[JJ1991]

Kindly take a test drive MG Astor it ticks all your requirements and if fuel economy is required you can cross off Nexon petrol from your list and rather consider Nexon diesel which is much better.

[TheVegabond]

Can I suggest Honda WRV.

Yes, there is no AT gearbox and the petrol engine is a little underwhelming but, it ticks all the boxes - it is a reliable Honda and regular service will keep it going in long run, fuel economy is also good, the cabin is premium and you get best is class space. A test drive would do no harm.

[evil_grin]

Since you're looking for crossovers just because ingress and not ground clearance or looks, I'd strongly suggest a used Corolla. It's easy for elders to get into and it fits all your requirements. Reliable for the long term, easy on pocket, safe, petrol for city, ergonomics is fine, has lots of aspirational value and you can get a good automatic for 10-12 lakhs that you can keep for 10 years even if you buy a 5-10 year old one.

It's 2 segments better than any other cars you are considering. No comparison unless you care about gadgets or flashy interiors a lot, which you haven't mentioned so I guess you don't.

[ramnaresh_2000]

I would suggest a used Harrier XZ+ or used Jeep Compass, both in BS4 avatar can be found at 15 lakhs budget easily. The BS4 engines dont have DPF issues. Both these vehicles are built very well and are safe. Compass even boasts 50+ safety features. Limited Plus is the fully loaded variant. Unfortunately none of these were tested by GNCAP, so no ratings provided. If you want to fiddle with aftermarket accessories then stay away from Compass. You can get a 2019 manufactured vehicle with company warranty left and extended warranty option for peace of mind. The Fiat engine is a beast and at the same time very reliable and gives best mileage in it's class.

If used vehicle is not an option then Harrier XT+ or Hector or XUV700 AX5 variants (slight budget stretch is required).

[Neversaygbye]

I am unqualified to comment on whether the Nexon is better than the Sonet since I have never been in a Nexon but I have been in my friend's Sonet iMT and even gone on a pretty long 400 kms road trip across all kinds of roads. Even with a full load the ride quality was pretty bad including at high speeds. We felt each and every rough patch on the road and were really tired when we reached our destination. Everyone in the backseat were going ooh aah every now and then and it was not because of love for the vehicle. To put it in perspective, my 8 year old Vista with its 14 inch wheels has a cushier ride. Hence please, please test drive both cars across all kinds of tarmac at the rated tyre pressure.

Regarding the other aspect of Tata cars - Tata cars are as well put together as any other car (sometimes better) but QC is still inconsistent and sometimes rough edges do remain. Hence ensure that you do a thorough PDI if you do choose to go for Tata. However, if you can look beyond the fit and finish issues, the cars are really good and usually trouble free if purchased at least 2 years after launch. We have not had any rattles in either of our cars, but I do know folks who have bought fresh baked Tata cars and some of them had niggles. Nexon being very tried and tested should be sorted out now just like our Vista and its predecessor the Indica, both of which were purchased after the model had been on the market for a few years.

[UPS_Guru]

If you want a car now, in Maruti, just go for S-Cross Zeta AT Petrol. Brezza current or facelift is not suitable for your requirements, and the S-Cross facelift/hybrid isn't coming anytime soon. I have seen most people looking at paper specifications and dismissing S-Cross AT, but believe me for your 80% city driving, it is made for you. Sometimes old is gold!

[bravo82in]

Though you have said no to sedans, I will still suggest to TD the 5th Gen City with your parents. City ticks all your must have and good to have boxes. I was also of the same opinion as you till I drove the city. It’s a VFM car, proven workhouse easy on pocket and space is unmatched by any of the CSUVs. Believe me your parents will love it. It’s not just about getting in and out; seating comfort, leg and shoulder room also matters on long drives.

[quattroa4]

Nexon Diesel will do the trick for you as per my point of view . I have an EV one with 8000 kms on Odo and it flattens the bad roads like a Boss and yes , no problems so far . One of my friend is having a Diesel one , it gives him 22-25 kmpl as per his saying which i do confirmed by looking at his fuel consumption meter more then once .
And what about safety ? Going by your usage , you do need a strong car which the Sonet can't offer you even if you pay for the top version . Go for the real Car ( Nexon or XUV 300) and not for a flasher .

[DevSunit]

I also Had the same dilemma an year ago and later I went ahead with Nexon Petrol Amt. It is my Mom' s daily driver and have completed the 10k mark. The following are the reasons That made me cancel the other options.
Brezza/Urban Cruiser- Interiors were dated, Plastic quality was not welcoming, Auto Box was a Big no. But It is ok when the Budget is below 10 lakh. Top models are not that Great IMO
XUV 300 - The chopped design, familiar Interiors, Rear legroom, Lowest GC in Segment, but the actual deal breaker was the Bootspace. Now Mahindra has also reduced many of it's brilliant features like They reduced one airbag, heated Side view mirror etc
Venue/Sonet - Rear legroom and Safety aspects. And Hyundai DCTs are also not that great.
Magnite/Kiger - Actually I had booked Magnite XV Turbo CVT but I was not that impressed in The TD experience. The Interiors are not in the leagues of its competitors . Material and Part quality was average.But it is really VFM in its price range
Ecosport was dropped because of its Rear legroom and Stiff suspension.

