[mooza]

@Zappex, yes, this thread has certainly brought out the importance of the crossover vehicle in India, considering the road condition in many parts of India.

Vehicles with great offroad as well as onroad manners should be on the drawing boards of most Indian market oriented auto companies in future.

[ampere]

Originally Posted by mooza

@Zappex, yes, this thread has certainly brought out the importance of the crossover vehicle in India, considering the road condition in many parts of India.

Vehicles with great offroad as well as onroad manners should be on the drawing boards of most Indian market oriented auto companies in future.

I sincerely hope M&M brings a compact 5 seater like Yeti, with an engine in the range of 1.6 to 2L. That would work very well.

[Zappex]

Originally Posted by mooza

@Zappex, yes, this thread has certainly brought out the importance of the crossover vehicle in India, considering the road condition in many parts of India.

Vehicles with great offroad as well as onroad manners should be on the drawing boards of most Indian market oriented auto companies in future.

Glad, you agree with me. Like i mentioned above such products are creating a market for themselves.

Originally Posted by ampere

I sincerely hope M&M brings a compact 5 seater like Yeti, with an engine in the range of 1.6 to 2L. That would work very well.

Well it surely on the cards, more discussion pertaining to this is carried out in this thread;
http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/indian...-2-seater.html

[Bangalorean]

Good thread - I read several pages of this thread with great interest. I have been driving an Alto all over Bangalore (and South India) from the past 9 years, and it has always been my dream to own an SUV. Now, a couple of days back, I rented a Xylo for self-drive and took the vehicle to Ooty and surrounding areas. Though I enjoyed the vehicle, I noticed the disadvantages immediately. On Mysore road, Altos, Innovas, and even some Indicas were zipping past me right and left. It didn't help that the Xylo was fully loaded with 7 well built adults.

But the biggest problem I had was while reversing. A serious question for the SUV gurus here - how does one reverse an SUV - an SUV without reverse assist system? Every time I had to reverse the Xylo, I needed someone behind the vehicle to direct me. So guys, how do you reverse an SUV without parking assist if you are solo?

[Off Roadie]

@ bangalorean Well, judge the parking spot in advance and lower your outside rear view mirrors till you can see the rear tyres they help you judge where the vehicle is heading. regarding being overtaken in the xylo I think it was because you were not pushing the accelerator enough, mahindra diesels have a long pedal travel which is something you might not have been used too, otherwise the xylo engine has decent grunt to propel it forward.

@ ampere,
height is might and a skoda yeti looses out on that front, so I would'nt call it an SUV from an 'Indian Rules of the Road' context. There is no doubt in its capabilities though.

[xingamazon]

Originally Posted by Bangalorean

Good thread - I read several pages of this thread with great interest. I have been driving an Alto all over Bangalore (and South India) from the past 9 years, and it has always been my dream to own an SUV. Now, a couple of days back, I rented a Xylo for self-drive and took the vehicle to Ooty and surrounding areas. Though I enjoyed the vehicle, I noticed the disadvantages immediately. On Mysore road, Altos, Innovas, and even some Indicas were zipping past me right and left. It didn't help that the Xylo was fully loaded with 7 well built adults.

But the biggest problem I had was while reversing. A serious question for the SUV gurus here - how does one reverse an SUV - an SUV without reverse assist system? Every time I had to reverse the Xylo, I needed someone behind the vehicle to direct me. So guys, how do you reverse an SUV without parking assist if you are solo?

Bangalorean, its just a matter of getting adjusting to the size of the car.
My boss has an endevour, he was adjusting from Fiesta initially, he mentioned he will be never able to reverse at all. But now after 6 months he does it perfectly, using the rear mirrors.

Additionally you mentioned the speeds of other cars. Just wanted to mentione that no wonder they are quick, a fully loaded Xylo is no match to Alto. Remember Xylo is a pseudo SUV, had it been Endy or Fortuner I would have also been amazed. But cant expect Xylo to be the speedest.

[shankar.balan]

I totally agree with what you say here.
Yes it is always going to be a matter of individual preference and choice. After all the "one size fits all" policy doesnt work as we know.
And yes, it is true that our road conditions do dictate a certain preference for a tough vehicle which can stand a lot of abuse and which is designed with high ground clearance and powered by diesel on account of the subsidized price. Additionally it helps to have a large capacity for people and luggage. Hence the burgeoning sales of SUV and SUV type vehicles.
Looks like India is a market absolutely ripe for the launch of a number of different types of cross over vehicles.

Originally Posted by Zappex

i went through many of the posts here, what i feel is that finally it boils down to what an individual prefers. In this scenario our options are limited to crossovers which promise a balance between both. cars like the Yeti, Aria, XC60 etc.

Coming to the real world situation, Indian roads are deteriorating in most metros and an occasional scrape on the belly hurts a lot, of what i derive as a conclusion;

As for me i prefer the SUV/ Crossover breed as i feel that i have had enough of the poor road conditions i face daily.

