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Old 1st October 2010, 19:21   #1
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Diesel Sedan to last 150k kms in 3 years

Hello All

I need a diesel sedan that is capable of running 50000 kms a year with least maintenance costs. The budget is not more than 11 lakhs on road price in Tamil Nadu. I intend to keep this for a 5 years and 2.5 lakh kms.

The following cars came to my mind

1. Ford fiesta - nice car, but not so great stories beyond 75 k. Not spacious compared to the other cars in mind
2. Verna - I dont like the transform looks and does not inspire confidence in highway driving (steering)
3. Magnum - big contender, better interiors, great power, but unsure of longevity
5. Lancer - Like the looks, currently own a cedia so emotionally attached to the mitsu family, lots running with more than 200 k on the odo no issues. Old interiors dampen the spirit a bit.

Don't like high rise vehicles like scorpio, safari, Innova, Xylo etc.

Heart and mind feels Lancer diesel which is 9 lakhs on road. Dont know about other states, here in Tamilnadu (incl Chennai city) Lancers are plenty.

Many current owners (spoke to a few folks from coimbatore) go back and buy lancer diesel when they close 200k on the odo. They say that its a 0 maitenance compared to other new diesels. Please note that they have the Vitamin M to buy a new car every year or adorn their park way with the germans (Mercs / BMWs / VWs). But this is their favourite work horse in the family.

Has anyone in this forum bought a brand new Lancer diesel recently (in the past 1 year). Can they share their experience?

Also please pour in your views and suggestions of if there are any alternatives.

Thanks in advance.

Last edited by Car&me : 1st October 2010 at 19:23.
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Old 1st October 2010, 19:26   #2
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I suggest buy the Altis Diesel. Suits your 'Buy it and forget it category'.

Rest assured of peace of mind. You won't regret spending on it.
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Old 1st October 2010, 19:31   #3
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True Toyota provides that peace of mind. There are couple of things thats making me go away from it.

1. IMO, its not as sporty as Lancer (in looks)
2. Most important thing is Vitamin M, beyond my budget.
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Old 1st October 2010, 19:55   #4
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My reasoning's the same as yours. While I've seen plenty of 150K-200K lancers munching away miles with disdain, Vernas and Fiestas are known to throw up the occasional tantrum. Magnum and Altis diesel are too new to have their longevity judged.

If you are OK with a car of out-dated design, then Lancer's the one for you.
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Old 1st October 2010, 20:06   #5
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60K in 22 months

My Swift D - the figure should read what you are looking for in 3 years.
no problems so far.
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Old 1st October 2010, 20:15   #6
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MalluDude, to me the Lancer profile (exterior) is a great one. A well maintained lancer (with subtle mods) still draws my attention. Its the interior that is outdated. Need to explore ways to see if we can integrate lets say Cedia interior in there :-)

SamuraiJack, I was too tempted on the swift and I have heard similar Swift D longterm stories (1.5k +), but my requirement is a sedan.
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Old 1st October 2010, 20:17   #7
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Cruze if I may suggest

You can get your hands on the Cruze LT for the price you mentioned and the Magnum for 8.20lakh both exshowroom.

Both come with the same engine as that in the Captiva. Please note that the engine will make light work of the weight of both these cars and hence will not be stressed. They should easily last 3 lakh kilometers if the fluids are changed on time. The diffrentiating factor between the Magnums engine and the Cruze/Captiva engine is just the turbo unit and the ECU. All else are practically the same on the engine front.
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Old 1st October 2010, 20:24   #8
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Quote:
Originally Posted by MalluDude View Post
Altis diesel are too new to have their longevity judged.
But ain't the Altis diesel a scaled down version of the Innova engine? Innova is a proven mile cruncher!!
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Old 1st October 2010, 20:28   #9
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drpillockaran, Magnum is still very close to, though cruze is certainly out of my radar due to budget constraints. Moreover, I felt (may not be the reality, but I felt) that the Magnum is more spacious than cruze. I know cruze is newer and more powerful, but dont know how much of that power is going to be used in the real world. More over my focus is on comfort and maintenance. Magnum is good on the comfort side, but unsure of the maintenace part.
Compared to Lancer, Magnum is going to be costlier to maintain and thats because Lancer has less complexities compared to Magnum.
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Old 1st October 2010, 20:32   #10
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Is it right to say a bigger engine stresses less on a 100k life compared to a smaller engine? if the driving style is same.

