[rajivrt]

For me it has always been straight buys. The budget always came first, accordingly the segment, then the car. In the earlier years it used to be Maruti 800, then came the Santro, Esteem, Baleno in that order. Then CRV and Scorpio (both 2005, Scorpio had enticed me with the 2nd anniversary offer with my base model costing me under 5 lacs OTR). Till these years I always knew which model+variant I wanted to buy- so no visits to different showrooms. The confusion started manifesting when I was out to buy the Aveo (2010) and then Sunny (2012) for some secondary office duties. And now I am keen to buy a Crysta and even though I have visited Mahindra umpteen times in the last 2 months when Crysta could not be registered in NCR, I am just unable to keep my eyes of the Crysta. No other SUV/MUV is appealing to me in my budget. And yes, at least of now I am sure I will not be looking at a D segment sedan.

[Guite]

Definitely cross shopped across segments. When shopping for a new car recently the active contenders were Vento TSI Highline and Creta petrol SX+. They cost almost the same without discount. Other than that they are totally different. I finally settled on the Vento because of elegance, engine refinement, ease of driving and build quality.

[blackwasp]

Car buying is a long way process and over the last couple of years looked at Thar, Vento TSi, Polo GT TSi, Honda city (petrol), Used Linea, newer Punto, Kwid, KUV, not selling at all and finally ended up buying the Abarth.

The Kwid and KUV were shortlisted by dad and I'm thankful for the highhanded attitude of dealers otherwise we'd never have a Punto Abarth.


Would like to say that Thar experience was way better (got long TD, at dealership and at home, good SA) than that of KUV.

VW was average, nothing too bad or too excellent. Fiat was in Pune but got a long TD when I went there. After all these experiences, I realised that the more a car sells, the worse service we get. The only exception to that is Maruti. Even though Maruti wasn't in contention, the service was way way better than most others.

[V.Narayan]

Always shopped around shamelessly with no regard to segmentation. In my view segmentation is a way for OEMs and the auto media to get order into their lives. In my younger and thriftier days the budget (or lack thereof) pretty much settled everything. In the early-1980s the choice was between a pre-pre-owned Lambretta versus a new TVS moped. I chose the Lamby as there was a young lady I wanted to offer a lift home from work in the evenings and a moped didn't quite cut it! Sorry auto-makers but young folks have more important things on their minds than engine size and torque. Cut to 2015 when we bought the Volvo XC60 the criterion was - rear seat ride and comfort, quality of interiors, leg space, after sales service and badge in that order. The contenders were the A6, the E-class, the Volvo XC60, the Camry Hybrid, the Merc M series and in a state of confused excitement even the Volvo V40. Looked at the S.80 but didn't pursue it as it was on its way out and the Passat as it was being discontinued in India or something like that.

[Lambydude]

I think it is a combination of price you are willing to pay and your need. For example one would fix MUV segment only if you are specific that you need a people mover. In all other cases , it would be largely decided by the kind of money that you can pay and then look for all the different option available irrespective of the segment's.

[jpcoolguy]

Originally Posted by sgiitk

Watch out. Do not let the 'boss' near a Hyundai. They have the best creature comforts at the cost of the rest of the features. This is across all segments.

Else, you risk a Veto on whatever you wish to get?

You have nailed it, at least that's what happened in my case. I wanted the Zest, test drove the Revotron and found it OK and then went to the nearby Hyundai showroom to check-out the Xcent. Once she sat on the car's passenger seat, she immediately mentioned that it felt better than Zest, not sure though why.

Then took a test drive and the 1.2 Kappa2 felt peppier than the 1.2 Revotron and was also good to drive and finalized the vehicle.

On the topic, before finalizing on Xcent, also checked-out Swift, Amaze, Zest, Elite i20 (waiting period was 3-4 months then), Sail Sedan, Etios (all Petrols) - with a budget ranging from 6L - 8L.

