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View Poll Results: Would You Cross-shop Across Various Segments Before Putting Money Down?
No. I would pick a segment first, and buy a car from that segment. 65 18.79%
Yes. I don't mind a car from any segment as long as it pulls my heart strings. 272 78.61%
Don't know/ Can't Say for sure. 9 2.60%
Voters: 346. You may not vote on this poll

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Old 30th August 2016, 13:00   #61
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Re: Did you cross-shop across segments while buying your car?

I had a Hyundai i10 Era. This was the 2007 model and since it was my first car, I bought the Era variant that had no safety features like ABS, Airbags etc. I was looking out for my 2nd car in 2015 and I was sure I wanted ABS/Airbags as I was making atleast 1 road trip a month and my i10 had aged now. I had a budget of <10 lakhs for a bigger car (read sedan). I checked out many cars online but ABS/airbags would be available in a top variant which would push the price beyond 10 lakhs. I didnt have use for diesel as my regular commute isnt much. So I had to drop Vento, Rapid, Duster, City etc. I bought Ertiga Zxi for 9 lakhs as I found it to be good value for money, though its a MUV, its car-like to drive and 7 seats are useful for occasional team lunches at office and trips with extended family. So I went from a sedan to a MUV and am quite happy with it.
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Old 30th August 2016, 13:52   #62
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Re: Did you cross-shop across segments while buying your car?

Although I love cars I have absolutely no idea about segments and everytime the segment pops out in conversations I always wonder what is what. My knowlege about segment is only class like Sedan , hatchback, SUV, MUV , Crossover and so on.. anything more?? I had a Maruti Wagon R gifted and it was not my cup of tea. Always fascinated with 4 wheel drives so my choice was limited. Ended up with a Thar CRDE which is rocking bigtime. Was expecting Wrangler to launch earlier and expecting prices upto 30L and now I am glad i didnt wait for it. Completely out of Budget and out of mind pricing. So i guess Heart & Price Hand in Hand

Last edited by Dr_MNC_SK : 30th August 2016 at 13:53.
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Old 30th August 2016, 14:01   #63
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Re: Did you cross-shop across segments while buying your car?

My me-too...

For a salaried person budget comes first. But sometimes even this parameter goes out for a toss.
I can spend around 17 Lakhs for adding 2 cars to our garage, but I am confused between the requirements and obvious gaps.

1) Budget of about 5 Lakhs:
a. Renault KWID 1.0L [3 cylinder layout is a turnoff]
b. Tata Tiago Revotorq [3 cylinder. Tata product.]

2) Budget of about 8-10 Lakhs:
a. Ford Aspire TDCi [doubtful ASS]
b. Brezza LDi (O) [underpowered]
c. Baleno 1.2 [feather weighted]
d. Tata Zest Diesel [Tata product]
e. Jazz i-Dtec [turns no heads. no road presence.]
f. New upcoming Toyota Etios
g. Honda City i-Vtec [regular looks and low GC]

3) Budget of about 15 Lakhs
a. XUV500 W4 [well equipped. not a RWD]
b. Creta [smaller dimensions]
c. Scorpio S10 [well equipped, but cramped interiors]


One is required for regular city commutes for 2-4 people. other is required for highway drives for 3-5 people with luggage.

Now, whether it should be:
i) Kwid + XUV
ii) Aspire/Baleno + City/Scorpio
iii) Zest/Jazz + Brezza/Creta
or, something else?
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Old 30th August 2016, 14:07   #64
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We always land up going one up. Had gone to book a wagonr r , bought a Ritz. Booked ertiga at launch. Got tired of waiting and bought a safari.

Right now we seem to have out grown our old wagonr R and planned to upgrade to an ertiga. Saw everything from a zest to the innova. When you're buying something that will stay for 6-7 years with you it's the product and the projected requirement that takes precedence. Like this new car is for my ageing parents - so ingress egress, ability to straighten out legs and how driver friendly it is makes a huge difference. Their current driver is a good soul but he seems to have an old animosity towards clutch plates so low cost of spares is also high on our priority list.

Last edited by akshay : 30th August 2016 at 14:12.
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Old 30th August 2016, 16:03   #65
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Re: Did you cross-shop across segments while buying your car?

I picked the segment first definitely.
I started out completely sure that I wanted a B segment super-mini type car.
Then I narrowed down the choices and so on.

I was absolutely sure I wasn't looking for a sedan or even compact sedan.
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Old 30th August 2016, 17:09   #66
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Re: Did you cross-shop across segments while buying your car?