A 2.0 ltr IDI engine stresses lesser than a 1.4 new age engine? And therefore longevity is easier and better on a 2.0 ltr IDI engine?

I read it somewhere that the compression is higher in CRDI based engines which stresses the engine more than the IDI engines.
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Old 1st October 2010, 21:46   #11
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The Altis Diesel never really cut it for many of us. The Lancer diesel though a 10 year old design or more, still does the job, I have never driven it but have sat on the front passenger seat. It moves with considerable finesse and at the price it is worth every penny. Not to forget the great km/litre number.

Would like to add, there is the maintaince cost to consider, which I think is amongst the lowest.



Cheers

Last edited by Ricky_63 : 1st October 2010 at 21:47.
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Old 2nd October 2010, 00:08   #12
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Ricky 63, I thought the same too. Lancer diesel presents the most economical service based on my needs. But don't know if I am missing any other sedan in this price range which provides the same peace of mind service for long long time to come.
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Old 2nd October 2010, 01:00   #13
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Originally Posted by Car&me View Post
I read it somewhere that the compression is higher in CRDI based engines which stresses the engine more than the IDI engines.

It depends more on the internal variables and environment than size but generally if both engines use the same tech and have same number of cylinders than a larger engine size will be better to distribute the heat but its very unlikely that a small engine will break apart before a larger size engine.

CRDi's engines have life's expediencies tied up with them now this is unique for every type of CRDi engine. The Accent Viva CRDi unit is said to need an overhaul after 70k but a Elantra's mill is suppose to require the overhaul much later.

I would recommend a tried and tested engined car like the VW Vento. Granted the Vento is new but the 1.6L mill is used in several car's and is suppose to be a good age'r. The 1.6L "CAYC" has been used in the following cars:

SEAT Ibiza Mk4, SEAT Ibiza Mk5, SEAT León Mk2, SEAT Altea, SEAT Altea XL, Škoda Octavia Mk2, Volkswagen Polo Mk5, Volkswagen Golf Mk6, Volkswagen Golf Plus, Volkswagen Golf Variant, Audi A1
 
Old 2nd October 2010, 09:01   #14
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CRDi engines have very very reasonable lifespans. I have seen a number of Innova's that have crossed 250k kms without even requiring a clutch replacement. Recently sat in one and even at 288k the vehicle had very good pickup and no noise or rattle.

You will also find a lot of swifts that have done 150k+ without any major maintenance

Last edited by Buffetfan : 2nd October 2010 at 09:02.
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Old 2nd October 2010, 09:09   #15
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Vento does have that understated look, which I kind of like. It will turn heads with subtle mods not in glaring way but just to take a second look. On top of that its new and therefore you will have the gadgets that belong to latest era. I really dont know how much we would use on a day to day life. I do agree on the safety perspective that it scores high against the good old lancer.
VW being relatively new in India dont know the up keeping costs here. Even more hesitating with VW group after hearing the Skoda stories. Several Lancer owners are saying that the costs to maintain the whole car(not just the engine) is much cheaper.

Space wise due to larger glass area, lancer gives an airy feeling and the feeling of space inside.

Does any of the longterm Lancer diesel owner have a ownership cost details?

Buffetfan, you are right, seen lot of Swifts with 1.5k + miles on it. I guess is a Maruti trait to give wallet friendly cars. Two reasons not to go for Swift; I need a sedan and I have owned a petrol swift for quite sometime. I wish there was a sedan diesel in the range am looking for from Maruti. Not so keen on dzire, because it does not look like a proper sedan.

Last edited by Car&me : 2nd October 2010 at 09:25.
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