[stanjohn123]

Hi Guys,

We are planning to buy a brand new car and our budget is strictly 25 Lakhs but we can stretch it to 30 Lakhs based on the brand of the car (Typically Audi, Benz,VW or BMW ).

The problem is we are in nagercoil(Kanyakumari District) which means we are far away from service centers for Audi, BMW, VW and Benz. I think the closest service center for VW would be at Madurai and Audi would be at Kochi which is still very far away. I would like to know if any of these premium brands here in India offer services like picking up our cars to their service centers for checkups or for maintenance if something does go wrong.

Based on Ajmats review VW Passat Highlline seems like the best option for our budget. I would like to get feedbacks from previous Passat owners if possible about their car's reliability and ride quality. Also,right now on my mind the only car's I can see are Audi A4 , Benz C class , VW Passat and a Bimmer 3 series falling in our budget. If you guys know any car that is worth this budget and somehow I've over looked/missed it, kindly state it on this thread.

Please note that reliability is a high concern for me. Since service centers are far away from us the less reliable means more headache taking the cars to the service centers. Which would probably rule out Benz and BMW. Audi's are a bit more reliable now from what i can gather from our threads and international threads. VW again has a problem with reliability I guess.

I would greatly appreciate all your inputs.

[CARDEEP]

Hi stanjohn123

You are in the wrong thread. The mods will soon move it to "Which Car" section. But, I would like to help you out.

I guess the VW Passat HL is the best bet for you, considering the fact that its dealer/ A.S.S. is nearest to your place & would offer more bells & whistles for your money than BMW or Merc. Moreover, I reckon it is the bigger than both BMW 3 & Merc C.
But, consider Audi A4 which I believe would be in the same price range as your budget. It is again big enough from the inside, & has best interiors amongst the 3 Germans.

Regarding reliability, what I have noticed in international forums, is contrary of what you have quoted. In fact in US, the top 3 Germans are the lowest ranked & VW is placed higher because of its improving quality. You can refer the MSN (US) Autos site for article on latest reliability scores.

You can consider the Accord & Camary, as well, if the reliability is your top priority, but, do not expect the snob value that the Germans offer.

Best of Luck

[StrangeWizard]

The Passat HL is a good option for you. Its a newer car than the other 3 which you have mentioned and it seems VFM.
You can also consider Skoda Superb, Honda Accord and the Nissan Teana which fall in your budget.
I guess the Accord would be more reliable than the Superb.
Even Volvo S60 is a good option but I guess A.S.S would be a problem.
So I suggest you go for the Passat or the Accord. Both are nice cars.
All the best on your decision!

[prateekm]

How about a Volvo S60? It is much more reliable as compared to BMW & Merc, but doesn't carry a snob value like them. The nearest service center is in Kochi though.

EDIT: Don't go for a Camry, it's heavily overpriced and also isn't very feature rich. If you need a petrol + Japanese, then rather go for an Accord.

[stanjohn123]

Originally Posted by CARDEEP

Hi stanjohn123

You are in the wrong thread. The mods will soon move it to "Which Car" section. But, I would like to help you out.

I guess the VW Passat HL is the best bet for you, considering the fact that its dealer/ A.S.S. is nearest to your place & would offer more bells & whistles for your money than BMW or Merc. Moreover, I reckon it is the bigger than both BMW 3 & Merc C.
But, consider Audi A4 which I believe would be in the same price range as your budget. It is again big enough from the inside, & has best interiors amongst the 3 Germans.

Regarding reliability, what I have noticed in international forums, is contrary of what you have quoted. In fact in US, the top 3 Germans are the lowest ranked & VW is placed higher because of its improving quality. You can refer the MSN (US) Autos site for article on latest reliability scores.

You can consider the Accord & Camary, as well, if the reliability is your top priority, but, do not expect the snob value that the Germans offer.

Best of Luck

Thanks a lot cardeep. Actually the present A4 models are pretty reliable, I have read long term ownership reviews(2009 models) plus our own t-bhpians(PLatz Turbo) reviews who has not complained much.

Vw Passat is a good buy but Ajmat had mentioned that the air conditioning is not good which is very important for our climatic conditions. So if it's not satisfactory after a test drive, it may very well be dropped :-(.