These days it is inevitable to have several products across different segments in consideration, before we buy one.
For e.g - A B2 segment hatchback buyer, with Swift in mind, might find a compact sedan more attractive. Similarly someone who goes for an i20 might find Ecosport / Vitara Brezza to be more attractive, and an Ertiga to be a perfect VFM in case the family is growing.
Our market now has some good options across segments at similar price tags, and hence there will be some reasonable cross-shopping. Some choices are crazy - one friend was trying to buy a used Swift, but ended up buying a new Honda City costing more than 12L, and now finding it difficult to make ends meet.
Regarding the poll - I have not cross shopped, but next time when I buy a car, there are definitely many choices to consider.
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Old 30th August 2016, 18:03   #67
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Re: Did you cross-shop across segments while buying your car?

While most of the fellow bhpians cross shopped and landed with a better car (higher segment cars), my luck went otherwise.

It was in 2011 that dad decided to buy me MY OWN car. Given my passion for driving he pre booked the New Swift (indicated waiting period of ~ 9 months). The waiting period got extended due to the preferred color choice (everybody wanted a wgite Swift then!) and I already had started shifting cities post completing my MBA. Came back to Delhi in 2013 and we decided to visit the dealer.
Meanwhile, checked Hyundai for its lip smacking deals on 2012 manufactured Verna and i20 (both 1.4 dsl) which were falling in our 8L budget. A Polo (simply adored that vehicle) was also considered despite its lacklustre 1.2D engine.
Ended up buying a Ritz (Herbie as I call her) as it came across as the best financial case.
Though it was never under consideration and I killed my heart for it, it actually turned out to be a better buy against the Swift owing to its superior build quality.
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Old 30th August 2016, 18:08   #68
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Re: Did you cross-shop across segments while buying your car?

When I bought Mahindra Quanto C6 in 2012, the cars in my shortlist were

1. Ertiga VDI
2. Hyundai i20 Magna
3. Quanto

Booked Ertiga initially and when Quanto launched, opted for it.

Now I am looking for a replacement for the Quanto and looking for one with a gasoline heart. I like to drive the car, love the driver seat position and view from there and the abuse friendly nature, but the passengers/family at the back seat complain frequently about the wobbling. . With my usage pattern, it will take at least 3.5- to 4 years to offset the premium I would be paying for a Diesel variant.

Budget is 9.5 L. and the shortlists are

1. Vitara Brezza VDI (O) - no petrol option but falls in my budget
2. Ford EcoSport 1.5 Petrol Trend MT
3. Ford EcoSport 1.5 Diesel Trend MT - again falls in the budget
4. Ciaz VXI+
5. Ertiga VDI
6. Ford Aspire

I am inclined towards Brezza, but the floor hump and the 1.3 engine make me a bit confused.

Now waiting for the valuators at Maruti & Ford dealerships to quote a decent price for my Quanto.
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Old 30th August 2016, 22:21   #69
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Re: Did you cross-shop across segments while buying your car?

I remember when buying my first car back in 2006, I called one of my friends for recommendation. He recommended Esteem!! I called sales rep from the nearest Maruti showroom and asked him to book an Esteem (without visiting the showroom or any test drive). Sales executive insisted that I should visit the showroom to see the new maroon color.

On a Saturday evening, after office, I went to the showroom just to see that color. My family members were coming there directly. Esteem was parked on a different floor. While waiting for other family members to join, I started checking out Swift. We didn’t see Esteem after that.

After some time, when we left the showroom, I had already booked my Swift. I paid down-payment using my credit card.

Fortunately, I had made a right decision.

I am sure, I am not buying my next car like that. I am planning to TD a lot of cars from different segments. Take my time and only then decide.

Given my impulsive nature, not sure what would actually happen! Let’s see
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Old 31st August 2016, 07:46   #70
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Re: Did you cross-shop across segments while buying your car?

Across segments for sure. My biggest requirement is that I should feel good when I am behind the wheel and the car should fit in the estimated budget (+/- 20%).

So, the next car could really be a hatchback, or a sedan or a cross over or a SUV. I can totally see myself buying a premium hatchback instead of a sedan if the former can pull my heart in the right direction.
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Old 31st August 2016, 09:20   #71
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Re: Did you cross-shop across segments while buying your car?

Well, let me put it this way. The segment is usually defined by the needs (excluding the super rich, of course) and the budget affects the features.

In my case, I was looking at compact SUVs for practicality and budget reasons. I had also looked at XUV W4 although it was slightly out of budget. However, with the huge discount of nearly 1 lakh (including free accessories and exch bonus, etc.) due to the upcoming facelift, it came close to my budget and I decided to go ahead with the same.

Yes, you do compromise on some features in the base model. However, my purpose was to get the car and I wasn't too hung up on the features. So, all in all, a slight jump in the segment, but budget was the key factor.
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Old 31st August 2016, 11:37   #72
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Re: Did you cross-shop across segments while buying your car?

