[sridhar-v]

Originally Posted by pallis

Agree about the Outlander as good value for money (capital cost); running costs are high - in Mumbai I average 6-7kmpl. One worry about the Outlander is future service / spares availability particularly now that they have discontinued selling the Outlanders recently. Last year my Outlander (2012) was stuck for almost 3 months waiting for some spare parts after a minor accident.

HI!
I am also looking at an used Outlander or Grand Vitara if Ecosport AT is excessively delayed.

You mentioned delays due to parts. What were the parts? Any other issues? to be worried about?

[pallis]

Originally Posted by sridhar-v

HI!
I am also looking at an used Outlander or Grand Vitara if Ecosport AT is excessively delayed.

You mentioned delays due to parts. What were the parts? Any other issues? to be worried about?

The major part was the bonnet which had got disfigured when the car (with my then driver at the wheel) hit a BEST bus - they said it had to be sent from Chennai, and I suspect it wasn't available in India. Luckily, the car was in a corporate lease program and the costs / insurance claims were handled by the leasing company.

You may want to check the AC condition. Due to the large size and no rear vents, the back area doesn't cool as fast as the front seats. My kids sometimes sit in the luggage area (i have the 5-seat version) and during peak summer, it can be a bit uncomfortable.

Other than that I've not had any complaints with the car. Recently I went on a 2000km long drive with the family and it was a pleasure!

[HillMan]

Images curtsey team-bhp reviews.

http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/indian...y-october.html
http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/offici...ve-review.html
http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/offici...al-review.html
http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/offici...al-review.html

Now that Nissan is launching the Terrano in a similar price band and variant spec have been released. It will be a good option to run a comparison, poll and discussion to help people make informed decisions. And see what the trend is.

All these beasts have distinctive characteristic and road behavior. They each have their strong points and weaknesses. All of them inherit a 4x4 DNA.

Let us try and restrict the comparison on apple to apple at a similar price point.

The comparison should be restricted to driving dynamics, comfort, reliability, features and VFM

Even though Duster and Terrano have similar engines and dimensions, they have interesting variation


Spec sheet curtsey Duster Official Review.

[condor]

Originally Posted by HillMan

Let us try and restrict the comparison on apple to apple at a similar price point.

Then you would need to keep only the Duster & Terrano here.

Having test driven 3, driven 2 a fair bit, and owned one of these, I can only say that they are different vehicles. A potential buyer just needs to drive them to know which one he likes - unless he is going purely with an on-paper approach.

[HillMan]

Originally Posted by condor

Then you would need to keep only the Duster & Terrano here.

IMO, Terrano is expected to be priced 50-70K more than Duster similar variant, but then the feature list is different for justifying the price hike. This also will bring the Terrano variant closer to the next Duster variant. That way there will be competition. Although the driving dynamics might be similar, the two are distinct and apart in their placement and pricing. Nissan has put some effort to give it an individuality, I'll respect that.

[pahwa]

A very tough poll. Well - its all about budget to me. If I had 15+ lacs, I'd go for an XUV. If budget was limited at 12 lacs, I would go for Renault Duster 85 PS. Duster 110 PS is dangerously close to a better contender - XUV500.

Terrano is no-no for me because I was expecting much better interiors for the premium Nissan has to charge. I was left disappointed. I would not pay extra on-road price of about 70k (expected).

Tata Safari is a no because of prevailing Tata service, taxi image, in-city drivability, mileage and its niggles.

I voted for XUV500 though

[HillMan]

Originally Posted by condor

Then you would need to keep only the Duster & Terrano here.

Originally Posted by pahwa

A very tough poll.

Very true, tough poll. All of them fall under a similar pricing. A very close call. They ferociously bite into each others market. The characteristics and user needs will guide the poll. It should be pretty interesting to see how it goes.

[ahmad.007]

Its either Duster 110, or XUV for me, depending upon my seat requirements. But, Duster 110 is close to XUV, so most probably its XUV 500.
Terrano, costly, similar to Duster, not so much better interiors, and Storme, well its a TATA, so a no-no for both.

