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Old 12th October 2021, 18:36   #1
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Upgrade from my Hyundai Grand i10 | Which Crossover for 18 lakhs?

Team,

I'll try to keep this post short, if I can!

The MG Astor price reveal has marked the end of a slew of CSUV launches this year. Like many of us, I was in an automotive excited state of mind for last few months. I am really happy with the success of XUV700, Taigun, Kushaq (from the bumper booking numbers) and surely Astor will attract huge bookings. This means that we finally have viable alternatives to the Korean twins although they continue to remain strong.

Now to the topic:

My first and current car is a 2014 Hyundai Grand i10 Sports. The car has given me nothing but happiness. It has been reliable, taken me to the places where was not supposed to go, easy to drive and maintain. For 2014, it had the features which were only available in cars 2 segments above - push button start, electric ORVM adjust and fold, cooled glovebox, rear AC vents and a cabin which felt supremely premium in comparison to the competition.

The ODO currently sits at 99450KMs with last 9450KMs taking almost 1.5 years due to the pandemic. While the car still drives fantastic thanks to not cheap but effective authorized Hyundai service, I have been feeling the itch to upgrade to a new car for some time now and have been on a test drive spree in the last month or so.


With a budget of 15-18 lacs OTR in NCR, here is a list of requirements:

The Must Haves:

1. Sunroof - For my 6 year old daughter a car is as good as garbage if there is no sunroof. This has meant that a lot of good options are out of consideration.

2. Space and comfort- We love long drives and a spacious cabin is a must with comfortable seats and a good aircon. Cramped rear seats have ruled out Kushaq, Taigun and Astor. I found rear seats of Creta and Seltos to be more accommodating and comfortable.

3. Good ground clearance - with our road infrastructure providing off road adventure within metro cities and my frequent drives to my hometown in remote hills, good GC is a must. This has effectively ruled out the Honda City.

4. Automatic - Time has come to keep the left foot stress free.

5. Safety - I don't think there is any safety feature in my Grand i10 other than the brakes and the seat belts. I drive in a relaxed manner and can do with couple of airbags and some of the electronic safety features like ABS, ESP.

6. Petrol Engine - I have kept my Grand i10 for more than 7 years and intend to keep my next car for another 8-10 years at least. With the 10 year diesel rule in NCR and my yearly run of 6000-8000 KMs, the diesel engine does not make sense.

The Good to Haves:

1. Cruise control - Another means of comfort on long drives.

2. Lively engine - Can compromise but once in a blue moon I like revving the motor to feel the rush of speed.

3. Good Music system - Not the biggest infotainment system but adequate speakers will enhance the driving experience.

Test drives:

1. Kushaq and Taigun - 1.0 L petrol is like an energetic teenager who is eager to impress. The cabins of both these cars are cramped and leave much to be desired. It felt like sitting in a raised hatchback - rejected.

2. Kia Seltos - Test drove the new iMT and the regular 1.5l CVT - while the iMT is super easy to drive and great value for money, the cabin does not feel upmarket. A lot of hard plastics all around, fixed headrests on the back seat with no armrest - rejected.
The HTX CVT although is not very aggressive but is quite smooth to drive. The honeycomb leatherette seats feel great with soft touches on the dash and doors - shortlisted.

3. Hyundai Creta SX CVT - Again a great package but expensive over the Seltos. Coming from the Grand i10, the cabin felt the same which turned out to be the deal breaker for the home minister - rejected.

4. MG Astor turbo TC- Good outside and beautiful inside. Nothing the complain about how it drives but nothing to be excited about either. Although the cabin is premium but still it feels cramped at the back seat. Sunroof is awesome but the thin undercover looked cheap and ineffective. I am not interested in ADAS and all those AI gizmos - rejected.

5. MG Hector Shine CVT- The cabin is a party hall - there is so much space there. The car feels like a proper SUV and it is really easy to drive, add the comfortable seats in the premium cabin and you would understand why MG is able to sell it so well. the shine variant has made the Hector much more value for money if it was already not - shortlisted.

So, the Final contenders:

Kia Seltos HTX 1.5 CVT vs MG Hector Shine 1.5 CVT:

1. While the Seltos trumps in features, the Hector wins the space battle hands down.
2. The Seltos seems adequately sized while the Hector might be oversized for city commute.
3. The Seltos has better fuel economy but the overall fuel expense difference between the two should not be more that Rs5000-7000 per year.
4. MG service program is far superior to that of Kia, I have met a few Hector owners and all are more than happy with MG service.
5. MG provides 5 year standard warranty along with RSA while Kia has a 3 year program.

