[lamborghini]

Originally Posted by amalji

Hopefully, they will get it covered with the Vios ( I hope, not at the cost of practicality and ergonomics of the Etios ) and then price it 4 lakhs higher. And we'll be rushing to their showrooms.

Sat in the Vios while in Bali - they use the Vios/Limo as local taxi's there.

Space, practicality, etc was similar if not better than the Etios, and ambience etc. was a notch above. However, whether we will rush to the showrooms to pick it up remains to be seen.
It looks decent, but with the new Verna, Ciaz, City - it has some tough competitors to crack. These cars are feature loaded, good looking, and established brands in the segment - exactly what you pointed out as customer requirements.
Given current Corolla equipment levels, I doubt the Vios will be able to compete with the cars a segment below (except on safety), and with a poor diesel engine (1.4L) - don't expect any surprises there too. Maybe it'll replace the City/Ciaz as taxis but not much else.

[Nav-i-gator]

Originally Posted by amalji

Yeah, Toyota gave what it thought was needed for a first time sedan buyer in India - best in class space, best in class durability, best in class maintenance cost, best in class comfort/ergonomics and best in class safety combined with 2 wonderful engines which are designed for the kind of use cases that Indian roads demand. They forgot that what we Indians value more are the looks, aesthetics and status more than safety/space/comfort/durability/drivability. It was a mistake from their part.

Hopefully, they will get it covered with the Vios ( I hope, not at the cost of practicality and ergonomics of the Etios ) and then price it 4 lakhs higher. And we'll be rushing to their showrooms.

Logan/verito gave the same "best in class" things, in bare-bone and downright auto-rickshaw grade interiors. Apart from the rear seat space, I don't think etios offer anything worthwhile in the segment it falls. Most of the cars nowadays are low - maintenance, higher than etios in comfort/ergonomics and much better looking - inside out. A brand new Etios, just out of showroom looks a decade old, such is the exterior design and styling.

Safety - many cars offer 6 airbags and advanced safety features. How many in India actually buy those?

Bottom-line is: Toyota grossly underestimated (to the point of humiliating Indian car buyers) our value preposition while designing and launching etios. For this very point, it deserve to be a failure.

However, credit where it is due - Toyota has kept on making efforts to increase the value preposition in etios from the time it was launched. Platinum edition does look "promising". And yes, like other Toyotas, Etios is built to outlast its utility. These things never seem to die!

[amalji]

Originally Posted by lamborghini

Sat in the Vios while in Bali - they use the Vios/Limo as local taxi's there.

Space, practicality, etc was similar if not better than the Etios, and ambience etc. was a notch above. However, whether we will rush to the showrooms to pick it up remains to be seen.

Good to get a feedback from a person who has used it in real! Especially coming from you.

Originally Posted by lamborghini

It looks decent, but with the new Verna, Ciaz, City - it has some tough competitors to crack. These cars are feature loaded, good looking, and established brands in the segment - exactly what you pointed out as customer requirements.

Competition is good. Else, it'll get priced like the Innova, Fortuner and Corolla where Toyota decides their price without any pressure.

Originally Posted by lamborghini

Given current Corolla equipment levels, I doubt the Vios will be able to compete with the cars a segment below (except on safety), and with a poor diesel engine (1.4L) - don't expect any surprises there too. Maybe it'll replace the City/Ciaz as taxis but not much else.

What I'm looking forward to is the dual-VVTi Petrol engine with the 7-speed CVT. If they bring the same to India, it would be great for the following reasons.

• It seems to give enough mid and low end punch ( unlike the Honda and Maruti ). And that's where you need the power in typical Indian driving conditions.
• Highway cruising would be very smooth thanks to that tall gearing.
• The biggest advantage of the CVT used in the Toyota is that it's very unlike a CVT! It gives those 7 virtual gear ratios which can be adjusted manually and at the same time, the 7 speed gear ratios somewhat compensates for the loss in efficiency due to unavailability of infinite gear ratios. I heard that the engine rpm at 100 kmph on the 7th gear is just 1900 rpms! And that grinding noise of the CVT due to the infinite ratios should also be eliminated thanks to this kind of a setup.
• And on top of that, the simplicity of the technology ensures that you have less things to replace in the long run.
• It gives very good fuel economy too for a 1.5l Petrol, thanks mainly to that dual-VVTi.

If It's the Diesel, I hope, Toyota brings in the Euro 6 1.4 D-4D especially since Toyota plans to introduce Euro 6 standards on all their vehicles even before the govt makes it mandatory. Even though, the numbers says 90 PS, the Euro 6 D-4D churns out peak torque of 200 Nm right from 1400 rpms all the way up till 2800 rpms. That should make a huge difference in the way the vehicle behaves on real world conditions. With that one change along with its ultra smooth operation, it will certainly be a better engine to drive around compared to the unrefined Honda i-Dtec or the turbo lagged Suzuki DDiS 90 PS.

Regardless, I'll be thinking of Diesel only if they come up with an automatic transmission for it which I think is unlikely.

Another vehicle which is worth waiting for is the hybrid variant of Vios. But, I'm not sure if they are really interested in it since, the price increase would be around 2.5 lakhs to 3 lakhs compared to the Petrol variant. But, they could get some tax benefits for it as well.

