[dass]

I own a new Dzire, but I voted for Zest. If I were to buy a car today, I would have brought the Zest for the features it is offering at the cost it is listed at. I saw the Zest in real at a show recently and I did like it.
Dzire is an awesome car, no doubt and I am loving every bit of it, but for the money I paid I feel I should have got a lot more features

[Latheesh]

Zest all the way! a well packaged product with good exterior design, excellent interior design, good engine and driving mode options, excellent feature, AMT and very good pricing.

Second Choice - Xcent
Third - Dzire
Amaze - Stay away!

[GTO]

None of these compact sedans are driver's cars. They don't appeal to enthusiasts at all, hence are point A -> point B commuters. No point in looking at a manual transmission or dynamics here. I have faster cars for the highway / fun.

Keeping that in mind, I'd go for the Zest Diesel AMT, only because it's the sole diesel automatic available. As a beater to drive within the city, nothing can match the sheer convenience of a slushbox & diesel economy.

However, if the others were to come out with diesel ATs of their own (say, an Xcent CRDi AT), my choice would move away from Tata easily. My family has burned its fingers with a Tata Indigo in terms of reliability, breakdowns, after-sales & resale value. It would take a lot from Tata to regain the trust of the mass market back.

[gsurya]

Originally Posted by GTO

My family has burned its fingers with a Tata Indigo in terms of reliability, breakdowns, after-sales & resale value. It would take a lot from Tata to regain the trust of the mass market back.

My observation is that Tata had a lot of issues with Indica, Indigo & Safari.. which they significantly improved in Vista, Manza & Storme.

Vista/Manza ushered in much better quality, reliability, service than ever seen before from Tata; I believe Zest/Bolt will take them to the next level.

The new Aria is also much better than the first version & is better VFM than Innova, but much underrated & undersold.

Hope they can execute Zest well - prove long term reliability PLUS great service to regain trust.

[Equus]

Firstly, good job Tata to become a worthy contender to this list!

If its driven by me, then surely the Zest for its AMT.

Chauffer driven - I would be going with the Xcent - best fit and finish with little/no evidence of cost cutting. And Hyundai's diesels are known to be reliable, efficient and smooth!

[Turbokick]

I think its pretty early to decide on Zest as the product is still all new compared to tried and tested competitors. I think its easier to vote than decide for a product.
As much as we loved the product in terms of Zest, we still are skeptical about the Tata though we sincerely hope that Tata ends up superseding our expectations.
This poll reminds me of Dzire vs Amaze thread where Amaze got overwhelming majority while perception somewhat changed later thanks to NVH levels of diesel and cost cutting bits.

Similarly I would rather wait for while before concluding on the product (Yet to even test drive the car. I am sure many of the people who have voted too havent test driven it !)

For the time being
1. For Petrol I would choose between Xcent and Dzire
2. For Diesel I would choose between Zest and Dzire (Mjd makes it easier to opt for Zest)

[pahwa]

Going by Tata's reputation, I think its too early to make a decision about the Zest. I think it will take an year for Zest as a product to mature and evolve. Knowing Tata Motors from past experiences, I would not spend my 6-8 lacs on Zest this soon.

Amaze and Dzire are equally good or bad. Xcent seems to be a better package overall with fresh looks and more premium interiors.

[Eddy]

I am in the exact situation and contemplating my next car. Unfortunately, there is atleast one major compromise in all the cars and that's confusing me as hell.

Amaze - NVH and a bouncy rear ride
Dzire - Poor ergonomics for short drivers like my wife
Xcent - 3 cylinder engine
Zest - Risk with a Tata v1 car.

Not voted, since I have still to make up my mind. The only thing reasonably sure is that Zest if out for the time being.

[9thsphinx]

Voted for the Zest, however, there are little chances I'd end up buying any car from the C1 segment any time soon.

For a potential buyer though, the Zest makes a fantastic value for money proposition. Tata has the right product this time around, all that needs to be taken care of is the A.S.S and they're back into the game! Won it by leagues actually.

[VeluM]

Voted for the Hyundai Xcent. I'm currently evaluating a car for someone else in the family, and since I will not be driving the car, I have a relatively unbiased view of which car to choose.

Despite the assurances made by Tata, I will not put my money or recommend that anyone I know buy the Zest, because I know I will be held accountable for the choice should things go bad in future either with the car or during service. Check the Storme Official review thread (recent posts by ebonho) to see how much better Tata Service is getting.

I've also come to realise how much quality fit and finish mean in the ownership of a car. Features are fine, but the Xcent beats everything else hollow in quality interiors, at its price.

Finally, I voted for the Xcent because I don't care much for diesels and would always pick a petrol. In this, the Tata petrol is un-tested, and from all speculation, is a stop-gap while they come up with a better (more modern) engine. The Xcent petrol is a gem and well suited for the weight of the car.

[rdhawan15]

Voted for Zest because of the value-for-money proposition; further, I have a feeling that its overall build quality and strength would be better than those of Xcent or Amaze.

[harry10]

Originally Posted by Eddy

I am in the exact situation and contemplating my next car. Unfortunately, there is atleast one major compromise in all the cars and that's confusing me as hell.

Amaze - NVH and a bouncy rear ride
Dzire - Poor ergonomics for short drivers like my wife
Xcent - 3 cylinder engine
Zest - Risk with a Tata v1 car.

Not voted, since I have still to make up my mind. The only thing reasonably sure is that Zest if out for the time being.

If you aren't in a hurry I will suggest wait a couple of months so a clear picture regarding the Zest comes out as people take deliveries. Otherwise Xcent seems to be a better package among all.

[fusionbang]

My vote goes for THE Zest.

I would say a best in class product by an Indian company. As far as sales & service is concerned, if TATA can come up with premium offerings & service to their customers similar to the interest they have shown in getting this car on the road, it would be a grand success for them.

IMO Diesel Automatic (first in segment) would surely attract more buyers.

PS: TATA - Hope for the best

[torque!!]

I voted for the Zest. But even when I was clicking the button I had Tata's reputation at the back of my mind. That factor will be much more magnified when I am presenting a check that stands for real hard earned money. I hope Tata also delivers on customer service, A.S.S and reliability. Yes and reliability does include a niggle free experience.

[PrideRed]

I have voted for the Zest. Tata has made serious efforts with this one and oh boy it is well ahead of the competition.
Slightly OT:
Myths related to the above 4 cars:
1. Dzire is cheapest to maintain. Completely false, If you are not educated enough, Maruti dealers do a day light robbery. My colleague ends up spending 10-15K for every 10K on service of his Petrol Ritz.
2.Hyundai cars are fuel efficient and powerful: I had tried my hands on i10 Kappa and i20 Magna(both petrol). Man I had to push it like crazy to keep in the powerband(I10 was slightly better). After a trip to Wayanad in i20, we got FE of 11KMPL. A drive in A star immediately after i20 drive felt like a rocket. The Xcent drives with same petrol engine. The diesel doesn't have great reviews.
3.Honda means reliability and quality: A car is a car. The mechanicals and electrical's do fail. I have seen a lot of Honda city with AC failure, Power steering failure etc. Oh yes they are rattle masters. They are reliable but nothing significant compared to other successive cars. And yes they aren't significantly more Fuel efficient as well.
4. Tata after sales/service is pathetic: I have seen poor A.S.S with all manufacturers. I always believe sales and service has nothing to do with Manufacturer, it solely depends on user and dealer. If one has good relationship, then the dealer is bound to get good reviews.

P.S: These are based on my experiences.