I have helped a lot of my friends and relatives with their car buying but when its coming to me, I am turning to you auto geeks to help me out. Please pour in your suggestions and recommendations.

And yes - feel free to confuse me
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Old 12th October 2021, 20:28   #2
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re: Upgrade from my Hyundai Grand i10 | Which Crossover for 18 lakhs?

Appreciate the thought process that went in to arrive at that shortlist including the Hector and the Seltos. For someone who is looking for a spacious and comfortable cruiser, the Hector is the better choice here. It is almost a segment above the Seltos in terms of dimensions, space and offers a superior ride quality.
Quote:
Originally Posted by TheVegabond View Post

1. Sunroof - For my 6-year-old daughter a car is as good as garbage if there is no sunroof.
Last but not least, just make sure your daughter is enjoying the view through the panoramic sunroof while being belted and not by sticking her head out while the car is on a public road or in motion.
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Old 13th October 2021, 10:23   #3
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Re: Upgrade from my Hyundai Grand i10 | Which Crossover for 18 lakhs?

Mod Note: Thread moved to the What Car -> SUVs forum!
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Old 13th October 2021, 10:52   #4
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Re: Upgrade from my Hyundai Grand i10 | Which Crossover for 18 lakhs?

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Originally Posted by JohaanTJ View Post
Appreciate the thought process that went in to arrive at that shortlist including the Hector and the Seltos. For someone who is looking for a spacious and comfortable cruiser, the Hector is the better choice here. It is almost a segment above the Seltos in terms of dimensions, space and offers a superior ride quality.
Yes, Hector seems to be making much more sense at this point with the space and comfort it offers. I haven't come across any complains about MG as a brand. The showroom experience has been best among all the showrooms I visited and MG seems to be doing good with ASS.

They sure need to add more service centers which they are doing. In fact they are coming up with a service center close to my locality.
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Old 13th October 2021, 11:36   #5
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Re: Upgrade from my Hyundai Grand i10 | Which Crossover for 18 lakhs?

You seem to use the vehicle rather well, so do keep an eye on the running costs.

The running cost between a Hector and Seltos will be significantly different. Seltos will be closer to your Grand i10 in such expenses than Hector.
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Old 13th October 2021, 12:14   #6
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Re: Upgrade from my Hyundai Grand i10 | Which Crossover for 18 lakhs?

Based on your requirements, Hector makes more sense. Acres of space, soft suspension, back seat comfort, sunroof, good music system & decent safety kit. Plus it's a segment above from Seltos.
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Old 13th October 2021, 13:31   #7
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Re: Upgrade from my Hyundai Grand i10 | Which Crossover for 18 lakhs?

Quote:
Originally Posted by Kosfactor View Post
You seem to use the vehicle rather well, so do keep an eye on the running costs.

The running cost between a Hector and Seltos will be significantly different. Seltos will be closer to your Grand i10 in such expenses than Hector.
Thanks.

I did a comparison for the running cost based on 2 parameters:

1. Fuel cost - Hector being a bigger car consumes more fuel. Still, based on my running which has reduced significantly due to the work from home setup (going to continue in longer run for me), the maximum difference should not be more than Rs8000 per year. I think this should be fine.

2. Service and maintenance - Standard warranty for MG Hector is 5 years as compared to 3 years for Seltos. Go for MG shield and the regular maintenance cost can also be kept in check.

All in all annual running cost difference should not exceed Rs10000.

Am I thinking right!

Last edited by TheVegabond : 13th October 2021 at 13:32.
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Old 13th October 2021, 14:29   #8
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Re: Upgrade from my Hyundai Grand i10 | Which Crossover for 18 lakhs?

Quote:
Originally Posted by TheVegabond View Post
Thanks.

I did a comparison for the running cost based on 2 parameters:

1. Fuel cost - Hector being a bigger car consumes more fuel. Still, based on my running which has reduced significantly due to the work from home setup (going to continue in longer run for me), the maximum difference should not be more than Rs8000 per year. I think this should be fine.
Makes perfect sense.

What I have observed is that with a more capable & comfortable vehicle in comparison to a hatchback - the owners tend to make more use of it, travel outstation more often and a lot further during the same day.

Nevertheless, I think you will enjoy either of them. Travelogues welcome
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Old 13th October 2021, 18:01   #9
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Re: Upgrade from my Hyundai Grand i10 | Which Crossover for 18 lakhs?

