[subratasenn]

Originally Posted by swiftnfurious

COST CUTTING!! The Toyota bigwig's understanding of India is that it's a third world country who can't afford quality products. Hence they wanted to build a "BUDGET" car for the Indian customers and hence the birth of the Etios twins. Single wiper, centre console placed in the middle, rubber engine mounts & integrated headrests for front seats etc (both in the first batch) are all means of cutting down the cost.



You are trying to sugar coat it. Put it simply, it's a cost cutting measure. There are a whole lot of products which are being sold in both LHD & RHD markets, the centre console and related bits are always re-engineered / re-designed to suit the driver orientation.

Well, plenty of BHP-ian friends rant about why the Etios and why Toyota never introduced Prius in India. Have seen glee when some supposedly spycam videos have been posted.

To tell the truth, Toyota Prius, hailed by many, has a centrally mounted console. Cost cutting? Don't really know.

Besides Chevy Spark, at least two Tata cars have centrally mounted consoles. Chevy I understand, they might be playing the LHD and RHD game. But Tata? Please?

I began my four wheeler journey with a Premiere in the nineties, before that had travelled in Ambys. All of them had centrally mounted consoles. Well, they were actually not consoles, they were dials, which looked more llike ammeters. Have seen steering mounted consoles in my Maruti cars before I bought my Etios Liva. I never had a problem with any of them. I always felt that it's not the car or the console that drives the car, it's the person behind the wheel who's driving (and enjoying).

[Sawyer]

As pointed out, it wasn't the placement that was a problem, it was the execution of all the interiors with the console being a lousy and visible icing on a terrible cake. It looked like the fake 50 paise watches of my childhood days with a stuck on dial where nothing moved; even kids of today sneer at these now!

With an awake and intelligent passenger, even one in the rear seat, a centre console can also serve to add an extra pair of eyes to look over it from time to time; I see that as a valuable plus.

I have no problem with it in my 2013 car, because the rest of the interiors are also vastly improved. Now, I am sure they are even better.

As many have said, drop in an auto box, and I see no car as good as it - both versions - at the price point.

[shridhar.s.i]

Disclaimer : below is my opinion, not interested in getting into a blog-fight with anyone

In my personal opinion, the Toyota Etios is overpriced for the engine it offers (I am referring to diesel)
When i ask the cabbies as well as existing owners, they say the engine is superb and does not give a problem for 3 lac plus kilometers
But here is my question, how many of us individual owners keep the car for that long, i could say a maximum of 1%. For cabs i agree it makes sense to have such a steady performing engine. Now coming to reliability, I believe even the national engine FIAT, followed by Hyundai and other brands are almost there now.
Before finalizing my car, i seriously considered Etios but one look at the spec sheet as well as feature list and I rejected it right away.
Increased safety is welcome but 10 lac plus for VXD with a 67 hp engine is not acceptable for me. The notchbacks offering say 75% of the space/practicality of etios for almost a lac less with better features makes more sense to a buyer like me.

[amalji]

Originally Posted by psankar

Any news that there are plans for this ? I remember you saying an year back that you are waiting to see an etios platinum automatic. I love your ownership reports btw. If I buy an etios, it will be because of the ownership reports of you and samba

I expect it to be here within an year. There seems to be a 1 year lag between Brazilian and Indian release.

I'm also eagerly waiting for the hybrid variants ( of both the Vios/Yaris and Etios/Liva )

Originally Posted by kotirajendra

I realized the effectiveness of centre console after a back to back TD with Zest. I am 5 feet 5 and when I adjusted the steering per my height, the entire console was blocked by the wheel.
IMO, this is the only design that can allow fully functional adjustment of the steering wheel for people of any height.

Yeah, almost all design elements of Etios are there for a reason. It's a well thought out design. And it happens because it was designed from scratch. Even the torque curve of the Diesel and Petrol engines are bang on for typical Indian driving conditions concentrating more on drivability in the real world scenario it's going to handle on a daily basis than showing some values in the spec sheets.

[Sawyer]

Originally Posted by shridhar.s.i

here is my question, how many of us individual owners keep the car for that long, i could say a maximum of 1%.

When I was looking around for a replacement hatch in 2013, my intention was to keep it till 2025. So for me it was a 100% situation, no other car came close. The just released 1.5 litre petrol Liva was perfect and remains so for my needs.

I suspect that this trend, small though it may be at this time, will only grow. Not every one looks at cars with a Team BHP lens; some like me, just want an appliance that can do the "fill it forget it" job.

[chncar]

Originally Posted by Sawyer

When I was looking around for a replacement hatch in 2013, my intention was to keep it till 2025. So for me it was a 100% situation, no other car came close. The just released 1.5 litre petrol Liva was perfect and remains so for my needs.

I suspect that this trend, small though it may be at this time, will only grow. Not every one looks at cars with a Team BHP lens; some like me, just want an appliance that can do the "fill it forget it" job.

I think Team BHP lens is a bit of a generalization for the attitude that you are trying to describe, there are folks with all viewpoints on TBHP.

I don't own an Etios but I have taken a test drive and am pretty impressed with the basics of the car. If it didn't have the good driveability and neutral handling I would not be. Based on that alone, I would pick it over the average Hyundai car despite the perception of the latter being more upmarket. For me the car fundamentals are more important than the shiny baubles that it has.

Also, the Etios fits in nicely with a minimalistic philosophy, which some people consciously try to follow. For most the 'keeping up with the Joneses' philosophy applies, where you need to match whatever your social circle uses, but for those who want to follow their own rules and politely give such people the finger, the Etios is a great choice.

