[DicKy]

Fresh from an Altroz TD, the steering, smooth clutch and high speed manners have clung to me

At the same time, eventhough it was four years ago, the Figo D TD is still fresh in my mind as the benchmark.Guess have to TD again to see if I feel the same even now.

Regarding which diesel hatchback would you buy today?

While the Figo makes it easy, atleast psychologically, the price difference between petrol:diesel variants, the Altroz's clean 2 lakhs difference, really makes us sit and wonder whether all that we need is the petrol one. Haven't driven one, but every review is stating it is lame. Even then the difference is too much.

As a family car - Altroz
Single/own use - Figo

Anyway market options going to get better with the arrival of next gen i20.
The Sonet/Venue tune of 99bhp is enough for i20 to be class best and a diesel-auto option would decimate the competition.

[adv.yzr]

Greetings,

It has to be Ford Freestyle for me, a nice looking hatch with more or less all the bells and whistles.

Would have loved Sync3 on it. It might be a deal-breaker between the Altroz and Freestyle.

Though, I hope MSIL too introduces their own diesel powertrain soon.

Thanks.

[discoverwild]

Altroz, it would be for me.

I drive my friend's Ford Aspire occassionally and the only thing I like is the quietness of the engine. The power delivery is not that strong unless I'm working the engine out. But the biggest problem I have is the seating. Over one week of using it inside town, I could never really find a comfortable position. I tried raising the seat and the handle broke off from the lever. This is a 2-year old car that has been driven only 18000 kms. The car doesn't feel taut like my previous Ikon 1.6.

[OSH]

Voted for the Tata Altroz.

Apart from all the merits already mentioned by others, there is one more reason; our money stays in our own country.

[sunnsood]

Voted for others.

I am in the market for new car for my wife. Our requirement is cng plus petrol. Her drive is 50km per day and diesels are all 2 lakh pricer than corresponding petrol ones. Add to that 10 years limit on diesel in delhi NCR region.

Sad part is even petrol and cng combination is in short supply.
Now looking to heart transplant a cng into Swift/ baleno.

[itsashishsharma]

Figo/Freestyle, no doubt about this. The engine, gearbox, clutch combo is superior to the other two. The Hyundai's engine is not as grunty and Tata's whole driving experience leaves a lot to be desired. Gearshifts are notchier with longer throws, clutch action doesn't inspire confidence and the engine lacks mid - high end punch.

[evilmessiah]

Voted for the Ford Figo/ Freestyle.

Family had voted with the wallet for the Figo Titanium as well sometime back. Our experience with the Figo has been pretty good so far. Love the engine and the handling (even if it has been watered down from the older Fords). Even if the interiors are a bit rough around the edges, it's abuse friendly (since it's black) and it is good enough for me. There is auto climate control, a nifty phone dock, BT connectivity, auto up/down windows, nice seats with durable fabric, electric mirrors, rear wipers and defoggers. For me, a car with a good engine and essentials like these that work well is more important than a car that has frills and fancy interiors that aren't very practical and has a wimpy engine. Service costs have been quite reasonable (and is cheaper than Maruti and Hyundai). Haven't faced an issue of expensive spares or ripoffs either.

I do like the Altroz, but I am not a fan of the neutered engine. They should have offered it in the Nexon state of tune. As GTO said, if you don't cannibalize your own sales, someone else would be doing it for you. While I am rooting for the home team here, Tata's strategy is seriously wrong (like GM in the older days who would launch a crappy car, make it better during the years and when it's at its best, they would pull the plug and discontinue the product). To its credit, Tata has made giant strides in design and interior quality but they really need to get rid of their niggles. I'm still hearing stories of bad after sales and niggling issues. The Ford may have less posh interiors and an older design, but I have had no niggles or issues with it.

As for Hyundai- the interiors may feel and look nice, but I would need to have a running account with an optometrist and a therapist from having to look at that pig ugly exterior. Come to think of it, that might be difficult since I would be broke from having to pay the hefty service bills Hyundai is known to charge (I kid you not- we owned a Santro and that wasn't quite cheap to maintain either). That 1.2 diesel is a milquetoast when compared with the Altroz's and Figo's gems (and the car is not very cheap either).

[harry10]

Voted for Altroz.
Haven't driven it so can't comment on that. But the looks, well lets just say I will but it simply for its smashing exterior. I TD Figo when I was looking to buy a hatchback 2.5 years back. It's really fun to drive. However, the interior was a deal breaker and that's why I picked Tiago even though it's engine was inferior to Figo. Also Tiago was a lot cheaper at that time to Figo.

[BLACNWYTE]

Voted for Tata Altroz.

It's a given that the torque and power are lesser than that of Ford Figo/Freestyle but I was looking at the torque band and it's from the low 1250rpm all the way to 3000rpm and that is a very healthy range and is better than the competition. This will be a better car to drive in city as well as for revving it up on highways. The design and the 5* safety are icing on the cake.

As a package Altroz would be my pick.

[Bibendum90949]

I've voted for Ford Freestyle. For a driving enthusiast, no amount of gizmos, looks or features would lure him to the other cars in discussion. The wildest grin you would ever get behind the wheels is when the car dances to your tunes, not when we see the nice interiors, exterior looks or a big touch screen. The driving dynamics- the real thrill and pleasure lies there, coupled with fully loaded safety kits means Ford all the way for me.

[Vipin Kumar]

Using Ford's 1.4 TDCi mill for seven and half years, I would prefer Figo/Freestyle only. But, this is also supported by my personal experience of Ford's wonderful driving dynamics etc. I hear that Tata vehicles are good these days, unlike their previous generation Indigo/Indica, but have no first hand experience.

[kamilharis]

Altroz any day!

Figo is a great car but I can't live with it in the year 2020.

It is neither here nor there, whereas Altroz is an excellent package which balances all the requirements.

[chefvikas]

Resale value better for diesel cars? No Sir, not anymore.

[uditsharma01]

Amazing! It is boiling down to Altroz and Figo/Freestyle. As much as I appreciate the renaissance of Tata but I'd pick Freestyle any day. Freestyle is more practical and fun to drive car. Its SUVish stance gives it edge over its competitors and specially on our Indian roads.

Altroz has all the things you can ask for in a hatchback. It power delivery is bit more linear 'not-much-fun-to-drive'.

[turbowhistle]

As someone who owned i20 for a long long time, I'd rather wait and get that car instead. It's a way better package overall and much easier to live it ( personal experience/perception)

If that's not possible, then Freestyle all the way for me. The engine is a cracker and I love the way it looks. Would make a perfect second car which can do serious highway runs if needed.