[shadow]

I am yoyo-ing through segments as of now.

Was hooked on the EcoSport but the new Elantra has me super confused, even though it is a couple of lacs more expensive. And now the upcoming Civic could make matters worse.

[HighwayHopper]

I had a fixed budget in my mind and wanted a car with good boot space, basic safety features in that budget. Never tried to test drive or explore other cars more than my budget as that would have dislocated my thoughts and budget. Hyundai Xcent won over Zest and Amaze and is my ride now.

[DriveOnceMore]

Similar Cross Shopping Dilemma on my mind now.
In the market for Rs. 10 lakh diesel car.
Confused between Baleno 1.3 Alpha vs. Ciaz VDi+ / ZDi.
Can you help?

[PNTLovesNano]

Back in 2011 when I started shopping for my first car, my choice was locked on Nano which was then vetoed unanimously by the family. Then, started with Alto and gave the WagonR Lxi Duo a second thought. Did the EMI check and found that the Vxi variant won't impact my EMI much and made the booking payment for WagonR Vxi. On the day of loan processing, I panicked by the interest rates and again came down to Alto Lxi. I don't know if this counts as cross shopping across segments.

In 2014, brought the Nano Twist with a dead lock on the variant too. There was no cross shopping at any levels whatsoever.

After having invested a lot on depreciating assets, cars as well as bikes, and the mad fondness of a bike after it is sold off, I am determined not to sell either Alto or Nano. I would be keeping them for ever. So, the third car would be a bigger car, but used one for sure. It would be couple of years down the line and not now. Yes, I would be doing lot of cross segments shopping though Toyota Innova and Honda City would be on the priority list. Innova if I feel I need to take bigger family, but City if only 5 persons all the time.

[prasanna_indaje]

Originally Posted by revharder

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.

In similar scenario, I picked up a SCross 1.6 Zeta and Wagon R VXi (o) AMT

Mod Note: Please avoid quoting the entire post when responding

[GKMahajan]

Originally Posted by revharder

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.
..

..
Now, whether it should be:
i) Kwid + XUV
ii) Aspire/Baleno + City/Scorpio
iii) Zest/Jazz + Brezza/Creta
or, something else?

Dear revharder,

I went through this situation too.
I opted for Honda Jazz V-CVT and Scorpio S10 AT RWD combination.
Unlike you, I opted for a combination of automatic transmission cars only.

Regards,

Girish Mahajan

[balajisv]

Originally Posted by jpcoolguy

she immediately mentioned that it felt better than Zest, not sure though why.

It happened almost same with me. My wife said that Hyundai XCent 'looked' better than Zest.
But finally, she understood that Zest was more spacious, better equipped, safer and more value for money. We bought a Zest Revotron XT.
But, yes! Ladies have a soft corner towards Hyundais

[Vigkey]

I started my car hunt with a budget of 10L and had decided to go for a spacious hatchback rather than a cut-short sedan. Honda Jazz and i20 were the sole competitors at that time. Jazz was launched and even though I was in love with the car well before the launch and wanted to love it in spite of its bizarre variant-ing and pricing, Honda made sure it did enough to keep me thinking.

S-Cross 1.3 came into the fray simply because i20 did not appeal to my heart and Jazz did not do enough to satisfy my head. It was an accident that S-Cross came into picture and there began my cross-shopping stint. I ended up buying a S-Cross 1.6 thereby pulling my budget by ~50%

But then, I am a satisfied man now - and isn't that matters the most. Cross shopping happens and is absolutely fine if that is what your heart says.

[dudevarkey]

Originally Posted by dudevarkey

Budget is 9.5 L. and the shortlists are...

Now waiting for the valuators at Maruti & Ford dealerships to quote a decent price for my Quanto.

Sold off the Quanto directly to a buyer and almost finalized MS Vitara Brezza ZDI. The car was booked on 5th September 2016, hope I will get it delivered by December 1st week.