[GTO]

They say, change is the only constant! And that's certainly the case with our attitude, approach & preferences toward cars. Many BHPians have been around on this forum since 2004; look up some of our posts from back then and you'll see how they are in stark contrast to what we post today.

Of course, some things will never change. The engine + looks + driving experience are of paramount importance to me, and shall always remain so. But in several other areas, here's how I find my automotive preferences changing.

• From being a full-on MT guy (I bought one of the last MT Mercedes to be sold in India), I have now become a full-on AT guy. Huge fan of fast & snappy automatics now. I can tell you that 9 / 10 of my future purchases will be ATs only, with MTs reserved purely for fast + small cars, sporty cars or offroaders. Related thread (The 2017 Poll: Manual vs Automatic Gearbox).



• Turbo-petrols! In the 2000s, I owned 3 high-revving Hondas and they made me a 7,000-rpm naturally-aspirated engine lover. The early turbo-petrols weren't really that impressive. In the recent past though, my preference has drastically switched over to the forced-induction breed. Whether its small beautiful 1.0 turbo-petrols like in the Grand i10s & Rapids, or bigger sized turbo-petrols seen in the luxury cars, I love them all. With very few exceptions (e.g. City 1.5L or Ford's Dragon series), I find NA petrols to be terribly boring now. Have come to love the punch & mid-range muscle of turbo-petrols. Related thread (Naturally-aspirated vs turbo-charged petrol engine! What's your pick?).



• Ride comfort has now become a top priority. At one time, my garage included a stiff-riding C220, a stiff-riding Jeep, a City Vtec with 16" rims, followed by a Civic on 17" rims and performance-oriented tyres....I cared two hoots about ride quality then. No longer. Today, ride comfort is a top requirement for my car and I wouldn't be able to live with a stiff-riding vehicle (no Fortuner for me, ever). The BMW F10's suspension is more my kind of tune than the hard E60 530d.



• I'm actually looking forward to EVs! At one time, electric cars were merely "compliance" cars made by manufacturers to please the government & work on their image. As a result, they were slow & boring - I hated them. Not anymore. Drive any of the dual-motor Teslas and you'll be blown away. In fact, they will also blow away Ferraris & 911s in 0 - 100 drag races. I've now driven about 10 moderns EVs & have come to appreciate their torque, fast performance (especially the Teslas which are the BMWs of the EV world), butter-smooth drive & zero emissions. Truth be told, when I'm idling away my 6-cylinder diesel in traffic, I do feel slightly guilty about contributing to the poor AQI levels of Bombay. Wouldn't say I will replace all my cars with EVs though - no way! I still love my 7,000 rpm petrols & big turbo-diesels, but I will definitely own a fast powerful EV in this decade. My ideal garage will have a turbo-petrol, turbo-diesel & an EV in it. Related thread (Electric Cars...through the eyes of a diehard petrol-head).



• Thanks to Team-BHP & the GNCAP, I have become a lot more safety conscious. I won’t buy an unsafe car = we recently dropped the Seltos because of it barely managing a 3-star rating, and bought a Superb TSI instead. Only exception = for a purely local area runabout car (like my old Jeep), I'll buy an unrated car. Related thread (GNCAP: So, would you use an unrated / poorly rated car as a city driver only?).



• As you can tell from my current cars, I have become more accepting of a bit of unreliability / tantrums, in exchange for purer driving pleasure & superior dynamics. At one time, 3 of the 4 cars in my house were Japanese. Today, just 1 of the 4 cars in my garage is Japanese. In the 90s & 2000s, it was reliability above all else for me. Now, I'm okay with handling 4 days of trouble in a year if the rest of the 361 days bring me superior driving pleasure and more s.



• Further to the previous point, I doubt I'll be getting a Japanese car anytime soon. Fact is, Japan just hasn't kept up with the Europeans, or even the Koreans (Hyundai's technology is far superior to Honda's today). Japanese cars dominated my personal line-up at one time, from Esteems to Lancers & Citys to Civics. We bought only Jap cars. But Maruti + Honda + Toyota simply aren't offering properly premium, cutting-edge tech products in India today. No fast ATs, no turbo-petrols, no sharp & solid handlers (few exceptions are there, of course)...Japanese car makers have greatly disappointed me. In order of preference, I'm now more likely to buy a European > Korean > American car than a Japanese one.