[n.devdath]

Let me share my experience over the last weekend. I was driving down from HP to Delhi and noticed that even though there were a lot of sedans and hatches on the road which could go faster than I could, due to constraints of ill behaved truckies, varying road conditions, diversions, and limited visibility (Isn't that common to almost every place in the country today??!!), most of them were trailing behind me even though I never exceeded 110kmph.

This is the biggest advantage of the SUV IMO. Perfectly suited for India and its current conditions of roads and road users.

[kaushik_s]

Well, I'm also one who have shifted from Sedan to SUV. Immediate disadvantages I've noticed are 1. Parking 2. Zipping through traffic 3. Initial sluggishness and 4. Not as fun to drive as a Sedan. But the advantages are, 1. No fatigue after a long drive, mostly due to the seating and the visibility of the road ahead. 2. Not much worried about potholes anymore. 3. The Ground clearance (very much important for me) 4. The torque once the turbo kicks in and 5. You can literally carry everyone in the same car . So I guess it's more of what one needs should be deciding factor whether to go for a Sedan or SUV. Just for the Fun of driving a high-rev engine I would prefer a sedan for sure but if I need to take a beaten track then I would prefer to have a SUV. For the City and smooth highway drives I surely would love to have the Sedan than the SUV.

[Sheel]

I am interested in knowing the handling capabilities of a soft roader/cross-over like the Yeti & the X1.

A point to scale reference would be welcome

For eg, if the 320D is 9/10 the X1 is (?)

Thanks

(I thought this to be the most appropriate thread to ask about, hence...)

[SushilBajpai]

Originally Posted by Sheel

I am interested in knowing the handling capabilities of a soft roader/cross-over like the Yeti & the X1.

A point to scale reference would be welcome

For eg, if the 320D is 9/10 the X1 is (?)

Thanks

(I thought this to be the most appropriate thread to ask about, hence...)

I can speak about Yeti. She handles so well that you'd be hard pressed to find many sedans that behave better. She's peppy, easy to maneuver, barely noticeable ground roll. Added features like traction control, ABS, continuous 4X4, great ground clearance (compared to any sedan), plus pretty good off road capabilities, definitely make Yeti my favorite over any sedan.

Small external footprint makes it even more easy to maneuver, park in tight spaces and trust me I can get into spaces (off road) where many better able SUV would not go due to their sheer size.

[aaggoswami]

A lot will depend on personal preference, social/family requirement and size of pocket. If there is more than one car, one can be SUV and other can be a fun to drive car. But if only car in a family, then it would be tough to be convinced for SUV ( but again personal preference will creep in ).

My question is how come vehicles with high CofG are more comfortable over long distance ? For 600 kms. in a day or so its fine, but IMO, after fatigue sets in, its good to have a car that is able to forgive a few quick maneuvers like cornering at a bit of speed.

Moreover, less roll = more passenger comfort. Reason why Innova is so comfortable and infact I rate Innova's comfort level better than Fortuer.

At what speeds ( consistent speed ) can we call SUV to be more comfortable than sedan. For speeds upto 100 kmph on a normal highway, SUV might have better comfort, but let a corner come up and story becomes different.

Originally Posted by shankar.balan

Looks like India is a market absolutely ripe for the launch of a number of different types of cross over vehicles.

At what price can the real crossovers step in ? That is prime question. The answer can be MPV, like Innova, Ford S-max, etc.

[Guna]

Originally Posted by Sheel

I am interested in knowing the handling capabilities of a soft roader/cross-over like the Yeti & the X1.

A point to scale reference would be welcome

For eg, if the 320D is 9/10 the X1 is (?)

Thanks

(I thought this to be the most appropriate thread to ask about, hence...)

I haven't driven X1 or Yeti but I can compare Forester (which has similar stance and size) to a sedan I am very familiar with (ANHC)
Forester= 8/10
ANHC=7/10

[vb-saan]

Originally Posted by Sheel

I am interested in knowing the handling capabilities of a soft roader/cross-over like the Yeti & the X1.

A point to scale reference would be welcome

For eg, if the 320D is 9/10 the X1 is (?)

Thanks

(I thought this to be the most appropriate thread to ask about, hence...)

If I memory is right, there was a comparison of Skoda Laura v/s the Yeti in Anshuman’s Laura ownership thread. For analysis sake, maybe you can have a look at that.

[Sheel]

Originally Posted by Guna

I haven't driven X1 or Yeti but I can compare Forester (which has similar stance and size) to a sedan I am very familiar with (ANHC)
Forester= 8/10
ANHC=7/10

IIRC, almost all the magazines went gaga over Forester's capabilities. And most preferred to refer it as the Subaru

Originally Posted by vb-san

If I memory is right, there was a comparison of Skoda Laura v/s the Yeti in Anshuman’s Laura ownership thread. For analysis sake, maybe you can have a look at that.

Yes, Anshuman has compared it. Its on page 4 of his ownership thread. He was mighty impressed with the Car (the Yeti that is) save for a drop in performance (?) and lack of a DSG.