Yes, and No.

A bit of history - our family has had this adorable blue Ambassador for the last 18 years, and it was the only car in the house from 1998 till 2012, when maintenance started increasing and regular niggles become frustrating.
After a lot of research, I finally settled on buying a Punto 90hp, and spent 3 months looking for a good pre-loved Punto. Drove a bunch of other cars, but my heart and mind were settled on the Punto. Unfortunately, I had a bad accident just 3 months and 7000 kms after buying the car. Ended up totaling it, but thankfully both the occupants escaped completely unhurt. Till date I'm glad I was in a Punto and not in any other less-solid hatchback.

It took another year before we were ready to invest in another car, and we fixed our budget at 10-12 lakhs. We test drove the Verna, Sunny, Corolla Altis and the Honda City. We also test drove the XUV. I was keen on the XUV but family didn't like the backseat comfort, and we ended up booking the then-new 2014 Honda City. But somewhere at the back of my mind, I never felt safe in that car. We were spending close to 15 lakhs for this car, and it didn't even have disc brakes all around. Further, there were only 2 airbags and the build quality didn't seem solid.

Decided to drive the Jetta once. Took a solo test drive, and then a family test drive. Cancelled the city, and got the Jetta. After 18 months and 60000 kms, this is one of my best decisions ever.
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Old 31st August 2016, 13:58   #73
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Re: Did you cross-shop across segments while buying your car?

Car buying in a family is never simple. May be it is when you are single, but, I never bought a car until I married!!

There are always some if, then, elses in the equation. More so when the budget is a bit flexible. Eg. When I was changing my car, I considered an SUV and Sedan. When my wife was changing the car, options were a hatchback (VW polo GT tsi) as replacement to Swift or SUV (Fortuner) for me and handing over Vento to her.

I also remember, somebody in the forum went to buy a Accent viva and ended up with Merc E250 or something!
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Old 31st August 2016, 14:40   #74
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Re: Did you cross-shop across segments while buying your car?

Am cross shopping right now. Don't know where I'll land up eventually.

1) Endy 4X4 AT Titanium
2) Waiting for Hexa AWD AT top trim - If it exists.
3) Preowned Merc GL350, Q5 3.0, X3 3.0,
4) Considered New Superb L&K Petrol, Preowned Merc E350, BMW 530 but eliminated all Sedans
5) Still considering but unlikely to go for V Cross due to lower power, Hard Steering and absence of AT.

So from OTR 18L-37L, New to Preowned and SUVs to Crossovers to Sedans to Pickups.
Am probably crazy - happens in 40's.
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Old 31st August 2016, 15:03   #75
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Re: Did you cross-shop across segments while buying your car?

Went through a strange set of events since the end of last year

-> Gave Mitsubishi Cedia for service, garage wanted 80k to change brakes. At this point had no intentions of changing any of my cars.
-> Got brakes replaced for 20k outside but realized that the car is now a white elephant
-> Sold the Cedia to a dear friend after forewarning him of all potential service issues
-> Wanted a fast turbocharged car - Asked for Abarth and Octavia test drives
-> Abarth never turned up for a TD - Thanks Fiat!
-> Liked the Octy but was worried about service. Wife didn't care much about the Octy. She found it too bland.
-> Test drove the entry level germans (A3, A4, 320d, C200, CLA200) and didn't like any of them as they were either too common (A4, 320d) or too cramped (A3, CLA 200) or too expensive (C200)
-> Ended up buying a Volvo V40 hatchback in December. It had everything I needed - A 200HP engine, lots of tech, loaded with safety, fantastic build, decent space, a total head turner. Got a really good deal - the car is really really special.
-> Had a Honda Brio as a daily driver. Started hating it as the difference in driving experience was just too much. The Brio felt terribly unrefined and deserved an upgrade.
-> Wanted a better hatchback which is fun to drive but manageable in traffic
-> Requested for TDs of the Abarth (again!), Polo TSi, Ford Figo DCT
-> Abarth never turned up for a TD - Thanks Fiat again!
-> Ford didn't feel any better than the Brio in terms of refinement.
-> Liked the Polo even though I had a few issues with the drive, Wife liked it too - ended up booking it.
-> Exchanged the Brio at the VW dealer for a reasonably fair price. Polo delivered in early may.

So in a span of less than two months, had two new cars while cross shopping across all sorts of segments when initially I didn't even have a plan to buy a car.

All I'd say is thanks SVR Motors (Mitsu service center) for quoting 80k for a brake overhaul

Last edited by reignofchaos : 31st August 2016 at 15:09.
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