[audioholic]

Originally Posted by damager21

On one hand while we all are comparing pricing with Ertiga and believe that 1.27 lacs premium for top variant diesel is not justified for more space, better engine and better fuel efficiency, doesn't the price seem justified when compared with Innova where Mobilio is cheaper by a whopping 5 lacs. No doubt Innova is a superb product which offers better space, built, engine and features than Mobilio, but is'nt 5 lacs too much.

Comparing the Mobilio/Ertiga to the Innova isnt a feasible thing just going by the fact that the seven seats wont be used always. In that case, one can always go by what GTO or others said, ie rent a seven seater when required and own a small car.

The Mobilio package looks absurd because it is lying in between Ertiga and Innova, and thats the issue. At least, though Maruti is perceived to be of a not so good build quality, here I can easily claim that the Ertiga doesnt have the degree of cost cutting that the Mobilio has. Something like the Etios does. They cant take a Brio platform and price it way above the Ertiga based on the swift platform that too with no improvements made to the interiors and equipment.

If according to you a person can buy a Mobilio and brio for the price of an Innova, the same person can buy an Ertiga and Swift or an Ertiga and WagonR and save one lakh too As a seven seater neither the Mobilio nor Ertiga come close to Innova, but for practical use, the Ertiga has a better third row.

IMO, if the Mobilio arrived prior to Ertiga, it would have gained numbers at the current price too, since it would have the first mover advantage. Here, people looking for a Honda product can always buy the better City, else save a couple of lakhs by buying the Amaze. Personally, apart from the great exterior looks and the engine, there is nothing exciting in the Mobilio after their premium pricing.

Originally Posted by a4anurag

Maruti would be laughing to bank and now I see a facelift for Ertiga to secure their position in the UV segment.

Advantages of the Mobilio is just a decent engine and drive ability but seeing the prices the sales chart will be in water for the Honda. I can see another Jazz fate of the Mobilio. The UV segment is budding and very sensitive to prices and features with Maruti having a good hold now. Honda will be forced to give a price cut quick.

Exactly. At least for the first time Maruti didnt skimp on ABS in lower variants. Moreover the VDi and VXi arent as stripped down as the Mid end Mobilio.

Since Maruti has a price window of more than one lakh without even discounts, all they need is an equipment upgrade and still they could price it below Mobilio
Looks like Honda went into the coffin themselves and a face-lifted Ertiga is just its lid.

[a4anurag]

Originally Posted by audioholic

Since Maruti has a price window of more than one lakh without even discounts, all they need is an equipment upgrade and still they could price it below Mobilio

Looks like Honda went into the coffin themselves and a face-lifted Ertiga is just its lid.

I just noticed something:

1) With the difference in 'L':'E' variant one can buy a Activa.

2) With the difference in 'VX':'SX' variant one can buy a Vespa.

3) With the difference in 'VD':'SD' variant one can buy a Pre-owned WagonR or such cars.

4) With the difference in 'ZX':'VD' variant one Alto 800.

I am only comparing the Ex-showroom prices. Once the OTR is known heaven and hell difference will come out.

With the difference between OTR Delhi : OTR Bangalore, one can buy a Alto 800.

I am still laughing.

Anurag.

[oli.ferns]

Seems like the delta is higher for the diesel, prices are ex-showroom Delhi.

[D4D]

Good comparison sir. No doubt, Honda's vehicles on the Brio platform have a lot of cost-cutting. Ertiga is miles ahead in quality in so many departments. Only the Engine of the Mobilio seems better(Both Petrol and Diesel.)

Originally Posted by paragsachania

The way Honda and Maruti has managed to conceal the seat belt warning wires:
Attachment 1265747

This is just plain ugly for 2014 cars. How much does it cost to get a ribbed plastic covering?

[Axe77]

On a lighter note, here is Maruti's latest online ad for the Ertiga. The ertigas are selling themselves out of the Maruti showrooms based on this. Lol.

[prancinstallion]

I'm so fond of Honda's legacy that it makes me cringe every time they stray from the path of their own standards. Amaze was a case in point which tested my thesis to an extent. Mobilio is the latest to join the club.What a shame!

