[srs_shetty87]

Honda should really start seeing red with the launch of Aspire.
The top end Amaze, is down by a huge margin in terms of equipment and interior, compared to the equivalent Aspire, but costs the same!
Time is right for Honda to begin huge discounts soon, before Amaze goes off people's minds completely.
Good looks, engine and quality to boot, Ford has a winner on their hands.

Poor Tata, no matter what they have been doing, they just can't seem to repeat their past sales numbers.

[KreativeGeek]

Thank you a4anurag for compiling a detailed comparison list covering all deciding points for a potential compact sedan buyer, quality of Team-BHP reviews with summary of pro's and con's put together go way beyond most automotive portals and car comparison sites.

Ford Aspire wins my vote as a first time owner of a diesel and CS car.

[Doge]

Originally Posted by Grand Drive

Ford Aspire Titanium plus for diesel and Hyundai Xcent Sx(o) for petrol will be my pick among the listed sedans.

Request to Mods : Can we have a separate poll for petrol and diesel sedans?

I would've agreed with this but now after the crash tests? Not a chance.
Would go for the Zest in petrol.

[rsm97]

As generally agreed, its tough to pick single best over all the categories. My picks -

Diesel Manual - Aspire
Petrol Manual - Zest
Petrol AT - Umh, not sure
Diesel AT - Zest

Hence, IMHO, Zest may be categorized as overall winner.

[vinit.merchant]

Originally Posted by GTO

Among petrols, it would be the Xcent 1.2L. Quality, refinement, equipment & very smooth - the perfect city commuter. Hyundai's reliability & fuss-free after sales round it up nicely.

The Amaze has too much cost-cutting, the Dzire is too old and the Zest - well, I'm still not convinced about Tata's long term reliability (having burnt my fingers with an Indigo earlier).

Agreed on the quality part but the recent crash test results of the Grande i10 make it a sore point on the Xcent. Dzire is no different.
Hence my curiosity is - How would the Zest fare in the crash test? There is no way one can know of it right now. Maybe it will get a "0" too, but it "feels" safer than the Maruti's and the Hyundai's. Is there anything out there for evaluating the Zest on safety?

I would always be curious on the Petrols. My running per year is too low. Hence the query.

[GTO]

Originally Posted by vinit.merchant

Agreed on the quality part but the recent crash test results of the Grande i10 make it a sore point on the Xcent.

Until all the 5 compact sedans in the thread title are crash-tested, it's hard to say if one is safer than the other.

If one model has been crash-tested with poor results, we shouldn't conclude that the other (non-crash tested) model is safer. They're all the same.

[Doge]

Originally Posted by GTO

Until all the 5 compact sedans in the thread title are crash-tested, it's hard to say if one is safer than the other.

If one model has been crash-tested with poor results, we shouldn't conclude that the other (non-crash tested) model is safer. They're all the same.

Going by how the I10 fared against the Figo should give us an idea. Also,the Aspire has six airbags which will give it a fair advantage over others. Aspire may not be as well built as other Ford's but neither was the Figo to me.

[Ashdel]

Originally Posted by srs_shetty87

Honda should really start seeing red with the launch of Aspire.
The top end Amaze, is down by a huge margin in terms of equipment and interior, compared to the equivalent Aspire, but costs the same!
Time is right for Honda to begin huge discounts soon, before Amaze goes off people's minds completely.
Good looks, engine and quality to boot, Ford has a winner on their hands.

Poor Tata, no matter what they have been doing, they just can't seem to repeat their past sales numbers.

I second this, Honda is doing good with their Diesel engines in City (which is a world car like Toyota's Corolla) generations after generations. Honda needs to understand the gap between the sales numbers of approx. 4K units vs Swift Dzire's 18K per month and if they really want to make the best of their only Diesel engine offered, Amaze needs to be transformed completely and should be out of the Brio series.

[anand.shankar]

I would choose a Zest D XT Automatic.

Reasons :

>Car feels well built, and hardly see any obvious cost cutting.
>Spacious interiors, feels plush.
>AMT in manual mode is any drivers dream come true at a low cost of ownership and maintenance.
>I have owned 2 Indicas (Xeta and DLG NA), apart from minor niggles they were the most cheap to run, abuse friendly cars that I have a owned. So, no, I am not scared of Tata

2nd : Aspire with a tire upgrade

3rd : Xcent

[gauravdgr8]

For me it has to be the Zest in the diesel category. Have not test drove the petrol extensively.

Overall package is complete VFM. Relating its reliability to Indigo is just an excuse not to even try the Zest.

How and why should we compare 2003 technolgy to a 2014 technology.

[Doge]

Originally Posted by gauravdgr8

For me it has to be the Zest in the diesel category. Have not test drove the petrol extensively.

Overall package is complete VFM. Relating its reliability to Indigo is just an excuse not to even try the Zest.

How and why should we compare 2003 technolgy to a 2014 technology.

Well, 2003 is not an era where cars were unreliable. It's not the technology which is the problem,its the quality control. And also the ASS too.

[Sheel]

Originally Posted by GrammarNazi

Since I'm OK with spending a day once or twice per year with the car during the service & have a patient temperament, I can manage if I chose the TATA Zest.

