[Romeo_Mike]

You have mentioned AT as a criterion, despite mentioning that the car is going to be used mostly by your parents being chauffeured around. So I'm guessing MT is not an option.

The first thought would obviously be to replace a long held Honda with a Honda - So the 5th Gen City V CVT fits the bill.

For the second thought however, if you aren't hell bent on spending all of the 15 big ones, may I add the MS Vitara Brezza ZXI+ AT to the mix, for the following reasons -
- Listed at 12.89 L OTR Delhi
- One of the better built Marutis with Balanced Ride quality
- TC AT though archaic more likely to be abuse friendly (for a chauffeur driven car)

[Flyer]

Originally Posted by kushagra452

Budget: ~15L OTR (Delhi)
Fuel: Petrol
Transmission: Auto

The car will be used within Delhi NCR by my parents (both 60+ years), who will mostly be chauffeured around the city.

Looking forward to reading your suggestions. Thank you.

It will be better if you mention weather you are looking for a sedan or crossover type vehicle. It will be easier to pinpoint a vehicle.

Since I'm a sedan guy I would suggest you sedans. If you have another car and this will be chauffeur driven mostly, go for Toyota Yaris. It has a CVT auto. It won't be fun to drive but it will be easy to keep and maintain. Even the mid variants come with automatic.

If you intend to drive this car often, my suggestion will be to wait for automatic Vento/Rapid.

[The Rationalist]

All this talk about long term reliability should not be the only criterion, off late most cars are reliable. After owing 3 Maruti's and 2 Ford's I didn't find much difference between the brands. And getting in and out of sedans and hatchbacks are not that difficult as it is being made out here, my dad an 81 year old travels in a Figo. He has difficulty climbing into SUV types. It all depends on how your parents fitness is and their preferences. Let them decide based on their use case.

And I won't blindly believe any manufacturer when it comes to safety, unless they have crash tested their Indian models. So forget about ASEAN NCAP, IIHS, Euro NCAP, they are all different models for those countries. The onus is on manufacturer to prove that Indian versions are equally safe. It will take them to give 2 or 3 cars for crash testing by GNCAP, peanuts is you ask me considering the publicity they will get. If they are not doing it, there is something which is not right.

[ravi1ravi]

I have just booked a Maruti Nexa XL6 Petrol Auto, Top of the Line for Rs. 13.50 Lacs, on Road Mumbai.

Being a Hybrid, expected to give an average of 12 - 13 Kms in City. Looks Better than the Ciaz.

BTW, you are getting a discount of Rs. 1 Lakh on the Toyota Yaris. They have a model which has 3 Airbags (Compared to 7 in moth other veriants) for Rs. 13 Lakhs, on Road. You will have to add your own Music system & reverse camer in this though. Which the dealer provides for Rs. 30k.

Cheers/ Ravi

Originally Posted by kushagra452

Hello BHPians

I am looking to replace my 2004 2nd gen Honda City GXi (16 years, 83k kms) and exploring options for the same. My requirements are as follows:

Budget: ~15L OTR (Delhi)
Fuel: Petrol
Transmission: Auto

The car will be used within Delhi NCR by my parents (both 60+ years), who will mostly be chauffeured around the city.

Looking forward to reading your suggestions. Thank you.

[NarediAni7518]

I would suggest check out the 5th gen city , or go for the Korean Cousins. You won't regret buying anyone out of these three. 1

[neil.jericho]

Why not the Tata Nexon AMT? You will get Tata's build quality, great comfort and high safety levels.

[robbie_KL]

I would suggest the XL6. Its a petrol and a maruti so will be easy to live. It comes with a torque converter that is again more reliable than any of the modern automatic gearboxes. And lastly even the top model will come in way below your 15 lac OTR budget. As a bonus it has captain seats in the middle row, ingress and egress with be easy, comes with loads of space and is comfortable too.

[akash_v12]

I'll recommend checking out the Hyundai Creta SX/Kia Seltos HTX IVT/ Maruti Ciaz Alpha or the Brand new Honda City. Since your parents are going to be chauffeured listed out the 2 sedans too. Out of this, the Ciaz is the best for comfort IMO.

