[AntPaul]

I would be happy if sedans retain their current ground clearance, but had better approach angles. Of the cars I have driven, the last Fiesta(global model) and Ritz were the worst offenders who used to scrape the bottom of their bumper whenever there was a small ramp on roads. I have not had much issue with ground clearance with any cars I have driven on road.

[rajshenoy]

I already own one high GC sedan - Corolla altis. Infact I found the GC to be same as that of my earlier Ertiga(similar wheelbase too).

I can also recollect the SX4 in our family having such amazing GC to tackle bad roads.

To me, sedan scores over the crossover in terms of handling due to its design. Bodyroll in the back seat is much better due to low seating and this was a priority for me.

A crossover will obviously score better in terms of space utilisation and plush(not always) ride quality

[Puffdamgcdragon]

Voted Yes. I bought a 2010 Sx4, which I'm using most days and it crosses most rough obstacles which faze regular sedans.

The issue of loss in handling due to the higher ground clearance is made out to be much bigger than it actually is. I drive quite fast over winding hilly roads and it handles just fine. The fuel economy, though, is another story.

[veedub89]

A 100% yes!

Give me a high riding sedan/estate and will happily lap it up. Much better than buying an SUV in my opinion.

A slightly raised sedan will still have better dynamics and a lower centre of gravity than a top heavy, boxy SUV. While at the same time without losing out on the usability or the practicality.

Merc tried with E-class All Terrain and Volvo had the S60 Cross Country. But we need to have more of such options.

Having said all this I do realise that quite a lot of people buy SUVs to seem butch and manly so high riding sedans/estates won't have the same ego-massaging capabilities as a SUV. But ignore that and you can have a fantastic all-round package for yourself.

[docprashant]

A unusually high GC sedan is just plain wrong. Spoils the stance and the connected with the road feeling (personally that's very important for me). The ghastly riding on stilt appearance is a strict no-no.

I understand slammed rides may not be ideal for any practical situations, however, if GC is the sole criteria then an SUV/X-over should be the fit.

[kadanaJ]

Definitely yes!

Both of my sedans have decent ground clearance (Honda City dolphin, and Corolla Altis).

It helps on Indian roads. Have actually had an incident where I inadvertently ended up off-road (think kaccha/mitthi road) with the Altis. It was pretty broken and uneven, with quite a bit of slush.

There was a Maruti Brezza and Innova ahead of me on the same path. I'd say the Altis handled that road about as well as the Brezza.

And on the expressway, I expect a high GC sedan will handle better than a high GC compact SUV, as it should have a lower center of gravity due to the lower roof, and overall lower profile.

[humyum]

Absolutely and I think this trend will start slowly when the SUV segment gets saturated.

SX4 Diesel was way ahead of its time, hence it did not sell like hot cakes. It had the space(passenger and boot) looks and in the end a diesel engine too.

Imagine a 1.6 liter Diesel DDIS in a sedan like that with 200-215 mm ground clearance.
You take it to office, it works, family holiday with 5 people and lots of luggage, it works, plan a trip to Leh from Manali side too, it works, want to have a high speed turn fun on Kasara Ghat it works. Okay, maybe it won't turn in as much as a 170-180 mm ground clearance car but maybe adaptive suspension for GC adjustment according to your driving conditions? Its not that expensive a thing for manufacturers to build in a car.

[DieselAddikt]

Originally Posted by humyum

You take it to office, it works, family holiday with 5 people and lots of luggage, it works, plan a trip to Leh from Manali side too, it works, want to have a high speed turn fun on Kasara Ghat it works.

You know what comes to my mind ? The Subaru Outback !! Not a sedan, but it definitely is something worth buying. Compact, high GC, enough space for 5, huge boot and on top of that, the Subaru Symmetrical AWD as well. Whenever I see the S-Cross, I get reminded of the Outback.

Whenever I travel to Bangalore, I used to be in an SUV (pure coincidence). So all these years I was unaware of the stupidity a.k.a humps. Last month I was driving an Octavia (mostly with 4 people on board) and scrapped at least 50% of those "infamous humps" in Bangalore. Now I am all in for high GC sedans. We need them... We need them the most, especially if you happen to live in a place governed by stupid bureaucrats.

As a matter of fact, I came back from Bangalore and straight away looked at all the SX4s on sale in OLX. None worth buying. Too old... Wish we still had a mainstream "car" with high GC and decent handling. Sedan or Station Wagon doesn't matter to me.

[speedmiester]

Voted yes.
I love SUVs, but there is something about a driving a well sorted sedan on excellent roads that cannot be matched by a SUV.
In India, a sedan with a minimum GC of 180mm is good to have to avoid scraping the underbody on poorly planned speed breakers.
Not just for speed breakers, a higher GC is also helpful while driving on narrow roads when one might have to get off the road to let the opposite traffic go or while overtaking a slower moving vehicle ahead of you.

[carthick1000]

Voted NO.

A sedan on higher stilts is not a sedan anymore. All the driving dynamics and comfort aspects are compromised. Then it lies in crossover territory, which personally is out of my area of liking. I would then pick an SUV.

[NarediAni7518]

I have a 10th gen civic, and it’s ground clearance is 171 mm. Yes I agree that the car’s seating is so low that you’ll feel you are sitting in a 3/5 series, but the car does not scrape over speed breakers, with a full capacity, that’s how I like it ! We had an SX4 from 2007-11(or 12), and that was a machine dude. Everything about it was nice back in the day. The issue apart from the GC is that people don’t prefer sedans nowadays as I’ve heard from some of them that driving a car with a protruding boot is a task :( to which I strongly disagree. We need to change the perception of such people. It’s more of a “Badi gaadi” nowadays instead of a “Lambi gaadi”.

[Arjun Bharadwaj]

Sedans are some of the most aesthetically pleasing class of vehicles and it is a little hard to imagine the perfect sedan silhouette getting disturbed by additional ground clearance but having said that, if good proportion can be retained even after adding the extra gc, it would be win win because of the extra boot space that a sedan obviously offers.

Perfect mating of a sedan + suv = the BMW X6. The most sedanish SUV! Such a graceful monster it is

[HooghlyBoy]

Voted Yes !! Our SX4 ZXI has taken us places.
India's pathetic roads in general means your Sedan will scrape its bottom in most roads with patchy build quality, moreover in city and suburbs the speedbreakers which are all too common will make driving a low GC Car not so fun experience.
Our 2010 SX4 Petrol has taken us to rural areas in Bengal where roads are almost non-existent and we had minimal issues with its 180 mm GC.
I think its a matter of function over form in India though sedans look great in their original low slung avatars in silk smooth asphalted roads.

[SN88]

Originally Posted by locusjag

By the way, I've seen such a Honda sedan model in the US, can't remember its name.

It is the Honda Crosstour that you talk about.

[rajshenoy]

Originally Posted by Arjun Bharadwaj

Sedans are some of the most aesthetically pleasing class of vehicles and it is a little hard to imagine the perfect sedan silhouette getting disturbed by additional ground clearance but having said that, if good proportion can be retained even after adding the extra gc, it would be win win because of the extra boot space that a sedan obviously offers.

Perfect mating of a sedan + suv = the BMW X6. The most sedanish SUV! Such a graceful monster it is

You can also add a Tesla X to this list.

If car mods are ok in this thread, then I can think of Jeremy clarkson's Bentley continental GT featured in one of the Grand tour episodes (Massive hunt)