Team-BHP - Hyundai Creta vs Renault Duster vs Mahindra XUV500 vs Others

Hello,

i had voted for duster. i had a safari dicor 3 litre, for 2 years (2006-2007), drove 19k, for my regular trips to kolkata -Ranchi - kolkata;same day trips. I currently drive an innova (2005) and have clocked 1.85 lacs km. Have driven scorpio (new model) for around 550km; and duster 2014 model for 850km. All taken on self drive from Bangalore, holiday trips with my family to Ooty and Coorg respectively. The idea was to test the waters before plunging to buy a new vehicle for my long term use, as the Innova is over 10 yrs old.

My highway experience tells the following:

1. Peace of mind for long distance travel. (good roads) ---------- Innova.

2. Long Distance travel. (below 1000 km to and fro) -- bad roads---- Safari (specially on single / dual carriageway). Duster comes when you have less truck movement. Safari commands the respect of all buses, trucks, sumos, boleros etc, due to its status symbol of the bahubali politicians of lineage. Scorpios for the non lineage fellows.

3. SUV 500 is the best VFM, in the country. but somehow, never appealed to me. none of the mahindras did. may be i loved tatas due to my upbringing in Tatanagar!

4. Creta and ecosport both look "toys for boys". Though duster gives an image of a simple family man "(drishyaam)" type.

5. Duster, creta, ecosport, innova, safari all are over priced from 1 lac to 1.5 lacs.

But coming to conclusion, as "KIRANVAKATI" SAID, ALL IS FORGOTTEN WHEN YOU AND YOUR BELOVED FAMILY TRAVELS IN COMFORT OVER BAD ROADS OF INDIA.

HENCE DUSTER'S SUSPENSION WITH ITS FUEL EFFICIENCY OUTSCORES EVERY OTHER FEATURE AVAILABLE IN ALL "SUV'S". in IMHOP.

Cheers for our "hatch backs on steroids".

Voted for Duster primarily because none of the other cars in the list gives such an amazing ride and handling package. Period. I'd say the dynamics is at-least a couple of generations ahead of it's rivals.

A 0-100 timing of less than 12 seconds, a refined engine with proven reliability that offers consistently high fuel efficiency, fairly accurate steering with good feedback, incredible drivability in the town, fast legs on the highways, great in-gear acceleration with no noticeable lag, and a very capable AWD system seals the deal.

It may not have those 'additional 4 airbags', but the rest of the security features is on par with the big guys boasting about features. Poor old thing even offers a very useful lumbar support system that's absent in yet another over priced crossover launched recently.

Own two Dusters at home and one is the AWD. :)

Quote:

Originally Posted by Indian (Post 3788558)

Ride quality in the new XUV facelift version is improved, but not sure if it matches that of duster. I have driven new XUV on some of the broken roads, on the highway and i am quite happy with the ride quality, both at low speed and high speed. As i have not tried duster so much, I can't compare though.

Let me give more details:

I sold my duster because i was moving from chennai to bangalore.
I was about to buy duster again in bangalore, but a 110 ps rxl plus(I was owning 85PS RXL with no abs/airbags).
But my wifey wanted to try out XUV 5OO and we liked it. For obvious reasons i couldn't test the ride quality to the true extent. I relied on XUV 5OO owners rating on ride quality. I read some owners who tried out duster updated that xuv ride quality is no less than duster.

So we bought XUV and I don't say I'm unhappy. But i miss my duster on highways/ghat roads which have undulations.

On smooth highway or even on minor broken roads, XUV behaves same as duster, no body roll or vertical movements.

If the road goes up and down, even a little bit, vertical movement is quite evident. That too at high speeds (100-140kmph) as a driver i feel nervous. I never had that issue with duster.

I might be biased. But my uncle who doesn't drive commented that xuv is faster but duster was more comfortable on long drives.

