[Vid6639]

Civic has very poor ingress and egress. My mom found it difficult t get out of. She said bit better than lancer but still bad.

[shuvd]

@ vcash - IMHO, the Superb will serve you the best of all. Nice and comfy and fun when you put the pedal to the metal, especially the 2.5TDi V6. And, you can get the Pete's tuning box!! And, you can knock off 3lakhs from the price you quoted for the car. Contact Topaz Motors in Calcutta, they have some nice schemes going for the Superb.
Checked out the Laura Elegance (15.70, on road) yesterday. While she is nice to drive, seating three in the rear is a pain because of the rear AC ducts.
The Sonata Embera's interiors though nice, can't even begin to compare with the Accord's. The petrol with 165 horses is pretty fast, not so the diesel. Suffers from turbo lag and a very short power band. But, good on highways though.

[Steeroid]

Originally Posted by vcash

1. Cars short listed (Please feel free to add anymore that you think might fit the bill)

- Toyota Camry - Underpowered / Over the budget but we can be flexible.
- Honda Accord - V6 or 4cyl - Model will be changed in a year.[/FONT]
- Nissan Teana - Looks to fit the bill but A.S.S a worry as no dealer in Calcutta.
- Hyundai Sonata Embraer - Not a fan of Hyundai
- Honda CRV - Nice features but might not be the easiest car to get in and out off.
- Skoda Octavia Laura - Closest dealer in Cal and I think its overpriced and see the price coming down when the Octavia gets phased out.
- Toyota Corolla - Model too old in its lifecycle.- Honda Civic - Giving this a serious thought.
- Suzuki SX-4 - Might be too small.
- 2007 Ford Mondeo - I think this is a fantastic car on paper - Any idea on when we can expect an India launch? - Don't mind waiting 6 months or slightly more for this.

3. Average distance traveled per month

- Less than 1500 Kms

4. Where car will be mostly used (city / highway / rough roads etc)

- A mix of city and the occasional highway trip to Ranchi (Closest Airport which is 150Kms away). Some stretches in town are what I call Urban Rough Roads which every city in India has.

5. Chauffer driven / self drive

- 90% Chauffer driven and 10% by Family. No Pref. when it comes to ATX or MTX.

7. Any specific requirements from car (ex. Better luggage space, responsive engine, rear seat comfort)

- Rear Seat comfort big plus a decent engine. Nothing too zippy needed but its a plus.Need something sage. Overall - A good rounded package.

8. How long you intend on keeping this car (and how important resale is to you)

6 years. Resale is important but Unfortunatley, Don't expect it after the offer price on our Cielo which is 9 years old

I would suggest the top-spec Innova Petrol. That is EXACTLY the car for your requirements.

Unless you want to consider a Fiat Adventure, that is.

[esteem_lover]

2007 Ford Mondeo - I think this is a fantastic car on paper - Any idea on when we can expect an India launch? - Don't mind waiting 6 months or slightly more for this.

I think he is in love with this one.

[navin]

Originally Posted by vcash

@Navin - Don't need 2 cars! We already have 5 in India right now and no more garage space. Just want one good one to replace the Cielo.
So having heard all - this would be the preferences:
1. Toyota Camry (Overpriced compared to competitors)
2. Hyundai Sonata (Quality or ownership appeal issues)
3. 2008 Accord (Will have to wait 1 year)
4. 2007 Mondeo (Expensive spares / No clue of a launch date)
5. 2008 Corolla (No Clue of a launch date)
6. Honda Civic

Of that list I'd take the Sonata. The Build quality is not like the older Hyundais. The doors shut with a thud that reminds me of my Octy. Great A.S.S and legroom as well and under 13L so you can spend the rest on a great Audio Video (ICE) system. Think of this. Your grandad playing Xbox in the back of the car. Time in a traffic jam will past fast.

[Vid6639]

O yeah and it's even ICE friendly with a 8" subwoofer at the rear.

it's available in petrol auto/manual and CRDi manual.

Very comfy.

[navin]

Originally Posted by vid6639

O yeah and it's even ICE friendly with a 8" subwoofer at the rear. .

The Petrol Auto is nice and quiet and easy to drive too. BTW 8" is not a SUBwoofer. 8" is a woofer. No Sub! but lets not discuss ICE here.

[vcash]

Originally Posted by navin

Of that list I'd take the Sonata. The Build quality is not like the older Hyundais. The doors shut with a thud that reminds me of my Octy. Great A.S.S and legroom as well and under 13L so you can spend the rest on a great Audio Video (ICE) system. Think of this. Your grandad playing Xbox in the back of the car. Time in a traffic jam will past fast.

