[deetjohn]

Originally Posted by civic-sense

The Ciaz would have looked a lot better without those chrome slats.

Lovely! The love child of a Baleno and a Civic. Nice work there.

[aseem]

Have booked the Zdi+ in black but maybe I would change it to gray or maroon dunno yet. Always wanted a black car, but than again its too difficult to maintain.

By booking Ciaz I have broken my single biggest rule in cars, that it should be fun to drive. I did that with City and sold it within year and a half and bought the Fiesta, but breaking the rule again.

Few reasons for breaking my own rule.

1. Roads in Bangalore are truly depressing. Hardly get to enjoy the drive (its a torture) and I don't plan many highway trips.

2. There is not a single FTD car that has good resale or is priced correctly. Most are either CBU's and expensive, the Fiesta is cramped, Polo TSi has no features... so almost none of them qualify for me.

3. I rather spend 12 lakhs and not be happy with a car than to spend 18.5 on a Corolla and not be happy.

4. I am assuming being a MUL it would have good resale and I can sell it anytime within next 2 years and take a plunge into BMW category.

That's just me thinking out loud. Its a safe choice, practical choice, but not something that appeals to your heart. I have decided to go safe for the time being...

Having said this, here is a question that's bothering me, should I be the early adopters and buy it (I have already booked), or wait 2 months and buy a 2015 model?

Do you expect MUL to increase prices in 2 months (they did so with Swift). And even if they do, would the 30k odd price increase be offset by the resale I get. I am thinking unless there is huge discount, who are the buyers who buy cars in October-December months?

Or should I just bight the bullet and 30-50k resale hit after 2-3 years isn't something that I should be too bothered about. I don't care about 50k, but if its 2 lakhs I certainly do care.

[rajshenoy]

Originally Posted by aseem

Do you expect MUL to increase prices in 2 months (they did so with Swift). And even if they do, would the 30k odd price increase be offset by the resale I get. I am thinking unless there is huge discount, who are the buyers who buy cars in October-December months?

Or should I just bight the bullet and 30-50k resale hit after 2-3 years isn't something that I should be too bothered about. I don't care about 50k, but if its 2 lakhs I certainly do care.

Man you are thinking of selling the car even before you own it !!

Frankly the cars depreciate fast in the first year or two !! I expect Ciaz to have long waiting periods but then this is not the hatch back or sub-4m segment for people to keep waiting.

There is ever popular Honda city and hyundai might launch new verna in 2015 to keep the heat !!

If Maruti decides to increase the prices by 20-30K, then don't you think it will be dangerously close to Honda City prices ? Its a very interesting fight to watch though

[aseem]

Originally Posted by rajshenoy

Man you are thinking of selling the car even before you own it !!

Frankly the cars depreciate fast in the first year or two !! I expect Ciaz to have long waiting periods but then this is not the hatch back or sub-4m segment for people to keep waiting.

There is ever popular Honda city and hyundai might launch new verna in 2015 to keep the heat !!

If Maruti decides to increase the prices by 20-30K, then don't you think it will be dangerously close to Honda City prices ? Its a very interesting fight to watch though

See I am under shopping for my budget and I know for a fact I will sell the car in 2 years. That's has been my history for the last 4 years. So I know no car in this segment would keep me happy for next 5 years. I actually find no car in 15-18 lakh range that is good or of interest to me. Either they get too expensive or all the action begins close to 10 lakhs.

Secondly I would have bought Ciaz over City even if its priced higher, as frankly after owning one I am not a huge fan of City. Don't get me wrong, it gives you big car image and all that. But for me there is more hype than substance. One drive in a Fiesta after driving a City and you would have a grin so wide...

Thirdly I feel City has cut far too many corners in the latest iteration. It has got the pricing right but the quality of the interiors specially the dashboard is questionable imho.

Lastly I don't care about the badge as I don't associate any aspirational value with Honda. If it was a BMW or a Merc I would have answered differently.

[Turbanator]

See I am under shopping for my budget and I know for a fact I will sell the car in 2 years.

