared to softer ones) & hence will make the passengers feel less tiresome.

[Arch-Angel]

Originally Posted by suhaas307

It certainly looks like a sticker. Reminds me of refrigerator magnets!

Absolutely right Suhaas. I felt the same thing when i looked at it. I assume people at GM think that all that glitters is gold.

Originally Posted by sumeshmani

When i checked out Sail Hatch, i found the seats to a bit hard. I wonder if the Sedan got the same seats.
I worry such seats might make highway travel tiresome.

I did watch the ACI review of the Sail on youtube. The reviewer mentioned the seats were slightly softer than the sail hatch. Also a slightly hard seat will make highway trips slightly better.