[abhijeetveer]

Originally Posted by autocrat

Bud, Baleno original grill - INR9000 3 years ago). Original front bumper - 7000. Not sure if its worth paying a high price for Baleno - if you get it cheap its okay.

Call up and check with local MASS - as a customer looking for spares - for availability and cost of common parts and spares.

AFAIK, for Baleno the NGK plugs are also imported.

I guess the prices are okayish considering I paid around 1L to keep my palio GtX in a showroom condition. Will check with MASS tomorrow regarding the availability of common spares. I dont want to be stuck like the palio waiting for parts to come. I had to replace the front bumper to a non fog lamp bumper cuz my fog lamp got flicked and i wouldnt find a new one anywhere. That was the case of the palio. Dont really like visiting service station except for general servicing.

Originally Posted by Mr.Boss

Which year and variant? and what is the price quoted?

Quoted a lot. More than double the market price. Will be bargaining hard though I am not too good at it. Fully loaded variant Vxi. Should be the model before discontinuation 2006 or 2007. Will know all details tomorrow when I see it. Anything specific to look out for?

[Mr.Boss]

Originally Posted by abhijeetveer

Quoted a lot. More than double the market price. Will be bargaining hard though I am not too good at it. Fully loaded variant Vxi. Should be the model before discontinuation 2006 or 2007. Will know all details tomorrow when I see it. Anything specific to look out for?

Bring down the deal around 2~2.5L
For baleno exteriors & trims are the costlier affairs. Do have a detailed check before you buy. For mechanical parts there are few non OE parts available.

[abhijeetveer]

Originally Posted by Mr.Boss

Bring down the deal around 2~2.5L
For baleno exteriors & trims are the costlier affairs. Do have a detailed check before you buy. For mechanical parts there are few non OE parts available.

Will try doing that. Will be carrying cash tomorrow. Lets hope he gets lured into the deal. Dont want to go more than 2.2L as I already have 36k kms done vxi 2006 doctor owned at 1.9L willing to negotiate. So i guess the market for baleno is not more than 1.5 - 1.8L in mumbai atleast. Are the non oem parts reliable? Also what things should I check for on a less than 10k kms done car considering that it has been used on and off or sometimes been lying for months at stretch. Anything specific?

[Mr.Boss]

Originally Posted by abhijeetveer

Will be carrying cash tomorrow. Lets hope he gets lured into the deal.

Dude, any updates on the deal?

[abhijeetveer]

Originally Posted by Mr.Boss

Dude, any updates on the deal?

Hi. I accidentally landed up posting to mods. I dont know how that happened, but here it is.

Yes. Quite a weird moment. Went and saw the car yesterday afternoon. Owner was a good mid 30s guy. Showed me the car, silver color, showing few signs of aging. interiors smelt like it hasnt been opened up for ages (very different smell) ac didnt work, owner said must be gas issue. Milage on odo was 6490 kms. Everything from tyres to battery was what came with the car. Maybe needed replacement. Asked him the reason why its done so less. He said car was lying here while he works in delhi so didnt get time to drive her. Headlights were fading. Surprisingly the front grill was the old one for a april 2007 car. Checked for front shunt, none. Radiator grill looked so clean that i could eat my lunch on it. Engine bay was dusty. Asked owner how much considering that it cost u around 6 when u got it. 4.75 he said, told him not worth that much. Showed him couple of examples online on my phone selling for less than 2 he said his car is cleanest. Which wasnt the truth. Less run yes but cleanest definitely no. Had seen a doctor owned vxi which got sold due to my bad luck. Offered him 2 he refused he said atleast 4.5 i said cant be possible have come across civics sellong for 3.75 here he was like no my car is better blah blah. Asked him if we can meet somewhere in between and make it a win win situation then we have a deal. He refused to budge. Said thank you for your time, you have my number if you change your mood then you can always call me and left.

Saw a 07 sx4 zxi with stanleys with a dealer the same day. Dealer wanted 3.75L test drove the car, was fine mechanically etc. Saw papers and which mentioned 2 owners on it. Gave an offer of 3L. Dealer said will get back. No updates since then.

[yogeshnagpal]

Originally Posted by abhijeetveer

have come across civics sellong for 3.75

Hi, not sure how reliable these Civics selling at 3.75 would be. A neat and clean, single owner, non-abused Civic should be easily around 4.2. 2006-07 model.

[abhijeetveer]

Originally Posted by yogeshnagpal

Hi, not sure how reliable these Civics selling at 3.75 would be. A neat and clean, single owner, non-abused Civic should be easily around 4.2. 2006-07 model.