Got the Hector CVT in top spec Sharp trim recently. I would say that if you can stretch your budget by a couple of lakhs get the Sharp trim over Shine. It’s totally worth it. The music system upgrade and panoramic sunroof itself take the experience a couple of notches up. The car is easy to drive in city and yes the fuel efficiency is not satisfactory but the brilliant ASS makes up for it. Have bought numerous cars but can safely say that MG dealer and ASS experience are amongst the best right now. The car has the road presence and the NVH levels of a segment above and feels much bigger and premium than the seltos.
Go for the hector Sharp!
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Old 13th October 2021, 21:32   #10
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Re: Upgrade from my Hyundai Grand i10 | Which Crossover for 18 lakhs?

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Originally Posted by mpod11 View Post
Got the Hector CVT in top spec Sharp trim recently. I would say that if you can stretch your budget by a couple of lakhs get the Sharp trim over Shine. It’s totally worth it. The music system upgrade and panoramic sunroof itself take the experience a couple of notches up.
Go for the hector Sharp!
You make a valid point and this thought is certainly in my mind. But having set the budget at 15 and then stretching it to 18 makes it a real drag to go for the sharp variant at 20+.
Having said that, I am still evaluating the options to make that stretch.
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Old 13th October 2021, 21:55   #11
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Re: Upgrade from my Hyundai Grand i10 | Which Crossover for 18 lakhs?

The Hector & Seltos are poles apart.

The Seltos corners on rails (almost), has punchier performance, is compact & easy to handle in the city, and a bit cheaper to buy & run (better efficiency).

Hector has more space inside, and a soft ride (with body roll).

Chose the one which meets your core requirements better.
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Old 14th October 2021, 09:39   #12
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Re: Upgrade from my Hyundai Grand i10 | Which Crossover for 18 lakhs?

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Originally Posted by abhishek46 View Post
The Hector & Seltos are poles apart.

The Seltos corners on rails (almost), has punchier performance, is compact & easy to handle in the city, and a bit cheaper to buy & run (better efficiency).

Hector has more space inside, and a soft ride (with body roll).

Chose the one which meets your core requirements better.
Thanks.

Seltos does tick a lot of boxes and appears a lot more practical but Hector trumps in space and comfort. The running cost difference of ~10K per year should be fine.

The waiting period on Seltos is almost 4 months while Hector is can be delivered in about 2 months. This has also tilted me towards Hector.
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Old 14th October 2021, 20:42   #13
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Re: Upgrade from my Hyundai Grand i10 | Which Crossover for 18 lakhs?

Try to go for the Sharp trim and it is really worth the strech. If you got your calculations on fuel right, go for Hector as it is mentioned earlier, almost a segment above.

Also, if you aren't wearing a helmet and sports harness while driving ( or taking a test drive ) the body roll should not be an issue and actually tend to enjoy the soft suspension on a day to day commute. Go for it...

Last edited by SM.Turbo : 14th October 2021 at 21:12.
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Old 15th October 2021, 08:28   #14
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Re: Upgrade from my Hyundai Grand i10 | Which Crossover for 18 lakhs?

Hector vs Seltos for a family car ? I think its a no-brainer. The Hector has more space, more comfort, more luggage capacity and in the long term, you wont end up feeling that "I should have had a bigger car than Seltos" . The CVT transmission is also a reliable mechanism with proper maintenance.
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Old 15th October 2021, 10:04   #15
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Re: Upgrade from my Hyundai Grand i10 | Which Crossover for 18 lakhs?

We’re very happy with our Hector Plus DCT. If the numbers add up for you (in terms of fuel consumption), I’d take it. So far, an excellent sales and after sales experience. Touchwood. One thing which instantly ruled out both the Korean twins for us is the safety aspect. I can compromise on almost anything in a car in terms of features per se (I’m old school like that) but the widely reported brake failure and even worse, Kia/Hyundai’s attitude to it, made it a hard no. Frankly the combo of a blistering engine with questionable safety is unnerving to me. The experience with MG has been very pleasant. Incidentally, for everybody who talks about its bouncy setup and body roll, that rep was probably based on the previous gen in which it was very pronounced. We did a few test drives before buying and it was at the time that MG was just introducing the 2021 version with the Plus as well, so got to drive both. The introduction of the 18 inch wheels with lower profile tyres has made a fair difference in ride quality imo. I pushed it rather hard on curves and corners recently in Coorg (which has some narrower hill roads) and it did all right. Sure, it will never be a ‘corner carver’, but with the lower profile tyres (than before) and the right tyre pressure, the bounciness it was known for and roll is markedly reduced. If you’re really interested, I’m sure a bit of suspension tweaking will improve it further but I personally don’t think it’s necessary for what you want this car to do. Btw, if you’re there in that ballpark already, you may want to consider the Hector Plus. I think the incremental cost is worth it personally.

Last edited by RT13 : 15th October 2021 at 10:08.
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