[GTO]

Originally Posted by PrasannaDhana

I have a beautifully maintained, absolutely reliable, comfortable and frugal 95,000 km run 2015 Maruti Ciaz ZDI (non SHVS).

Though I completely love the Ciaz, have no complaints about it, the itch to buy a new car has always been there since a few months.

Because your car is kept well and you are happy with it, you MUST retain it for another 2 - 3 years (more the better). Changing your car every 4 - 5 years means wasting a lot of money in depreciation, especially if buying new (not much of an issue if bought used).

My suggestion is:

Retain the Ciaz, use it for 2 more years (1.5 lakh km) and then upgrade to 2021 Rapid.

Never know, maybe some other car might also launch in 2 - 3 years which catches your eye.

[gpadki]

I live in Namma Bengaluru and own a 2006 Ford Fiesta petrol. I dont drive around regularly much as i am prefer riding in the traffic. However i use it to drop my kids to school regularly which is about 3 kms and about 50 kms over the weekend.It's run about 55K Kms so far.
I maintain my vehicles very well,Fiesta is still awesome to drive but since its aging, i was thinking that i will need to replace it sometime soon.
Coming back to dropping my kids to school, that roads from my home to the school is horrible (worser during rains) and generally the roads in Bangalore are in very bad shape.
Driving on these roads, i feel a new car will also go through the same abuse, so what's the point in buying one? I think it will be more economical to maintain my good ol Fiesta.

I need some inputs on

1. Whether it makes sense to go for a new one or not?
2. Even if so, i have to buy a new one, which car (~10L) has the best bottom to take the abuse by our roads?

Cheers

[rajivtelang]

Originally Posted by gpadki

I need some inputs on

1. Whether it makes sense to go for a new one or not?
2. Even if so, i have to buy a new one, which car (~10L) has the best bottom to take the abuse by our roads?

Cheers

How much are you spending per year on the maintenance for last 5 years? Please do a math and make your call.
As far as the GC is in question on small car, go with TATA Tiago NRG petrol (and not normal Tiago), a perfect and comfy city car. 180mm GC good enough to protect any damn speed hump or pothole in BLR (I hope since after my buy I have not had any scraping for last 4+ months on all same roads where my Santro used to cry for more GC). Just above 10 Lakh you have tons of SUVs with huge GC, but that is your call considering your budget and low runs.

[gpadki]

Originally Posted by rajivtelang

How much are you spending per year on the maintenance for last 5 years? Please do a math and make your call.
As far as the GC is in question on small car, go with TATA Tiago NRG petrol (and not normal Tiago), a perfect and comfy city car. 180mm GC good enough to protect any damn speed hump or pothole in BLR (I hope since after my buy I have not had any scraping for last 4+ months on all same roads where my Santro used to cry for more GC). Just above 10 Lakh you have tons of SUVs with huge GC, but that is your call considering your budget and low runs.

Thank you @Rajivtelang, the issue is not only about the GC, it is about which car is built best to take such roads ? I mean the suspensions, the brakes, tyres, everything that faces the road.

[VWAllstar]

Apart from the mathematical calculations, there is also some emotional connect which is built over a period of ownership. I feel this makes it more important but only for older generations. My grandfather bought our first car a Fiat Padmini and kept it as if it will be our last. It went through an accident and multiple minor issues but was never stopped from being pampered.

Today we but a car with a set expiry date. The innumerable options with better finance makes it easier to change cars every 3-5 years.

Moreover, not a very technically erudite person but I feel companies themselves dont build cars which would last more than 7 years top.

[rajivtelang]

Originally Posted by gpadki

Thank you @Rajivtelang, the issue is not only about the GC, it is about which car is built best to take such roads ? I mean the suspensions, the brakes, tyres, everything that faces the road.