That is indeed true. Found a lot of cars in that range. Out of my budget though. Im now looking for corollas. There are quite a few in the price range between 2-3L. Someone pls suggest spare parts costs and maintenance etc. heard toyotas are like tanks. I also found a optra 1.8 lt model 25k kms done going for very cheap. Will that be a good buy? I also saw a sonata gold but I quite didnt like it hence never mentioned

[Zenster]

Hey Friends, I need you advice again. I am moving back to Mumbai after 7 yrs in Bangalore in July. I've sealed the deal on my current ride and will look for something once I'm in Mumbai.

Have been reading loads of treads and I guess that's got me even more confused. I'll list down my requirements and then some choices that I think are the best 'compromise'. I say Compromise because I dont think there is perfect car in our market (under 20L i guess), they all have some great and some not so great attributes.

Requirements (in order of preference):
1. Sedan (Unless its Getz CRDi or something similar) in around 4lacs, could increase the budget to around 5l but that will leave me with nothing for repairs/mods.
2. Excellent Performance: Performance to be is the best mix of shear pulling power and good handling (I'll use it mostly in the city and a monthly highway run, so its got be a good performer in both situations.)
3. Easier to Maintain. (Price and availability of parts and good A** or local mech support)
4. Decent FE ~12 (This is now important with rising fuel prices)
5. Space and Comfort (The car will carry 4 adults and 1 kid max)

Cars in Consideration so far (No test drives done yet):
1. Optra Magnum 2.0 TCDi: From all my reading/comparisons, the Optra diesel looks like the best bet. Its got mountains of torque to pull like a locomotive, its spacious , decent FE. What I dont know is how good would a 3-5 year Old Optra be in terms of Niggling issues, parts and service cost and availability etc? What all should i check in the car before buying? Need your inputs here. I know the Optra doesn't have great resale value and hence thought i could get a decent one for lesser than say a Honda

2. Honda Civic: Although the Civic has been around for a while, I still like its looks and snob-value. I've read about it having a smooth, reliable and good performer under the hood. But i've also read about Soft Suspensions and Low ground clearance. I know that Honda will be a decent A** altough parts may be expensive. Is it a good idea to buy a 5-6yrold Civic with some 60k on the odo? Would it have enough life left in it for me to exploit? Again the same question of what to look in Civic before buying an old one?

3. Cedia Sports: It looks good (looks are subjective ) and handles great. But have read about the 2ltr engine being low on power, how true is this? Also not sure of the A** and parts availability/prices. Would love to get a Blue, Yellow or Red Cedia

4. Honda City ZX VTech: This is probably a segment lower than the ones above and will be cheaper in the used market. I'm not a fan of this looks, but wifey likes it (looks are subjective, lol). What I dont know is how good a performer this one is and how much fuel does it drink?? I would only pick this if I get the ~100bhp Vtec engine. Your inputs are welcome for this one.
--------------
Below are some cars I'm not too sure about.
-Baleno (2006-2007) - This is a good performer/handler. But its been out of production for about 5 years now. And parts availability and pricing is a concern. Not a big fan of its Rear View.

-Octavia vRS - I know people who own this beast, love it and recomment it. But I'm scared about Skoda A**. And vRS are mostly driven enthusiatically which would mean more wear and tear. Plus finding a clean vRS is a treasure hunt in itself.

-Fiesta 1.6 ('S' preferably) - This is good performer but FE is not great. I dont think the 1.4 diesel version is a great performer. I'm keeping this as one of the last options because finding one is not tough (Too Common).

-Verna Crdi - This one had a good 1.5 diesel under the hood but I've heard horror stories about its handling, especially above 80kmph. Dont wanna end up wrapped around a tree.

-Getz Crdi - This is the only hatch under consideration because of what under the hood. But then finding a clean one is tough, partly because owner dont wanna sell it and partly because it didn't sell for too long. Plus handling is also a ??

The above info could be incorrect but its all what i think about the cars in the market. There could be others like the old Lancers, Ikons and esteems but I'm not at them right now. The cars are not listed in any order preference. And recommendations outside the list are welcome.

Please let me know what you guys think and help me choose. I dont plan to hasten things, I will reach Mumbai buy first week of July and am Ok to wait till Sept-Oct to find the best match.

Sorry for the long post. Please help me.

MODs: I was thinking of starting a new thread but I guess this one should be good enough. Please feel free to relocate this post if need be.

