[Omkar]

As car enthusiasts, we always want what’s best for the automotive industry. More products mean that the industry thrives. When the industry thrives, we have better products in the market which pushes the manufacturers to step up their game. At the end of the day, it’s a good situation for a customer. Over the years, we have seen that the Indian car market can be volatile and difficult to crack at times. While the market has produced some great heroes, there have been many that failed miserably. The failure can be attributed to various reasons like bad timing, wrong positioning, etc. But I’m not talking about the cars that were good products that failed to crack the code to success. I’m talking about the cars that we’re glad aren’t around. It may be a bad design, horrible engine, terrible space or equipment, you sometimes just don’t want to see a car on the roads. I’m jotting down some cars I’m glad aren’t around anymore. As always, these are just my opinions, not to take a stab at the owners of these cars. Do list out the cars that you were happy to see get discontinued.

Datsun Go / Go+

It was supposed to be a budget offering, but the cost-cutting was too obvious. Not to forget, that it scored a zero-star safety rating. The Go’s body shell was deemed to be so unstable that it would be pointless to include airbags in the car! They also came out with a facelift version with some additional features, but the car was just a big failure. The 7-seater version was even worse with an unusable 3rd row of seats.

Toyota Yaris

There was a lot of buzz around the Yaris when it was unveiled at the Auto Expo. People liked it, but eventually when the price was revealed, it was a big disappointment. The car wasn’t as appealing as its competitors and at the time, the C2 sedan segment was doing good for itself. The Yaris just couldn’t find any customers and due to the high pricing, unexciting engine + gearbox and missing features. While I wanted the sedan segment to do better, I was glad that the Yaris was eventually discontinued.

Chevrolet Enjoy

Back in the day when Chevrolet was launching Chinese products in India, the Enjoy was available in 7 and 8-seater configurations. Overall, it didn’t feel like a well-rounded product and just a half-hearted effort. The only good thing about it was the Fiat-sourced 1.3-litre diesel engine. Apart from that, it had an uninspiring design inside and outside, poor refinement and a lot of missing features. It was supposed to take on the Ertiga, but didn’t even come close.

Renault Captur

After the initial advertising fiasco from Renault at the Captur launch (related thread), it never really took off. Apart from the beautiful 1.5-litre diesel engine, there was not much on offer with the Captur. It was essentially a dressed-up Duster which not many people found appealing. It didn't have an automatic and was also overpriced. There were a bunch of ergonomic flaws and unimpressive interiors, and overall, it didn’t offer much over the Duster.

Datsun Redi-Go

While the Renault Kwid enjoyed success in the Indian market, the Redi-Go never really took off. Mostly because people just went ahead and bought the Kwid which was slightly better equipped and better looking. The positioning of Datsun as a budget brand didn’t help matters and eventually, the Redi-Go was discontinued. It's worth noting that it scored only 1 star in the GNCAP crash tests.

Mahindra NuvoSport

Essentially the Quanto, which was a shortened version of the Xylo, I always found the NuvoSport as a makeshift product. It didn’t look great, it didn’t drive that well and felt more like an engineering project rather than a finished product. There are certain pros like the car was a RWD compact SUV with 7 seats, but I never felt it was a good car in any sense.

Mahindra KUV 100

One of the first attempts at a hatchback SUV, which was neither here nor there. It was deemed as a 6-seater where one person sat in between the front passengers! It was a very poor handling car and felt borderline unsafe at high speeds. The engine also didn’t have much to offer and overall, the car was a dud IMO.

Tata Sumo Grande

Primarily I never liked the way it looked. Compared to Sumo’s utilitarian and rugged looks, the Grande looked too rounded and even bland. I believe the pricing was also not very aggressive and the car was just too old for the market which is why it couldn't keep up with the sales and eventually led to its failure.

Hyundai Santro

I was quite excited when they announced and launched the 3rd gen Santro. However, when I drove it, the experience was underwhelming. It was great to drive around in the city, but didn’t give confidence while driving at highway speeds. Even under hard braking, it felt nervous. It was pricey and the Grand i10 at that time made more sense than the Santro.

Maruti Omni

This might be controversial as the Omni was not a flop car by any means. It was launched in 1984 and was on sale for almost 35 years before it was discontinued. We had one in the family as well. I once witnessed an Omni accident a long time back and unfortunately, the driver didn’t survive. The car had no crumple zone to speak of and was highly unsafe which is why I’m glad it was finally discontinued.

[Omkar]

Thread moved out from the Assembly Line.

[saket77]

This arguably looked better going than coming.
Literally. From the market.

[saikishor]

I absolutely hated this. What was TaMo even thinking

[fhdowntheline]

One of the weirdest contraptions was the bread box called Nissan Evalia.It defied all aesthetic attributes expected of a family vehicle.
And I know this will be a bit controversial, but Toyota Qualis? What exactly did that car stand for other than a level of reliability that was hitherto unknown in MUV type cars in India ?
One more car that thankfully was done away with was the Indigo XL.