• Take a look at my car ownership history & you'll see that I have always been an out & out sedan fellow. But I have to sheepishly admit that crossovers are finding the way to my heart. After testing some really sweet ones (the Korean twins, Kodiaq, XUV300, EcoSport etc.), I have come to appreciate their style, taller seating, superior view of the road ahead, higher GC & practicality. Heck, I've even come to love proper SUVs like the Endeavour. This, from a guy who vehemently defended sedans over SUVs in this thread (Should you buy an SUV? The definitive Sedan vs SUV debate). Will strongly consider a Crossover / SUV as a future car to accompany the sedans of my house (accompany, not replace).



• If you'd asked me about electric power steerings till 3 years back, I'd have said "meh!!"....then shouted "hydraulic power steerings rock, baby!". Have to say that manufacturers have worked hard on their EPS tuning, and it shows! Today, many EPS are direct + fun to use. I no longer mind well-tuned electric power steerings like the one seen in the 10th-gen Civic which was so much fun! Some BMWs, Fords & Jaguars have good EPS units & even Hyundai-Kia are better than before. I also enjoyed driving the Rapid TSI, Endeavour (superb EPS for an SUV!) & C5 Aircross. That said, the electric steerings in Marutis & all electric cars (universally) suck!



• I used to love modifying & heavily accessorizing my cars till a decade ago. Got an ISZ petrol engine swap in my Jeep, came *this* close to turbo'ing my Civic, got an insane sound system etc. No more, man. With time (and due to lack of disposable time), I have come to realise two things. 1 = Factory fit is factory fit. 2 = Factory horses are factory horses. Give me a stock fast car that's a strong performer from the factory itself (e.g. Octavia vRS, S-Cross 1.6, Abarth Punto, M340i), but no heavy modifications in the after-market for me. Heck, I now refuse to even overhaul the ICE or change the body colour in the after-market. These days, I just add simpler stuff (remaps, rims, etc.) to cars that are fast + well-equipped from the factory. I myself find it hard to believe that I haven't visited an accessory store in 10 years!



What about you? How have your automotive preferences changed in the last 5 / 10 / 15 years?

[Aditya]

Thread moved out from the Assembly Line. Thanks for sharing!

[VKumar]

I have become a conservative kid, seriously conservative.

• No more XXL size, keep it small and powerful for me. If chauffeur driven, then keep is big and comfortable.
• Driving comfort has taken the place of outright performance. Car still needs to be powerful and the engine needs to be tractable, power adds a lot to driving comfort, but the right foot is no more as heavy.
• Tyres, let me accept, it's hardly 4-5 years since I have started focusing on getting a nice set of tyres, and it was seriously a revelation for me.
• Diesels were never my love, they have a good low end, but they are dead to the throttle response until turbo comes alive - so, proper big bore petrols have always been my preference
• Turbo petrol cars all the way, experiencing them since around 10 years, and I like everything about them (Other than their heavy foot FE). Even if its a turbo petrol, displacement still matters to me. I shift short, normally I never revv the car past 1500 rpm until I am in hurry or on expressway - so, displacement matters a lot to me
• Seat design and comfort, and ride quality comes before the features list now
• Dynamics have taken the front seat for me now. Keep your big awesome American SUV, just give me a nimble European. As I always say "I would prefer to be behind the wheel a rickety Esteem than a well built Endeavour if I have to enter a corner too fast"
• Moved big way from East to West, although the rule of 'One-Toyota' will always be followed. But Europeans and Americans have gained a lot more acceptance in recent years
• Safety ratings do matter a lot more now, but equally I weigh the dynamics, braking etc. Avoidance is the key here.

What has remained the same?

• Design preference - let it be understated, let it look like a sheep, but go like Cheetah
• Engine Preference - Engine, Gearbox and Suspension make or break the car for me. It has to be a nice responsive engine, sleek gearbox with a nice feeling clutch, and decent suspension. Give me a bare bones car with AC, front power windows and electrically adjustable mirrors, that's enough for me; but these three can't be compromised at all. "There is no replacement of displacement"
• No Extra Accessories - If a car came with steel rims, it had been the same. Other than a few stickers, absolutely nothing is done. No alloys, no sun films, no fancy stuff, even ICE also just the basic looking one with good speakers. Still prefer function over form.