Its top end XT variant has :
Max features in the segment at the best price,
warranty & extended warranty and AMC is good to have
and smooth & quick processing of warranty claims makes it better
and also the spare parts are cheap (availability is usually not an issue either).

All I see is, service priority. So it is destined that it is going to spend more time/days at an ASC? Have you tried other brands? Have you tried Tata in North/East India? Have you tried a Hyundai/Maruti/Toyota or a Honda for warranty claims? How can you single out Tata here? And if parts are costly, do they fail as easily as others [having cheap spare parts]

but wants a good design uses only for office-runs & doesn't mind moderately high service bills even during warranty period, I'd go eyes closed with the Ford Aspire.

Have you taken a Ford [Figo/Classic] for service? Which component of a Ford in regular service is priced above than that of its competition?

[GrammarNazi]

Originally Posted by Sheel

All I see is, service priority.

I mentioned it has the best features in the segment, what more? Do I start laying out Zests' specifications again? Its on the 1st page & it was our T-BHP car of the year, so I'm sure most members know!

So it is destined that it is going to spend more time/days at an ASC?

WHO said that!? Every car needs servicing once a year. In my case, if I've used the car extensively (as I clarified in the post), say 20-25,000 km/yr, I'd surely have to visit the service center for atleast a day for changing things like oil, filters & running repairs additionally as per the service schedule.

Personally for me, spending the day (or maybe 1, 2 or even 3...) at the service center for (based on my usage, whether yearly once or yearly twice) the car that'll take me places, isn't too much to ask.

Maybe not in your case, but this is a personal poll which'll disclose our names, so I said what I personally prefer & why, based on the service experiences I've faced (& having seen how the ASC functions) in the past 5+ years of having owned a Tata Nano & a little over 2 years of owning a FIAT.

Have you tried other brands?

My Linea doesn't spend a minute without me at the service center. I've mostly had excellent experiences with the A.S.C. and I know they take reasonably decent care of cars whose owners aren't staying back, but I still like to stay & see if (Ex.)the suspension tie-rod actually needs changing, or can hold up for a while or if the Air Filter needs to be blow cleaned or changed altogether.

Have you tried Tata in North/East India?

Why should I ? I live in South India.

Have you tried a Hyundai/Maruti/Toyota or a Honda for warranty claims?

I remember reading about some car owners of other brands facing delays in warranty approvals, at times because the ASC was very specific if it was covered or not. I don't keep such instances bookmarked.

I've witnessed this, having come across numerous instances with friends & others at various ASCs, where warranty approvals for FIAT take abit longer as compared to how liberal & quick Tata's ASC's in Bangalore seem to be.

How can you single out Tata here? And if parts are costly, do they fail as easily as others [having cheap spare parts]

Who said!? Compared to my FIAT, Tata spares are definitely cheaper even though both are meant for the same 1.3MJD. Whether filters (Air / Oil / Diesel), fluids (oil / brake fluid / coolant), mechanical components like cam-shaft etc. its all cheaper at TATA.

Have you taken a Ford [Figo/Classic] for service? Which component of a Ford in regular service is priced above than that of its competition?

Go ahead & search the forum for the details you seek, its available. I see no reason for you to bombard me with this query.

Say if its mentioned in general that Maruti has a wide service network, do you hold a knife to that person and demand if that fact means there is an insufficiency of service centers of other brands ? I request no further personal attacks.

What I've expressed is feedback based on my personal experiences.

[null]

I personally feel the front grille of Aspire may will not be desired by everyone - esp when you move out of the metros. I for example, like & would want to own the smiling face of zest against the frowning open mouthed face of an aspire (based on the photos here).

Coming to TDCi vs MJD engines, I personally felt that MJDs are more fun to drive compared to the TDCis based on my limited experience. TDCi is not as easy to drive in dense traffic conditions is my perception. Having driven my cousins Figo TDCi, I would always prefer the Swift MJD & Ertiga for in-city or long drives.

Price conscious people will always think about the extra $$$ that need to go out and would think multiple times about the Aspire. I have a image that Ford maintenance is expensive (I have never owned a ford) compared to Maruti or a TATA. This comparison will work negatively against the Figo IMO.

So, net-net, my vote goes to Zest Diesel against the Figo Aspire Diesel. To be frank, I feel bad for TATA to lose out on such a competitive product they have on their hands. Like I had mentioned in another thread, a little bit of sprucing up of their dealer chain - for both sales & service, by following a concept like NEXA for their non-commercial cars (read as Zest, Bolt, Aria) in major cities - will take them up the list by leaps & bounds.

[puneeth2]

How I wish the results of this poll to translate to real world sales figures. I find Dzire and Amaze downright ugly and yet they are sold in huge numbers. Xcent is good looking car and a good one overall, sells decently too. What surprises me is that Zest and Aspire being such good cars sell so much lesser than the rest. Given a chance, I would happily buy a Zest or an Aspire. Agreed that Marutis and Hyundais have a larger dealer network, lower cost of ownership yada yada yada. But shouldn't the car be reason for a purchase than the brand it belongs to or dealer network it possesses.
Harsh reality of Indian automotive sector, that's what I'd say