Presuming that market forces started determining its plans, Honda certainly squandered a great opportunity to give its loyalists a compelling option both in terms of Price and Product. The timing was perfect for Honda to grab the limelight getting itself incremental volumes on the back of Amaze(I still can't wrap my head around the name) and City, in a sub-segment which left quite a lot to be desired. Ertiga barely tested the potential of this segment, Hyundai is still at the drawing board and excuse the rest of them.

The pricing is deja vu which has already earned enough criticism to spoil the post-launch party. It could have buoyed the hype surrounding Mobilio had Honda been a lil measured with its audacity.

Honda's brand equity would take a hit this time around. Nevertheless, Mobilio may still appeal to many a discerning customer who swears by the reliability Honda offers as opposed to the bells&whistles of its competitors.

With an underwhelming Mobilio, I got a feeling that 'Jazz' cannot go wrong this time around. Honda can't afford it afterall.

Hope many of us would be less critical of Mobilio when we actually get a first hand experience of it.

Cheers,

[Pyrotek]

Quick comparison of Bangalore's on-road prices on the Mobilio, Ertiga, and City:

PETROL
Ertiga ZXI - Rs. 9,30,000
Mobilio V -Rs. 10,63,000
City V - Rs. 10,89,000

DIESEL
Ertiga ZDI - Rs. 10,76,000
Mobilio V - Rs. 11,88,000
City V - Rs. 12,63,000

Looks like the Mobilio and City Petrols are almost within spitting distance of each other. If the lure of seating 7 people is not so much, I think most folks walking into the Honda showroom looking for a Mobilio will probably change their mind for the City instead.

On the other hand, the Ertiga now has a free hand. The Mobilio, while extremely competent, will find itself hard to justify a 1.2 - 1.3 lacs premium over the Ertiga.

I cannot fathom how, after all the platform sharing, Honda decided to price this car so. Good luck to them. It's an appealing machine, but not for the asking price.

[adimicra]

The pricing may be really optimistic on Honda's part but can someone explain to me why such a wide difference in price across the variants.

There is a difference of 70K between the E variants of Mobilio and City whereas difference in price between V variants is only 20K.

It seems Honda has become greedy once again.

[drmohitg]

Insane pricing. One would have thought that Honda must have learnt there lesson when they effectively killed an excellent car like the Jazz. But they have dared to do that again.

With the current pricing, the only car I see getting hurt is the Honda city. The Mobilio is cheaper, more spacious and is priced less. Also the dimensions are same as the city.

[bejoy]

Excellent review. Very detailed and thorough as usual.

Disappointed with the price though.

However, it may be remembered that Honda came back from close to extinction in India. I am sure they would have worked through the pricing after much study. They were running a lot of product shows across the country and would have amassed feedback. There is a lot of interest for this car among the public. Honda might be hoping to turn this to sales. Again may be their target is less? Production constraints?

The 'introductory pricing' strategy though would have increased the booking count, but may work against them too, ending up with delayed deliveries and frustrated customers.

[aaggoswami]

The car is, well, based on an Asia-specific platform. Does not inspire confidence. Brio was already not having solid build. My grand i10 feels more solidly put together. Amaze also felt flimsy ( my uncle has one, have driven it on normal single lane highways and fast motorways in critical times ) and now I wonder how does this extended car feels like. The images comparing or depicting Ertiga and Mobilio clearly indicate the size difference, atleast physical size difference.

The worst part is that a 4.5 lakh rupee car has basically same interiors and physical appearance as does a 10 lakh rupee car ( highest diesel variant of mobilio ).

Going by the images and description, Mobilio has fit and finish worse than even my 4 year old Wagon R. Things have moved forward and honda has actually taken a step backward. Even hatchbacks like Grand i10 and i20 have better fit and finish. Ertiga also has an edge over Mobilio in this dept.

Mobilio makes me wonder where will they place Jazz. Brio, Amaze and Mobilio already cover a lot for Honda. Additoin Jazz will be a tough market placement for Honda. Rs. 4.5 lakh to Rs. 11 lakh are well covered by all three Brio and its derivatives. Jazz, with similar engines will make a mess IMO for Honda and may well again hit sales failure.

[Leoshashi]

Honda has messed up again with its prices. However I don't think that it will tank as badly as the Jazz, since it has a diesel option. But I can see Honda City gaining a bit and Ertiga has no real competition now. Honda killed a potential performer right at its birth.

