[Aditya]

Skoda Rapid

What you'll like:

• Most fun-to-drive C2 segment sedan on sale today. Begs to be driven hard!
• Brilliant 109 BHP 1.0L TSI engine is an enthusiast's delight. Mated to a slick 6-speed MT
• The Skoda Rapid's European build quality is more solid than the competition's
• VFM pricing. We feel that the Rapid is well-priced for what it offers
• Mature suspension offers a balanced ride & best-in-class dynamics
• Strong safety rating, 4 airbags & good brakes
• Still looks great. Old, but timeless, clean & classy
• Features such as rake & reach steering, cruise control, auto headlamps + wipers, adjustable driver armrest, tinted windows...

What you won't:

• The Skoda Rapid is a 9-year old car based on the 11-year old VW Polo. Cabin feels outdated too
• Horror stories about Skoda's after-sales service
• 1.0 TSI’s refinement is poor at high rpm (it’s satisfactory at regular revs)
• Unknown long-term reliability of this complex turbo-petrol engine
• Horrible, cheap & buggy audio system in the Style & Monte Carlo variants. Replace it
• Tall rear floor hump will annoy the 5th occupant
• No diesel and no automatic in the Rapid (AT is expected in a few months though)
• Missing features: Android Auto / Apple CarPlay, keyless-entry-go, oldschool MID, LED headlamps, basic 4-speaker ICE, sunroof...

Link to Official Review

Honda City

Link to List of Initial Observations

Link to Launch Thread

Hyundai Verna

What you'll like:

• A true all-rounder. Styling packs appeal too
• The overall package is well-priced. Offers good value for money
• Refined diesel & petrol engines mated to smooth MTs & ATs
• Precise build & quality (including interiors) are easily among the segment best
• Suspension delivers a compliant ride & neutral road manners
• Loaded with kit! Hands-free boot, cooled seats, sunroof, rear sunshade, AutoLink etc.
• Dual airbags, ABS & ISOFIX mounts are standard on all variants. SX(O) gets 6 airbags
• Hyundai's reliability, competent after-sales & 3-year unlimited km warranty

What you won't:

• Rear seat isn't as spacious as that of the City & Ciaz. SX(O)'s hard seatback makes it worse
• Missing essentials! Reach-adjustable steering, auto wipers, auto-folding ORVMs…
• On select variants, the diesel motor carries a steep premium over the petrol (SX = 1.35 lakhs)
• Petrol AT isn't as fuel efficient as a couple of its rivals
• While the driving experience has improved, some competitors are still more exciting to drive
• Loses the rear disc brakes that the last-gen Verna was launched with. Braking feel & bite leave a lot to be desired

Link to Official Review

Link to Facelift Launch Thread

Maruti Ciaz

What you'll like:

• Clean styling & big footprint. Among the longest & widest sedans from its class
• Value-for-money pricing that undercuts almost all rivals
• Spacious cabin with lots of practical features. Rear legroom is particularly impressive
• Petrol variant has now improved, thanks to the new 1.5L motor
• Soft, compliant ride quality. A suspension that's tuned for comfort
• Big 510 liter boot will swallow your airport & holiday luggage
• Maruti’s excellent after-sales service, wide dealer network & fuss-free ownership experience
• Equipment such as the automatic LED headlamps, DRLs, 7" touchscreen ICE, rear sunshade, cruise control, telematics system etc.

What you won't:

• New 1.5L petrol is rather mediocre. City & Verna petrol engines are much superior
• No diesel option available after the introduction of BS6 emission norms
• 4-speed Automatic gearbox feels old & outdated
• Petrol Ciaz has gotten more expensive by 34k – 65k
• Uninvolving to drive. Enthusiasts, look elsewhere
• Average under-thigh support of the low rear seat. Also, limited rear headroom for 6 footers
• Light build & ordinary interior quality. The game has moved on with newer competitors
• Maruti has missed the opportunity of a true top-end variant with 6 airbags, sunroof, auto-wipers & more

Link to Official Review

Toyota Yaris

What you'll like:

• A well-built sedan; feels sturdier than the City and Ciaz
• Good quality cabin with built-to-last materials & excellent NVH insulation
• Mature ride comfort with sorted road manners
• Smooth CVT automatic is available in all trim levels
• Features such as the auto headlamps + wipers, electric driver's seat, front parking sensors, rear sunshade etc.
• 5-star safety rating & kit! 7 airbags, all-disc brakes, ESP, HSA, TPMS, 3-point seatbelts for all & more
• Toyota's excellent after-sales quality, fuss-free ownership experiences, low service costs & up to 7 years of extended warranty coverage

What you won't:

