[VikCho]

Hi friends,
This is my first post. Actually I am willing to change my 8 Years old Ford Icon 1.6 zxi. I considered NHC, ANHC, fiesta, SX4 & Verna.

-But after looking at ford's Ikon resale value I droped the idea of buying Fiesta.

-NHC iDse engine I have driven but doesn't like it's pickup.

-SX4 is not a very good looking car to me nor a good performance. I felt pickup of my old ford was more then the new SX4. Also the FE is bad compared to CITY.

-Verna is good package but I am conceding only CRDI option as petrol model is not a great performer. I don't really like it's looks but when it comes to performance and FE in diesel it's a winner.

-ANHC is a great looking car. Also at 118 Bhp it is 8 Bhp more then Verna. Company claim of fuel economy in city is around 14-15 Kmpl and around 18 Kmpl on highways. I did not really like the audio system provided and overall interior. No speaker in the rear tray, no provision for woofer and amplifier without cutting that thick tray. Non presence of Alloys and flatter tyre is also an issue at high speeds. But features like FE meter, Civic like steering wheel with audio controls, arm rest, etc. are positives to me.

My driving per month in city is less then 250 Km and Highway driving is max twice a year, combined max 4000 to 5000 km per year. Conceding Verna as a great performer I am worried about it's maintenance as a diesel car.
Frankly speaking I am a fast driver and like my car to be fastest in the lot yet be ok with the fuel economy.

I can wait to test drive ANHC but feat a 3 to 5 Km of drive would not be enough for me to compare it with Verna. So I thought to take help and suggestions of such an expert members of Team-BHP. Please give me your suggestions on what should I conceder a great deal.

[Path_Finder]

Some points to consider:
You seem to be hooked to the new Diesels even though you have not specified so? – In such case; I bet that the TD of ANHC is not going to thrill you. If so your options seem to be limited to Verna and Fiesta!
After 8 years the resale value should not be a big consideration. In fact till about a year back the IKON had good resale value. I am not sure how long you will keep this car, but if it is going to be 4+ years, then again suggest not being too worried about the resale value – things can change here also.
Verna is good car, but please be aware of lack of safety features – ABS is optional on high end only and there are no airbags. Personally I would not suggest making compromises on safety. Also it has low boot space compared to any other car in its class.
Consider the Dzire also, only negative could be waiting time.

[karanraheja]

@Vik- Dont expect 14-15km/ l in ANHC! Overdrive Nov mentions something in range of 10-11km/l. I think by Dec- Jan we would get clear picture about the mileage. If you keeping a car for 8 years i dont think resale has to be a priority. I would go for a Verna - just for the awesome power its got and roomy cabin. ANHC would be a good buy to, but interiors are built to a price. But it has all the safety features standards AT A PRICE!! If you planning on ANHC i would suggest wait for sometime to get more reviews and then book.



@Path- Finder - I dont think he would like to stay in the same segment and go for a Dzire (inspite of it having all bells & whistles)

[snaronikar]

TD Corolla Altis and Fiesta 1.6S. These also have the same safety features. You should not be worried about the resale value as you will be keeping the car for about 4~5 years. The interiors of the above cars are better than Verna CRDI.

[jerish666]

TD Fiesta 1.6S and Altis.Altis have less milage comapred to Fiesta 1.6S.It is more spacious thanFiesta 1.6S.But i would say Fiesta 1.6S is value for money.Its a good drivers car and have all the features like ABS,EBD.

[VikCho]

As mentioned before my annual driving is only up to 5000 Km. So I would like to know how much more will be the cost of maintenance, if I go for Verna CRDI compared to ANHC. Like servicing cost, Filters pricing, oil change pricing, etc.. And do the diesel car cost more to maintain after 3 to 4 years of use even if it is used as low as 20000 Km after 4 years.
Also the ANHC is 118 Bhp compared to Verna CRDI only 110 Bhp so I think ANHC should have more power and should be more fun to drive at high speeds compared to Verna. Please explain if I am wrong.

[marlinspike]

For 4/5000 KM a year its sheer waste of money buying a Diesel in this high interest time frame. Take a look at the excellent threads by GTO and a few others on number of thousands of KMs to recover the difference in cost for the Diesel.In your case I guess it would be close to 7 years and including the interest cost to be recovered it would be 8-9 years.

Not a great idea Unless you relish driving a high performance Diesel car or absolutely love the looks of Verna (not sure many will) check your facts again.
Since you have Ikon for the last 8 years I guess it should be petrol. If you go for a Fiesta
petrol S you get a great looking car and would also get a loyalty bonus for the exchange.

One reason you may have against Fiesta is Brand fatigue. After 8 years if you are not satisfied with either the service level at ford or you are bored with the car/manufaturer you should think of moving to a different brand.