Superb is great VFM but it's too common in our place. Toyota Camry as you said fits the bill exactly. It's reliable , A.S.S is convenient, plus its highly exclusive. I haven't seen even one in our place yet. The main drawbacks would be very less features and a less powerful engine I guess. So we might consider it if its worth the money. BTW, do you know the price of the full option Camry in India ?

Thanks a lot once again.

[nfsfreak]

Originally Posted by stanjohn123

The problem is we are in nagercoil(Kanyakumari District) which means we are far away from service centers for Audi, BMW, VW and Benz. I think the closest service center for VW would be at Madurai and Audi would be at Kochi which is still very far away.

Service Centers for premium brands (Audi, Benz, Bimmers, VW) would be in Trivandrum which would be closer than Madurai, if I'm not mistaken.

Originally Posted by stanjohn123

Also,right now on my mind the only car's I can see are Audi A4 , Benz C class , VW Passat and a Bimmer 3 series falling in our budget.

Passat HL is good. Its new and comes with loads of features and more reliable than Benz/BMW i believe. If you have decent A.S.S in Trivandrum or Madurai, then you can go for it.

Same fits for Audi A4 but with less features compared to Superb/Passat.

Superb - a very good VFM car but not sure how Skoda A.S.S fares in your region. Hence would be a greater risk, if your top priority is reliability.

X1 is another option from BMW stable for your budget.

CR-V, Accord, Camry also fits within your budget and are very reliable cars (japs, afterall ) if you are not particular about brand value.

[stanjohn123]

Originally Posted by prateekm

How about a Volvo S60? It is much more reliable as compared to BMW & Merc, but doesn't carry a snob value like them. The nearest service center is in Kochi though.

EDIT: Don't go for a Camry, it's heavily overpriced and also isn't very feature rich. If you need a petrol + Japanese, then rather go for an Accord.

Thanks Prateekm.27 Lakhs for a basic Volvo S60 plus poor A.S.S is a bit of a problem.

Can you please tell me the price of a fully loaded Camry ? The Accord is a bit common. But I guess I can consider it since it has all the box's ticked except exclusivity. Can you tell me the price of a fully loaded Accord. Thanks.

[StrangeWizard]

Originally Posted by stanjohn123

Thanks a lot cardeep. Actually the present A4 models are pretty reliable, I have read long term ownership reviews(2009 models) plus our own t-bhpians(PLatz Turbo) reviews who has not complained much.

Vw Passat is a good buy but Ajmat had mentioned that the air conditioning is not good which is very important for our climatic conditions. So if it's not satisfactory after a test drive, it may very well be dropped :-(.

Superb is great VFM but it's too common in our place. Toyota Camry as you said fits the bill exactly. It's reliable , A.S.S is convenient, plus its highly exclusive. I haven't seen even one in our place yet. The main drawbacks would be very less features and a less powerful engine I guess. So we might consider it if its worth the money. BTW, do you know the price of the full option Camry in India ?

Thanks a lot once again.

Accord is a good option so do consider it. It has many features, Japanese reliability and Honda A.S.S is also good. It comes with 2.4 liter i-vtec engine which is available in both AT and MT and it also comes with a V6 engine but that is only in AT. Recently Honda refreshed the Accord and added some more features and now the sunroof is standard across all variants.

[prateekm]

Camry is 24l ex-showroom for the top version but it is a 6 year old car. How about an Accord V6? Costs 26l ex showroom.

[stanjohn123]

Originally Posted by StrangeWizard

The Passat HL is a good option for you. Its a newer car than the other 3 which you have mentioned and it seems VFM.
You can also consider Skoda Superb, Honda Accord and the Nissan Teana which fall in your budget.
I guess the Accord would be more reliable than the Superb.
Even Volvo S60 is a good option but I guess A.S.S would be a problem.
So I suggest you go for the Passat or the Accord. Both are nice cars.
All the best on your decision!

Thanks StrangeWizard. The only problem I have against the Passat is Aircon as I read from Ajmats review, which isn't up to the mark. Reliability is still a big question mark for Passat's.

Skoda Superb is too common now, though its still the best VFM. Same goes to the Accord.

I'm not sure about Teana. It's surely reliable but apart from that I have no clue. Do let me know about its price and features.Thanks.

