Hi Guys/Gals,
Just discovered this site over the weekend. Couldn't wait to join and ask some questions.
My last car was an Acura 3.2TL (2001 Model) and my current car is a Santro Xing Automatic...
Yup, shocking but true. How did this happen? Well, a year back I moved back from USA to India and therefore I had to giveup my Acura. However, my wife moved back 6 months earlier than me and therefore got to choose our car for India. She wanted it small and easy to drive, hence we ended up with a Santro Xing Automatic. After I returned back I didn't have much choice but run around in the Santro until it got a little old...
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This year I want change my car to something that is actually fun to drive. I want a driver's car and I don't care about fuel economy. I live 2KM away from work, therefore that takes care of my contribution towards saving environment. And I don't care much about resale value. However, I don't want a big D segment car that becomes a hassle to drive in Bangalore traffic or park in narrow roads. Therefore, I want to pretty much to stick to C segment cars. And no B segment hatchbacks either, time to move up...
Meanwhile, my wife added one more requirement. She wants excellent ride quality. Since she had a miscarriage recently (which she blames on Bangalore roads) I won't argue against that point. However, that pretty much eliminates Ford Fusion and Icon from my short list. She also prefers auto transmission but not insisting on it anymore.
My Short List of Contendors
1) Fiat Petra
Perfect car for me. Great performance and good ride comfort and good looks. But how to deal with nightmarish sales and support service?
2) Ford Icon 1.6 Zxi
Good performance car but bad ride quality.
3) Ford Fusion+
Heard good things but also heard that it has terrible ride quality at low speeds on bad roads.
4) Hyundai Accent GTX (Tornado)
Great Service, good luxury. However, not so sure about the performance factor and ride comfort. Need some real feedback here. How does it rate versus Petra?
5) Hyundai Accent Viva
Great Service, good luxury. However, not so sure about the performance factor and ride comfort. Need some real feedback here. How does it rate versus Petra or Accent GTX.
6) Honda City Gxi
Good luxury and good looks. But has low ground clearance and is underpowered.
7) Mitsubishi Lancer
Couldn't find any road test reviews on the Indian version, need some serious input on reliability too.
Having previously owned two Marutis, I won't buy a Maruti anymore. As a former Tata employee, I wouldn't consider a Tata product either. If I have missed any other performance oriented car in C segment, please let me know.
Regards,
Samurai