My list of accessories is clear, and it has been same way since years:

• Noodle Mats
• Mud flaps
• Door visors
• Door beadings
• Pillows

That's where the list ends

[vipul_singh]

As I have grown older, all I care about is reliability, safety and comfort. Driving pleasure is not a priority, although I can fully appreciate a good steering and suspension setup. I could not care less about power and acceleration, and my speedo needle hardly ever crosses 120 KPH, even on roads like the Agra-Lucknow Expressway.

Another thing that has changed is that I hardly even look at fuel economy figures anymore, except perhaps to check if the car is functioning well.

To that end, my future vehicle searches are likely to begin and end with Japanese manufacturers. NA petrol engines remain my top preference. If I can even save one A.S.S. visit in 5 years on account of buying a more reliable car, it is well worth it. Chasing after car issues is passé for me.

The Japanese, however, don't seem to be nearly as interested in our market as I am in them!

If there is one thing that has not changed, it is my belief that MTs are the most satisfying transmission, but one has to put in the effort to get that satisfaction.

From future trend perspective, I am looking forward to PHEVs rather than BEVs based on dirty and non-recyclable Li-Ion tech.

[BlackPearl]

My preferences have not changed much in the last 10 years or so. In the early 2000 I was an out and out sedan guy and loved low slung fast ones. I used to remember 0 to 100 timings of each car by heart. But a few trips to the Himalayas and then meeting Uday Bhan Singh Sir changed my preferences forever. I became a fan of high ground clearance, slow moving, go anywhere four wheel drive vehicles like these -







I should clarify that I love fast moving, go anywhere luxury SUVs as well. There are a lot of things in favour of them.



But in order of preference, I would keep a stick shift, body on frame, old school utility vehicle first over a modern four wheel drive.

[BANDHAV]

At one point of time I was in favor of custom, stock was boring, now I prefer things to be as OEM as possible, must be an age thing but this is how it is.

[CEF_Beasts]

2005 was the time when we switched to a MPV (Toyota Innova) from a Sedan (Ford Ikon), and we have never looked back at sedans again till now. But ask me today and definitely I’ll consider a good sedan over a similarly priced SUV (eg: say Octavia over the Karoq), considering it’s available at the price point we have decided.

We had owned only petrol cars till 2014, yes our Innova was a petrol! Ran beautifully for 8 years, with no issues and then finally got a diesel car.

Have not driven many low displacement Diesel engines, major time spent with a diesel has been a 3L engine so absolutely no idea of what turbo-lag is in diesel cars, but with petrol have driven lots right from a 1L to everything in between till 2L petrol engines.

Preferences have now changed with respect to engine responsiveness, we will only buy cars which give good feedback the instant we want it. Two of our cars are NA petrols and trust me both feel absolutely dead in the mid-range. So next car will definitely be a turbo-petrol.

Have become a huge automatic gearbox fan since we got one in 2017, especially for cities which have lots of traffic. But preference will always be in the following order TC > DCT > CVT > AMT.

Since the GNCAP has been releasing ratings for different cars, have become very particular about a safe car. We moved away from Maruti Suzuki once and for all in 2017.

Something’s that won’t change for us.
-Reliability is top-priority for us.

-Regarding cars we will always keep one Toyota in our family irrespective of how few features it has or how conservative is it’s performance. But at the same time we have been trying other brands for our other two cars. Getting a good idea what other companies are like.

-We have never bought a car for outright performance/fuel economy, we always give first priority to what are our requirements with the car.

- Never have we ever fixed after-market accessories in our cars.

- Service irrespective of the age of the car is always done at the right time and always at authorised dealership service centres.

- No blingy features for us, only ones which will be utilised along the car’s lifetime are the ones we usually prefer. So for us ventilated seats >> sunroof always.

- No matter how potent or safe our smaller car is, for long distances a larger car is always preferred by us.