Again I find TATA Tiago NRG as a perfect one (excellent suspensions, wide tyres, good brakes and Tata's build quality etc.) after driving Estilo and Santro as city cars for years. It may be too early to comment too positively on Tiago this way personally since I am owning it for only 4 months. Having said that I went through huge number of reviews of Tiago and being a Bangalorean like you I decided to go with this car after driving the low GC cars.
I have an Ertiga, 2016 model with 185mm GC. I found that perfect for Bangalore and hence decided to with NRG which has the highest GC in the entry compact segment. I found everything perfect for my need. (Including budget, it was ~7lakhs on road and got 2.2 lakhs for my 7 year old Santro as exchange)
My recommendation is to have test drives multiple times of your new potential car/s and then make a choice (but there is no compact car with this much GC, perhaps Kwid is an exception but its build quality is not as good). (All true if you are planning to get rid of your long runner )

[Sam.k]

I can seriously do better with some help here.Bought a used 2009 Jetta comfortline dsg in 2015 which had done 97k kms and and has done 1.5L kms till date.the 1st two years had been a breeze and the last two has been a love hate relationship with the car.Love it for the space,ride dynamics,tank build ,safety kit,loaded features etc. The last 9 months have been hectic though.Spent close to 3L on Mechatronics,dual clutch & flywheel,Rear suspension, and coolant system overhaul. Now,there's a chance of either a simple blown head gasket or complete head overhaul which might range from either 10k - 80k depending on the diagnosis.I dont know if i should sell it or retain as as it ill hardly sell for 3-3.5L only after having spent so much effort,time and money.

on the other hand,im considering buying an automatic hatch for 6-7L by exchanging the Jetta.I know its a major downgrade and i can live with it,dont have much qualms over it as i would be at peace for the next 5 years.But,i dont see myself buying anything eve lose to the jetta in my lifetime.

regards
Sam

[hserus]

I would say take it to a competent FNG instead of to a VW dealer for elderly Germans.

You have already spent almost as much as a new hatchback on that thing. So spend just this much more and then drive it till its ready to be scrapped.

Originally Posted by Sam.k

I can seriously do better with some help here.Bought a used 2009 Jetta comfortline dsg in 2015 which had done 97k kms and and has done 1.5L kms till date.the 1st two years had been a breeze and the last two has been a love hate relationship with the car.Love it for the space,ride dynamics,tank build ,safety kit,loaded features etc. The last 9 months have been hectic though.Spent close to 3L on Mechatronics,dual clutch & flywheel,Rear suspension, and coolant system overhaul. Now,there's a chance of either a simple blown head gasket or complete head overhaul which might range from either 10k - 80k depending on the diagnosis.I dont know if i should sell it or retain as as it ill hardly sell for 3-3.5L only after having spent so much effort,time and money.

on the other hand,im considering buying an automatic hatch for 6-7L by exchanging the Jetta.I know its a major downgrade and i can live with it,dont have much qualms over it as i would be at peace for the next 5 years.But,i dont see myself buying anything eve lose to the jetta in my lifetime.

regards
Sam

[greendream]

Originally Posted by Sam.k

I can seriously do better with some help here.Bought a used 2009 Jetta comfortline dsg in 2015 which had done 97k kms and and has done 1.5L kms till date.

Three lakhs is a considerable amount of money you have already spent. Please take your car to FNG who specialises in Volkswagen/Skoda. Get an assessment regarding the probable future expenses as your car is 10 years old and done considerable mileage.It is understood that your car is an expensive sedan when bought new, so your spares and maintenance will be high accordingly.
Good to know that you’re prepared for a downgrade. Yes, you have spent enough money to buy you an entry-level car on your repairs.But then again,if your purchase was a sweet deal,considering it to be a six-year-old German, you certainly saved some money.If peace of mind in car ownership is your primary concern now,the money you saved buying used and the years of trouble-free service and pleasure the car gave you is a trade off for the three lakhs you spent on its repairs recently.
Don’t be in a hurry to dispose it, as the depreciation will be little from now on. If a competent FNG gives a reasonable estimate for the future expenses, keep the car.The key here is the mechanics competence with the German stable.
Still if you feel the unpredictability of future expenses is bothering you, change the car. At the end of the day no amount of advice professional or personal can buy you mental peace. It’s how you look at it That matters.