Originally Posted by Nav-i-gator

Most of the cars nowadays are low - maintenance, higher than etios in comfort/ergonomics and much better looking - inside out. A brand new Etios, just out of showroom looks a decade old, such is the exterior design and styling.

+1 to exterior design and styling comparison.
-1 to comfort/ergonomics. The only other vehicle that gives comparable comfort in that range is the Ertiga ( 7-seater MUV ). Ciaz too gives very good comfort. But, it's a segment above.
-1 to Maintenance cost as well. Having tasted what a Toyota durability means, ( I've used Maruti for a decade and a half before that ) there is nothing that can beat it. It's not just the maintenance cost that is low ( average - 3500 per 10000 for a Diesel! if you use the stock Toyota mineral oil which is what Toyota recommends ) . The time you have to invest is just 2 hours every 10,000 kms. That's it! And it stays true even after 1.2 lakh kms of ownership. I normally do my service in between trips! for eg:-, my last 3 services were done at Wayanad. Before that, it was Salem. Sometimes, it's Trivandrum and sometimes it's Kochi. It depends on where I plan to travel at that point of time. Unplanned repairs are a rarity inspite of banging the car in the pothole filled roads in Kerala at high speeds.

[Sawyer]

For a couple of weeks, DSK Toyota in Pune is refusing to give service appointments, or to say when they will be able to do so. Any one else knows any thing about this? Are they on strike?

[SSD2122]

Originally Posted by Sawyer

For a couple of weeks, DSK Toyota in Pune is refusing to give service appointments, or to say when they will be able to do so. Any one else knows any thing about this? Are they on strike?

Not sure about Toyota, but quite similar experience from Sky Moto (Fiat) when I called one of the SA for my Linea tjet servicing. No service appointments for this week. The reason he gave was they are updating their systems for GST. I would get an appointment only by next week.

Maybe the same would be the case with Toyota folks.

[sups]

Originally Posted by Sawyer

For a couple of weeks, DSK Toyota in Pune is refusing to give service appointments, or to say when they will be able to do so. Any one else knows any thing about this? Are they on strike?

DSK Bavdhan is having a rough patch for quite some time now. Initially they had some repair work and hence was almost shut down for a few weeks. There was a huge back log after they opened. I had to wait for a month to get a service date of my Liva a few months back.

Now I am hearing due to some trouble with Toyota, they stopped selling toyota cars for few weeks in between. Hope it starts functioning smoothly.

[Sawyer]

This isn't GST; the phone replies are very vague and refuse to give any details as to when service will restart. And it isn't just at Bavdhan, I have a feeling.

[Sawyer]

I got a call from Toyota; not in so many words they say there is a problem with DSK Toyota they are trying to solve. The inconvenience is that the only alternative in Pune for us is at Bhosari, Sharayu Toyota. Who will surely be flooded with cars for service.

The problem is that unlike Maruti, Toyota has no network of authorised satellite service stations.

[ashwin489]

Let them call it platinum, diamond, titanium, whatever. Does it really matter?

All they had to do was plonk in the 1.5L and mate it with an automatic tranny to change its image from a taxi to an urban vehicle of choice.

[Sawyer]

Originally Posted by Sawyer

I got a call from Toyota; not in so many words they say there is a problem with DSK Toyota they are trying to solve. The inconvenience is that the only alternative in Pune for us is at Bhosari, Sharayu Toyota. Who will surely be flooded with cars for service.

The problem is that unlike Maruti, Toyota has no network of authorised satellite service stations.

Any updates on DSK? I hear that they are bankrupt. Has anyone bought a car from them in the last few weeks?
Now no one is picking up the service number.

[//M]

Originally Posted by Sawyer

Any updates on DSK? I hear that they are bankrupt. Has anyone bought a car from them in the last few weeks?
Now no one is picking up the service number.

Yes strong rumours floating around that DSK is shutting down the Toyota dealerships due to cash crunch. But also, there are rumours that a new dealer is going to take up the void space soon.

As of now the only option is Sharayu Toyota in Bhosari. Incidentally I use the same road for office commute and I have been seeing a huge number of vehicles these days parked alongside the road outside Sharayu Toyota so my guess is DSK has stopped sales/service or maybe their operations are on hold till further clarity.

[Sawyer]

It would be a tragedy. DSK service was excellent. And I am not sure how Sharayu will cope with the huge extra load.

[kotirajendra]

DSK Toyota folding up is bad news. That dealership was the reason I bought a Toyota. I hope Toyota is listening and taking fast steps to maintain credibility.

[Sawyer]

Surprisingly, Toyota does not keep their service eggs in more than one basket. While DSK is/was no doubt world class, all of Pune is served by just DSK. Even Honda has two.

I expect someone to take over DSK operations if DSK folds, it is too valuable a business to fold up. In the meantime we will see service issues; I was able to get an appointment at Sharayu Toyota in Bhosari only for August 24. Hopefully, the service quality isn't affected by the sudden volume increase.

[yatin]

@amalji, you mentioned getting your Etios serviced during trips. Were you serious? If I were to visit Kochi, is it really feasible to get a service done in a couple of hours? Preferably north of Kochi.