[stanjohn123]

Originally Posted by prateekm

Camry is 24l ex-showroom for the top version but it is a 6 year old car. How about an Accord V6? Costs 26l ex showroom.

Even though the Camry is a 6 year old car there aren't any in our place. But this 24L top end version, is it the 6 cylinder or 4 cylinder engine ?

Accord V6 is a good buy too. I need to do some research on its engines and features in the car.

[stanjohn123]

Originally Posted by nfsfreak

Service Centers for premium brands (Audi, Benz, Bimmers, VW) would be in Trivandrum which would be closer than Madurai, if I'm not mistaken.



Passat HL is good. Its new and comes with loads of features and more reliable than Benz/BMW i believe. If you have decent A.S.S in Trivandrum or Madurai, then you can go for it.

Same fits for Audi A4 but with less features compared to Superb/Passat.

Superb - a very good VFM car but not sure how Skoda A.S.S fares in your region. Hence would be a greater risk, if your top priority is reliability.

X1 is another option from BMW stable for your budget.

CR-V, Accord, Camry also fits within your budget and are very reliable cars (japs, afterall ) if you are not particular about brand value.

No Audi,BMW or Merc in Trivandrum. They're all at Cochin.If it was in Trivandrum, we would buy the A4 in a heartbeat and I would have not created this thread in the first place.

Skoda service is not bad at our place. We already had 2 Skoda's and it's pretty common now in our place, so we're planning to skip it this time.

Accord/Camry is what I'm thinking on right now which will probably change later. But Accord and Camry are strong contenders based on my conditions.

X1 is CUV, plus it starts at 27 for basic. Once we load it with options it will sky rocket the base price. And yeah there is a problem with A.S.S also.

[CARDEEP]

Originally Posted by stanjohn123

Thanks a lot cardeep. Actually the present A4 models are pretty reliable, I have read long term ownership reviews(2009 models) plus our own t-bhpians(PLatz Turbo) reviews who has not complained much.

Vw Passat is a good buy but Ajmat had mentioned that the air conditioning is not good which is very important for our climatic conditions. So if it's not satisfactory after a test drive, it may very well be dropped :-(.

Superb is great VFM but it's too common in our place. Toyota Camry as you said fits the bill exactly. It's reliable , A.S.S is convenient, plus its highly exclusive. I haven't seen even one in our place yet. The main drawbacks would be very less features and a less powerful engine I guess. So we might consider it if its worth the money. BTW, do you know the price of the full option Camry in India ?

Thanks a lot once again.

Please refer the below link for Camry prices in Madurai (I think this one could be nearest to your place)

Toyota - Pricelist

Also link the below link for Camry's line-up & models:

Toyota - The New Camry

This car has good ride, but, definitely is not a driver's delight. IMO you have a spoilt choice with the budget. Why don't you try few of the entry level luxury SUV's as well.

[StrangeWizard]

Originally Posted by stanjohn123

Thanks StrangeWizard. The only problem I have against the Passat is Aircon as I read from Ajmats review, which isn't up to the mark. Reliability is still a big question mark for Passat's.

Skoda Superb is too common now, though its still the best VFM. Same goes to the Accord.

I'm not sure about Teana. It's surely reliable but apart from that I have no clue. Do let me know about its price and features.Thanks.

You can get all info you need about Teana from here: Nissan Honda Accord: Honda Accord Accord Price list: Honda Car Prices India | Honda in India | Honda Car Costs

[stanjohn123]

Originally Posted by CARDEEP

Please refer the below link for Camry prices in Madurai (I think this one could be nearest to your place)

Toyota - Pricelist

Also link the below link for Camry's line-up & models:

Toyota - The New Camry

This car has good ride, but, definitely is not a driver's delight. IMO you have a spoilt choice with the budget. Why don't you try few of the entry level luxury SUV's as well.

Just went through the site and it's pretty clear that there is no 6 cylinder engine. What a bummer :-(.

So I would be ending up paying 24 lakhs for a four pot 167 HP engine. No wonder it's still exclusive.This engine is no match to the competition i believe. The V6 sold internationally is an awesome engine, too bad we dont get it in India.

No plans of buying an SUV. We have the Endeavour now.