[Lowflyer23]

Originally Posted by m3t4ph0r1c

Excellent thread, thoroughly enjoyed reading!

Every car enthusiast who has driven the ivtec would agree about the capabilities of the rev friendly 1.5 NA engine, you just keep getting incremental power till the redline of 7000rpm which is indeed fun. However, the car is targeted towards a wide range of audience - it can be a sedate commutter or a enthusiast's delight. Most of people who buy this car probably never cross 3k rpm, whereas the real fun starts after 4.5k rpm, and the car just keeps pulling after that.

It may not be the best on highways at speeds post 120/130 but it can sure hold its ground upto that, wider tyres would solve this to some extent. The chassis is very good and man, it sure can take corners at pretty good speeds.
The point being the car is very capable and can be called a enthusiast's car when compared to whats available in our market.

Rev friendly and what? One doesn't buy a car to keep revving it unnecessarily. There should be enough shove at all rev ranges. Why should one have to cross 4.5k RPMs for so called fun (which doesn't exist when car is decently loaded) to quickly close a gap in urban confines? Also the soft suspension setup makes the rear end bounce a fair bit at 100 km/h on those undulations one typically encounters on state highways.

I am sorry but it's easy to ignore the major shortcomings of a car to somehow justify it as an enthusiast's car, doing this people have filled this thread and previous ones with cars they own. Everything ranging from Indicas to Scorpios has been termed as enthusiast cars in this forum by some members, that's how dedicated threads end up getting diluted and then have to be closed .

[m3t4ph0r1c]

Originally Posted by Lowflyer23

Rev friendly and what? One doesn't buy a car to keep revving it unnecessarily. There should be enough shove at all rev ranges. Why should one have to cross 4.5k RPMs for so called fun (which doesn't exist when car is decently loaded) to quickly close a gap in urban confines? Also the soft suspension setup makes the rear end bounce a fair bit at 100 km/h on those undulations one typically encounters on state highways.

Calm down dude!
There are a considerable amount of people who drive enthusiastically and love to rev the engines, we are still talking about enthusiasts arent we?

One doesn't buy a car to keep revving it unnecessarily. There should be enough shove at all rev ranges. Why should one have to cross 4.5k RPMs for so called fun

I dont get it, are we still talking about cars for enthusiasts? Or cars for sedate driving? Why wouldn't a enthusiast redline a vtec engine?

By your comment i do not think you seem to have much idea/experience about the powerband of vtec engines. The car can handle upto 140kmph speeds pretty well, dont need to put a cap at 100. It acceletates 0-100kmph in under 10 seconds, is that too slow for you in under the 20 lakh bracket and it has good steering feedback and its pretty good at corenring - isnt that what enthusiasts look for? And you seem to have dilusion, that it lacks power when fully loaded - it really does not. Now i dont remember anyone driving enthusiastically when the car is carrying 5 people.

[shankar.balan]

Enthusiast cars do not necessarily need to be about speed, power and performance. There is a very real pleasure in driving a slow car slightly fast. Or just cruising along a country road with the windows open or top down or whatever, so Im going to put a very strong honourable mention for all the naturally aspirated brothers amongst us. There is an informal Old Maruti Club here in Bangalore whose members have kindly let me join them along with my Gypsy.
The old 800’s, Zens, Esteems and Gypsys and Balenos and all are definitely enthusiast worthy. Lovely engines. Cars never give trouble. Easy to maintain, easy to fix and quite as relevant in todays world as they were in the 1980’s,1990’s and 2000’s and 2010’s.

[Lowflyer23]

Originally Posted by m3t4ph0r1c

By your comment i do not think you seem to have much idea/experience about the powerband of vtec engines. The car can handle upto 140kmph speeds pretty well, dont need to put a cap at 100. It acceletates 0-100kmph in under 10 seconds, is that too slow for you in under the 20 lakh bracket and it has good steering feedback and its pretty good at corenring - isnt that what enthusiasts look for? And you seem to have dilusion, that it lacks power when fully loaded - it really does not. Now i dont remember anyone driving enthusiastically when the car is carrying 5 people.

