To be, or not to be: that is the question:
Whether 'tis nobler in the mind to suffer
The slings and arrows of outrageous fortune,
Or to take arms against a sea of troubles,
And by opposing end them? To die: to sleep;
To sleep: perchance to dream: ay, there's the rub;
For in that sleep of death what dreams may come
When we have shuffled off this mortal coil,
Must give us pause: there's the respect
That makes calamity of so long life;
- Shakespeare, circa 1600 *** *** *** *** *** ***
Manza Elan or Etios V: that is the question:
Whether 'tis wiser for a consumer, to suffer
The slings and arrows of Tata QC,
Or to take arms against a sea of niggles,
And by opposing book instead: The Etios by Toyota
Etios: swift but simple Etios: ay, there's the rub;
For in that cabin of Etios, what plastics may come
The car has shuffled off so many features
It gives us pause: there's the dilemma
That brings confusion to so many a buyer;
- car buyer, circa 2011 Sincere apologies to Mods & T-bhpians for inflicting the above. I blame it on mental trauma caused by too many car choices and not enough money to buy them all! So Manza Elan or Etios V! Both are available at roughly 7.5 lacs OTR in Mumbai and besides the Dzire Zxi, are the only sub 8 lac (OTR) sedans with ABS & Airbags.
I had Td-ed the Manza Aura+ twice in October and really liked the car, its rich interiors, space and many thoughtful add-ons. But I had serious reservations with Tata's reputation for niggles and poor A$$. I also found the clutch and gearbox tough to use, so was holding off a decision. Then heard of the Etios - loved the idea of a Toyota sedan at less than 8 lacs and booked the Etios V without even waiting for a TD car to arrive.
Subsequently TD-ed the Etios twice (two diff cars from two diff showrooms). Loved the car's power and driving dynamics, hated the bare cabin feel and lack of features. With the Elan's launch, confusion increased.
Dilemma is now whether to stick with Etios or cancel and go for the Manza Elan?
T-bhp is easily the most amazing motoring forum that there is, was or will be, so thought to get the community's views on this buyer's dilemma. Putting down below a quick pros/cons list for both cars, and looking forward to your views.
Positives for Etios:- FTD quotient: The Etios has an amazing torquey engine, almost feels like a turbo diesel at times, taut suspension, great driving dynamics. The Safire lacks the outright power and sportiness of Etios. The car is seriously Fun To Drive! The Safire is probably good enough for 90% of your city-driving needs, but just doesn't have the thrill factor that the Etios brings. Besides which, the car doesn't love high speeds and a sense of waftiness creeps in post 90 kph.
- Clutch and gear: The Etios has a light, short-travel clutch and smooth gearshifts. The Manza I td-ed had a clutch with a long-travel, the pedal would become progressively harder when pressed and for the last inch I really had to push my foot down. The pedal also had a very aggressive return action. I also found it tough to go back to second gear from third. (could be partly due to clutch lifting up slightly under my foot due to the return action). My left knee and elbow were feeling abused at the end of a 15 min Manza TD. A few other Manza TD / ownership threads mention this as an issue, but many don't - guess its one of those Tata things where the system works well in some cars and not so well in others.
- Build Quality & Reliability: Etios may suffer from rattles and road noise, but the car feels well put together. Going strictly by Toyota's reputation, you get peace of mind that the car will give many years and miles of hassle-free ownership; With Tata, there’s the a fear of getting a lemon and the mind turns to speculations about what kind of niggles you could end up facing during run-in itself.
Positives for Manza:- Features, features, features:
The really important ones - seat height adjust, ELR seatbelts, electronic OVRMs. Etios have? No Tanuka-san!
The other thoughtful conveniences - Blue 5, MID, follow-me home lights, rear armrest, warning buzzers etc. Etios have? No Tanuka-san!
Even the Manza's OEM ICE (once you get past the casio-fonts) is way better than Etios' OEM's pathetic sound quality. Heck, Etios doesn't even have a mute option!! USB/Aux-In, Four speakers, Two tweeters, Mute function - Etios have? No Tanuka-san! - NVH & Comfort: Both cars have significant engine noise in the cabin (I personally love the sound, so not an issue for me). That aside, the Manza is ahead of Toyota on NVH and cabin comfort. I tested the car on some bad patches with 5 people in the car. All passengers were completely insulated from road noise, bumps, irregularities and vibrations. The comfort was way better than the Etios, which lets through plenty of road noise along with some vibration and harshness as well.
- Interiors / Cabin Feel: The Manza offers rich interiors with soft fabrics, good plastics, way better under-thigh support, air-plane style rear reading lights and loads of feel good factor vs the bare, spartan cabin of Etios which reminds me of my current ride (a Maruti 1000). The Manza is two leagues above Etios on this count. I also felt the Manza AC was more effective than Etios. Both my Etios TDs were in slightly warm Feb afternoons (2PM / 4 PM) of Mumbai and the Etios did not manage to chill the rear cabin even after 10 mins (cooling at max with fanspeed of 3). Wonder what will happen on full blown summer afternoons? The Manza's AC is no instant chiller, but felt significantly better than Etios' unit.
Other Notes: - A$$ - one would expect Toyota to beat Tata, but I'm not too sure. Tata service seems to be constantly improving, while Toyota is yet to prove that it can bring class service to the mass market. Looking at my own sales experience, the Etios fb page and comments on ownership threads, I feel that Toyota's set up is not yet fully equipped nor motivated to really service Etios customers.
- Exterior Design - I prefer Toyota's exerior design over the Manza's - it may be conventional, but its also the classier of the two.
What draws me MOST to the Etios is the FTD quotient (power, driving dynamics, high speed stability, smooth clutch and gears) and its presumed reliability. I plan to use the car for at least 5 years, so solid build quality is important. OTOH, I feel let down by the complete lack of features, the bare upholstery and indifferent dealership experience at Toyota. As someone put it in the Etios review thread, it just seems like too much of a compromise. It all boils down to two questions:
1. Is Tata really that risky a buy?
2. Is the FTD differential really so much as to ignore the other value-adds one gets with Manza?
Would love to hear opinions (both subjective and objective) from others who have experience with either or both cars / car-makers.