[pahwa]

Originally Posted by HillMan

Very true, tough poll. All of them fall under a similar pricing. A very close call. They ferociously bite into each others market. The characteristics and user needs will guide the poll. It should be pretty interesting to see how it goes.

Infact, I think the 76%-24% poll between Ecosport & Duster is also just the heat of moment. A few months down the line - buyers would understand that these cars are from different segments and the buying decision would be as per requirement, parking space, boot space requirement etc.

[HillMan]

Originally Posted by pahwa

Infact, I think the 76%-24% poll between Ecosport & Duster is also just the heat of moment.

I consciously kept EcoSport out of this poll. I have grouped these cars falling in the 12 - 18L on road. The second reason is also that these SUVs directly compete with each other as on date. Anyone looking for an SUV will tend to compare all these.

[vb-saan]

Originally Posted by HillMan

Very true, tough poll. All of them fall under a similar pricing. A very close call. They ferociously bite into each others market. The characteristics and user needs will guide the poll. It should be pretty interesting to see how it goes.

Similar pricing – Yes! But is that the sole reason for this grouping/comparison? Other than the possibility of Terrano ferociously biting into Duster’s pie I don’t see Storme or XUV making any difference in that space (or vice versa). When the whole country is comparing Duster and Ecosport, you excluded the latter from this group. A car which was doing 5000+ numbers consistently for a year suddenly dropped into the vicinity of 3000 after the launch of Ecosport.

Sorry to say, I see this poll quite pointless. If characteristics and user needs are to be considered, the poll probably can be between Duster, Ecosport and Terrano. Infact I believe there is already a poll between Duster and Ecosport.

[kailashnj]

I think I will go with the Storme....

XUV has lot going for it no doubt but the best value SUV at the moment is the Storme EX. I took a test drive of the Storme over the weekend as I am looking for a new car currently and was stunned at the way the Storme drives and behaves. Guys just don't discount this car because its from Tata - they have done very good job.

Though I am not buying the Storme as its slightly over budget for me as I am looking for something under 10L. Just hope I get some good discounts for Storme and can get something near my budget.

[teamveevee]

Tough comparison. But if the question was which one i choose if i was in the market and these are only options available, the answer will be Strome, will avoid XUV500 by all means.

[HillMan]

Originally Posted by vb-san

Similar pricing – Yes! But is that the sole reason for this grouping/comparison? Other than the possibility of Terrano ferociously biting into Duster’s pie I don’t see Storme or XUV making any difference in that space (or vice versa). When the whole country is comparing Duster and Ecosport, you excluded the latter from this group. A car which was doing 5000+ numbers consistently for a year suddenly dropped into the vicinity of 3000 after the launch of Ecosport.

In my opinion we should consider where the manufacturer has positioned their products. Thats why I feel this poll is valid.

EcoSport and Duster dont make sense for a poll, simply because both target a different market segment altogether. Just because EcoSport and Duster compete in another country doesn't mean they are natural competitors in India as well. EcoSport is priced higher than Duster in other markets. Not the case in India. Here base EcoSport is priced along side premium hatch while Duster is marketed as a crossover and priced along with SUVs. The base petrol Duster is priced along with Sedans, the sales of which are unknown volumes, while the base EcoSport starts along side a premium hatch.

Here the EcoSport is eating into Ford Figo's market share (read hatch), Terrano launch has caused a lull for Duster. The low on XUV and Storme sales in August cannot be dismissed either.

The buying decisions in India depends on many factors, Affordability, Economy, Family size and status being the major components.

Easy car loans and higher income has bridged the affordability gap to a large extent. Now the 25-35 youngsters are open to loans for a comfortable/dream ride. Thats a paradigm shift from the previous generation which looked at their savings for personal spending.

[gauravdgr8]

It has to be the Storme all the way.

It's a real SUV and not a city SUV. It's got that go anywhere attitude.

At 13L for VX, it's VFM.