Accent to be the official babu car...so bye bye Amby?

BaCkSeAtDrIVeR · 21st February 2008, 22:28

Guys, I really do not want to start a new thread on this - this IS a "what car" query, and it is for my boss, a babu-politico. Hence this thread. ;( The car is going to cover at least 1200 KM per month, and diesel is a must. DGS&D is not available, and if things go wrong with the pricing fo the car, I am the guy who is going to be hauled up over the coals. And if the cost of running is going to be high, I am the guy who will be hauled over the coals. And the car cannot be too ostentatious, since the funds are going to come from an organisation supposed to benefit people whose daily incomes is less than cost of one litre of petrol. Ok. Now that you people are beginning to hate me, here are the info:-

1. Amby has 2 variants - 1800 and 2000 DSZ. Where are the prices and FE info? (At least, what can I expect in Kerala?). There is no info on pricing and FE of the 2000 DSZ in the official HM website, hence the query here. (DID I miss something?) What variants are available (A/c, P/S etc).

2. My preference is the Indica - I (rather the organisation) can afford the capital costs and fuel costs. But since he wants a Sedan, I am looking at Indigo CS (LS BS III @ 4.47L). What comparable variant at this price range?

3. How are the accent's running costs? (this one is very low on my priority - due to "no ostentation" clause).

With the ideal budget being 4.2 Lakhs, anything above 4.5L OTR is a no-no, but marginal variations can be explained if I can justify it on economy of running costs basis. Power steering is not essential, but a/c is. Should I revise the budget (ie., is it too low?)

Another thing I would like to know is, given the ownership and expected running (1 K + km per month), is it worthwhile to go in for extended warranties, if available?

And I need to spend the money before March 31st!!! (the babu will be pleased if he gets the car tomorrow).

BaCkSeAtDrIVeR · 22nd February 2008, 10:17

Quote:

With the ideal budget being 4.2 Lakhs, anything above 4.5L OTR is a no-no, but marginal variations can be explained if I can justify it on economy of running

The amount should be 5.2 and 5.5.

What I am really looking for is FE figures of the amby diesel the 1800 and 2000 variants.

wolfinstein · 22nd February 2008, 10:22

Well, its just another addition to the Babu Car Choices,Its not the Official Car- Read the report in TOI Carefully !!!

The Official Cars offered are- Maruti Suzuki Esteem , TATA Safari, TATA Indigo , HM Ambassador and now the Hyundai Accent.

But tell me, Why would a car already at the end of its product life cycle be accepted by the Babu's, In my opinion the best buy offered by Hyundai should have been the Verna- Customized for the Goverment.

If the choice is to be made, Go for the Indigo- since its built heavy, safe and very comfortable to be driven in and I don't think you need to worry on maintainence since its billed to the exchequer whose sole work is to pay the bills and charge taxes from us.

trrk · 22nd February 2008, 11:39

Hi BaCkSeAtDrIVeR,

> What I am really looking for is FE figures of the amby diesel the 1800 and 2000 > variants.

The diesel variants are 1500cc and 2000cc ones. The former ones are called 'Stride' now and the HM ads claim 18+ mileage or more if my memory serves me right. Even this version comes with AC.

Aditya · 22nd February 2008, 11:56

Wow!
They've gone from a Jurassic era car to something that's at the end of it life in production. So, now we can expect the Accent to continue in production for 50 years.

BaCkSeAtDrIVeR · 22nd February 2008, 17:56

Quote:

Originally Posted by wolfinstein

I don't think you need to worry on maintainence since its billed to the exchequer whose sole work is to pay the bills and charge taxes from us.

Not quite true. The babudom does worry about repair costs, because budget allocation is hard to come by. A car with a huge potential repair bill is any babu's nightmare, because he already has a car, and will not be allotted a new car. If the car does breakdown before budget allocation comes through - usually 18 months - the babu is left with nothing except his two legs and public transport to rely on. And if the babu is in charge of maintaining his boss' car, he is literally between the devil aka boss and deep sea aka budget.

@trrk - thanks for the info; it is useful.

But does any body have links to online info on pricing of the amby? I cannot find any pricing info on the web.

