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Old 8th March 2010, 15:00   #106
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Me & my friend bought cars me an indica & he a Santro during the same time in 2006. I have driven 121000 kms & he has driven 18000kms. We have nearly the same resale value as of today. Both our cars looks like kept in good condition except for the speedo reading. I think I have used my car well.

You can buy a car for your pride & not use it.
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Old 8th March 2010, 15:11   #107
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People are simply making statements without even thinking, Most of my friends who travelled in my 2005 Indica have noted the difference in terms of comfort and reachability comparing to their maruti alternatives, Ofcourse the comparison is not wth mercs.

I dont say it is ultimate but it didnt give us any issue that I couldnt live with, I learned driving on the same car and personally driven it for more than 40K Km all in kerala rural roads. have driven marutis a lot and I agree the fun factor is not there in the Indicas except in 3rd gear!!
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Old 8th March 2010, 15:36   #108
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tata vehicles..

I totally agree with this. First thing first.

Tata vehicles are not the one to be pampered with, esp the diesel ones I say. From my personal exp, while i take my dad's tata sumo victa, I feel like idling/revving it more and more often, press the pedal to metal more often than not. Never I have felt like revving or not even idling the age old 2000- zen to butter smooth NHC. I can fairly say, that kind of ruggedness comes along with Tata and mahindra vehicles.

People often tend to drive smooth rather harsh on petrol vehicles. For me atleast on Honda cars, I have seen the light you press the pedal, the more mileage you deliver. Maybe I dont think this is expected in diesel vehicles. To an extent I have expreienced it, more pro's can throw light on that.

No feel good factor for Tata vehicles. Not to offend anyone here please.The aesthetics, the design, all will make you feel its more of a people moving car than personal oriented car's like Honda's and toyota's.


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Last edited by prsnck : 8th March 2010 at 15:38.
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Old 8th March 2010, 16:45   #109
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We've owned 3 Indicas uptil now. The first 2 we sold after they had done 80k. The third one is touching 70k. I learnt driving from an Indica. And I agree, I abused the engine. Even now, since my car (Honda City ZX) is at the workshop, I drive an Indica as a backup, and boy does this car test my patience. The engine switches off randomly (even at 60kmph) speeds! This car has a problem starting, all Indicas do. I belive atleast 90% Indicas start having a starting problem after 50k.

We use our Indicas for loading and in areas such as Chandini Chowk, Paharganj, Sadar Bazar, Krishna Nagar, Ram Nagar etc. Thus, the point is right, this car is more of a utility than an actual car.

Plus, if I'm accelerating from 0-30kmph on the Indica and doing it linearly i.e. proper gear shifts, proper clutch releases, proper acceleration, then I think to reach 30kmph will take about 10 seconds. Now that's way TOO MUCH for me.
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Old 8th March 2010, 17:21   #110
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I think the fact that the owners take for granted that the car can take abuse and it can survive this sort of mistreatment, is due recogonition of the Indica. This was basically the factors it was designed around, an 'Indian car'. Not an outdated light Japanese hatchback but one designed keeping in mind the demands of the countrymen.

No doubt it is neither the most refined cars out there nor has the highest quality interiors, but despite being a decade old its still unmatched for its space, ruggedness, mileage, running costs...especially taking into context its price.

I think what Tata needs to understand is that these are the qualities that Indians still associate with the brand. The Vista is a great car in its own right, but with an 'Indica', Indians dont expect a posh delicate small car similarly provided by other makers but they expect a tough VFM car that few others can match.
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Old 8th March 2010, 18:36   #111
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Someone has already given a simple reason why indica's are abused.
Indica's are robust but read carefully doesn't mean that they are durable.
Its like the ambassador of the 2000's.
Yes the mechanical parts may be of good quality but its not what many people call a "Fine Automobile".Hence it is used as a mule rather than a stallion.

It also has something to do with its looks also in my opinion.
People don buy indica's to make a statement but rather to get the job done Hence another reason why they are poorly treated.
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Old 8th March 2010, 18:47   #112
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Quote:
Originally Posted by zavegur View Post
well, lets be honest., owning an indica is not that much of a pride anyway! Let alone maintain it! It is the best car- for TAXI. period.
I quite disagree to this statement. Any car is hard earned to most people. It is something we all take pride in. After all those who own a car are 1 in 500 Indians to do so! Indica is a popular taxi car because it is reliable and affordable to maintain. The diesels give excellent milage and they are quite literally 4x4 vehicles! I have seen Indicas ripping down to Madikere when all the so called 'fancy' cars are crawling at snails pace. I do not own an Indica but know what it is capable of. As for the topic, I think most of the uncared for Indiacas we see on the roads are those which belong to BPO companies and are used as taxis. Privately owned Indicas are quite well maintained. As for unclean cars, try driving in Bangalore to Whitefield via Ring road and back, and we will see if the car is clean when you return! Dust fact - cant be avoided.
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Old 8th March 2010, 19:11   #113
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The reliability factor difference between a well maintained and a abused(read rough handled one) is not comparably that much. Hence the suggestion from even my ford service service manager- if u need a car for rough use, it is going to be the indica.