You have so conveniently bypassed the issue of the soft suspension setup which wallows at speeds on undulations. I don't think you'll be further willing to accept the drawbacks of the vehicle .

[redrobin520]

Citroen C3 Turbo deserves the top spot in fun to ride cars which is also practical, economical and cheap.

[FAIAAA]

Hello everyone

Bumping up this thread as it's been inactive for a while

I have been constantly referring to this thread and realize that the options drastically reduce if you are looking for
- a reliable torque convertor automatic ( most cars on the list are manual or DSG if automatic)
- below 30 lacs ( as GTO has mentioned several times, < 30 lac cars take care of most needs and some wants and most of us will find ourselves here. )
- predominantly on road usage ( which removes the pure 4x4s)

In fact, a simple search on Carwale for cars on sale today with TC gearbox and < 25 lacs shows 21 cars, of which
- 7 - Brezza, Grand Vitara, Hyryder, Ciaz, Astor , Ertiga, XL6 have unexciting powertrains
- 7 - Creta/ Alcazar, Seltos/ Carens, Harrier/ Safari Scorpio N are not exactly fun to drive . Diesel on Creta and Seltos seems just about adequate
That leave 7
4 - VW/Skoda sedans and cross overs - even if one looks beyond reliability/ ASS, one just can't ignore the AC issues in summer ( looks like the software update hasn't improved things much)
1 - Thar - good lifestyle choice but not for everyone
2 - Sonet and XUV700 - good all rounders in their own right but are they really enthusiasts' choice?

Welcome thoughts on the above and any other options I may have missed?

[Turbolove]

Originally Posted by FAIAAA

2 - Sonet and XUV700 - good all rounders in their own right but are they really enthusiasts' choice?

Depends on whats your definition of enthusiastic driving. The Sonet D AT is quite fun under 100 kmph, have a look at the autocar and evo india reviews. When you look at the Sonet and XUV700 from the perspective of SUVs, they do come across as fun to drive in their respective segments.

[Cresterk]

Originally Posted by FAIAAA

Hello everyone

- 7 - Creta/ Alcazar, Seltos/ Carens, Harrier/ Safari Scorpio N are not exactly fun to drive . Diesel on Creta and Seltos seems just about adequate
That leave 7
4 - VW/Skoda sedans and cross overs - even if one looks beyond reliability/ ASS, one just can't ignore the AC issues in summer ( looks like the software update hasn't improved things much)
1 - Thar - good lifestyle choice but not for everyone
2 - Sonet and XUV700 - good all rounders in their own right but are they really enthusiasts' choice?

Welcome thoughts on the above and any other options I may have missed?

Rather odd that you thought the Seltos and ScorpioN aren't fun to drive but the Thar is. They are both faster and handle much better. The ScorpioN especially was quite a bit of fun to drive. Even though the bodyroll might spook some people used to hatchbacks/sedans, it actually kept its line quite well even during high speed maneuvers and braking, with me never feeling like I was going to lose control. I only rejected the car due to lack of space and comfort.

[FAIAAA]

Originally Posted by Cresterk

Rather odd that you thought the Seltos and ScorpioN aren't fun to drive but the Thar is. They are both faster and handle much better. The ScorpioN especially was quite a bit of fun to drive. Even though the bodyroll might spook some people used to hatchbacks/sedans, it actually kept its line quite well even during high speed maneuvers and braking, with me never feeling like I was going to lose control. I only rejected the car due to lack of space and comfort.

Hi. Sorry if I didn't come across clearly . I am actually saying the opposite, in line with your thoughts on Thar - I dont consider any on that list an enthusiast's choice. #1 for Thar isn't a choice but just serial number of looking at the residual cars for my commentary

By the way, that was a while back. And now we have the Verna Turbo DCT which ticks all the boxes well. And that's the one I eventually picked