[.HEM]

I would suggest XL6, for the following reasons:

1. Primarily used by your aged parents, as the they dont need to climb or crawl to get into the rear seat. They can just walk into the car.
2. Chauffeured around, It will feel great, to be chauffeured in an XL6 as the middle row knee room will put many high end cars to shame. The captain seats are a bonus!
3. Will fit your budget, and has an AT transmission.

[blackasta]

Although it costs far lower than your budget, did you give the Triber AMT a thought?
The second row of the Triber gets individual fore-aft adjustment, B pillar mounted AC, individual seat reclining settings. So if one doesn't intend to use the third row, it's a huge hatchback with gigantic boot.
The Triber has good reviews, and there's no harm in checking one out.

[karanddd]

What's the fastest car you can buy new for under Rs. 15 lakhs? I am guessing either the Polo or Rapid turbo petrols or the Seltos turbo petrol? The Seltos possibly costs more.

I drive a hand-me-down 2011 SX4 petrol with 70k on the odo. I believe the car makes about a hundred horses and gets to 100 kmph in 11-12 seconds. No doubt the SX4 is not really much of a handler, but nevertheless there don't seem to be any new cars that are significantly faster. The Rapid makes 108 bhp and I think gets to 100 in around 9-10 seconds. Although I'm sure it handles infinitely better than the SX4, the performance numbers are hardly anything to get excited about.

What are Indian enthusiasts to do in this current scenario? There are no affordable sports cars or hot hatches you can buy new. I like cars a lot and I love driving but as someone who doesn't have 30-40 lakhs to plonk on a new car, the possibilities of owning a fast car appear dim. Almost every new car launch is an SUV or crossover with baloon like looks that takes 12-13 seconds to the ton.

I am tempted to sell the SX4 and save up and buy a Polo but the fact that it's a two generation old design that'll nonetheless cost a lot to maintain and might even throw up some serious and costly issues before getting to, say, 70k, is disheartening (the SX4 has asked for nothing but basic servicing so far).

I guess I just wish there was something low slung that made 150 horses and weighed around 1100 kilos. With somewhat contemporary (even if ugly) looks.
I realise that India is not much of an enthusiast's market but why isn't there anything at all?!

Some may suggest getting the previous model Civic and I probably will do that out of desperation at some point, but that car looks so goddamn dated. It was cool to look at when I was in school. If I buy one now I'll feel like I'm going back in time.

I apologise for the negative tone of this thread. I am curious as to what you guys think. Are there any upcoming launches that may scratch the fast car / driver's car itch? I know the crossover craze is not going anywhere, but still is there anything else coming that a person should get one's hopes up for?

[MadinMumbai]

I’ve got a similar question. Over the last 15-16 years we’ve been Honda customers. Had two Citys and one Brio. Replaced the 2004 City GX with a 2012 City CVT. Been happy-ish for the most part. Except for the Brio- love the ease of driving it but not so much the underpowered 2nd gear. Also, the build quality of the Brio has been poor. Rain water seepage (in the 3rd year) from both sides of the roof has been a disappointment. Not sure if that’s an indication of Honda going downhill.

Currently looking to replace 2012 Honda City CVT. The daily commute is about 20-25km. Mostly bumper to bumper Mumbai traffic. So, the natural thing would be to just trade in with the 2020 Honda CVT.

But...and here is the rub, Honda (and Toyota for that matter) has been a disappointment in terms of their newer launches and I can’t help but wonder if the other’s (Koreans) have caught up with them in quality. Of course when I see a 8 year old Honda City parked next to a similar age Verna the difference in build quality is clear to see. But I wonder if, while Honda was static, the Koreans have stepped up their game. They most certainly have in the options they are putting out.

I have also been debating going into Compact SUV territory. Would have been a simple decision if Honda had a product in that category. I would categorise requirements from the new are as follows:

Budget- around 15 lac OTR in Mumbai.
Requirement- Automatic transmission.
Mostly city driving with a couple of outstation (400-500kms) trips a year.

So here are the choices I am trying to narrow down to.

