[acedriver_9000]

The Porsche Panamera may indeed feel more special and exclusive. Enthusiasts generally like Panamera, and coupled with Porsche's decent reliability, it would have a better resale value, I think. At what price are you finding a well-specced Panamera? Also, what are the waiting periods like?

[niruvrs9669]

Honestly, if I were to be in this dilemma, I would upgrade my city of living to a country where automobiles can be experienced on better roads without having to pay CBU taxes. If not completely relocating to another country, I would add self drives with different cars in different locales to my frequent travel itinerary every now and then .

Also, nowadays driving a very premium luxury car in overly congested Indian cities actually gives a perception of lower IQ levels of such owners to a general observer. Just my view.

[morphin1]

Originally Posted by acedriver_9000

The Porsche Panamera may indeed feel more special and exclusive. Enthusiasts generally like Panamera, and coupled with Porsche's decent reliability, it would have a better resale value, I think. At what price are you finding a well-specced Panamera? Also, what are the waiting periods like?

So the Panamera I am speccing is coming to around 1.9 cr ex showroom which will go to 2.15 on road.(This Panamera will miss all of the below features)

Bmw 7 series will cost 2.05 cr with additional features like all seats heated and cooled, all massage seats, rear massive screen, automatic doors, iphone like controls on doors .

Originally Posted by niruvrs9669

Honestly, if I were to be in this dilemma, I would upgrade my city of living to a country where automobiles can be experienced on better roads without having to pay CBU taxes. If not completely relocating to another country, I would add self drives with different cars in different locales to my frequent travel itinerary every now and then .

Also, nowadays driving a very premium luxury car in overly congested Indian cities actually gives a perception of lower IQ levels of such owners to a general observer. Just my view.

I agree bro this would be ideal, move to Dubai and rent a new car every year, but alas not all of us have the luxury to do this.

[guyfromvalley]

Would you mind sharing the reason on why you are selling the Defender, I mean if the reason has go to do with the car.

I sold my P300 HSE a week back. Mine was a fully specced car with all off-road tech customised at the time of buying. It was not a model that JLR got to India. I sold because of some personal reasons but I will again buy a Defender 100.

However, interesting to share here is that I will go with a more powerful engine. I had decided to go with the P400 engine. JLR recently shelved the engine and they probably are replacing it with the V8 P425, dialled down a bit.

My experience with Defender has been nothing but sheer joy. Yes, it has had some small issues but nothing that a reset did not fix (look at it as a windows computer and all you have to do is a restart. Restart happens with double clicking the lock button on the remote and waiting for 10-15 odd minutes).

The P300 engine is a joy and so is the 8 speed ZF. It pulls linearly and beautifully. But, but the engine is just about enough. There is this little bit of a power expectation one has that at times one feels lacking. No it is not a deal breaker at all but just a mind thing.

If anyone decides to buy a defender, it is a great car. Also, if a lot of folks want me to do a full review of the car, happy to do that as well.

And yes JLR had plans to build the car in India but it has not moved at a pace it should have. So it remains to be seen if they execute on that plan soon enough

[ajmat]

Originally Posted by niruvrs9669

Honestly, if I were to be in this dilemma, I would upgrade my city of living to a country where automobiles can be experienced on better roads without having to pay CBU taxes. .

Also, now a days driving a very premium luxury car in overly congested Indian cities actually gives a perception of lower IQ levels of such owners to a general observer. Just my view.

Believe me, you get the same perception in London

[morphin1]

Originally Posted by guyfromvalley

Would you mind sharing the reason on why you are selling the Defender, I mean if the reason has go to do with the car.

It is indeed a very good car. I am getting rid of it for following reasons:
Back seat is very bad, its a back breaker.
Too many Defenders been seen on road now.
I would like to sell it before it gets a CKD kit as that will hit resale values.

Cheers.

[guyfromvalley]

Yes, the back seat is not the most comfortable, at least in the 5 seat version. The 7 seat version gets a bit of adjustment but not much. Having said that I have always been the front seat but family travelled in the back and we drove a few thousand km on a couple of occasions and it was manageable.

Why don’t you try the new Range Rover Sport. That is way more comfortable and equally capable in case you are still wanting an exceptional off-roader.

In terms of exclusivity, in the suv segment, I think JLR tops the chart. BMW or even a Porsche down not come close to a RR. But car choices are very personal.

[morphin1]

I did consider the RR Sport, but it did not feel very special compared to the Defender.

Finally going ahead with the BMW.

Panamera is an exceptional car, but I feel BMW provides more bang for the buck, plus in black it looks menacing.

I do not feel like putting in an extra 40 lakhs of loading in the Porsche which will push it to 2.4 cr on road, out of my budget.
If I spec a basic Panamera then it feels very boring from the inside.

Will keep you guys posted once I get the 7, hopefully should be soon.

Back to BMW after 2 years.

Thanks to everyone for the help.

[androdev]

Congratulations. Good decision. 7 Series is perfect for your needs except for the resale part. In this segment, it's very hard to avoid depreciation loss. Who in their right mind would pay 20-30L less and buy a 1.7-1.8cr one year old car instead of a new one for 2cr? Your best bet is to buy the car that appeals to you and retain till a model update is launched in India. In that sense, I feel 7 series is a very good choice.

BMW has gone to great lengths to make this generation 7 series a truly special package. All cars in this segment come with air suspension and adjustable ride height that should help with ground clearance to deal with the usual urban speed breakers and ramps.

[Hells Bells]

Originally Posted by guyfromvalley

If anyone decides to buy a defender, it is a great car. Also, if a lot of folks want me to do a full review of the car, happy to do that as well.

Please do, particularly coverage of the service experience as well as the perceived lack of reliability.

[acedriver_9000]

Originally Posted by morphin1

I did consider the RR Sport , but it did not feel it was very special compared to the Defender.

I've seen RR sport and felt it was on par with full size RR in the latest gen. Why didn't it feel special to you? Can you please elaborate.

[morphin1]

Originally Posted by Hells Bells

Please do, particularly coverage of the service experience as well as the perceived lack of reliability.

First service cost was 55k .
No reliability issues so far .
I think perception is just bad when it comes to reliability that’s all .

[Bhaiturbo]

I’m very Intrested in your review as we are in the market looking out for a new luxury SUV.

Thanks in advance.

[Pier39]

Firstly, Looking at 7 Series vs Cayenne - Both have a heavy cost depreciation and you will never see daylight in terms of re-sale value. Except for the fact Porsche can give you a slightly reasonable trade-in (low mileage over the years and covered under Porsche Warranty(extended)provided you meet the conditions laid by them prior to the purchase.

7 Series operation cost per year will cost you roughly around 8 lacs (7.42 L insurance and BMW BRI/2,00,000 KM 40,000rs (avg). Note - that the 7 Series is prone to frequent faults.

Cayenne on the other hand will cost you similar but still manageable for the 1st 5 years as it wouldn't prone to repairs. Cayenne's driving experience is totally unmatched - hands down the best driving machine out there. Couple of my friends own the Cayenne (2019), Boxster (2009) and 911s Turbo (2020). They are so reliable and Porsche's maintenance cost depends upon your car and how you maintain them - unlike BMW they don't drive the prices up unreasonably. Porsches are built to last.

If you are looking for tested technology, reliability and greater driving dynamics - suggest you to go for Cayenne instead of the 7.

[morphin1]

A big thank you to everyone .
I have finally gone with the 7 .
It’s a beast in both looks and depreciation
Will be posting an Initial review .
Thanks again everyone