• Simply overpriced, especially the higher variants. Toyota has gotten it wrong
• Rear seat's width is enough for 2 adults only, while rear headroom is limited too. Passengers will complain
• Engine feels adequate, but isn't exciting at all. CVT gets sluggish with an enthusiastic driving style
• Many will find the over-styled face to be a turnoff
• No turbo-diesel option for the torque lovers
• Missing auto-dimming IRVM, reach-adjustable steering, dead pedal, auto-folding ORVMs, sunroof & 195 mm tyres
• Top variant's audio head-unit has several flaws. Misses Android Auto & Apple CarPlay as well

Link to Official Review

Volkswagen Vento

What you'll like:

• A well-built, robust, European sedan
• Clean and contemporary styling. Boot is superbly integrated
• Stunning turbo-petrol engine.
• Mature suspension setup. Balanced ride & handling
• Segment firsts : Reach adjust steering, gear recommender, adjustable driver armrest etc.
• All-rounded nature; Jack of all trades

What you won't:

• 8.86L Trendline (entry) variant is simply too basic
• Electric power steering. The Vento deserves a pure hydraulic unit
• No turbo-diesel option for the torque lovers
• VW's after sales has yet to prove itself
• VW's long-term reliability and ownership costs are on the higher side
• No automatic in a segment that loves its ATs

Link to Official Review

Link to Report - 2015 Volkswagen Vento Facelift

Link to 2020 Facelift Launch Thread

[GTO]

Thread moved from the Assembly Line to the sedans section. Thanks for sharing!

It's the oldest of the bunch, common on the road, visually outdated (especially on the inside) and you can buy used ones for as low as 1.5 lakh rupees. Over 10 years, it will also be the most troublesome / high maintenance to own and the dealer you interact with will be a thug, thief or both. Still, as my personal car, I would pick the Rapid TSI for that tasty engine, segment-best build & segment-best dynamics. It is a heck of a lot of fun to drive.

For everyone else (other than hardcore driving enthusiasts) - or someone who wants a fast and practical family sedan - I'd suggest the Honda City petrol. It's as much fun-to-drive as the Rapid under 120 kmph. That beautiful engine lives to redline @ 7,000 rpm...it is the best naturally-aspirated petrol on sale in India. Has lots of cabin space & will be so much more reliable. Quality levels appear to have noticeably improved over the 4th-gen City. If my friends or family call me for a recommendation, this is the car I'll tell them to buy as I know they'll never call me back complaining. The City is an all-rounder.

High running? The Verna Diesel AT. Superb engine + smooth gearbox + premium cabin quality. If you drive 50+ km / day, this is the best & most stress-free choice.

[VWAllstar]

Voted for Volkswagen Vento TSI MT. Looks are subjective, personally prefer the clean and timeless design of Vento. I own a Vento and have driven the Rapid many times. Although very subtle but there is a difference in the quality of materials used in both cars. Atleast with Vento there is a feeling of more premiumness than the Rapid. The service centers of VW are a tad better than the infamous Skoda ones. Moreover there is a 7 years warranty on VW compared to 6 years of Skoda. Especially for most of us who like to keep our cars for longer periods, that additional 1 year does make a difference. Suspension is tuned for comfort unlike Rapid. The latter takes corners better however as a daily drive Vento makes more sense. The reach of VW service centers is more than that of Skoda. I could only wish VW continued with their TDI engines. TDI + DSG would have been my pick.

[nagr22]

I voted for Toyota Yaris. Yes, the engine and gearbox are not the most powerful. Yes, it does not have the latest range of entertainment features. The higher variants are simply too overpriced.
But if you are in the market with a relatively low budget and your topmost priorities are safety, availability of a proper automatic transmission and bulletproof reliability with strong ASS, then there was simply no competition to the Yaris base variant. I own one and I consider it as the poor man's luxury vehicle. The cabin refinement, build quality and the smooth jerk free character of the automatic makes you feel cocooned inside the car and to add a feather to its cap, it has consistently delivered 21kmpl+ on highway drives.
My wife gets headaches if a car accelerates and brakes suddenly so we always drive very sedately and Yaris fits the bill perfectly. The suspension too is very well tuned and it swallows medium sized potholes and expansion joints with a very quiet thud and very little body movement. Only things we hate about this car is the unusually low passenger seat and shitty infotainment system which has many features but gets disabled above 20kmph citing safety. For instance, it has screen mirroring feature so if you try to use navigation and start moving your car, bam! The screen goes blank above 20kph with a safety warning!

Thanks to Toyota's greed in overpricing it, the customers rightly rejected the higher variants which was good for me because I picked a new V CVT for slightly more than what the J CVT costed at launch.
I heard recently they hiked the price of base variants and if true, then it signals the death knell for such a competent car.