[Roy.S]

Originally Posted by saket77

This arguably looked better going than coming.
Literally. From the market.

Absolutely! What a truly horrifying vehicle this was. And it was absolute blasphemy to call it Zen.
While on the topic of the Zen, remember this travesty?




Zen Classic image taken from Cartoq from their article: Maruti Zen Classic to Grand Vitara: 10 Forgotten Maruti Suzuki Cars & SUVs.

[saket77]

Originally Posted by Roy.S

Absolutely! What a truly horrifying vehicle this was. And it was absolute blasphemy to call it Zen.
While on the topic of the Zen, remember this travesty?


Zen Classic image taken from Cartoq from their article: Maruti Zen Classic to Grand Vitara: 10 Forgotten Maruti Suzuki Cars & SUVs.

True, you beat me to it!
Maruti tried hard to destroy the Zen legacy indeed!

[sharmanova]

My list:
Honda Mobilio
Honda BRV
Hyundai Kona EV
Maruti Zen Estilo
Mahindra Verito cousins
Mahindra Quanto/Nuvosport

[LakeWalker]

Originally Posted by Omkar

Do list out the cars that you were happy to see get discontinued.

Datsun Go / Go+

Attachment 2686180

It was supposed to be a budget offering, but the cost-cutting was too obvious. Not to forget, that it scored a zero-star safety rating. The Go’s body shell was deemed to be so unstable that it would be pointless to include airbags in the car! They also came out with a facelift version with some additional features, but the car was just a big failure. The 7-seater version was even worse with an unusable 3rd row of seats.

I remember this malayali auto journalist said (during the official review video), "I strongly recommend to NOT buy this!" or something like it. I was surprised because it's not like he has not made any sponsored content before. I think his conciousness didn't allow him to tell lies on camera and recommend this vehicle which was basically an insult to an indian car buyer.

[It's Magic]

Originally Posted by Omkar

Do list out the cars that you were happy to see get discontinued.

I don't think I can be happy to see a car getting discontinued. As people say, "Beauty lies in the eyes of the beholder." Additionally, every new car launched will look older or out of sync after few years as car designs or compitition evolve. Also, there might be someone who likes a car that I don't find worthy or good value for money.

[carheadbanger]

Not discontinued yet, but one car I would like to see discontinued is the Mahindra Marazzo due to its body roll and poor passenger comfort. I'm even willing to sneak into the Mahindra factory and turn off the assembly line switch just to see it go out of production.

[narayans80]

Mahindra Verito Vibe - Gaudy monstrosity. Period! No idea how it got to production in that shape and form. Bonus entry: Mahindra Verito EV.

Mahindra e2O - Never understood why Mahindra wanted to release the 3 door version at all. Which was basically Reva wine in a Mahindra bottle. The e2O plus is what should have happened first up.

Honda Mobilio - The mid 2010s was an era of Honda cost cutting disasters and rightfully got kicked in the rear and now languishing with the likes of Renault-Nissan. Brio can get excused for the segment it was selling. But blatant cost cutting at 10L price tag was unpardonable.

Renault Lodgy - Oddball looking. Uninspiring to drive. Met its maker.

Ashok Leyland Stile - No comment

Cars that revived themselves after a facelift:

2011 Toyota Etios at launch. Got a better interiors and better safety on the 2014 facelift.
Honda Amaze too managed to revive itself with some better looking interiors in the facelift.

Not the entire car:

Celerio's 2-cylinder diesel

[G13BB]

Adding to the list: Sonalika Rhino, Premier Rio and the Mahindra KUV100.

Rhino and the Rio are understandable, but the KUV100? What was Mahindra thinking while adding a 6th seat in the place of the gear lever!?

[pedrolourenco]

Originally Posted by Omkar

Do list out the cars that you were happy to see get discontinued.

Toyota Yaris

Chevrolet Enjoy

Renault Captur

Maruti Omni

Nissan Evalia.

Toyota Qualis

Indigo XL.

Hyundai Kona EV

Maruti Zen Estilo

Mahindra Verito EV

Mahindra e2O

Renault Lodgy

Ashok Leyland Stile

I would disagree on the above cars. They were not the greatest looking but again not the ugliest. They all had a purpose and were pretty good for the purpose they were intended.

My List:
Maruti Ritz
Mariti Dzire (1st Gen)
Most of the cars that are mentioned but I've not quoted.

[Aditya_Bhp]

Originally Posted by pedrolourenco

Maruti Ritz

Shocking to find this car here in this list. Maybe pedrolourenco was happy, but not the public.

Ever since Maruti Suzuki discontinued the Ritz, the resale value has just shot up, especially for the DDiS variants. A 12 year Ritz diesel still gets sold for 60% of its ex-showroom price.