Originally Posted by shridhar.s.i

Disclaimer : below is my opinion, not interested in getting into a blog-fight with anyone

In my personal opinion, the Toyota Etios is overpriced for the engine it offers (I am referring to diesel)
When i ask the cabbies as well as existing owners, they say the engine is superb and does not give a problem for 3 lac plus kilometers
But here is my question, how many of us individual owners keep the car for that long, i could say a maximum of 1%. For cabs i agree it makes sense to have such a steady performing engine. Now coming to reliability, I believe even the national engine FIAT, followed by Hyundai and other brands are almost there now.
Before finalizing my car, i seriously considered Etios but one look at the spec sheet as well as feature list and I rejected it right away.
Increased safety is welcome but 10 lac plus for VXD with a 67 hp engine is not acceptable for me. The notchbacks offering say 75% of the space/practicality of etios for almost a lac less with better features makes more sense to a buyer like me.

I don't mean to criticize your choices, but you should have at least taken a test drive, instead of looking purely at the paper specs. The car is way more drivable than many others despite the lower power specs.

[Sebzgeo89]

Toyota don't seem much interested in diesel engines for small cars. Forget the Etios, even the 20lakh Corolla has a 90bhp engine when a 6 lakh Figo comes with 100hp. But their petrols are very good, especially the 1.5. One test drive and you'll be surprised. If any private buyer is considering a Toyota, go for the petrol eyes closed.

[amalji]

Originally Posted by Sebzgeo89

Toyota don't seem much interested in diesel engines for small cars. Forget the Etios, even the 20lakh Corolla has a 90bhp engine when a 6 lakh Figo comes with 100hp. But their petrols are very good, especially the 1.5. One test drive and you'll be surprised. If any private buyer is considering a Toyota, go for the petrol eyes closed.

• With Petrol, except for the Liva 1.2 L Petrol which is very boring to drive.
• With regards to Diesel, it's not the PS which matters, but the torque and where the torque is delivered. And, Toyota Etios and Liva's torque curve along with the gear ratios are one of the best to drive in typical Indian conditions. The Corolla Diesel is not that great to drive around in typical Indian driving conditions and that is not because of the less PS, but because of the turbo lag due to the bigger turbo used in the Altis compared to the Etios' engine. But, this should get solved when the Euro 6 Diesel engine is released in India which delivers peak torque from 1400 rpms all the way upto 2800 rpms.

PS: Having said all this, the new gen Ford engines are in a different league altogether. But, with regards to reliability, time will tell.

[cdmanju]

Toyota is offering discounts with the label "Remember December". Liva and Etios gets 25k and 40 discounts along with exchange bonus. Hope this will help the buyers

Link to the offer - http://offers.toyotabharat.com/karnataka/

[amateurpro]

Originally Posted by pet_apf

1. How much do alloys really matter?
2. If they do matter, is it advisable to purchase alloys from the aftermarket? if yes, which ones and is there any impact on warranty?

Alloy wheels add to the looks and comfort. I would not recommend buying alloy wheel from aftermarket for a good car. To me, Etios has been a good car for over five and a half years.

[subratasenn]

Originally Posted by amalji

[list][*]With Petrol, except for the Liva 1.2 L Petrol which is very boring to drive.

It's not as boring as it is perceived. I just drove a friend's car and was pleasantly surprised. The 1.5 petrol is fabulous, but the 1.2 for Etios is not far behind, if you are driving in the city with a Liva. Amalji, just drive for half an hour and you'd know what I mean. But yes, it's not as great as the diesel but he clutch is softer.

Originally Posted by amalji

• With regards to Diesel, it's not the PS which matters, but the torque and where the torque is delivered. And, Toyota Etios and Liva's torque curve along with the gear ratios are one of the best to drive in typical Indian conditions. The Corolla Diesel is not that great to drive around in typical Indian driving conditions and that is not because of the less PS, but because of the turbo lag due to the bigger turbo used in the Altis compared to the Etios' engine. But, this should get solved when the Euro 6 Diesel engine is released in India which delivers peak torque from 1400 rpms all the way upto 2800 rpms.

Agreed!

[deetjohn]

Traveled in a brand new Etios taxi courtesy Uber yesterday. The driver got a discount coupon of INR 30k from the Uber - Toyota partnership. 20k while buying the car and 10k after he completed a mandated number of trips (10) through Uber.

Platinum version is not open for the commercial segment currently. Not sure whether Toyota can restrict it completely. I have already started seeing Crysta on yellow plates over here.

And he also told me Toyota is readying a shorter version (less than 4 meters?) of the Etios just for the commercial segment and its almost ready.

[rrsteer]

Originally Posted by deetjohn

And he also told me Toyota is readying a shorter version (less than 4 meters?) of the Etios just for the commercial segment and its almost ready.

The cab driver provided this information?

[amalji]

Originally Posted by deetjohn

And he also told me Toyota is readying a shorter version (less than 4 meters?) of the Etios just for the commercial segment and its almost ready.

Toyota had ruled this out some time back - http://indianautosblog.com/2016/04/t...led-out-228903

[deetjohn]

Originally Posted by rrsteer

The cab driver provided this information?

Like I said, the car was brand new and he apparently heard this from the dealer.

Originally Posted by amalji

Toyota had ruled this out some time back

Could be wrong, could be right. He said it with so much conviction, thought I would share.