[vinaydas]

At the end of the day, People fail to realize that they are burning away fuel which is primarily priced low so that the commodities that we enjoy stays low.
As the saying goes, India runs on diesel.
I Seriously believe that the passenger car segment(diesel versions) should be taxed even more so that people can "contribute" to keeping the price of diesel low. With the current craze for diesel cars, expect this to happen in this years budget or max by the next year.

Keep in Mind, The average middle class India still runs on Petrol (read Two wheelers), Its only the well payed/Self employed upper middle class people(Ala Swift D's,Scorpios etc etc) who are whining about paying 25-30 rupees more for petrol than diesel.

[Chetan_Rao]

Cutting a long story short, I'd rather compromise on usage and stay a petrol-head, than compromise for a no-fun car (that only appears cheaper to run overall) and become just another commuter.

I'd love to be in an economic position where fuel prices don't matter, but I'm not, and don't see it happening anytime soon. That still doesn't make me think of ditching my lovely petrol car.

P.S. Took the car out for a highway drive after it spent the week in the parking garage. 100-km round trip with a coffee break at a highway-side Barista, loved every bit of it, and out-drove a few diesel hot-hatches to boot. Needless to say, we were both grinning ear-to-ear when I parked it back.

[alcam]

Guys, I currently alternate between a cedia( for higways- clock in around 2000km per month) and a wagon R( city driving- again around 2200 kms per month). Guess the writing is on the wall for me-change to a diesel power plant. The savings are huge- but the 'fun factor' of a brilliant cedia? how does one quantify that?

[vinya_jag]

http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/...w/10121276.cms

A different thought:
This is the right time to buy a second hand petrol vehicle. (The prices have gone down by 20% as per the article)
Prices of petrol will never come down, but since the car prices are so low, we could get a Honda Jazz for as low as 4.5L, and then enjoy the money saved on liters-and-liters of petrol)

[The Red Devil]

GO GREEN guys. Start walking/cycling/using public transport. I feel these are the best methods to increase the mileage of you vehicle and reduce congestion and pollution and relief from getting into another bout of road rage. I also hope the deregulate the diesel prices so that the super rich too start thinking about using their BMWs and Audis and Mercs with CDI or TDI or what ever engines. Also I hope mister MLA / MP is listening its time you start planning for the future and not just remedy a problem that exists not by aprooving few out dated expressways and metro rails which are left half built.

[lohithrao]

I guess this is the way forward and am already using public transport to the max combined with some walking. while my car relaxes till the next long drive

Originally Posted by The Red Devil

GO GREEN guys. Start walking/cycling/using public transport. I feel these are the best methods to increase the mileage of you vehicle and reduce congestion and pollution and relief from getting into another bout of road rage. I also hope the deregulate the diesel prices so that the super rich too start thinking about using their BMWs and Audis and Mercs with CDI or TDI or what ever engines. Also I hope mister MLA / MP is listening its time you start planning for the future and not just remedy a problem that exists not by aprooving few out dated expressways and metro rails which are left half built.

[NYMEX]

The economics is slowly moving against personal transportation and hopefully a single car for weekend use only will be a reality.

I bought my Altis in Dec 2009 but after discovering the merits of the Delhi Metro have used it only about 500 km in last 3 months + a drive down to Gwalior.


BENEFITS:

1. Petrol bills are now ~ Rs. 2000/month (better half's perquisites) from Rs. 10,000/month earlier.

2. No driver - I save Rs. 8500

3. No driving related stresses

4. Now keep the left hand warm on drives with wife - hence not selling the car.


DISADVANTAGE:
1. Looking very seriously at the NINJA 650

Being in a band is always a compromise. Provided that the balance is good, what you lose in compromise, you gain by collaboration.

[k_nitin_r]

Originally Posted by lohithrao

I guess this is the way forward and am already using public transport to the max combined with some walking. while my car relaxes till the next long drive

If the bus drivers didn't insist on us jumping off while it was still moving, I'd be more likely to take the bus but our Indian bus drivers seem to ignore just about any safety concerns be it about passengers or about pedestrians. Until that changes or we get a metro, I'll stick to my set of wheels.

[mayankk]

CNG going up.
Diesel registration cost going up.
Petrol vehicle owners planning to rid themselves of their autos, could hold on for a bit, else it just might turn out to be frying pan and fire here.

