[utkarshshukla92]

Hello Bhpians,

I am a newbie driver and I was looking for my 1st used car. I have a deal directly from the owner for a Sept 2014 Grand i10 Asta with 1.5 Lakh km's on the ODO for 2.5 Lakhs. The car is mechanically in good condition though it has a fair share of scratches and 2 dents on each rear door.

This car was maintained at a workshop in Noida and the owner of this workshop has given me a green signal on the car with no major expenses coming up. (Good things have been said about the owner of this workshop in T-Bhp many times and that is how I came to know about him and this Grand i10).

Now the question is as a newbie driver I want that safety net of ABS and Airbags that this car offers but the those KM's on the ODO is what I see as a red flag.

I am unable to find a better deal in the market at the moment and have noticed the used car prices are skyrocketing and in my budget of 2.5 Lakhs dealers are offering 10-11 yr old i10's and WagonR's which I am not very happy with. So, Should I go for this car or look for more options.

[2000rpm]

Originally Posted by utkarshshukla92

I am unable to find a better deal in the market at the moment and have noticed the used car prices are skyrocketing and in my budget of 2.5 Lakhs dealers are offering 10-11 yr old i10's and WagonR's which I am not very happy with. So, Should I go for this car or look for more options.

While I agree with buying used, I think you should avoid this one.

A bad condition first car is a sure shot way to move away from being an auto-enthusiast.

I would suggest you look for used Petrol POLOs with low mileage. The build quality (European) and ownership Pride of a Polo (killer looks) is far superior to that of a Hyundai.

[GreasyCarb55]

Originally Posted by utkarshshukla92

Hello Bhpians,

Now the question is as a newbie driver I want that safety net of ABS and Airbags that this car offers but the those KM's on the ODO is what I see as a red flag.

I am unable to find a better deal in the market at the moment and have noticed the used car prices are skyrocketing and in my budget of 2.5 Lakhs dealers are offering 10-11 yr old i10's and WagonR's which I am not very happy with. So, Should I go for this car or look for more options.

Hi there Utkarsh, I started a similar thread in Jan 2022 which I will link below (although that thread is based solely on enthusiast/drivers cars).

Although I will say this if you're just looking for a nice car first car the last gen Grand i10 does seem like a good choice. I am also in the same bucket (looking for a first car under 4 lakh myself) and I would suggest the following options as well:

• Gen 1 1.3 Petrol Swift
• Gen 1 Facelift Ford Figo Diesel (2012-2015)
• Gen 1 Ford Fiesta/Fiesta Classic 1.6

If you have questions regarding the safety and reliability side of things I would suggest you ask in the Grand i10 review thread which I will also link below.

Link to my thread. (Best enthusiast / first car for an 18-year old college student under 4 lakhs?)

Grand i10 Review thread (Hyundai Grand i10 : Official Review)

[utkarshshukla92]

Originally Posted by utkarshshukla92

Sept 2014 Grand i10 Asta with 1.5 Lakh km's on the ODO for 2.5 Lakhs. The car is mechanically in good condition though it has a fair share of scratches and 2 dents on each rear door.

Sharing some pictures of the above mentioned car.

[ObsessedByFIAT]

Originally Posted by utkarshshukla92

Hello Bhpians,

I am a newbie driver and I was looking for my 1st used car. I have a deal directly from the owner for a Sept 2014 Grand i10 Asta with 1.5 Lakh km's on the ODO for 2.5 Lakhs. The car is mechanically in good condition though it has a fair share of scratches and 2 dents on each rear door.

The first few basic questions that you need to answer are:

1. What is the max budget?
2. How urgent is the need for a car?
3. Are you ok with a car from another state?
4. Are you ok with purchasing a lesser sold car?

Had I been in your place, I would not buy a 1+ lac km run car. How much ever the car is in good condition, even with a experienced new owner, the car will surely run into issues.
Better to look for lesser run cars. They would cost you a little more, but the chances of failures as compared to a more used car would be slightly less.

Don't take anyone's word for the cars condition. Make sure due diligence is done, like checking the entire service history, insurance claims, major parts if changed any.
Cosmetic beauty can be enhanced, however don't buy a car with too many dents. I feel that is an indication that the car was not cared for too much.

You can also look at the organized players like true value, Toyota trust, Spiny, Cars24, etc. Advantage being, you get some warranty on the car which itself is a bit confidence inspiring.

Trust me, I was in the same place as you are few years back. Due to lack of knowledge, I got car a with accident history, which I got to know off only after owning the car for around a year. It did dilute my ownership experience and I felt cheated. I wouldn't wish for anyone else to have that same feeling after spending your hard earned money.

[docted]

I think more than choosing a car, our licence system needs to change.
We get issued a blanket licence to LMV or MC, gone are day when the option was an Ambby or a Padmani or Mahindra Major, today we have vehicles from 60cc to 4000cc and now with the whole EV scene and Instanat Torque the learning curve will need to change and adapt accordingly.

What we should have is Class specific Licence, where in you should be issued a Licence for lower spec/power vehicle and with time and experience you apply for a higher class of vehicle.