I will suggest you to look for some low mileage 3 series , something with BSI pack having extended warranty as well maintenance pack. I am sure you can easily find some neat car in 15-20 Lac budget even directly from BMW dealers . There is hardly anything to worry if you buy with warranty on these cars

[aseem]

Originally Posted by Turbanator

I will suggest you to look for some low mileage 3 series , something with BSI pack having extended warranty as well maintenance pack. I am sure you can easily find some neat car in 15-20 Lac budget even directly from BMW dealers . There is hardly anything to worry if you buy with warranty on these cars

Going slightly off topic, but I had a friend in same situation and now he is buying a new X1 for 29.xx. Finding a safe 3 series in 15-20 lakh bracket in Bangalore is a big task as unlike North the resale is very high here.

In addition I really want to buy a car where I can easily afford to change the tires. I don't want to own something that if something goes wrong, I have nightmares...

Given my job, its very difficult to spend time, and find a clean 3 series even if I am ready to shell out that money. Though I would really love to have one as I don't get excited by X1 (too plane jane in my opinion).

[rajshenoy]

Originally Posted by aseem

One drive in a Fiesta after driving a City and you would have a grin so wide...

Thirdly I feel City has cut far too many corners in the latest iteration. It has got the pricing right but the quality of the interiors specially the dashboard is questionable imho.

Lastly I don't care about the badge as I don't associate any aspirational value with Honda. If it was a BMW or a Merc I would have answered differently.

I know how a Ford drives, Fiesta didn't sell because of high price and for being too driver oriented at that time(i am sure you know the rear leg room in that), Later on its the perception that continues !!

I only meant that Maruti is yet to prove itself in the sedan segment, Though Baleno and SX4 are very good cars, we all know their resale values !! .

I am sure Ciaz will do much better then the oldies but, the segment itself is such that, none of the cars might have good resale(viz a viz hatchbacks such as Swift). If you are looking at a relative resale value when compared to , verna vs vento vs city vs ciaz vs .. May be you are right.

[aseem]

Originally Posted by rajshenoy

I know how a Ford drives, Fiesta didn't sell because of high price and for being too driver oriented at that time(i am sure you know the rear leg room in that), Later on its the perception that continues !!

I only meant that Maruti is yet to prove itself in the sedan segment, Though Baleno and SX4 are very good cars, we all know their resale values !! .

I am sure Ciaz will do much better then the oldies but, the segment itself is such that, none of the cars might have good resale(viz a viz hatchbacks such as Swift). If you are looking at a relative resale value when compared to , verna vs vento vs city vs ciaz vs .. May be you are right.

I cant buy a hatch as its a big no no from family & friends and also colleagues. Very few ppl will understand if you buy a Polo TSi and use it as a primary car that you could afford much higher and you just went with something that was fun to drive. Nature of the world we live in, I need at least a City like sedan as a bare minimum and nothing smaller would do. I know for a fact that a Swift or for that matter Santro has tremendous resale. But they cant be considered.

Coming to Ciaz or City, I am totally ok buying car in 12 lakh OTR and selling for 7 lakhs in 2 years time. However what I am not ok is buying a Skoda for 23 lakhs and selling for 14 in 2 years time. 2 years is the delta for me for any calculations. I may end up owning it for 4 years that's fine, but all calculations on resale done on 2 years basis.

[Nilesh5417]

Originally Posted by malq

I've booked mine in beige. And also been informed that costs of fast moving consumables are the same as that for other cars in the Maruti-Suzuki range so the Ciaz should be a low-maintenance cost car too.

Though I do wish they had push-button start and two airbags in the VXi+ version!!

Did the SA mention anything about the Brown & Maroon not being available for booking yet?

[malq]

Originally Posted by Nilesh5417

Did the SA mention anything about the Brown & Maroon not being available for booking yet?

The dealer said that colour and variant can be changed at any stage before final documentation. One reason for that is that there are about 9-10k cars already lying ready at Gurgaon for despatch. And yes, an aggressive promotional pricing is expected.

