[SedatedDrive]

Pete'd Toyota Corolla Altis (remove the Pete box when being chauffeured) > Skoda Laura > VW Jetta > Chevy Cruze.

[vb-saan]

Originally Posted by akhilesh51

Pre-Requisites
1. DIESEL
2. High Fuel Efficiency (You kinda know this from first choice)
3. 18L max ex-showroom
4. Decent Resale
5. Rear Seat Legroom (Chauffer Driven , sometimes )
6. Decent Power / Torque

Competition
1. Toyota Corolla Altis
2. Chevy Cruze
3. Skoda Laura
4. VW Jetta
5. Fluence.

From the given set, option 3 and 4 look like the best options. If budget permits, go with the L&K Laura TDI (there maybe discounts there), or Comfortline Jetta TDI. The former looks like a better option if you want a fully loaded car with DSG, and the latter gets the vote if resale value has higher weight (being a newer car in the market).

And I would suggest to do a TD of the Fluence E4D as well. The engine maybe just 1.5L, but no harm in checking if there is anything in it which excites you. Its fully loaded, and quite spacious as well. On the point of engine being used in Verito – exclusive engines probably is a thing of past. Being used in a Verito or a Micra may not be as bad as it looks. Just to give an example, A 1.6L engine with different state of tune is the one doing duty in entry-level Peugeot/Citroen hatchbacks, to the sporty Mini Cooper S or BMW 118i.

So my vote is in the given order Laura > Jetta > Fluence.
Happy shopping!

[ghostrider]

Originally Posted by akhilesh51

Pre-Requisites
1. DIESEL
2. High Fuel Efficiency (You kinda know this from first choice)
3. 18L max ex-showroom
4. Decent Resale
5. Rear Seat Legroom (Chauffer Driven , sometimes )
6. Decent Power / Torque

Competition
1. Toyota Corolla Altis
2. Chevy Cruze
3. Skoda Laura
4. VW Jetta
5. Fluence.

Considering the new Cruze is out (27th June), does it come back into your list? Going by what you've listed as your priorities, it ticks the right boxes.

1. It's got the most power among the all the contenders you've shortlisted.
2. It's got the most torque.
3. It's got the most toys.
4. The two main gripes people had about the car (turbo-lag, rear seat's too upright) have been largely addressed in this new model.
5. The resale's pretty good.
6. The FE's pretty good too.

Some of your statements about these cars sound like second-hand opinions, to be honest.... pre-conceived notions. No car is perfect, the trick is to buy the one which is perfect FOR YOU. Which is why no matter whatever advice you get on the forums, you absolutely HAVE to do test drives on all the cars you've shortlisted. Otherwise you're just choosing a car based on someone else's perspective, not yours.

My two cents: Your options are the Laura and the Cruze. The others are either under-equipped and underpowered (Fluence, Altis) or under-equipped and overpriced (Jetta).

[.anshuman]

^^ Yes Jetta is under equipped for the top end variant, but let's not forget even the base variant comes with all the Airbags including side and curtain airbags and ESP as standard. I'd pick safety equipment over fancy gadgetry any given day.

[n.devdath]

Originally Posted by akhilesh51

3. Skoda Laura - It is another car that ticks most of the right boxes and is genuinely the most sensible option on paper... mind you, ON PAPER! Skoda has come a long way from our romance days and it just isn't the same trusted partner, more like a Vamp for those tele-series. Good one second, and ferociously scathing just another. Moreover, it is also like the wife who like to stay at her parent's home (workshop) more than her sasural.Bewafa Sanam.

Not essentially, especially with the face lifted Laura, reliability has been a given, in 99.9% cases, including the DSGs and the manuals have been 100% reliable. Skoda service has improved by leaps and bounds, at least at all major cities.

I would recommend this over any other car in its segment in its DSG avatar and Elegance variant.

Skoda in India, IMO is "Hum bewafa hargiz na the, par hum wafa kar na sake".

[shankar.balan]

Originally Posted by n.devdath

Skoda in India, IMO is "Hum bewafa hargiz na the, par hum wafa kar na sake".

What does this sentence mean?
Is it from that old film Shalimar with jingalala and all that? I saw it in the 70's but beyond the base plot, didnt understand too much.

[Durango Dude]

Skoda Laura Diesel, it is. Whatever the Service quality when it comes to this 15 L segment Skoda rocks. Of course, goes without saying it's got to be a diesel. Resale: forget resale, with new cars coming in, for any car to hold on to a "good resale" would be difficult.

[drmohitg]

Originally Posted by akhilesh51

Pre-Requisites
1. DIESEL
2. High Fuel Efficiency (You kinda know this from first choice)
3. 18L max ex-showroom
4. Decent Resale
5. Rear Seat Legroom (Chauffer Driven , sometimes )
6. Decent Power / Torque

From your options and the shortlisted cars I would rate them in the following order:
1. Jetta
2. Altis
3. Laura
4 & 5. Doesn't matter

Jetta: The car is absolutely stunning to look at from all angles. The rear has most common folks mistake it for a Audi. The interior space is surely as good as the Altis if not better. Its one of the best car to drive. The interiors are good with solid built. The lack of ACC is the only thing that you will miss but then its a small compromise if you ask me honestly.

Altis: Its spacious and is the most reliable in the lot. Perfect if you are chauffeured most of the times. On paper its the most underpowered but drive it and you will see that it will do the job without bothering you much. Don't expect it to win any races though. Also not ideal if you would be doing a lot of highway drives since you would need to downshift a lot of times while overtaking.