[greendream]

Originally Posted by gpadki

I need some inputs on

1. Whether it makes sense to go for a new one or not?
2. Even if so, i have to buy a new one, which car (~10L) has the best bottom to take the abuse by our roads?

1. In your case it doesn’t make sense to buy a new car. Your usage is very minimal. If you feel that your car is old and hence want to change it, then it’s a different matter. As you have stated that your good old car might as well take the abuse of the 3KM daily rather than a new car doing it, it is obvious that you are clear in your mind.
2. Most of the compact SUVs should do the job as far as tackling the urban roads is concerned. Further more any hatchback with decent GC IF driven properly is good enough. If you start contemplating about the available options you might find that the list has a good number of contenders.If you are keen on selecting something from that list go for Hyundai or a Maruti,as you have a tendency to keep your cars for a long time.Resale value does matter.

[itwasntme]

Originally Posted by GTO

Because your car is kept well and you are happy with it, you MUST retain it for another 2 - 3 years (more the better). Changing your car every 4 - 5 years means wasting a lot of money in depreciation, especially if buying new (not much of an issue if bought used).

@GTO: In a quandary w.r.t. my immaculate Octavia 1.8 TSI done 52K km & 3.9 years on a 7 year SBI loan.

Leaving out the itch factor totally I am nearing the end of the 2 year EW and although Skoda will honour DSG replacement, I may need to spend on medium cost stuff like brake discs, air-con compressor etc.

Loan outstanding is ~13L and potential resale (ballpark) is ~12L in BLR.

Keep or replace?

[MrBeast]

Hello All,
We have a 9 year old Santro Xing GLS CNG in the family which has run about 1,10,xxx KMs and is primarily used by dad for city commute purposes. The second car in the family is a Ford Aspire which is mostly used by me.

Since past few months, there has been a long standing dilemma about replacing our Santro with some other small car. Dad uses this car for his business purposes and for some local errands. This car has been extremely reliable, apart from a couple of small niggles, which I will be talking about shortly. A major service was done at 1 Lac Kms including a suspension overhaul and other small additional services. The clutch was replaced around 1,04,xxx Kms and apart from this, there has been no mechanical issues since the day we brought the car home. In the past years, we have not made any insurance claim and the car still has its original factory paint. The CNG kit was installed by the Hyundai dealer, as back then, Hyundai was not offering any factory-fitted CNG cars. The CNG kit regular maintenance check was done at around 80000kms, around 1.5 years back along with the cylinder hydro-test.

The only major issue with the car in past couple of years, has been the radiator fan relay getting short circuited. The short-circuited relay (as per our mechanic) was always replaced by a genuine relay and so far, even after all the checkups, we are not able to find the root cause of this issue. Last time, I bought a relay from the MGP store and so far, even after 4 months of its use, its working perfectly fine. Apart from this, there was a problem during the cold start, and upon inspection, we found that a spark plug was not working. This problem has not surfaced again.

The insurance will be due in a couple of months and the tyres too are at the end of their life cycle. Since the resale value of the car is also depreciating and the BS VI norms are set to be implemented early next year, dad and I feel that we should consider replacing the car, so as to prevent maximum financial stress.



The car which is being considered right now is the Hyundai Santro Era. Since it will be used by dad in the city, which happens to be Delhi, we are not looking for any extensive feature list and we are getting all our basic requirements in the Era variant. Since the Santro is not a fast seller, we are getting some significant discounts on the car.
However, we are also considering the Grand i10, which again is a great car, but dad loves the high seating of the Santro, and thus he is more inclined towards the latter.


Now, I hope I have made all of you aware about the situation. So the main question is whether we should replace the Santro right now or after 2-3 years as the car has no major issues and has been extremely reliable to us. Secondly, will it be better to buy a car right now, or during in the month of December or before the BS VI norms are to be implemented? Lastly, the most important question, what should be the resale value of our Santro?

