[JD1]

I wish Tata Nano Automatic was also in the list - I would have voted for it considering that it's the cheapest automatic available in India.

I will vote for Baleno since that's possibly the only car from Maruti stable with safety features in the base variant as well. Maybe not a game changer for industry, but definitely a game changer for Maruti to start offering safety features as option on all variants of their other cars as well. (similar to how the success of Celerio AMT prompted Maruti to offer AMT on more of their models).

However I think that the winner here would be overpriced Creta or right-priced Kwid

[Guru_DTSi]

Kwid : Though it is making a splash with the sales, I just hope it doesn't go the Amaze way. For all it's positives, I still feel the engine is pretty crude.
Baleno : Great car, same old Maruti'esque interiors.
Creta : If I had the money, this is what I'd go for.
My vote though goes for the Aspire. Simply because it is the only car that offers 6 Airbags, this side of 10 lakhs.

[mrbaddy]

Looks like record for the least percentage difference between the COTY and the first runner-up will be broken this year.

I think this year the difference between % votes for the top two cars would be less than 5%.

Last year 2014 saw the least difference (19%) among vote percentage.

See the chart below of the historical data.

[Mik]

This is the first time I couldn't pin-point that one car which deserved to be the winner. (I suspect this would be the case with many this year with very competitive offerings)

My contenders were

Jazz for its snazzy styling and nifty space management.
Kwid for redefining what a small car can be like(Its a legitimate head turner!)
S-Cross for giving the buyers the option to buy a big(4m+) solid hatch (yeah!)
Figo twins for giving segment beating safety, performance and VFM (sub 10 sec 100, 6 airbags! and what not)

Finally, I went for the one which could be the most logical upgrade for me - The S-Cross (Please price it better Maruti )

P.S: Though we don't have a two horse presidential race here, but if it were the case, I would have voted for the Kwid over the Creta.

[aaggoswami]

My vote goes to TUV300.

Reason is simple : Absolute VFM.
No car, not even the mighty new Baleno comes close to TUV300 IMO.
A very tough, solid Body-on-Frame construction, good space for 5, responsive engine till legal speed limits. A real compact SUV, not just a raised hatchback.
What else do we need further in that price range ?

Massive road presence and that high seating is actually very helpful in night driving as lights of oncoming vehicles wont hit your eyes so hard. After my Test Drive of TUV300, one point was clear to me : nobody can beat M&M and Tata when they are determined to give VFM package.
TUV300 covers most of the grounds for a compact SUV buyer, including great presence.

Baleno came close, but those flat seats. No point in having a feature rich, awesome looking car with rather flat seats. S-cross lost because of NVH. Figo twins also have flat seats and Jazz is clearly overpriced.

[bluevolt]

My vote goes to Renault Kwid.

In my opinion, this car has brought in some freshness in the a+ segment cars.

The car looks premium, very affordable and overall value for money package. If I were to buy a new small car immediately, I would have chosen Kwid over Alto/WagonR/i10!

How I wish Renault to introduce at least factory fitted CNG kit variants if not the diesel engine.

[noelnelly]

I voted for the TUV300 because I am a big fan of old school boxy vehicles with minimum electronics and gizmo, although the necessary ones are always welcome. And although Mahindra is known to make such vehicles, they have really tried to make a rugged vehicle comfortable and I really applaud that effort and look forward to more such innovations.

[NST440]

Undoubtedly it has to be the Renault Kwid for its sheer honest attempt to tell the indian buyers that they can enjoy a good looking and very practical vehicle at such a sweet price point. When all the manufacturers are running towards bringing cross overs in India, Renault did the unusual & infact it is a bold move.

When it felt like all the manufacturers had surrendered to Maruti thinking they cannot beat them for an entry level car, Kwid came and it came with all guns blazing. One has to personally see this vehicle for its sheer presence and epic boot space it provides. The car has good ground clearance, a nice engine and gives a very upmarket feel at the price it has.

I only feel Renault should come up with more service centers and increase the supply of the vehicle and its spare parts so that they do not lose the battle, having a very competent product on their side.

I still remember going on a BMW 530 to an accessory shop with my friend, nobody gave a second glance to the bimmer but the moment an elderly person brought his Kwid to the shop, around 4-5 people gathered around asking the usual questions and complementing the vehicle.

It was indeed a moment to witness and i really felt elated to see that Renault have spared time to think about the aspirations of a common man and making a product which looks much expensive then its price and is leaps ahead of its competitors in many departments. Well done Renault, keep it up.

I would have really struggled to pick another vehicle if Kwid was not in this list. BTW i am unable to figure out what wrong did Fiat do for not adding Punto Abarth to the list.

[invidious]

I voted for the Kwid though admittedly I've only seen 2 on the roads in Bombay so far. My logic was - while others are incrementally innovative in their segment vertical, the Kwid is what can be termed "disruptive innovation" - after a bunch of duds except the Duster, Renault delivered a product which truly "disrupts" the segment by offering a well-designed and relatively loaded vehicle at a fantastic price point.

[chennai-indian]

Kiwd wins hands down for me this time around. Renault has shaken up the A segment like nothing else with Kwid. The looks and the features in this segment is too mouth watering for me to consider anything else.

[samabhi]

Voted for TUV300 for the VFM proposition it offers. No other car offers as a whole than what TUV300 offers.

- Spacious
- Good build quality
- Safety
- AMT
- Pricing
- Good driveability at low speeds

Only problem is with the 3 pot engine. If the 2.2L mhawk is loaded into this one, I would be having one in my garage by now.

Close second for me was Creta which is a game changer with the superior interior quality than any any other car in this category. The pricing is a big let down and something that made me not to vote for it.

Any Maruti car that is spacious, cheaper and looks good will sell well automatically. Considering all that Baleno is not a worthy contender to be the COTY. I would rate Figo twins more than Baleno for being the game changer in their segments especially with the safety features being offered. Sad that they are not gathering enough numbers.

[swiftnfurious]

For me, Car Of The Year is the one which I'll buy based on my principles.

This year, it had to be between S-Cross & Ford Figo. Both of them came with superb diesel engines is the first thing I remember. While S-Cross screwed it on price front for 1.6, Figo was outstanding VFM.

A powerful & fast diesel coupled with high FE, 6 airbags & a sweet price. And that takes the crown this year.

Aspire - My pick from the CS segment.

Creta - very unlike Hyundai, which give the equipment levels a miss while pricing it premium.

Kwid - Probably a good car, but doesn't entice me.

Baleno - Nothing premium about it; I'll still pick a Swift over this for styling.

[samaspire]

Voted for what I have put my money on - the Ford Aspire.

It gives safety, luxury, looks and performance at a price few (maybe none) in the list can match. Even if I concede that it does not have the solidity of previous Fords, it's still better than the competition!!

As for the competition:

Kwid - a great product that had shaken the segment. Will probably win this race, but not sure if it can maintain the momentum through to next year.

Creta - an super hit product but is not VFM. We have an AT in the extended family, and minor niggles have already started - not expected from a 17 lakh car.

Baleno - a competent product that would have given the Aspire a run for my money if it was launched a bit earlier.

The rest are out of my consideration.

Maybe the overall votes would have fallen differently if the results were not visible to us until the voting was over. Opinion polls are known to effect voting patterns

[Dan9ie]

Voting for the Kwid, for simply delivering something that was (and still feels) impossible at that price!

[murillo]

Voted Kwid as my COTY just for Renault's chutzpah.

You, Kwid, deserve a medal.