[nanduchitnis]

There was a time when I did not worry too much when petrol prices went up. But now with prices at Rs 71/- per ltr, the cost issue bothers me a lot. I have a Honda City, just a year old and I am looking to exit. The other car is Wagon R which runs on LPG and is quite all right for city driving.

Reading the posts here looks like I will not get a good price by selling the Honda City. So if I use the car for only long distance drives, I will be garaging an expensive car most times.

All things being equal certainly would like to buy a diesel car.

But I guess that will not hapen.

[lohithrao]

Capt, few things which needs to be considered, is the car on loan and the usage..

I guess now used market is flooded with petrol cars and this factor will be used by the buyers...

However your car being a Honda and new may fetch a good price....

Originally Posted by nanduchitnis

There was a time when I did not worry too much when petrol prices went up. But now with prices at Rs 71/- per ltr, the cost issue bothers me a lot. I have a Honda City, just a year old and I am looking to exit. The other car is Wagon R which runs on LPG and is quite all right for city driving.

Reading the posts here looks like I will not get a good price by selling the Honda City. So if I use the car for only long distance drives, I will be garaging an expensive car most times.

All things being equal certainly would like to buy a diesel car.

But I guess that will not hapen.

[mail2vm]

Originally Posted by BulZire

I have a mid segment diesel car[Dzire VDI] and it is one of the best in Fuel efficiency and very happy about that.
But it lags some of other things, IMO.

I use it only on weekends and long highway drive once or twice in a month, Maintenance is also less comparatively.
But still I am not satisfied with it whole heatedly. Nowadays my mind keeps on thinking about replacing it with a top end petrol car with all Gizmo's and security options. I need a performance car now rather than a fuel efficient one. That does not mean Dzire VDI is poor in performance, But still some thing is missing for me.
I am much concerned about a sporty look and well placed one, which i dont get in my current ride.

The petrol price hikes never hit me yet when i think about replacing current car to a petrol one.May be it is because i use my bikes for weekdays and my car usage had gradually decreased. Sometimes i don't touch my car for 2 weeks together. i am very happy and comfortable in using bike for week days and hope to use my bikes only for next few years as my office ride.
I have 2 bikes already and one more is on its way , deal negotiation in progress.

So still i think of moving to a top variant petrol sedan that completely satisfies me in all aspects whenever i drive it. Either it be a weekend or a highway drive or if i am taking it out after a gap of a month, I need a feeling like "aah!!! i love it". sometimes when i see a thread on used VRS's and CIVICS's , i am really tempted and starts to dream about buying one such car and do all the mods i wanted and live my motor life to the fullest.

Considering my car usage, i still think petrol car suits me !!
But then, petrol price hikes are too bad. my bikes run on petrol know

Precisely. Even i think this way to an extent ;-)
I drive a wagon R Duo, but I'm not really happy with the drive since i always feel its a box drive. I've driven the proton's & perodua cars in malaysia when i was there for few years. Kelisa is my favorite. eventhough its a small car, it will just go with full throttle...I always enjoy to drive it with joy (petrol prize at RM1.90/litre) you dont have to be worried about driving a petrol car there.

Here in india, now i think of buying a diesel car just to ensure that i dont burn my pocket, but honestly, i do not like any car in 8-9 lakhs budget (fully loaded ;-))

I drive 30kms everyday to office & home. Hence just thinking on whether to just buy a petrol car which i would like in all ways & just drive it to enjoy it. I know that the petrol price might reach Rs.100/= & i'm also aware that none of our fellow citizens would be bothered to protest/do something to show the anger than just talk about it.

I would prefer to live my life with cars when i can rather than bury it completely - Just my view

[mail2vm]

Originally Posted by GTO

Absolutely, completely & sincerely YES

Reason : I love to drive, and (to me) the sheer pleasure of high-revving a petrol, using those additional rpms in corners and enjoying my early morning / late night drives is more important than the cost of fuel. I've said it before and said it again : Nothing beats the sheer joy of revving the nuts of a smooth, silky, redline-happy petrol engine. With diesels, the fun is over even before it starts.

Of course, a nicely tuned free flow & resultant aural symphony just adds that much more to the pleasure quotient of sweet petrols. Clattery diesels? No comparo.