[Geo_Ipe]

Originally Posted by MrBeast

The insurance will be due in a couple of months and the tyres too are at the end of their life cycle. Since the resale value of the car is also depreciating and the BS VI norms are set to be implemented early next year, dad and I feel that we should consider replacing the car, so as to prevent maximum financial stress.



The car which is being considered right now is the Hyundai Santro Era. Since it will be used by dad in the city, which happens to be Delhi, we are not looking for any extensive feature list and we are getting all our basic requirements in the Era variant. Since the Santro is not a fast seller, we are getting some significant discounts on the car.
However, we are also considering the Grand i10, which again is a great car, but dad loves the high seating of the Santro, and thus he is more inclined towards the latter.

So the main question is whether we should replace the Santro right now or after 2-3 years as the car has no major issues and has been extremely reliable to us. Secondly, will it be better to buy a car right now, or during in the month of December or before the BS VI norms are to be implemented? Lastly, the most important question, what should be the resale value of our Santro?

I used my 2005 Santro Xing for close to 13 years and 93k km. The car was always serviced at Hyundai service centers. She did not require any suspension work or a clutch replacement till I sold her last year. Battery was changed once and she was on her 3rd set of tyres. I sold her to a close friend for 1 lac.

Do you need to replace your Santro now?
No you do not. The Xing is an extremely reliable car. The 1.1 lit motor has beautiful low and mid ranges, driveability in the city is unmatched. With all the work you have done, she should be good for another 40-50k km of trouble free ownership.

Is this a good time to replace your Santro?
Probably yes. With BS 6 looming in the background and the general slowing down of the automotive industry, the time to buy a new car is NOW. If you can wait till December, expect the discounts to get bigger, especially for slow sellers.

Since you are keen on another Hyundai, do check the new Nios out. It's well kitted, more future proof than the Santro and will be the perfect upgrade from the Xing.

[rdst_1]

If the car is working perfectly, as it seems to be, I see no reason to replace it as it is just 9 years old. You don't have to worry abour renewing RC for another 6 years. With the way our economy is going down, I would advise to not put undue burden/EMI on yourselves. That alone is not the reason, but it seems to be prudent to not take unnecessary loans in the current scenario.
I currently drive a 2002 Fiat Palio and have driven 1.6L kms and since the car is still working perfectly apart from small niggles, I still find no reason to change it. I just got front shockers and all 4 tyres changed as well.

[greendream]

Originally Posted by MrBeast

The insurance will be due in a couple of months and the tyres too are at the end of their life cycle. Since the resale value of the car is also depreciating and the BS VI norms are set to be implemented early next year, dad and I feel that we should consider replacing the car, so as to prevent maximum financial stress.



The car which is being considered right now is the Hyundai Santro Era. Since it will be used by dad in the city, which happens to be Delhi, we are not looking for any extensive feature list and we are getting all our basic requirements in the Era variant. Since the Santro is not a fast seller, we are getting some significant discounts on the car.
However, we are also considering the Grand i10, which again is a great car, but dad loves the high seating of the Santro, and thus he is more inclined towards the latter.


Now, I hope I have made all of you aware about the situation. So the main question is whether we should replace the Santro right now or after 2-3 years as the car has no major issues and has been extremely reliable to us. Secondly, will it be better to buy a car right now, or during in the month of December or before the BS VI norms are to be implemented? Lastly, the most important question, what should be the resale value of our Santro?

Looks like your family is keen on changing the car. The test drives, taking offers, and deciding the best option, all have been completed. CHANGE the car, would be my answer.

Your santro is in prime shape. You have done all that is necessary. This will reflect in better resale value compared to others of same age and mileage. Depreciation,well it already is heavily depreciated and going forward it will be nominal. Yes, new tyres, insurance and you are good to go. But then, a new car is a NEW CAR. You welcome that car, appreciate the new features, relish the smoothness of engine etc. and people are talking about it. Few things money can’t buy.

Dads do deserve the best.

Get that santro AMT. You can’t go wrong. Borrow it when you are not in the mood for a manual.