BaCkSeAtDrIVeR · 22nd February 2008, 20:18

Ok. I did get the link. And when I found it on their site, it was not working!!! Had to type it in manually - second guessing the correct spelling.

Here it is, anyway - Amby EMI

rajivanoj · 22nd February 2008, 20:19

why not CRDI engine? they enjoy petrol at tax payers money..what ever car or SUV, it must be diesel. atleast they save some money of us.

sreenivass · 22nd February 2008, 20:30

Quote:

Originally Posted by mobike008

Probably they looked at the external factors like the broad shouldered design and decent looking sedan as their main criteria for selecting this car for the "official babu".

Though being an accent user, i agree that the back-seat is pretty low and makes it difficult for elderly people to get in and out ( and we know all our babus are above 45 age minimum)

In a way, i am glad they selected this car, purely because i use it and have absolutely no complaints from it.

I think these guys took Accent Ad "Get respected" (or whatever it was) seriously. Respect is so scant for these Babus, might be finding avenues to get it.

Sush · 22nd February 2008, 21:01

So that means that Accent will be around for more time. People planning to buy it don't have to worry about it getting phased out soon.

ankit.jhamb · 22nd February 2008, 22:11

Quote:

Originally Posted by BaCkSeAtDrIVeR

Guys, I really do not want to start a new thread on this - this IS a "what car" query, and it is for my boss, a babu-politico. Hence this thread. ;( The car is going to cover at least 1200 KM per month, and diesel is a must. DGS&D is not available, and if things go wrong with the pricing fo the car, I am the guy who is going to be hauled up over the coals. And if the cost of running is going to be high, I am the guy who will be hauled over the coals. And the car cannot be too ostentatious........,

i think indigo would be the best choice here.
has good FE,COMFORT,noise levels etc
i think amby will have a negative point here,because it will not be easy to drive in crowded area(by the driver).
indigo would be easy to drive in crowded areas(compared to amby,,my view))

jkdas · 22nd February 2008, 22:19

Just read that premium cars will be given to senior bureaucrats who are worthy of it and Govt has already ordered 100 brand new Amby's.

karanraheja · 24th February 2008, 12:15

Surprised it is Accent. The back seat comfort sucks. They should have
opted for Indigo or Logan atleast.

rider60 · 26th February 2008, 02:21

well this is a little OT, but if i remember correctly, when selecting new cars for judges and other officials the officials had short listed ikons, optras and astras for judges of HC in Hyderabad, and there was a huge news where a official reported 25kmpl of ikon back then which made front page news in Andhra, and finally these judges for astras as their replacement to the ambys!

benbsb29 · 26th February 2008, 10:46

Quote:

Originally Posted by rider60

well this is a little OT, but if i remember correctly, when selecting new cars for judges and other officials the officials had short listed ikons, optras and astras for judges of HC in Hyderabad, and there was a huge news where a official reported 25kmpl of ikon back then which made front page news in Andhra, and finally these judges for astras as their replacement to the ambys!

OT: Was the guy poor in his Math, or was he pushing the car in between?

21st February 2008, 22:28	#31
BaCkSeAtDrIVeR BANNED Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: Kochi Posts: 2,522 Thanked: 752 Times	Amby Vs. Accent Vs. Indica Vs. Indigo Guys, I really do not want to start a new thread on this - this IS a "what car" query, and it is for my boss, a babu-politico. Hence this thread. ;( The car is going to cover at least 1200 KM per month, and diesel is a must. DGS&D is not available, and if things go wrong with the pricing fo the car, I am the guy who is going to be hauled up over the coals. And if the cost of running is going to be high, I am the guy who will be hauled over the coals. And the car cannot be too ostentatious, since the funds are going to come from an organisation supposed to benefit people whose daily incomes is less than cost of one litre of petrol. Ok. Now that you people are beginning to hate me, here are the info:- 1. Amby has 2 variants - 1800 and 2000 DSZ. Where are the prices and FE info? (At least, what can I expect in Kerala?). There is no info on pricing and FE of the 2000 DSZ in the official HM website, hence the query here. (DID I miss something?) What variants are available (A/c, P/S etc). 2. My preference is the Indica - I (rather the organisation) can afford the capital costs and fuel costs. But since he wants a Sedan, I am looking at Indigo CS (LS BS III @ 4.47L). What comparable variant at this price range? 3. How are the accent's running costs? (this one is very low on my priority - due to "no ostentation" clause). With the ideal budget being 4.2 Lakhs, anything above 4.5L OTR is a no-no, but marginal variations can be explained if I can justify it on economy of running costs basis. Power steering is not essential, but a/c is. Should I revise the budget (ie., is it too low?) Another thing I would like to know is, given the ownership and expected running (1 K + km per month), is it worthwhile to go in for extended warranties, if available? And I need to spend the money before March 31st!!! (the babu will be pleased if he gets the car tomorrow).
	() Thanks