[iamahunter]

Excellent Thread!

Over the years, people change, so does their outlook towards life.

What also changes is the market situation and new technologies.

Also factors such as
- Family
- Work,
- Geographical location and
- Relatives and the people that one deals with
make a lot of difference in the way he/she thinks.

All these things show in the cars/bike/vehicles/mode of transport, whatever one wants to call it.


In my early 20s I was a big fan of naturally aspirated petrol cars.

Reasons -
Smoothness and silent petrol engines made me naturally love them.
Diesel cars were very sluggish and required more maintenance.
Absence of petrol turbo cars in the market.

Car number 1.
- A pre-loved - pre-loved Hyundai Santro.

Influencing factor
Status - Single
Requirement - Fun and quick car for night drives with friends and family.
- Daily errands.

Engine Choice
- Strictly Petrol
- Reason - Smooth and low maintainance

Priorities
- Small quick car.
- Low on maintainance.

Audio
- Just loud.
- Chinese HUD.
- Home AIWA speakers in the boot.

Customization
- Err, does seatcover qualify?

So the priority this time was petrol engine, low maintainance, and loud audio. Nothing about safety, airbags or ABS, even the AC was optional choice.

Used it for a good 3 years and then it was time to move to a better car.


The next choice remained a hatch.
But this time it was a diesel. Swift DDIS was the obvious choice.

Influencing factor
Status - Taken
Requirement - Fun, longer road trips and comfortable space for 4.

Engine Choice
- Switched to Diesel from Petrol.
- Reason - Good power and average, best of both worlds.

Priorities
- Looks
- Handling
- Speed and Mileage

Audio
- Basic audio from Pioneer rather than any chinese system.

Customization
- Leather seats
- Leather wrapped stearing.
- Wider section tires.
- Powerful headlights.

So at this time the priority had changed to better handling and higher mileage as long drives had increased.
Slightly higher maintainance was acceptable and need was for a little better audio, still not an Audiophobic.

Used this for a good long 8 years and 1,10,000 kms.

Next comes in the Ford Ecosport.

Influencing factors
Status - Married with a 3 yr old
Requirement - Office, road trips and sometimes space for all 5.5 members of the family.

Engine choice still remains Diesel.
Priorities
- Safety
- Handling
- Space for 3 to 5 members.
- Luggage space for 3 (a 3 year old's luggage is a lot more than a 30 year old person)
- Easier entry and exit for parents.

Audio Choice
- Well I did check the audio "quality" this time, and was satisfied with Ecosport's stock audio.

Customization till now
- Leather seats.
- Leather wrapped stearing.

So while making a choice for the current car, the priority had completly changed. This is a gap of exactly 12 years from first to 3rd car.
Safety has taken the front row while speed and pickup pushed back to the third.
Audio quality had come up and is still going up with me in the process of installing the damping sheets.

Let's see where this goes now ahead.

[iliketurtles]

I think I've stayed true to who I was, and somewhat doubled down on things. Time was when I valued reliable, efficient all-rounders, in a sedan form factor (like the City, or the Jetta), and I still like them a lot. I do get the appeal of a true SUV or even a crossover, but cannot get myself to forego the pleasure a sedan provides with its balanced ride and handling. It saddens me somewhat to see a sea of SUVs sweep away all in its wake, and that's perhaps why I'm clinging onto my convictions with bleeding fingernails, raging against the dying of the light.

One significant area where I have changed though...

Originally Posted by GTO

I used to love modifying & heavily accessorizing my cars till a decade ago...I myself find it hard to believe that I haven't visited an accessory store in 10 years!

...is this!

My folks were always the traditional sort, and always looked forward to buying a new car every few years, so long as it was a white, pre-owned Premier Padmini. They valued reliability and fuss-free motoring above all, and the only modification they made to our cars was to add an aftermarket stereo (Sanyo, detachable, carried around in its own case with armed bodyguards).

So when I was looking to buy my first car a little more than 10 years back, I too was cut from the same cloth. Fill it, shut it, forget it. With a modicum of fun. So the Honda City it was for me.