abused here means:

disregarding speed breakers & road undulations
unnecessary high revving
no periodic oil change

Suspension in Indica is not the best engineered(vista is good enough) , but robust enough to handle the abuse- most tourist taxis continue to drive with cambered rear wheels showing the extent of the abuse.
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Old 8th March 2010, 19:16   #114
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I dont know whether using the word Taxi applies to all Indica/Indigo cars but the abuse is very common. The reason I believe is the stereotypes of an average Indian car buyer.
A maruti or a hyundai is for the phamily! Tatas for shorter life span and maximum output. Other cars are "Phorene"! (OT: Somebody who owned a Swift VXI asked me if FIAT was still making cars!)

If you still observe most of the Indica owners tend to believe that their cars are somehow different to the products from Maruti or Hyundai.
Looking at it in Marketing sense, the TATA cars have unfortunately got positioned themselves into this commuting tool sense as someone put it earlier. A look at Vista and Manza ad will tell u that the TATA folks want these cars to be positioned differently. The total of all these culminates into a negligent attitude towards the car.

A call-center taxi driver, who also owned the Indica he was driving once quipped, I wont do those harsh speeds. This is my own car. But, all this for extending the life of the car by 1-2 years to 4-5 years!

We can feel sorry for the lack of road-sense of the people, non-sensical two-wheeler riders, corruption in society and ill-maintained TATA cars.
See the similarity: all Indian?
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Old 8th March 2010, 19:28   #115
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Quote:
Originally Posted by ramzsys View Post
abused here means:

disregarding speed breakers & road undulations
unnecessary high revving
no periodic oil change

Suspension in Indica is not the best engineered(vista is good enough) , but robust enough to handle the abuse- most tourist taxis continue to drive with cambered rear wheels showing the extent of the abuse.
My indica has suffered generous doses of # 1 & 2 ( but oil changes done at half the intervals). After 3 years, the ride had become quite tired, but after 7k of repairs ( ball joints, bush kits, anti roll bars) , it feels good as new

An abused supension means faster tyre wear ( as I found out) and reduced performance, so its better that you fix it anyway
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Old 8th March 2010, 22:10   #116
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I don't know about abuse, but yes, there is something about the Indica that feels like it can take a bit of rough treatment.

In a Maruti, you go over the smallest hole and you are like "ouch!", and everything feels like it has been shaken apart. It is like handling a fragile woman.

The Indica on the other hand feels very truck-like, probably because of its DNA. You treat it just a bit roughly and you know it is ok.

But I never abuse my car.
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Old 8th March 2010, 22:56   #117
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Even at my place the Tata cars and especially the Indica is having cracked bumpers, chipped paint(after some road rash)and rough sounding engine
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Old 9th March 2010, 14:29   #118
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Hi,

Quote:
Originally Posted by nutcracker View Post
I belive atleast 90% Indicas start having a starting problem after 50k.
Though I would not agree with a genearlised statement like that, but, why don't you give that starter a check up? A change of brushes might be all that is needed!

My Marina never had a starting problem except when the battery died on me! Neither did my old Indica!

Last edited by trrk : 9th March 2010 at 14:30.
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Old 9th March 2010, 14:43   #119
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Quote:
Originally Posted by ramzsys View Post
Suspension in Indica is not the best engineered(vista is good enough) , but robust enough to handle the abuse- most tourist taxis continue to drive with cambered rear wheels showing the extent of the abuse.
Indica is the only small car to sport independent suspension on all 4 wheels. The result is a better ride quality, but also increased maintenance cost over the years, as stated by Tata Motors itself (and this is what you spotted on that Indicab ). Hence, they have done away with this setup on the Vista, which comes with semi-independent suspension at the rear.
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Old 9th March 2010, 14:52   #120
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Strange most countries start abusing cars on similar lines, u can hear names like Defender, G wagen, Jeep, Lada etc...they then go on to become national classics.

We Indians have reserved this treatment for the poor ol'Indica. ha ha
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