22nd February 2008, 10:22	#33
wolfinstein BHPian Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: New Delhi Posts: 994 Thanked: 20 Times	Well, its just another addition to the Babu Car Choices,Its not the Official Car- Read the report in TOI Carefully !!! The Official Cars offered are- Maruti Suzuki Esteem , TATA Safari, TATA Indigo , HM Ambassador and now the Hyundai Accent. But tell me, Why would a car already at the end of its product life cycle be accepted by the Babu's, In my opinion the best buy offered by Hyundai should have been the Verna- Customized for the Goverment. If the choice is to be made, Go for the Indigo- since its built heavy, safe and very comfortable to be driven in and I don't think you need to worry on maintainence since its billed to the exchequer whose sole work is to pay the bills and charge taxes from us. Last edited by wolfinstein : 22nd February 2008 at 10:24.
	() Thanks

22nd February 2008, 11:39	#34
trrk Senior - BHPian Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: Alleppey, Kerala Posts: 2,114 Thanked: 34 Times View My Garage	Hi BaCkSeAtDrIVeR, > What I am really looking for is FE figures of the amby diesel the 1800 and 2000 > variants. The diesel variants are 1500cc and 2000cc ones. The former ones are called 'Stride' now and the HM ads claim 18+ mileage or more if my memory serves me right. Even this version comes with AC.
	() Thanks

22nd February 2008, 11:56	#35
Aditya Team-BHP Support Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: Mumbai Posts: 17,844 Thanked: 77,081 Times View My Garage	Wow! They've gone from a Jurassic era car to something that's at the end of it life in production. So, now we can expect the Accent to continue in production for 50 years.
	() Thanks

22nd February 2008, 20:18	#37
BaCkSeAtDrIVeR BANNED Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: Kochi Posts: 2,522 Thanked: 752 Times	Ok. I did get the link. And when I found it on their site, it was not working!!! Had to type it in manually - second guessing the correct spelling. Here it is, anyway - Amby EMI
	() Thanks

22nd February 2008, 20:19	#38
rajivanoj BANNED Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Coimbatore Posts: 398 Thanked: 52 Times View My Garage	why not CRDI engine? they enjoy petrol at tax payers money..what ever car or SUV, it must be diesel. atleast they save some money of us.
	() Thanks

22nd February 2008, 21:01	#40
Sush BHPian Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: Noida, New York Posts: 308 Thanked: 2 Times	So that means that Accent will be around for more time. People planning to buy it don't have to worry about it getting phased out soon.
	() Thanks

22nd February 2008, 22:19	#42
jkdas Senior - BHPian Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: Thiruvananthapu Posts: 9,687 Thanked: 1,492 Times View My Garage	Just read that premium cars will be given to senior bureaucrats who are worthy of it and Govt has already ordered 100 brand new Amby's.
	() Thanks

24th February 2008, 12:15	#43
karanraheja Senior - BHPian Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: Coimbatore Posts: 1,961 Thanked: 436 Times	Surprised it is Accent. The back seat comfort sucks. They should have opted for Indigo or Logan atleast.
	() Thanks

26th February 2008, 02:21	#44
rider60 Senior - BHPian Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Bhagyanagaram. (A.K.A. Hyderabad) Posts: 1,620 Thanked: 56 Times View My Garage	well this is a little OT, but if i remember correctly, when selecting new cars for judges and other officials the officials had short listed ikons, optras and astras for judges of HC in Hyderabad, and there was a huge news where a official reported 25kmpl of ikon back then which made front page news in Andhra, and finally these judges for astras as their replacement to the ambys!
	() Thanks