In that case the ideal candidate is ANHC as it is Just launched and though Honda has a history of changing 'City' models every 5 years considering the fact that its a Honda
resale wont be that bad. It has all the safety features that are available in the segment.

Speaking of segment you may as well move up a segment after 8 years and look up the other new launch Altis as suggested by snaronikar & jerish666.

But if you do get a diesel like Verna or Optra Magnum (which is also a contender as you are looking at ANHC and we are suggesting the Altis) but I doubt if you will be happy with either after getting used to a car with the driving dynamics of IKON.

And the only other car that does not have the issues that you dont like about the ANHC
is mhrmm.. Cedia may be the sport if I may add. If you are very particular about resale(which you shouldn't be after flogging(though 8*4000 KM sure is not flogging) a car for 8 long years) then the choice is clearly ANHC followed by Altis.

[VikCho]

Thanks for sharing your opinion Marlinspike but Altis & Civic are out of my budget. My budget is around 9 lacs and I concider that Verna CRDI (Rs 8.25 lacs on road after discount Delhi) and ANHC (S MT 8.83 lacs on road Delhi) carries similar price tags so what is the point of recovering the difference in cost for the Diesel. This although can be a good point if comparing cars with price gap where diesel is above 1 lacs. expensive to petrol (Like Fiesta S to Verna). But here I think ANHC is Rs. 60,000 expensive then Verna. My point is if it is much expensive to maintain Verna compared to ANHC over time.
Also I considered Cedia is a good car but it is somewhat above my budget and I am worried about it's maintenance cost too. As according to me getting it's servicing and spares would be an expensive job for Cedia.

[GTO]

The new Honda City seems most suited to your kind of running. Plus, buying a car that's fresh off the block is always a special feeling. Just watch out for the drab interiors + low rear seating though.

[Path_Finder]

Originally Posted by VikCho

Also I considered Cedia is a good car but it is somewhat above my budget and I am worried about it's maintenance cost too. As according to me getting it's servicing and spares would be an expensive job for Cedia.

I have owned a Cedia for last 2 months/3500km - my personal experience with service is limited, but good. Overall what I gather on the forum is also good feedback. Only issue is lesser number of dealers in every city compared to Hyundai/Honda/Maruti. If you can afford it is the best choice that you can make - far ahead of the crowd!

[trrk]

Hi VikCho,

> My point is if it is much expensive to maintain Verna compared to ANHC
> over time.

The NHC has an oil change once every 6 months or 5000kms whichever is earlier, but the oil filter is only changed at 10000kms interval. They use the same oil in Civic and the oil is changed only after 10000kms (but time frame is again 6 months) as per another thread.

You can't depend on distance to do your servicing (to keep the warranty) as your driving is less. So that means 2 services every year for either of your choices. The servicing would be more expensive in the Verna with its CRDi engine as the respective items would be more costlier than the corresponding items in a petrol engine.

Nothing major would actually require a change if your driving is jus going to be 5000kms per year. That would be only 40000kms in eight years!

[deky]

Originally Posted by VikCho

I can wait to test drive ANHC but feat a 3 to 5 Km of drive would not be enough for me to compare it with Verna. So I thought to take help and suggestions of such an expert members of Team-BHP. Please give me your suggestions on what should I conceder a great deal.

Just adding my 2 cents; why should you have a 3-5kms TD only? Before sales the car dealers are ready to give you as many TD's and as long a TD you want. So I think whichever car you are going to decide upon you should take a TD of it till it satisfies your needs or till you completely strike it off your list.
All the best

[hsejars]

VikCho, Your comments regarding the costs are spot on, however you are comparing the bottom end of Verna to the top end City. ANHC E is likely to cost the same as Verna base + ABS and cost of Verna SX + ABS will be same as ANHC S. But since diesel costs less, the overall costs are likely to be less incase of verna.

However, since you are primarily a city based driver, my feeling is the ANHC will provide a better driving experience than Verna; verna's torque and power will be great for highway driving.

The service experience of a Hyundai should be better than Honda (from what i have read from this forum so far) but resale of a Honda will definitely be better than a Hyundai. The City is also likely to be more roomier than the Verna (once again my interpretation from the threads).

I would suggest you take a TD of both and then go with your heart.

[vkochar]

Hi, Welcome to T-BHP.

With your monthly running figures, forget the Verna CRDi. Go for the New Honda City. It looks far better and has fantastic Interiors. FE I would think would be around 10kpl. Resale value will be tops as well.

[vasudeva]

Going by your requirements, it has to be the new City. At 4-5K per annum, diesel makes no sense at all. On Indian roads, bhp perhaps makes less sense than torque, and 5-10 bhp here or there does not make a difference. With its power and torque, City is seriously encroaching on Corolla/Civic territory. FE figures are not available, but a manual should still give double digit FEs.