The licence should not only be vehicle class specific but also road spesifice or driving in highways or expressways etc.

Also getting a driving licence should be one of the.most stringent tests.

[narayans80]

Originally Posted by locusjag

Start with an automatic transmission

This I agree with. I started driving as an uncle at 30 out of necessity. I couldn't even drive the new i10 I brought from the showroom. Once I attempted driving from office, I remember parking somewhere near Guindy waiting for the traffic to subside

I fortunately got an opportunity to drive a Ford Focus and Dodge Charger over 50 days. Its only after that did I get confidence on steering control.

Once I returned, the gear shifting fell in place.

Start with a big car

I have mixed feelings on this. While MT on big cars are more forgiving, than those on small cars. Case in point, I've stalled tons of times on my i10, I probably stalled the S-Cross 1-2 times at most, even though I was totally out of touch driving an MT when I brought it.

Once you get used to the GC, there is no way you'll buy a small car. So this technically works only for those with a budget.
---
All said and done, getting used to driving is one thing. Developing the temperament to drive in India is another.
---

Originally Posted by docted

What we should have is Class specific Licence

Though not as a class specific license. Italian license allows you to drive vehicles with 55 kw power for the first year. However Italians interpret this as a way to sell Fiat cars

[utkarshshukla92]

Originally Posted by 2000rpm

I would suggest you look for used Petrol POLOs with low mileage. The build quality (European) and ownership Pride of a Polo (killer looks) is far superior to that of a Hyundai.

I like Polo but I have heard of way too many gearbox issues with it on this forum, also I don't think it would be easy to maintain.

Originally Posted by GreasyCarb55

[*]Gen 1 1.3 Petrol Swift[*]Gen 1 Facelift Ford Figo Diesel (2012-2015)[*]Gen 1 Ford Fiesta/Fiesta Classic 1.6

I did consider Gen 1 Swift but ZXI variants were hard to find.

Originally Posted by ObsessedByFIAT

The first few basic questions that you need to answer are:

1. What is the max budget?
2. How urgent is the need for a car?
3. Are you ok with a car from another state?
4. Are you ok with purchasing a lesser sold car?

My Budget is around 3.5 Lakhs and I have 30-40 days in hand to get the car but I wanted to put at least 1000kms on the car before I actually use it for commuting. I would avoid a car from other state because of NGT ruling in Delhi NCR and would prefer popular models because 2 years down the line I will sell it and pick something brand new.

[2000rpm]

Originally Posted by utkarshshukla92

I like Polo but I have heard of way too many gearbox issues with it on this forum, also I don't think it would be easy to maintain.

Thats for the Automatic, not the manual.

[GreasyCarb55]

Originally Posted by utkarshshukla92

I like Polo but I have heard of way too many gearbox issues with it on this forum, also I don't think it would be easy to maintain.

As another BHPian 2000rpm already mentioned the only VW/Skoda cars with gearbox problems are the Dual Clutch DSG models, the Manual and Torque-converter automatic gearboxes are reliable in VW's.

[Rocketscience]

Even if you do get it, 2.5 Lakhs feels too high for this, I casually enquired (online) the price for my Honda City which is from the same year (2014), is a Diesel, mid variant (SV) and has done just around 65k KMs, Due to NGT, I'am forced to get rid of it soon, I was hearing prices in the range of just 3.5 Lakhs for it.

I'am not selling the car yet and looking for other options but this is what the market was offering.
And yes this does not seem like a good deal to me personally at this KMs or at this price.

[AB10]

This is such a great thread ! My dad followed the same rule that GTO mentioned while teaching me both two wheelers and four wheelers. In case of two wheelers, it was our trusted Kinetic Honda and in case of four wheelers, it was our i10. Till last year, my dad did not even allow me to take out the City alone even though I had tons of driving experience in 5-6 years. Driving in City was always for less than half our journey with him shotgun barking orders and "road sense" into me. But now the turntables have turned since now on long highway drives he cannot even come near the drivers seat.



The experience and learnings from a beat up car definitely help a lot.

[AGupta]

It's a good deal in my opinion. The top model have all the bells and whistles. The tyres looks new and interior looks decently maintained.
Do have a longish test drive before signing the dotted line.

[giri1.8]

I started off with a 1.8L sedan(got it for dirt cheap), ended up understanding how good a car with good dynamics can be on the highway, as well as driving any car irrespective of its size within city without hesitation.

Later switched to hatchback due to parking constraints and nature of work, don't regret it even a bit

I would suggest cars like Swift to be a good starting point if budget permits, helps one sharpen their skills during the earlier stages of learning.

[Laidbackakki]

Hi,
Car buying is never an easy process atleast from heart and mind perspective. Now since you have 40 odd days in hand why not do due diligence on looking for cars on used car sights like olx, cars24 etc. Build a good rapport with an FNG mechanic and once you like a car ticking all boxes go and check it out with the mechanic/Car guy so that they can offer their 2 cents on the conditions of the cars.
1.5 km done vehicle for 2.5 is not a good deal imo and as duly pointed out by other expericed bhpians than myself.
In my experience the more you look the more you learn which will always come handy in future