[07CR]

Current Rides-I had purchased a Pre Owned Sonet HTX iMT Turbo in Feb 2022. ODO on the Sonet stands at 11.5K. I am extremely happy with the car. I also have 2018 Ecosport S TDCI at home which is chugging along happily at 33K Kms at the moment. Our yearly usage is around 15K kms, combined for both cars. Ecosport usually does 9K kms, while the rest is done by Sonet.

Why New Car- To be honest, simply because YOLO! I have come across a pristine 2015 Corolla Altis VL AT and I know the seller personally. It has done little over 60K kms, and is first owner.

If I purchased Altis-

• Always Dreamed of getting a D segment Sedan. Dream accomplished.
• Superb legroom and interior space.
• Snob value of D segment sedan.
• Excellent backseat comfort. Very important for parents.
• If I purchase this, and sell the Sonet, I am looking at around 3.5L worth of saving (Purchase price of Sonet + Purchase Price of Corolla - Selling price of Sonet= 3.5L). Might as well invest it.
• I get a Diverse garage, a sporty black Ecosport S TDCI (Manual Diesel) for fun and a reliable and super comfortable white Corolla Altis (petrol, CVT)for those comfortable journeys.

What I fear about-

• Miss out on modern necessities like Rear Aircon vent, Wireless Android Auto, rear sunblinds.
• Total age of sonet is just little over 1.5 years. I can safely assume that this car will serve me another 8.5 years easily. Can I rely the same on Altis (given my relatively low yearly running).
• The maintenance of an 8 year old Altis. Currently average annual maintenance cost of Sonet is 5-6K. What costs am I looking at for the Altis?
• While I am not too fussy about the FE, I get 10-13 in Pune traffic conditions from Sonet. How much more lower can the CVT Altis give me?

Would love your valuable opinions!

[bijims]

Originally Posted by 07CR

Current Rides-I had purchased a Pre Owned Sonet HTX iMT Turbo in Feb 2022. ODO on the Sonet stands at 11.5K. I am extremely happy with the car. I also have 2018 Ecosport S TDCI at home which is chugging along happily at 33K Kms at the moment. Our yearly usage is around 15K kms, combined for both cars. Ecosport usually does 9K kms, while the rest is done by Sonet.

Why New Car- To be honest, simply because YOLO! I have come across a pristine 2015 Corolla Altis VL AT and I know the seller personally. It has done little over 60K kms, and is first owner.

Would love your valuable opinions!

Selling a < 2-year-old car for an 8-year-old isn't the most appealing choice in my opinion, however, if it's a sedan you are after and if it's in good condition (assuming it should be, since you know the buyer personally) and you crave a D segment sedan, moreover you save a good 3.5 lakhs, I guess you could take the plunge.

You can get over the fact that you lose wireless android auto and sunblinds as these can be added on later,if necessary, rear air-con vents are a miss though, but do you really need it if thr AC is good enough?
As far as reliability goes, nothing beats Toyota, so it will safely run for as long a you want it to.
Toyota's maintenance costs are not on the higher side, so you should be fine there too.
Mileage won't see a considerable drop either, you should get double digit milaege.
So, overall if you are sure of the condition of the car and a varied garage with a sedan is what you are looking for, take the plunge and don't look back.

[androdev]

Hmmm, I would pass. Altis is not a YOLO car worth selling your current car for. If you can consider a Camry Hybrid for 15-16L, that would be a real YOLO. Altis has poor/cheap build and rattles to glory. Honda city is better (other than big car image)

[2000rpm]

Originally Posted by 07CR

Would love your valuable opinions!

If you pass, I am looking for an automatic ride in Mumbai. I could have a look at the Corolla!

[torquecurve]

Been there experienced that!
The upkeep of a D/D+ segment sedan will be considerably more expensive than the Sonet. Though it is the famed Toyota as compared to my experience with VW group sedans, still some costs will be similar.
Example - at 60K kms you are looking at suspension that will
Best survive another 20k kms - if not less. A suspension overhaul (not replacement ) will set you back by 20k easily.
Tyre - each tyre will cost upwards of 8K (decent grip/stability etc), 10K plus for sporty tyres.
Battery - 15-18K
Fluid changes and Filters - 20K or so.(minimum)
Not sure if CVT needs fluid changes (DSG needed it) - that will be 40-45k and have to be done at the SC.
Incidental repairs/ replacements etc.
As a thumb rule you must factor Rs 50K per 10Lakh of car purchase price (when new) per year. So for a 40 Lakh sedan - that’s 2lakhs per year that you must set aside.

Also, from a YOLO perspective you are not really going to enjoy the car TBH - it’s not a VW / Skoda D segment sedan with the punch from the engine and suspension tune for the ghats. It’s a comfortable cruiser that will take you from point A to B with a bit of a snob value thrown in.

[SmartCat]

It is clear that you like the Corolla. Go for it.

But keep the Sonet and get rid of Ecosport. Resale value is quite reasonable now, but that might not be the case 3 years from now.

[07CR]

Originally Posted by SmartCat

But keep the Sonet and get rid of Ecosport. Resale value is quite reasonable now, but that might not be the case 3 years from now.

Need a Diesel for long hauls. Therefore keeping the Ecosport.

[narayans80]

The Corolla is out of extended warranty. So if there are any part replacements, it will be expensive, 5 digit figure guaranteed. Regular maintenance will be < 10K (I spent about 7K per service, 5 years back).