Lastly, and this was completely unplanned, but somehow my other 3 cars are diesels . That said, if I were to buy 1 new C-segment sedan today, it would be the Linea T-Jet. That smile on my face is more important than the weight of my wallet. When I've lived, I want to know that I've lived like I wanted to. You could say that I prefer the sight of the rpm counter to the fuel gauge.

Well saidi drive a wagon R duo, which i really dont like when i want to pump up on the road. It doesnt pinch my pocket now since its LPG. I wanted to buy a new car, but due to the fuel hikes, i wish to pick a diesel one. I might be greedy to look out for a car in 8-9 lakhs budget with all features, look, quality ;-), but we're indians - More for less..

I narrowed down on Dzire, booked the car, waiting for more than 7+ months.. but i still dont like that car, specifically its look..Just that its diesel..

Now, my wife yells at me whenever i see a new car & say some fascinating story about the manufacturer & i would prefer to buy that car - VW Vento, Nissan Sunny ( with the expectation of a diesel car soon),chevy Cruze.

Technically,i want to stick to my budget, but my heart goes behind all these cars. Now, our latest discussion, why cant we just buy a petrol car which i like (still within the same budget) & drive it, specifically when i want the feel of it.. It will not pinch me much since i will still hold my LPG car for daily use.


Its just to make sure that i enjoy the drive when i want to...

[arindambasu13]

Very nice disscussion. Here is my perspective.

I currently drive a 2006 M800. I had been waiting for the new Swift to launch, and as soon as it did in August, I went ahead and booked one. Prior to the booking, I had spent considerable amount of time debating with myself whether to go for the VXi or the VDi. My running is about 900-1000kms per month. To put things in perspective, I have driven my 800 for about 50,000 kms in exactly 5 years.

Finally, I went ahead and booked the diesel Swift after doing a short test drive. However, I was still unsure about whether I had made the right choice, and almost a month later, I went to the showroom again, to test drive both variants back to back (i.e. petrol and diesel).

And guess what? The sheer joy of driving that sweet, sweet K-series engine was enough to make me change my booking from a VDi to a VXi! I simply could not properly use the torque of the diesel which comes in after 2000 RPM, and the moment the boost began, if at all, the car in front was upon my nose, with the result that in stop and go Bangalore traffic, that boost meant little to me. To me, if one does a lot of highway driving, where the road ahead is relatively unrestricted, the torque of the diesel can be put to use well. But in the city, during normal traffic, that sudden lurch ahead is not very useful.

Without even taking into account the relative coarseness/audibility of the DDIS engine (though compared to a lot of other diesels, the DDIS is much more refined), the feeling of a silky petrol motor mated to a sweet shifting transmision made all the difference to me. I didnt have to high rev the petrol motor- the feeling of smoothness, the whisper quiet nature at low revs, and the gradual, linear increase in power, and of course, the snarl of that motor post 3000 RPM is absolutely addictive.

Like many have said in this thread, it made no sense to me to give up on the joy of that petrol motor just for the high petrol prices. Financial gains on a diesel engine would come up well after 40,000-45,000 kms and with my kind of usage (95% city based), the diesel with its turbo lag made little sense to me.

Though the DDIS is a stellar engine in its own right, I just am a happier man having gone with my heart and decided upon the K12 VXi I am probably amongst the minority who has decided upon a petrol motor on a new purchase, but what the dickens, we have one life to live, and as a confirmed petrolhead, what better indulgence than an awesome silky smooth, shiny new Swift?

[petroguzzler]

Mods: Please move this post to a new thread if this topic warrants one.

The title of this post in teambhp is akin to advocating the commissioning of a nuclear power plant at a Greenpeace summit.

But, whenever I drive in India I ask this question to myself. Do fast cars make sense?

Most of my driving is in Chennai, where the status quo w.r.t. traffic would be similar to other metros. In other words, vehicles would crawl mostly.

The situation is bleak in highways (at least the ones near chennai) also. Driving above 120kmph would not be recommended in most Indian highways. And, given that almost all cars with the exception of uber economy ones like the Nano, Datsun GO etc, reach 120kmph quite comfortably, is the need for fast cars justified?

Yes, I understand that fast cars would accelerate (0-100kmph times), handle and brake better, but why would you want to cruise at 120kmph with a 3 liter in-line 6 cyl turbocharged engine, when a 4 cyl engine could do the same quite comfortably?

P.S.: I am a hardcore petrol-head and own a Civic and would love to own a M5 some day.