Ha Ha ... You guys crack me up - Anyone who visits Jamshedpur (Though I have not in the last year and a half) can attest to the fact that there are no Traffic Jams! And yea, I am going to skip on the ICE and Xbox - cause the day my Grandad starts playing Halo 3 is the day Tata will offer a $200K exotic to compete with the Vanquish / GTC and Gallardo.

@ Esteem_lover - You are right! I really really like this car on paper as of now. The specs / design / interior config etc. and the fact that it is based on Ford Euro's platform are all plus points and will blow away the competition provided Ford gets it's A.S.S. act right. Now if only a little tweety bird could drop a speculated launch date here.

@Shuv_D - Will check out the Superb since you mentioned the discount but I see Skoda killing this model soon as sales don't justify its existence in India and the 3 Lakh discount is more evidence to support this.

Honestly, I think Camry is the best bet even with the hefty premium but knowing the logic that my grandfather follows - I can assure you that the Camry would be shot down based on the fact that it offers no additional value than an Accord or a Sonata.

I guess the Sonata might be the best bet folowed by the Civic (Even though the backseat is not getting much love) as of now. If we decided to push this purchase for some more time - then it would be the 2008 Accord followed by the 2007 Mondeo. I'll put the ball in his court and see what he thinks.

[csentil]

The Accord and Camry are competitors world wide in the same segment, just like the Civic Vs Corolla. Only in India does one find this absurdity of having a similar car costing so many lakhs more. Unfortunately Toyota seems to have got it wrong with the Camry. The Accord is the obvious choice, along with the CR-V. Even the revamped Accord is a good bet and you need not wait for the new Accord which would come into India late 2008.

[narayan]

if and only if u dont mind a used car - why dont u consider a pre owned MERC E CLASS ? i assume that calcutta has a dealer and would service the car at ur location also

and anyway a merc does not get outdated so easily although newer models keep hitting the road

and its defently THE car to be in for comfort and safety

[normally_crazy]

I think the Hyundai Sonata makes the most sense and is the most VFM car of the lot and it has a lot of +ves going for it. And you can even buy an Innova with the rest of the stuff.

But since you do not want 2 cars - I say go for the Toyota Camry. What the heck man - its luxurious and spacey. And it has the look too.

[vcash]

Originally Posted by narayan

if and only if u dont mind a used car - why dont u consider a pre owned MERC E CLASS ? i assume that calcutta has a dealer and would service the car at ur location also

Thanks Narayan - Not looking at Pre-Owned and the only E-Class in the 20L range would be the W210 which will be 2 generations old in a years time when the 212 is launched.

[navin]

Originally Posted by vcash

Ha Ha ... You guys crack me up - Anyone who visits Jamshedpur (Though I have not in the last year and a half) can attest to the fact that there are no Traffic Jams!

No Traffic Jams! I think I'd better move. Damn Mumbai. The guys in Delhi drive at twice our speed.

[iraghava]

Originally Posted by navin

So you can spend the rest on a great Audio Video (ICE) system. Think of this. Your grandad playing Xbox in the back of the car. Time in a traffic jam will past fast.

Navin, you're too funny at times!!!!!!!!!!!!

Originally Posted by vcash

Now if only a little tweety bird could drop a speculated launch date here.

Well my source is out of town right now & is expected back on Wednesday. Let me see what I can find out for you.

Originally Posted by vcash

@Shuv_D - Will check out the Superb since you mentioned the discount but I see Skoda killing this model soon as sales don't justify its existence in India and the 3 Lakh discount is more evidence to support this.

Exactly and since it hasn't sold much I'm not too sure what the parts availability is going to be like once it's phased out for good.

Originally Posted by vcash

P.S. On a side note I played golf (randomly) with the GM of the the new Lambo Dealer in town and the SM of Porsche / Audi. Both have given me open invitations to come and check out all the Lambos that they have - 640 / Spyder etc. (Test Rides included but no Drives ) and the Porsches / Audi guy offered drives of the new S5 when it comes to town as well as a ride of the R8. So expect some juicy pictures soon!!!

WOW, you're a lucky man!!!! Does it mean I can get some rides too in the Lambos/Porsche's if I can visit your town?

[vcash]

Originally Posted by iraghava

WOW, you're a lucky man!!!! Does it mean I can get some rides too in the Lambos/Porsche's if I can visit your town?

Yessssir you can - Anytime. I will continue to lose in Golf to the GM and SM till they give us drives out of charity. But I am afraid I may be visiting your town sooner than you may be coming to mine. Can you arrange for some TD's of those nice LP640's you guys have stashed away in 'Dili Ki Galiyan'?

And Thanks for tapping into your souce about the Mondeo.