Honda City- this is a no brainier. Pros and cons are well known to me.
Kia Seltos AT- I like the shape and size but not entirely sure about the build quality and long term ownership reviews of KIA are yet to come in. Don’t know if FE is about the same as Honda City, which is poor at 8.8 KMPL on our car.
Hyundai Creta - Everything to like except for the name.
Tata Harrier AT- pricier than I’d like but looks good.
Renault Duster AT- Seems outdated but I read good things about the new turbo engine.

Am I missing anything? Would you recommend anything different?

[lamborghini]

Originally Posted by MadinMumbai

Of course when I see a 8 year old Honda City parked next to a similar age Verna the difference in build quality is clear to see. But I wonder if, while Honda was static, the Koreans have stepped up their game. They most certainly have in the options they are putting out.

I have also been debating going into Compact SUV territory.

Budget- around 15 lac OTR in Mumbai.
Requirement- Automatic transmission.
Mostly city driving with a couple of outstation (400-500kms) trips a year.

So here are the choices I am trying to narrow down to.

Honda City- this is a no brainier. Pros and cons are well known to me.
Kia Seltos AT- I like the shape and size but not entirely sure about the build quality and long term ownership reviews of KIA are yet to come in. Don’t know if FE is about the same as Honda City, which is poor at 8.8 KMPL on our car.
Hyundai Creta - Everything to like except for the name.
Tata Harrier AT- pricier than I’d like but looks good.
Renault Duster AT- Seems outdated but I read good things about the new turbo engine.

Am I missing anything? Would you recommend anything different?

In my honest opinion, the Koreans have caught up & probably beaten the Japanese in a few areas.
They offer mature ride & handling, brilliant engine & gearbox combos, top notch safety, and generally are quite well built.
In comparison, my opinion is that most mass market Honda's have become tinnier, started showing some niggles. While they are still very reliable, most of it is due to technology that hasn't been updated to what competitors are offering for similar pricing (Turbo petrol engines, DSG, etc.)

It hurts me to say this - I despised Hyundai when they initially came into India, and love my Toyota's - but personally the number of models that are relatively true to the roots are few and far between.

Coming to your options, here are some thoughts:
1) Kia / Creta : I have officially been converted to crossovers & the like looking at Mumbai's road conditions. They offer better visibility, easier to park (shorter length), have a better engine / gearbox combo, and are well spec-ed. These would be my first pick, however unless you would really enjoy the better performance of the 1.4T + DSG combo - the more reliable CVT option would be the choice for Mumbai traffic.
FE will NOT be better than your city, but should be similar.

2) Base trim Civic: Better build quality, attractive discounts, and arguably more of an upgrade from the City. FE will be closer to 7.5 - 8.5kmpl in city

The Tata Harrier, though a fantastic product - it boils down to how particular you are about niggles / average service support. However, the Harrier is effectively a segment above the Creta / Seltos : a Compass rival with excellent safety, ride & handling, etc.

The Duster is simply too dated. No other way about it.
The new city is a great overall car as well, but nothing that really stands out about it.

[MadinMumbai]

This is very helpful. Thanks.

My history with Korean brands dates back to a Daewoo Cielo I bought when it was first launched. The pricing was great - almost 65% of the City but it started falling apart on the 13th month of buying it. First to go was the electronic windows and retractable antenna and a bit after that the silencer went and the AC knocked off. In the long run the 35% I saved on the City was well and truly made up. So, fear of a cheaply built package is deep rooted. To make matters worse the company shut shop and left us without spares. I sold a 6 year old car for 47k. That said Hyundai and Kia are different companies and have probably caught up with the Japanese.

[kushagra452]

Dear BHPians

I am in the market for a petrol automatic in the ~10L-15L budget. However, I do understand that in the next 3-5 years the Indian auto market should have a few (if not several) EV options from Maruti/Hyundai. Additionally, given the fact that fuel prices are about to touch triple digits, one can not rule out retail prices to touch (or even cross!) Rs.200/litre in the coming 4-5 years.

Therefore, I am keen on purchasing a car which I can keep for 4-5 years before making the transition to an EV.

Which cars are worth considering?

Kindly note that, I already drive a Swift VXi AMT and have a 16 year old Honda City GXi (in great running condition!).

Thanks!