[infotech58]

Originally Posted by Zenster

...
Requirements (in order of preference):
1. Sedan (Unless its Getz CRDi or something similar) in around 4lacs, could increase the budget to around 5l but that will leave me with nothing for repairs/mods.
2. Excellent Performance: Performance to be is the best mix of shear pulling power and good handling (I'll use it mostly in the city and a monthly highway run, so its got be a good performer in both situations.)
3. Easier to Maintain. (Price and availability of parts and good A** or local mech support)
4. Decent FE ~12 (This is now important with rising fuel prices)
5. Space and Comfort (The car will carry 4 adults and 1 kid max)
...

plenty of Civics are available for less than 5 lac but they are not the best specimen available; you'd have to spend fair bit of money to get it going like new and it would never give your FE of 12 in city (8.5-9.0 is max.); plus with four adults and one kid, civic would kiss every speed braker in the town.

you would definitely get a nicely maintained NHC Vtec in that budget and would give you good FE too (around 11.5-12.0 in city driving) but it is no match to OHC Vtec in fun to drive factor. handling of NHC is nothing good to write about too.

Balenos are available for pretty cheap (2-2.25 lac for a good one) but are expensive to maintain. FE is almost equal to NHC. If i was you and could get my hands on a nice baleno, i'd go for it.

Fiesta S looks a very attractive option with the best handling among the options you have listed and you may be able to find one in good condition after fair bit of searching around; it would let you down on FE front though.

you would be able to get an Optra 2.0 TDCi at very attractive prices but make sure you find a clean piece. no idea part availability in recent times though they were expensive/difficult to source few years ago.

[Zenster]

Originally Posted by infotech58

plenty of Civics are available for less than 5 lac but they are not the best specimen available; you'd have to spend fair bit of money to get it going like new and it would never give your FE of 12 in city (8.5-9.0 is max.); plus with four adults and one kid, civic would kiss every speed braker in the town.

you would definitely get a nicely maintained NHC Vtec in that budget and would give you good FE too (around 11.5-12.0 in city driving) but it is no match to OHC Vtec in fun to drive factor. handling of NHC is nothing good to write about too.

Balenos are available for pretty cheap (2-2.25 lac for a good one) but are expensive to maintain. FE is almost equal to NHC. If i was you and could get my hands on a nice baleno, i'd go for it.

Fiesta S looks a very attractive option with the best handling among the options you have listed and you may be able to find one in good condition after fair bit of searching around; it would let you down on FE front though.

you would be able to get an Optra 2.0 TDCi at very attractive prices but make sure you find a clean piece. no idea part availability in recent times though they were expensive/difficult to source few years ago.

@infotech: Thanks for your thoughts. Your point on the Civic is noted and I'm having second thoughts since its FE and ground-clearance are not great.

You second point suggests OHC vtec is better than NHC vtec, which I suspected would be the case. But how is the upkeep of an almost 10yr old OHC? I ask since you signature says you've had one. How much do you spend on it annually for maintenance and repairs? how often do u visit the garage? How much is the FE. The only thing puttin me off when it comes to OHC is the age and its related issues.

Point taken on Baleno and Fiesta S. Baleno will cost more to maintain and Fiesta will cost more to run. Hhhmmm.

And as for the Optra, its low resale value and good engine (especially after a remap) are attractive. But will need more inputs from guys who've driven/owned her. Finding a clean one is a challenge for any car I think

[autocrat]

Originally Posted by Zenster

@infotech: Thanks for your thoughts. Your point on the Civic is noted and I'm having second thoughts since its FE and ground-clearance are not great.

You second point suggests OHC vtec is better than NHC vtec, which I suspected would be the case. But how is the upkeep of an almost 10yr old OHC? I ask since you signature says you've had one. How much do you spend on it annually for maintenance and repairs? how often do u visit the garage? How much is the FE. The only thing puttin me off when it comes to OHC is the age and its related issues.

Point taken on Baleno and Fiesta S. Baleno will cost more to maintain and Fiesta will cost more to run. Hhhmmm.

And as for the Optra, its low resale value and good engine (especially after a remap) are attractive. But will need more inputs from guys who've driven/owned her. Finding a clean one is a challenge for any car I think

Why dont you check out Linea too?

Pros:
1) 500L boot
2) proven Multijet engine
3) 12 km in city and 20 on highway per litre of diesel
4) Robust build, good handling and superb stability. Feels like a train on tracks on fast corners.
5) Performance - once you get used to the gearing its a breeze. Highway performance is very good.
6) Superb AC - must for Mumbai
7) Used car will be cheap to buy, but hard to find

Cons:
1) All of 15 feet long - not easy to parallel park.
2) Tata service - its improved but really important to maintain a good relationship with service advisors.

[Zenster]

Originally Posted by autocrat

Why dont you check out Linea too?