What Maruti needs is a facelift for the Ertiga and from what I have heard, Maruti might launch the facelift with Black-beige interiors similar to Dzire. This will depend on how their recent limited edition Ertiga is received, which has dual tone interiors.

[Hvt77]

Awesome launch ceremony, nice audio-video effects etc, wish the car being talked about also had something good about it!

But, not only did it not have anything awesome, it gave shocks after shocks of ridiculous proportions!

2nd row sliding only in top end? seriously??

No ABS, no airbags, in base petrol variants? Only Diesels ply the highway and need them? Who are you kidding Honda?

Ok, none of those features, fine, so how much cheaper is it than the Ertiga? What, 70k costlier? For what? That H-badge? Ok, its supposed to have Q-D-R etc behind it, but the car doesn't reflect the Q part of it, and D-R can only be gauged 5 yrs down the road.

Somehow the whole thing feels so half-baked / rushed, the quality issues, the poor specs and variant design, pathetic pricing!

And as I have mentioned before, my hope was that they would launch the CVT variant too, which they have not. Plus, at this pricing, even if they launch in future, it might go well above 10 lakhs ex-showroom Delhi!

So, nothing great in the car right now, and no hopes for the future too!

If I may add to RSR below:

Originally Posted by RSR

Hey, MSIL! Do you want to score another goal against Honda, to add to the misery of its own goal? Then launch an updated Ertiga with a mild facelift, more striking tail-lamps, more appealing alloys/wheel caps, a better interior colour scheme, 50-50 split folding rear seats with a better head-rest design and more features (Bluetooth enabled music system, climate control, electrically retractable mirrors, reverse camera, LED DRLs and a driver airbag on the lower variants) without increasing the price too much. Honda will then be forced to re-think its ridiculous pricing strategy!

MSIL, please add AMT or normal AT as an option to what RSR has suggested above. Here's a suggestion: just divert, 5 of those AT Ertigas you are already manufacturing in gurgaon (and shipping off to Indonesia), one each, to the 5 metros in India, to start with. And check the response. Am sure you would be able to see the huge pent up demand for automatic 7-seaters here!

This thread is for the Mobilio, but am so going OT to congratulate and wish all the best to the Ertiga now!

[GrammarNazi]

Originally Posted by oli.ferns

Seems like the delta is higher for the diesel, prices are ex-showroom Delhi.

So in the price of TOP RS model Mobilio, if you pay just 20k more, you could get the TOP model Honda City!

Different (6-speed) gearbox, different dashboard, all kinds of bells and whistles!

And RS stands for Rally Sport, what on earth does an MUV have to do with rally sports!!

[acidkill]

I still dont get the blanket fuss about the pricing. The analysis of the pricing and some important features brings up some interesting results. ..

For the lower model, where The Mobilio has a premium of about 25k in the petrol and diesel versions:
1. In mobilio You get Central Locking, Power windows, Front Speakers, more boot space and the 3rd row reclines and does all its tricks (over and above what is available in the Ertiga Lower spec)
2. The engines are bigger and famed in the Mobilio
3. The ertiga has better interiors.
4. The space in mobilio is better

Result: The Mobilio may well be better value in the lower spec of this contest!

For the middle model, the premium is about 50k in petrol and 31k in diesel, but you get:
1. Mobilo gives Steering audio controls , rear defogger over the Ertiga's middle variant
2. Ertiga gives front fog lamps, but mobilio doesnt
3. Ertiga gives ABS for petrol variant, Mobilio doesnt

Result: Grandfathering the factors discussed about interiors and engine in the lower model, i think the diesel is just about better value in the Mobilio. But for petrol, the Ertiga begins to get a clear edge in value. Petrol contest solely depends on whether you accord more value to Hondas engines and assurance.

For the higher model, the premium is about a lakh in the Mobilio

I can only conclude that the input cost of Airbags, Rear wash wipe, and Alloys in the Mobilio is seriously expensive in comparison and helps ertiga gain an edge the VFM contest.

Result: No discussion reqd. The higher spec model is a contest that is purely Honda Engines & Assurance Vs. Suzuki VFM