Somewhere around 2016, I woke up to the possibility of shaping a car in my own image, and so remapped the Jetta. It opened my mind to entirely new avenues, and now I've set off down that slippery slope with lowering springs, aftermarket shocks, and a few bits and bobs elsewhere. I don't think that's a bug that will let go of me now, and it's perhaps the most significant shift I've made from a philosophical perspective w.r.t. my cars. And I wouldn't have it any other way.

Originally Posted by GTO

Further to the previous point, I doubt I'll be getting a Japanese car anytime soon....Maruti + Honda + Toyota simply aren't offering properly premium, cutting-edge tech products in India today...Japanese car makers have greatly disappointed me.

It pains me to see how true this is. When I look to the West, I still see the Japanese churning out a few fun cars that show off their incredible chops (the GR Yaris, the latest Accord, the Supra, and others). And none of those cars make it here. And rightly so: we're too obsessed with mileage and other such sensible things to buy them. But now, as the market matures and we see cars like the M340i and VRS succeed at their respective price points, I hope Honda and Toyota bring in a few limited run toys to regale car lovers here. I'm sure the right package will find takers. A man can dream.

[PrideRed]

Some of my preferences have changed mainly because changing needs or external factors. For example, ever increasing traffic has ensured me to prefer an Automatic. Is it as fun as Manual? Hell no. May a PDK is(Which I haven't driven), but I don't find DSG's/ZF's as fun as a sure slotting stick shift. Yes they are convenient and offers good balance.
Thanks to poor roads, I gave up on sedans long back and I may buy one only for city needs. Even on a perfect highway in India, there will be this odd speed breaker that can wreck a car.

However somethings haven't changed. I can forego some fancy features/ a bit of fun to drive quotient but safety, reliability, space on offer(which is a parameter of comfort), accessibility to service center, resale are extremely important. My experience with Germans/French have not been good and when buying I will always be suspicious about Europeans.

[akash_v12]

Very well-written thread, GTO!

I'll also add in experiences, not from me, but instead, my dad.

1. Manual to Automatics - My father wasn't ever convinced on automatics (read: low mileage) until he drove the Ciaz manual & Ciaz Automatic back-to-back for a while and then realized that they were almost identical. It was the only reason we now have a DSG in the garage.

2. Comfort & Ride Quality - He also moved from something which was less comfortable to a much more comfortable car. He also does not like driving MPVs/SUVs with poor ride quality and always like sedans better.

3. EVs - My dad has clearly said that he's not getting any car until there's a proper EV network and availability of more choices.

4. He's willing to take the risk - You don't know buy a VW until you're willing to take risks. Enough Said. Touchwood, there's no problem till now.

5. Heart over Head - I think when he did buy the 1st car, he bought with a fixed budget and due to the lack of choice. However, when buying the Vento, he chose his heart and not what would have fitted in his budget.

[shashank.nk]

Excellent thread! So what has changed for me:

Automatics over Manuals-
Its been 3 years since we've had a Automatic and safe to say won't be going back to manuals. Not just me, my sister and dad who were neutral are now converts and won't pick a manual over a automatic. Its just so much more convenient as our cities and highways get increasingly choked.

Pre-owned cars
In 2011 let alone buying, I'd not waste a second in outright rejecting pre-owned cars. Now majority of my garage has pre-owned cars. It takes some time, patience and luck, but if you get the right car you save a ton of money for a nearly new car!

Crossovers over Sedans
Crossovers are far better in handling our roads especially with 4 adults in the car. Sedans are great if you're 2 adutls plus kids, not for 4 adults. With a crossover I won't have to be worried about the road conditions and that takes a lot of stress away from driving!

Turbo petrol over a Turbo Diesel
I still love diesels for the practicality they offer. FE doesn't drop as much as it would in a petrol if driven aggressively and the torque on offer is simply great but a turbo petrol offers far better performance, refinement and is much more enjoyable when revved to higher RPMs. I'd love to own a turbo petrol or a hybrid with turbo petrol, before buying a EV.

Concept of a beater car
I had no idea of a 'beater car' before reading a thread about it here. With a two car garage the more expensive one now stays in better shape than before as the beater is the one most of the city duties.


What hasn't changed

I still love a well-built safe car for the highways with 5 star safety, simply no compromises there. For strictly city driven car atleast 3-4 stars as there reliability and service network take precedence over absolute safety.