You can't see the difference in ride quality buy driving 5kms of test drive. I drove duster for a year and now i drive xuv for more than a year.

Having driven all those vehicles, I voted for the XUV. It may not be as tough as the scorpio or safari, but IMO it has the best of everything. Superb engine, decent handling and road manners and acres of space. I have done the manali leh highway and ladakh circuits on the XUV plus bangalore-gokarna-goa and found it to be a beast on the highway and quite at home on the mountains. And despite its size, quite maneuverable on narrow city lanes.
Duster is a close second but I feel it is overpriced for what it offers.

Interesting that the owners with overlap/ experience with Duster & any other vehicle being polled seem to vote for Duster. Clearly shows why this was such a popular vehicle for Renault in an otherwise lackluster line-up (sales-wise atleast). About time they improve the interiors, features, safety kit & come-up with AT+AWD. Charge slightly higher if it warrants so - Creta sales figures indicate demand for well packaged vehicles despite percieved high pricing. Anyways Duster is being offered at a discount currently.

Quote:

Originally Posted by charthom (Post 3788108)

How is the Duster doing on hilly roads with lots of bends? Anyone can comment about the body roll please?

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jaggu (Post 3788536)

It is quite good even with the standard MRF Wanderer tyres. Holds on well, gives good feedback, has minimum roll and very predictable. I am referring to AWD version since i have not got a chance with the 2WD.

Can't agree with you more - it is negligible. Took my AWD to Chansal Pass shod with the OEM MRF Wanderer Sports , it was supremely comfortable and was really hard to discern any body roll. The way it gobbles up the highways or for that matter any 'road' that you care to throw at it is awesome. Another plus is it's short turning radius, once you get a hang of it's beefy wheel arches , it can really squeeze into some tight spaces. And that lovely 6 speed gearbox in the AWD is the perfect showstopper for city traffic.

Needless to add what I voted for :)

My top two choices in the segment would be the XUV and Creta. Both are incredibly well loaded, extremely good cars for their respective brands.

The XUV 500 is a better VFM buy as it has more space, more power and it's well equipped. The Creta is a worthy competitor, but a little overpriced.

The Duster comes in as an older model, which is seems half a decade late. It's not well equipped, but aggressive discounts may tempt me to the Duster.

The Ecosport is too small. But it's feature list is hard to beat. Somehow, it doesn't justify it's price.

I would never consider a safari as it's the same old design that's been there for years. Tata did well with the Zest, they can completely overhaul their flagship SUV.

Notes:
Diesel AT: Creta is the best choice. An XUV AT would have made comparison interesting
AWD: XUV 500/Duster. My choice would be the Duster

My vote goes to Safari Storme.

Reasons for the same goes like this...

1. The Real SUV in my opinion, all others (except Scorpio) are either crossovers or so called urban SUVs or even overgrown hatches.
2. Dominating Road Presence.
3. Excellent Driving Dynamics and Driveability for the SUV in that price range.
4. Super comfortable Seating for SUV in that price range.
5. Superior view all round from the seat.
6. Last but not the least, I own it and it brings a wide grin to my face every time I drive it. clap:

Cheers

Looking at the poll results, it should be XUV running waiting period and not Creta :D. I guess majority Creta buyers are not necessarily TBHPians.

Voted for XUV. When I got one in March earlier this year, I had looked at same set of cars except for Creta and the factors that made me choose are listed below. Creta would not have changed by choice.

Geniune 5 seater. No 4 adults + 1 kid business. Comfort for upto 5 is unmatched by anything that I know. Maybe merc S class. I recently sat in a Q7 and found the middle row had no under thigh support to speak off :Frustrati

Occasional 7 seater. Comes in handy with additional family members in town, its easier to go around city in one car than 2. Certainly not the most comfortable 7 seater

Astoundingly great driveability both in city and highway. I am still amazed at how refined and flexible the engine is

Safety kit. 6 air bags, ESP, ABS etc etc