[tj123]

Originally Posted by jkdas

Parm; do you find difference in built quality too? According to my cousin, Hyundai cars sold in Middle East had pathetic built quality and hence the question.

Well its quite true when I was in Dubai there Hyundai Cars are considered low on product quality.
Japanese brands and especially made in Japan products are considered good on quality and have good resale value in the second hand market. Where as Hyundai's resale value is very low.

What I feel is that it is a question of market perception about a Brand ...and certainly Hyundai has taken a beating, dont know the reason Why exactly.

[blackasta]

Hyundai cars are also thought to be of low quality in USA. They have dismal resale value there.

[.anshuman]

Originally Posted by blackasta

The problem lies in the fact that an average Indian cannot really afford a jetta, laura, city or civic in India! and so automatically they do not have access to 7 speed DSG box or a 5 speed auto box (honda).

Suzuki/Hyundai on the other hand makes cheap cars in India, and its imperative that they introduce good quality A/T boxes in their cars at a standard premium (say 50k) over M/T for the masses to adopt A/T.

We are talking manufacturers here not only budget segment.

For example Verna's autobox is no where as good as similarly priced ANHC. Sonata's autobox does not even belong to this segment. I havent read a single good review about the Grand Vitara's auto transmission.

[blackasta]

Originally Posted by .anshuman

We are talking manufacturers here not only budget segment.

For example Verna's autobox is no where as good as similarly priced ANHC. Sonata's autobox does not even belong to this segment. I havent read a single good review about the Grand Vitara's auto transmission.

Whats the market share of skoda + VW + Honda in India?
and also whats that of Maruti + Hyundai?

If we just dig a little deep , maruti + hyundai owe 90% of their success due to small cars - and that was the sole reason I was talking budget segment!

[.anshuman]

Originally Posted by blackasta

Whats the market share of skoda + VW + Honda in India?
and also whats that of Maruti + Hyundai?

If we just dig a little deep , maruti + hyundai owe 90% of their success due to small cars - and that was the sole reason I was talking budget segment!

A very high percentage of Jetta and Laura sold in india are automatics because they come with a very good autobox.

Talking about the Budget segment automatics do not sell in good numbers because there are no good options available. The ones available like i10 are not as efficient and performance is not good compared to the manual versions.

I would love to keep a small automatic car for daily commute but because there are no good options available i have to struggle with the clutch and gearstick. There are lots of people who are in same situation as me SO MARKET FOR AUTOMATICS DO EXIST.

[aerohit]

Made in India is only for A-Star or other cars also?

[rahulgoel]

I saw a hyundai i20 LHS drive here in Bareilly. Don't know from where it came.

[stanjohn123]

Don't you think it's plain boring to drive an automatic ?? whats more fun than a manual box ..nothing..Infact people abroad find it difficult to drive our manual cars after sometime, since they're not used to shifting gears ..Plus people who usually buy the lower segment cars mainly go for mileage and are very price conscious..not so in the UAE and other gulf states..

[shiraz]

Originally Posted by arunmur

The modern DSG boxes basically solve all of the above issues with a electronic controller in place. And when these things are mass manufactured its not going to cost too much over the manual gearbox.

That's so true... I think in the US, it costs more to get a car with manual transmission than to buy an automatic, simply because the stick-shift is the exception in that market!

Having said that, if Honda really wanted to sell the ANHC with the paddle shifts and AT, they would've priced it more competitively, say at a difference of 20-30k. Current prices take it into the territory of the next segment, where it is only natural to see half your potential customers trade up to the next level. Sometimes, car companies have to do their bit to bring innovation and grow the market.

Today, there is a huge opportunity for one car company to come in and position itself as the leader in AT technology, simply because no other company is taking the plunge. But what are leaders without markets, and therefore, one has to educate as well as entice the customer, and in India, that can only happen if your pricing keeps you in the right comparables range. As people have noted before on this thread, an i10 would compete with other B/B+ segment cars, but an i10 AT would definitely have the customer thinking about all the other advantages of trading up to a large hatch.

The other thought is that it's all a question of perceived value vs value provided. Today, we all speculate that it would be so much better to have ATs in bumper-to-bumper traffic. But what premium would "most" of us be prepared to pay for the same? Think about it... maybe the roads need to get a bit more crowded and the traffic a little worse, before a sizeable chunk of people start considering ATs seriously.

OR, car companies need to be able to charge a lower premium for an AT car, which means that they'll need to invest in an India mfg facility to keep their costs down. However, investment means financial commitment, and in today's environment, no one's putting money on the table before he sees an assured ROI. Which is why the future of ATs in India looks bleak to me, at least in the near-term.

[blackasta]

Originally Posted by stanjohn123

Don't you think it's plain boring to drive an automatic ?? whats more fun than a manual box ..nothing..Infact people abroad find it difficult to drive our manual cars after sometime, since they're not used to shifting gears ..Plus people who usually buy the lower segment cars mainly go for mileage and are very price conscious..not so in the UAE and other gulf states..

Buddy, try having some fun shifting up n down umpteen times in busy Kolkata streets and bylanes, with scores of cars ruthlessly honking on if you do not move within fraction of a second! I guess the situation is same in all metros.
I love to drive my boring car when traffic moves at 5 kmph and stops every 30 seconds
M/T car is good when traffic is in manageable numbers, is civilized and organized - not chaotic as it is in India.

[Mr_Bean]

Is it possible to have the best of both worlds, I mean an MT & AT? I may sound stupid

[anilkalvani]

Originally Posted by blackasta

Buddy, try having some fun shifting up n down umpteen times in busy Kolkata streets and bylanes, with scores of cars ruthlessly honking on if you do not move within fraction of a second! I guess the situation is same in all metros.
I love to drive my boring car when traffic moves at 5 kmph and stops every 30 seconds
M/T car is good when traffic is in manageable numbers, is civilized and organized - not chaotic as it is in India.

++++1 to that.

Try driving in bumper-to-bumper traffic in Bombay's hellish chaotic roads then you'll realise how automatics are God sent for us. In fact in the US, inspite of highway driving people prefer automatics. You don't realise the convenience of an automatic once you get to experience it and then thank your stars.

[blackasta]

Originally Posted by Mr_Bean

Is it possible to have the best of both worlds, I mean an MT & AT? I may sound stupid

Why not? A/T box with a sequential shift (eg: triptronic) option is always there!

[Dev Iyer]

Most of the AT vehicles nowadays do come with the manual transmission option, Audi and Citroen for instance. This will help when one wants to accelerate to enter a roundabout for example

Originally Posted by Mr_Bean

Is it possible to have the best of both worlds, I mean an MT & AT? I may sound stupid

[MaserQ]

Auto trannies are gradually catching on in India. It is only a matter of time before those MSIL models are sold here as well.