My cars need to be good handlers with excellent steering feedback

No remaps then and no remaps now either. If the car is equipped with a 'ok' sounding ICE no upgrades.

Not a fan of large SUVs even now.

[rainmaster]

Time and age changes the preference on what traits we need from our ride . Most of my preference still remains the same but ready to accept some compromise.

Steering Feel : Personally, I feel joy of driving comes from steering feel, how car responds to your inputs and what feedback you get from it. My current rides have hydraulic power steering with fantastic feel and feedback. Due to tyre upsize and age, after long trips I definitely feel pain in my hands. I’m ok to accept a car with well-tuned Electronic Power steering. My next ride will be a well tuned ESP car/crossover.

Vehicle Type : Sedan /Crossover/SUV – I love sedans period. So far I have only purchased sedan and one hatchback for city/beater needs. Never aspired to own SUV or Crossover. Now, willing to accept a good to drive crossovers like Ecopsort or may be Kushaq due to few obvious advantages it offer. Aging parents, ability to reach places with difficult terrain or roads without worrying about scrapping underbelly, easy entry/exit are some factors forcing me to think about upgrading to crossover. Still not interested in full blown SUV/MPV.

Ride & Handling : Still continue to prefer car with good balance between ride & handling, cannot compromise on handling for good ride quality. Car like Ford Freestlye, Ecosport, Kushaq/Taiguan (based on current Skoda or Volkswagen traits) will be an acceptable compromise between ride and handling.

NVH : Due to maniac honking practices in India and frequent long trips, looking forward to have car with excellent NVH levels. Earlier, I haven’t given much importance to NVH. Now I prefer quiet long drives.

Safety : Definitely looking forward to buy safer cars, no more tin cans.

Things remained the same:

Gearbox : Automatic/Manual - Have owned cars with Manual, TC and CVT gearbox. No preference in gear box selection, it completely depends on affordability and availability. If I’m in US, mostly it’s going to be TC/CVT. In India most likely to continue with manual gearbox.

Manufacturers Patronage : Have owned cars from Maruti, Hyundai, Ford, Honda and Acura. No specific brand preference or sticking to only one particular brand. One more interesting factor on brand perception still continues is the aversion of Toyota cars . I have driven friends and colleagues Toyota’s like Camry, Corolla and Rav4 numerous times, never liked it. Steering offers absolutely no feel and feedback. There is no soul in US Toyota cars (I might be roasted for this statement). Not sure on how Toyota tunes their steering in India, US Toyota cars are big no no for me.

Reliability : I guess reliability is a modern day myth created by Japanese automakers to sell their cars more. It’s not that I wish to be get stranded on roads but willing to take risk on reliability if car is safe and fun to drive.

[rajivr1612]

As a first time car-buyer in 2012, 8 years into the career, 3 years married, our preferences were
-space
-low maintenance
-high fuel efficiency
-within budget (no loan)

With these requirements, we bought the Etios Liva Diesel which has served us well till now with absolutely no issues.

Now I am planning to buy a new/used car and my requirements have changed.

-Petrol (refined engine, low cabin noise), NVH is very poor in the Liva which tires everyone after a long trip.
-better seating comfort.
-Automatic (non-AMT).
-few frills - power mirrors, cruise control, decent audio system, rear wiper, hill hold etc.
-decent safety rating and features.
-No requirement of huge LED displays, sun-roof and other blings.
-under 10lac budget.

[Kosfactor]

Life changed a long time ago as I moved from a part time to full time job, I could afford to travel a lot farther in my own vehicle rather than my father`s vehicle. I really had no love for tall vehicles except for Jeeps.

As I traveled far and wide, the choices have changed - I came across UVs by some sort of witchcraft by old Jeeps and my better half, now I`m not climbing down from them. I`ll take a Bolero instead of a BMW, it just fits where I am going.

As I'm getting older, I`m more attracted by older and older... vehicles - old Jeeps, old Padmini`s etc, perhaps I'm just not ready yet to sit in a massage chair and be driven around, I`m driving - all three pedals please and carrying my toolbox for good measure.