Laura: Nice alternative to the Jetta but its been around since so long. Also Skoda somehow has got a lot of negative vibe attached to it but all that depends on how you feel about it.

Originally Posted by ghostrider

4. The two main gripes people had about the car (turbo-lag, rear seat's too upright) have been largely addressed in this new model.

6. The FE's pretty good too.

Its too early to comment on the rear seat space. I doubt if its going to change much. The problem isn't just with the headspace but even the legroom is at a premium too when compared to its segment.

Secondly the FE is horrible. All my friends and family who own a cruze haven't reported back FE of more than 10-12 kmpl. The other cars in the segment return around 17-19 kmpl which is a huge difference.

Originally Posted by n.devdath

Skoda in India, IMO is "Hum bewafa hargiz na the, par hum wafa kar na sake".

Couldn't have summed it up better.

[n.devdath]

Originally Posted by shankar.balan

What does this sentence mean?
Is it from that old film Shalimar with jingalala and all that? I saw it in the 70's but beyond the base plot, didnt understand too much.

It essentially means "I was never a bad person (unfaithful) but I could not prove myself (faithfulness)"

[shankar.balan]

Originally Posted by n.devdath

It essentially means "I was never a bad person (unfaithful) but I could not prove myself (faithfulness)"

From that Shalimar film?

Yes now I can appreciate it. Skoda is a bit more sinned against than sinning I think, in general.

[ghostrider]

Originally Posted by drmohitg

Its too early to comment on the rear seat space. I doubt if its going to change much. The problem isn't just with the headspace but even the legroom is at a premium too when compared to its segment.
Secondly the FE is horrible. All my friends and family who own a cruze haven't reported back FE of more than 10-12 kmpl. The other cars in the segment return around 17-19 kmpl which is a huge difference.

No one I know with a Jetta or a Laura gets 17-19 in the city.
My Cruze gives me between 12-13 in city conditions with the AC on all the time, and I've got no complaints. One of my closes friends drives a Laura (with a light foot) and gets 11 despite the fact that his engine is about 40 horses down on mine.
Lets not have any preconceived notions about whether room in the rear of the Cruze changed sufficiently or not. Maybe it has, maybe it hasnt.... but the OP needs to figure out what car's good for him by personally TD'ing them.

Yes the Jetta's nice to look at but at the end of the day you spend all your time INSIDE the car, not outside it. And on the inside you've got fewer toys and creature comforts than you'll find on a 6-lac i20 or Swift. Say what you want but at the end of the day the creature comforts matter tremendously.

[suhaas307]

Think outside the box.

How about a used Skoda Superb. Why?

- Diesel
- rear-seat comfort is phenomenal. Besides, it's priority for you.
- If you look hard, I'm sure you'll find well maintained examples for 15 lakhs. Maybe a '09 Superb with around 30-40k on the clock?

If a used car isn't your deal, then I'd suggest a Laura or a Cruze.

[shankar.balan]

Originally Posted by suhaas307

Think outside the box.

How about a used Skoda Superb. Why?

- Diesel
- rear-seat comfort is phenomenal. Besides, it's priority for you.
- If you look hard, I'm sure you'll find well maintained examples for 15 lakhs. Maybe a '09 Superb with around 30-40k on the clock?

If a used car isn't your deal, then I'd suggest a Laura or a Cruze.

I would go a step further too though I really like Suhaas' suggestion of the Superb. I would venture to suggest an used Merc or Passat even! One should be able to pull off a middle aged E Class if one looks hard enough, especially up North.

[Nitrous Power]

Originally Posted by akhilesh51

[b]Pre-Requisites
1. DIESEL
2. High Fuel Efficiency (You kinda know this from first choice)
3. 18L max ex-showroom
4. Decent Resale
5. Rear Seat Legroom (Chauffer Driven , sometimes )
6. Decent Power / Torque

Based on your Pre-Requisites, Toyota Corolla Altis D is the choice for you.

1. Diesel: Altis got the Diesel.
2. High Fuel Efficiency: Altis is the most fuel efficient among the competition. (And by a big margin, due to smallest engine out there)
3. 18L max ex-showroom: Correct me if I am wrong but, I think top end model is just below 18L ex-showroom.
4. Decent Resale: Which one of these can beat Toyota when it comes to Resale Value, NONE.
5. Rear Sear Legroom: Again, no competition can match Altis as far as Rear Seat Legroom and Passenger Comforts are concerned.
6. Decent Power / Torque: Puny 1.4 L produces 90 BHP, far cry from competition. However, Engine is mated to 6 speed manual with nearly perfect matched ratios.

I suggested Altis D keeping in mind that Power/Torque is last priority for you based on your Pre-Requisites. However, if power is your criteria then Cruze or Laura is the way to go.

OTOH, as Suhaas307 suggested, do consider pre-worshiped Skoda Superb, 320D or 250 CDI.

[drchernish]

Well it couldn't get any more confusing than this-I think a purchase in this segment is a nightmare of choices,now more so than ever with the new cruze.And this is going to get even more nightmarish with the launch of elantra by hyundai around diwali.This is coming straight from the heart as i am a prospective buyer in this segment(my verna will be 5 years old by then).
Can somebody put up ex showroom prices in comparison of all the models being discussed here(all variants included)?That will be very helpful for orientation among the various price points.