[Aaron:)]

IMO, the top 3 cars in the segment are -

Rapid - Fun to drive, value for money
Verna - The best diesel option in the segment
City - A great all-rounder

Overall though, my pick would be the City petrol. Fast, refined, safe, comfortable and decently built. The City ticks the most number of boxes and is clearly the best all-rounder in the segment IMO.

[NaXal]

I am in the market for a proper petrol sedan & nothing else seems to make sense compared to Vento/Rapid TSi on driving pleasure & build quality.

It's priced so well that you tend to ignore the out dated cabin.

The only negative of these two Germans are the after sales & over Rapid, Vento feels safe in comparison !

Ciaz - Feels another Dzire
Yaris - Boring drive, boring out side or even inside & pricing on higher side.
City - way to costly
Verna - The only competition due to its never ending feature list & brand Hyundai assurance but still around a lakh more than Vento TSi Highline & 1.5L more over Rapid Onyx Blue (looks stunning)

Skoda running some attractive discount on all Rapid variants over Rider & Rider Plus. Deals are so sweet that you may want to take that gamble for its after sales.

[Latheesh]

If you are tight on a budget - Skoda Rapid Rider/rider+/vento comfortline with discount
Slightly higher budget - Honda City V/V auto
If you really want Diesel auto - Verna (but this car looks really ugly)

[ZedMae]

I'm exactly in this conundrum right now - not sure where to put my money between a new Rapid and an used Honda City. The only aspect holding me from picking the Rapid is its unpredictable after sales. It is such a shame that there always has to be a trade-off between fun and reliability.

[Reinhard]

I voted for the Hyundai Verna (And shocked myself while doing that! ) Goes to show how precisely Hyundai has planned the market strategy for India & kudos to them for it.

I would have picked a German car any day in this shoot out - IF it had a good diesel engine. It doesn't. Till the day Diesel fuel is available, I'll be driving a diesel car for sure. I don't want to buy a petrol sedan which leaves pretty much just the Honda City & the Hyundai Verna. between these two, I'll pick the Hyundai any day.

If I'm to buy a petrol ONLY - it would be the Rapid. No doubt.

[CrAzY dRiVeR]

Voted for the Rapid 1.0 TSi because of the brilliantly priced Rider/ Rider+ variants. Rapid is old but comes with tested safety, comes with the segment-best petrol motor, useable feature list and has aged really well - especially in the carbon black shade and with some subtle mods - still the best looking car in the group.

Why not the other more expensive options? Because at higher prices - I'll prefer a crossover over a sedan instead!

[Shreyans_Jain]

As a Gen4 City owner who is sick of his car, Honda is a definite no-no for me. I refuse to put up with the questionable engineering beyond the iVTEC, the lousy suspensions, the bouncy ride, the expensive spares and the snooty ASS. Also, their diesel engine is the worst of the lot.

Car for car, nothing beats the Yaris. Most well built, well engineered, quietest cabin and exemplary ride. But it is too expensive. So my vote for a petrol sedan also goes to the Rapid. Best value for your money and a hugely competent car overall.

If I were buying diesel (which I will, soon), I’ll say a big NONE OF THE ABOVE, and head down to the Hyundai showroom and put a payment on the top end Creta with that panoramic sunroof and cooled seats. Manual or automatic.

[padmrajravi]

Verna for me. It ticks most of the boxes and looks the most modern of the lot. I am a fan of Hyundai's engine-transmission combos. There is one for every type of buyer. Hyundai seems to be a little bit better in build when compared to flimsy Honda City. And I trust Hyundai service more than the Skoda/VW twins. To me they are just below Toyota in consistency.

[Batfreak]

Voted for the Honda City.

Having owned the Rapid TDI for nearly 7 years, I would have picked it again in a heartbeat. But somehow, I just cannot justify plonking down over a million rupees on a nearly decade old vehicle. In this department, the new City makes a lot more sense - well equipped, peppy iVTEC motor and the exclusivity of a new car.

The Rapid Rider, however, is a different story altogether. Stonker of an engine, brilliantly engineered car and a cracker of a price. That is the ultimate package for me but then again, I don't think C2 segment buyers would consider that because of the smaller feature list.

[saisree]

Voted for the New Honda City. The initial review from GTO has cleared many doubts. Now it stands as a good all rounder and a easiest pick from the lot.

A fuss free and reliable ownership experience takes upper hand amongst many factors we bhpian’s look for.

Rapid will be my second choice but the ownership threads in our forum doesn’t allow me to give it a thumbs up.

[akash_v12]

For me, I would go for the Vento (maybe because I've officially become a VW fanboy ). It's got good legroom, a punchy engine & solid build quality. Most importantly, it doesn't get the Chinese Skoda HU. I like the cleaner setup of the RCD340s.

Out of the others, I love the new City - looks striking (especially in Black), has a good engine & a lot of legroom. Loaded with tech and makes for decent value.