Pros:
1) 500L boot
2) proven Multijet engine
3) 12 km in city and 20 on highway per litre of diesel
4) Robust build, good handling and superb
5) Performance - once you get used to the gearing its a breeze. Highway performance is very good.
6) Superb AC - must for Mumbai
7) Used car will be cheap to buy, but hard to find

Cons:
1) All of 15 feet long - not easy to parallel park.
2) Tata service - its improved but really important to maintain a good relationship with service advisors.

@autocrat: Thanks for the details
I've just sold my Punto 1.2 here in Blre, so I know a lil bit about the maintenance. And after checking performance on all Punto and Linea variants, I'd only buy the Linea if its a TJET. Which probably is not going to fit in my budget. I agree that nothing Handles like the Fiat twins, but the MJD Linea is not that great a performer for the weight of that car. Hence, Linea was not in my list But thanks for your suggestion, any experience with the others?

[infotech58]

Originally Posted by Zenster

You second point suggests OHC vtec is better than NHC vtec, which I suspected would be the case. But how is the upkeep of an almost 10yr old OHC? I ask since you signature says you've had one. How much do you spend on it annually for maintenance and repairs? how often do u visit the garage? How much is the FE. The only thing puttin me off when it comes to OHC is the age and its related issues.

i had an NHC and have an OHC Vtec. it is extremely difficult to find an OHC Vtec in good condition, but once you have a nice specimen it would not call for much expense; it is a no nonsense car (less electronics) and would run forever with just regular maintenence. parts, if sourced by yourself, are cheap(er) when compared with NHC, you just need to find a trusted garage to take care of it. one thing that irritates me a lot in such an old car is rattles, i spent some time identifying the source of rattles and eliminating them and had a rattle free ride for 3-4 months, now i need to peek under the dashboard again and fix the rattling wires.
i get an FE of 12.5 KMPL; this consists of 80% city driving and 20% highway.
if you have a lot of patience, and a lot of interest in automobiles, and you can spend some time to get rid of initial problems once you buy an OHC, go with it; after that initial investment of time, it would not demand for much attention.
i have not spent a single penny on failed parts (nothing ever failed, probably i did a lot of preventive maintenence); however, i have got an overcoat done, suspension change, full service (injector cleaning, oil change to synthetic, throttle body cleaning), engine/gearbox mounts change, and clutch/pressure plate change; total cost of approx. 75-80k.

[Zenster]

Originally Posted by infotech58

i had an NHC and have an OHC Vtec. it is extremely difficult to find an OHC Vtec in good condition, but once you have a nice specimen it would not call for much expense; it is a no nonsense car (less electronics) and would run forever with just regular maintenence. parts, if sourced by yourself, are cheap(er) when compared with NHC, you just need to find a trusted garage to take care of it. one thing that irritates me a lot in such an old car is rattles, i spent some time identifying the source of rattles and eliminating them and had a rattle free ride for 3-4 months, now i need to peek under the dashboard again and fix the rattling wires.
i get an FE of 12.5 KMPL; this consists of 80% city driving and 20% highway.
if you have a lot of patience, and a lot of interest in automobiles, and you can spend some time to get rid of initial problems once you buy an OHC, go with it; after that initial investment of time, it would not demand for much attention.
i have not spent a single penny on failed parts (nothing ever failed, probably i did a lot of preventive maintenence); however, i have got an overcoat done, suspension change, full service (injector cleaning, oil change to synthetic, throttle body cleaning), engine/gearbox mounts change, and clutch/pressure plate change; total cost of approx. 75-80k.

Thanks again for the details. The rattles and preventive maintenance are the things that I was talking about when I said that Age will be an issue. My first car was a 2001 Zen and that made be do all that you mentioned above. One of the prime reasons for bumping my budget to 4-4.5lacs is to get a newer car which might not need to much attention from me and still run like a dream.

So hoping that I'll find a newer car to my liking. How I wish the OHC was continued with lil facelifts till the ANHC was launched, just like the Baleno ran till about 2007.

[infotech58]

Originally Posted by Zenster

Thanks again for the details. The rattles and preventive maintenance are the things that I was talking about when I said that Age will be an issue. My first car was a 2001 Zen and that made be do all that you mentioned above. One of the prime reasons for bumping my budget to 4-4.5lacs is to get a newer car which might not need to much attention from me and still run like a dream.

So hoping that I'll find a newer car to my liking. How I wish the OHC was continued with lil facelifts till the ANHC was launched, just like the Baleno ran till about 2007.

NHC may be the car you are looking for. cheap to run, and never gives any issues. anything else may be more problematic.