Is a man known by the car he drives? Or What's in a Car? Hi Everyone,
Shakespeare asked 'What's in a name?'
As a Team BHPian I'll ask 'What's in a car?"
As I close in on the Alto K 1000 tomorrow, I am faced with a unique predicament. My budget was up to 5.25 lacs and I went to see all the cars in these segments. I saw many cars but in terms of road view, driving comfort and mileage (70 kms per day) and other parameters I could like only two cars. They are both at the extreme ends of my purchase spectrum.They were Indica Vista Quadrajet and Alto K 1000.
Since Indica Vista Quadrajet suited my budgets and would pay its extra cost in a matter of 2 years it seemed a sensible decision. In Alto K 1000 I will have to retrofit a CNG and stand in queues for 15 minutes every alternate day. I will also have to wait for approval on CNG kit that will take maybe 2 months and pay for the extra spends on petrol till then.
But going through the gems of information in Team BHP threads I realized the following truths about Tata. Please dont mistake me as a Tata baiter/basher. I have immense respect for Ratan Tata. These truths I distilled here are from all the threads I read. They are a jist of them.
>There is a 70:30 per cent chance of getting a perfect car from Tata. Within the 30 per cent can be really bad cars, 70 per cent are the pretty good ones with a few ignorable niggles. Though this is a vast improvement over 30:70 since the time Tata started, it would take another 5 years for Tata to deliver 95 percent good cars. Then it would beat Maruti, for sure in terms of price, features and everything else.
>In this sense buying a Tata car is a bit of a lottery and in their growth without a joint venture (savings, cheaper cars) they are using customers as a guinea pig. Those who have time and can afford repeat visits to service centres (business people, or people who have drivers, or people with an alternate set of cars) would gain from this pricing and extra features for same price. But for a guy like me who is an employee in a private sector, and with only one car and no driver, this is simply out of question.
>Tata is a good car also from the extra features it offers over the competition at the price bands. So people who are feature driven, experimenting and above all generous at heart, patriotic and willing to support an underdog will go any lengths to support the venture and that is why Tata has grown by leaps and bounds
>5 years down the line, Tata till be at par with Maruti in terms of products and service levels, certainly not now
>The staff quality of Tata is comparatively below standard compared to Hyundai, Maruti etc. The attitude 'We are doing a favour to you by selling a cheaper car' shows. When you price something cheap, you dont have to struggle to sell it, it will sell automatically: this is the Tata bottomline. The same truth prevails when it came to service horror stories.
So a Tata product, from my point of view, after a study of all the threads and more, over 5 days was out and on account of A pillar views, proven car, minimum blind spots, fuel efficiency, good service levels and reliability I am stuck with Alto K 1000. It was extremely difficult to let go of the Tata Indica Vista (the heart leaped for it but the brain made it quiet). The difference in their EMIs at 85% finance is merely 2,000 per month (affordable for me) for the convenience (no CNG queues, I have a CNG kit in my Maruti and know what it means) and savings in Diesel.
Seeing my choice my family is a bit disappointed. From a society point of view everyone in the family and my friends feel that my image will take a beating. My son suggests me to watch 'Do duni Chaar' before buying an Alto! They have nothing against the car but they feel that it doesnt go with my image. Which is why this thread.
Every car has a string of characteristics attached to it. So is a driver known by his car? Is it necessary to buy cars from a social standing point of view rather than practicality?
I also would like to contribute to the environment if I can help, but not at the cost of my convenience. All cars are in the market essentially because govts gave permission. But even if I had lots of money driving an SUV that guzzles 1 litre of petrol for every 4 kilometers driven (CRV) would be a burden on my mind. It is my mind, no offense to people who love a Honda CRV. For them status, power and elegance is important and I respect their choice.
So here are my characteristics that come with a car. Do they define the drivers who drive them?
>Budget cars - For the budget conscious (Maruti, Nano, Santro, Alto). Is the driver a miser, from a typical middle middle class? A face in the crowd, a pushover (I am in this one so I am not insulting anyone please!!!!!)
>Proven Cars - For whom after sales service and reliability is essential. Is this guy the logic driven guy who wears black suits and has maths figures in his head.
>Value for Money Cars - Guy who wants more bang per buck spent. Same as above.
>Status cars - For the guy who has lots of money and wants to show his well earned success to the world (BMW, Jaguar, Mercedes, Safari, Altis, Cruze etc). Is this guy the one who has arrived in the society - A swash buckler, epitome of success?
>New Cars -For the stylistic, young, experimenting, peppy crowd with disposable income and a care a hoot attitude (Figo, Beat, Punto). Does this driver wear earrings, has streaked hair, cargo pants and is continuously changing his appearance? Does this driver will also have tattoos on his body?
>Powerful cars - These people need lots of power to be ahead of everyone (Safari, Fortuner etc.). Does this driver a regular gym goer, tall, macho and maybe a six footer?
>Safe cars - Mercedes, Skoda, SUVs etc. With crores worth of businesses, and empires, the occupants of these cars are very clear about the safety
they want. Are these guys rich tycoons with generations of success behind them
>Eco-friendly cars - Hybrids, ( I dont know if we have them here, Honda might have), fuel efficient cars (Alto, Beat, i10). Are the driver of these cars New Age thinkers who think of earth as their home too and wouldnt mind a bit of a knocking themselves to save earth from all its troubles? The
The fun element apart, seriously and obviously whoever buys these cars there will be bound to be a cross purpose of objectives - A very rich, successful guy might wish to be innovative and may fall in love with say a Figo. A man like Narayan Murti may keep driving a Maruti. These are exceptions rather than the rule. But the moot point is: Do our cars define us? Or it doesnt matter? Are they just four wheels or a mirror to your soul?
So should buying according to your status should be the criteria or your driving passion be the one. I mean should you go according to what you feel is right for you (features, technicalities etc., like I am doing)
If we go by the spirit of Team BHP, perhaps I know the answer. Yet, please understand that being in Forums and driving in the real world are two different things.
Am I doing a sensible thing in choosing an Alto K 1000? What I seek is not an advice on a list of other cars I can possibly, but the fundamental 'rightness' or 'wrongness' of my decision.
This decision is not just mine, it could be yours in the near future.
Please help with your comments.
Happy driving. Belated Happy Diwali! |