In addition, while the dealer booking form states a 200/- cancellation fee, the dealer is known to us and has told me that he is willing to bet any amount with me that I will not cancel against the 200/- cancellation fees, and then he took out 200/- and put it on the table.

[k_ajay]

Originally Posted by deetjohn

Lovely! The love child of a Baleno and a Civic. Nice work there.

Haha. Cracked me up. Nice one.

Originally Posted by aseem

... Few reasons for breaking my own rule.

.....
4. I am assuming being a MUL it would have good resale and I can sell it anytime within next 2 years and take a plunge into BMW category.

Having said this, here is a question that's bothering me, should I be the early adopters and buy it (I have already booked), or wait 2 months and buy a 2015 model?

If there is one thing I've understood about cars in India, nothing re-sells like a Maruti. My very close friend sold a diesel Swift which he bought for ex-showroom ~5.75 lakhs, used it for 3 yrs and 78k kms and sold it for 5 lakhs. And this is for the older model, not the refreshed Swift. Most Marutis sell phenomenally well in the second hand market, I don't expect it to be any different for the Ciaz. Blindly assume.

In my experience, I've hardly heard early adopters of Maruti cars lament with issues or difficult experiences. Quite rare. You shouldn't be hassled being an early adopter of the Ciaz.. I'm just waiting to hear about the suspension and ride/handling, to make a decision. Everything else, this car ticks the right boxes (additional airbags and a sunroof would have made it more mouthwatering).

[malq]

Updates -

(1) Mayank Pareek (COO Sales & Marketing) quits Maruti Suzuki just days ahead of the Ciaz launch. Various media reports on the subject.

(2) Usually reliable sources are now talking about a 01st or 02nd October launch date for the Ciaz.

[RavenAvi]

Cartoq and Zigwheels both report that the Ciaz launch has been preponed to the 1st week of October, and that pre-launch bookings of the Ciaz have touched the 6,000-mark.

A Maruti Suzuki official has confirmed to CarToq that the Ciaz will be launched in India, on the 1st of October, giving the automaker the advantage of the upcoming long weekend, when test drives and bookings can be driven to a frenzy of sorts.

Some details of the Ciaz Automatic posted on Zigwheels:

The Petrol Automatic Ciaz too is finding quite a few takers, the reason being the Automatic’s ARAI certified mileage figure of 19.12kmpl according to dealers we spoke to. This makes the Ciaz the most efficient automatic in its segment.

The Maruti Ciaz comes with five speed manual gearboxes for the petrol and the diesel and a torque convertor automatic gearbox for the petrol. There’s no AMT for the Ciaz like Maruti has for the Celerio.

[Nilesh5417]

Originally Posted by RavenAvi

Cartoq and Zigwheels both report that the Ciaz launch has been preponed to the 1st week of October, and that pre-launch bookings of the Ciaz have touched the 6,000-mark.



Some details of the Ciaz Automatic posted on Zigwheels:

Am so tempted to change my booking to the Auto but each time i look at the mileage figures of DZire being quoted from anywhere between 8.5kmpl (topgear) to 11kmpl (Zigwheels), i step back. Wonder how good the ARAI certification of 19kmpl on Ciaz is in real world.

Besides its still an old school 4speed auto that might be pretty frustrating?

[arunu]

There was a test drive of Ciaz on a hindi business channel recently and the car looked impressive. Fit and finish looked at part with other japs/korean manufacturers.

Somehow the car looked like a mix&match of various cars that we are already familiar with. In a way, its advantageous since the car does not look flashy and looks mature.

The front looks similar to the Kizashi / Linea, its broad as a Logan, backside profile resembles the new Hondacity or to some extent the new BMW 3 series.

Interiors have been attempted to look more euro than japs. Generous dollops of chrome in front, “segments first” projector headlights standard throughout the range, reliable and efficient 1.3 DDIS, spacious for 5, large boot-space and the list goes on, as is the case with any MUL vehicle.

And, 6000+ books even before launch speaks volumes of the faith and confidence people have in MSIL brand.

congrats to all those who have booked the car already...