This is what you'll need to prepare if you want to go for it.

You'll have to be careful on those big speed breakers. You might escape if solo, but if you have load, it will scrape. Coming from a crossover, this is something you'll have to learn.

[Mr.Boss]

Originally Posted by 07CR

• Superb legroom and interior space.
• Excellent backseat comfort. Very important for parents.

Though the legroom is better, lower seating position (compared to Sonet & Ecosport) 'may' be an issue with elderly. Have an extensive TD before you decide

Originally Posted by 07CR

• Miss out on modern necessities like Rear Aircon vent, Wireless Android Auto, rear sunblinds.
• While I am not too fussy about the FE, I get 10-13 in Pune traffic conditions from Sonet. How much more lower can the CVT Altis give me?

Except the rear AC vents others can be addressed with plug and play aftermarket solutions. FE should be in single digit

[saisree]

Not worth it buddy. Since, you said you know the owner in person, check if you can get it for a weekend drive. Drive, Wash and Refill it.

[vikramvicky1984]

The only negative with the Altis is that it’s boring. If that doesn’t bother you, definitely go it. It is a lovely peaceful car.
Long term ownership costs won’t be higher than sonet. Also it is a much safer car.

Look at ownership threads of Altis on the forum, even previous gen which has the same engine and gearbox as this. Difficult to find a dissatisfied long term owner of the Altis.

[AJ56]

Originally Posted by 07CR

Would love your valuable opinions!

If you want snob value/performance look for an older E350 or 530d. Now these will be higher annual maintenance and since that’s important to you, I’d suggest an in between option - 2013 Accord, manual or auto is upto you. It even came with the 6.5 sec 0-100 V6 if you can find one.

Built much better than the Corolla, has 6 airbags vs the 2 in the Corolla, gets ESP unlike Corolla, has much better rear space and is much faster (2.4 and 3.5 V6 both), also gets rear AC vents which are on your list. Market value of these is around 5.5-6.5L max.

Annual maintenance is very cheap, 5-6K for a basic service. Will clarify that basic maintenance cost doesn’t really change much by car size/class. for eg. both my Amaze and Accord cost 5-6k annually with full synthetic oil (Idemistu 0W-20) + oil and air filters, Accord maybe 900 more as it’ll take a little more oil that‘s it. Batteries are also priced similar, tyres are not and spares obviously will cost more but it’s not as extreme as some folks make it out to be.

In 13 years the only issue I’ve had on mine is a leaky hydraulic steering pump which was a relatively cheap fix many years ago, but the steering rack leaking is a known weak point of this gen accord and civic so make sure you check before buying.

Make sure you check the car thoroughly before buying with the authorised dealer + your trusted mechanic and you’ll be good. Also keep 1-2L aside for unforeseen expenses should any arise (unlikely). This actually applies to any used car not just the Accord. Also follow this checklist below when shopping used cars-

Cheers.

[shankar.balan]

@ AJ56

A Corolla elsewhere in the ‘well off’ world conforms to the class/ category that you have mentioned. It is indeed quite a common place car, used as a taxi in the UAE. The same way that Skoda Superbs do Taxi duty in the UK and Mercedes’ do Taxi duty in Germany. In other parts of the world Toyota occupies space in the same segment as Suzuki and Nissan do.

However, here in India the Corolla belongs to the ‘Premium’ segment considering its relative pricing and desirability/ snob value vis a vis the overall affordability cues here and of course the value of the Toyota Brand which has become legendary here.

The Skoda brand in the same way, is considered a Prestige brand and Mercedes of course moves into Luxury territory.

Basically the segments and definitions are relative, from market to market. Therefore, in India, which is only now becoming more ‘inclusive’ with a growing segment of people with higher disposable incomes, largely fuelled by the growth of the ‘knowledge based economy’, these marques occupy these particular segments and will continue to do so for some time to come.

Lets keep the above in mind when making our suggestions.

[CliffHanger]

Go for it. Invest the 3.5L on Altis' maintenence. If it is in good condition now, it can easily serve you well for another ten years at the least.

[AJ56]

Originally Posted by shankar.balan

@ AJ56
Basically the segments and definitions are relative, from market to market.

Will have to disagree. A Corolla, is a Corolla whether you buy it in India, Africa or the US, zero difference in terms of the product you get. Physically, it’s a compact car, dimensions don’t change as geography changes.

Take something else, a can of Coke is still a can of Coke, it might cost twice or even ten times as much in another country, doesn’t change what it is at the end of the day. We pay almost twice as much for the iPhone in India, does that make the iPhone any better than it is other countries where it’s much cheaper? It doesn’t. Are the iPhone Pros considered any more flagship in India than they are outside, I’d think not.

Coming to taxis, Toyotas are standard taxis everywhere and mercs are premium taxis whether you’re in a third world country or a developed one. As far as Toyota being considering more premium than Nissan, that’s just not the case, they’re both considered mass market brands in the non premium space.

You only need to see the pricing, Toyota and Škoda are priced at par with other non luxury mass market brands, unless you accept that Honda/Hyundai/Kia/MG, etc. are all premium brands too there is no basis for calling Toyota or Škoda anything more than what they are.

I will add that not one person I know in India or outside would call Toyota or Škoda for that matter a premium/prestige brand. Highly in demand yes, but not premium, if anything a significant marker of a luxury product is its low volume and lack of mass demand.