Nexon offers Decent Drivability. There is a slight turbo lag but after that It leaps ahead. Actually the pull in third gear is maddening. Ride and Handling is good. Its seats are one of the best in segments and offers excellent under thigh support. AMT does it's job well im City and Out in Highways, we always use Manual Mode . Actually IMHO I found it better than Brezza's TC as It also allowed Manual Mode
Cons are:

1. Absence of Rear Reading Lamp
2. A proper Automatic
3. Some features are less compared to Koreans
4. Finding a good TASS. Now in Kerala, many TASS are growing their reputation. So Not a Problem for me (now)


NB - There are also many positives to all these cars. If Sonet had a Min 4 star rating, then The Diesel Auto would have been a No Brainer for me. Also If you are open for Sedans, do check out the New City or The Uocoming Slavia

[Cliff9091]

Originally Posted by Engine_Roars

P.S.: This community is awesome, gratitude to team behind this

Hey,

If you're comfortable with a larger sedan and ground clearance is not that big an issue, do check out the Honda City VX Petrol Manual. It has all the bells and whistles you need and will surely put a smile on your face when behind the wheel. It's under 15 lakh OTR Pune. Recommended the City VX Petrol Manual to a close family friend earlier this year who coincidentally were looking for an upgrade from their Hyundai Grand i10. Honestly, the City is better upgrade from the Xcent rather than a sub-4m crossover. Hope it helps.

Cheers
Cliff

Note from Support: Please quote only relevant portions of large posts. Thanks!

[cryptex]

Originally Posted by Engine_Roars

Background:

We are a family of four, two of us in our mid thirties & senior citizen parents with knee & back problems. We currently own 7 years old Hyundai Xcent petrol which has been a very good companion for all these years. The usual running is approximately 10000-12000 a year at max which is 80% of city driving(Pune traffic) & 20% highway driving(This is post covid numbers). I love highway drives & intend to take on at least one road trip each year which we have been doing every year with Xcent.

Requirements:

Must haves:
1. Cruise control
2. Comfortable ergonomics
3. Good driver seat ( I am 6'1).
4. Easy on pocket in long term - do not like to spend too much of my time at service centers.
5. Long term reliability/support from manufacturer - intend to keep it for 7-10. years at least.
6. Good on safety, can do with less then 5 stars though.
7. Budget < 15 Lacs

Good to haves:
1. Auto
2. Aspirational value
3. Good fuel economy

Options Considered:

1. Kia Sonet HTX(DCT) - Took a test drive, loved it. Had it not been for unreliability reports on DCT gearbox, I would have already booked this one. Diesel AT is the next option but I do not think my usage justifies a diesel(Open to consider this if members feel otherwise). Manual could be an option but I am confused since I can afford an Auto for this.

2. Xuv 300 - Took a test drive, did not love it(No offence intended). Somehow this did not feel like an actual upgrade apart from height difference. Not being considered further.

3. Tata Nexon - Love the package but a bit sceptical about TATA's image & AMT gearbox. Again, manual could be an option but not sure if TATA can be trusted with long term usage as hardly see any old TATA car's that are niggle or rattle free in long term. - Still open.

4. Nissan Magnite/Kiger - Not being considered due to lesser presence of network, specially after what happened to Ford, Chevrolet and also because there are hardly any service centers around.

5. Brezza/S-Cross - Not a fan of their looks neither a fan of the auto gear box. Can afford manual but they feel too outdated as a whole package. Long due for a facelift.

6. Hyundai Venue - Missus is not a fan of how this one looks, also DCT gearbox is not confidence inspiring.

As it is pretty evident, we are pretty sold for Sonet but are unsure about the gearbox & Nexon is pretty close to being the next choice. The need is not an urgent one per say, we can wait till next year if there are some good upcoming launches.

Please do your magic & help us make an informed decision.

P.S.: This community is awesome, gratitude to team behind this

I will just add my 2 cents here. Was in a similar situation 6 months back as yours. Test drove all but Kia, and booked the Nexon AMT, but had to cancel it later because of the delivery timeline. Went with Honda WRV and I think it was a good call. There isn't a lot that can go wrong with a Honda. Do test drive the VX diesel variant. I am 6' and amongst all the options only XUV 300 (rejected this as we have an XUV 500) and WRV have enough headroom for me in the front and rear seats. The engine is smooth and provides adequate power on highways. Honda is hassle free and low on maintenance. However, will Honda survive in India for the next 10 years? That's a big question mark!

Got a servicing done today so let me spam a picture here! Must say service is pretty good. At least 8 guys were cleaning polishing inspecting my car at different points on time. I noticed the same level of service even for unattended cars. This is unlike my maruti where it is a one man army thing

[rakesh_r]

Originally Posted by Engine_Roars

Background:
We are a family of four, two of us in our mid thirties & senior citizen parents with knee & back problems.

We are on the same boat in terms of our age, family size and health concerns (parents). I have a 2016 Scross 1.6. My father had undergone knee replacement operation on both his knees and my mother has spondylosis, both are in their mid 70s. My father absolutely loves the Scross since the stance of the car is such that he neither has to climb nor has to crawl into the car, its just like sitting on a chair. If the criteria is to comfortably ferry your parents, SCross is what I can recommend. Moreover the rear seats too are comfortable.
In terms of long distance driving comfort, pretty much satisfied, I have been able to do long distance driving:Pune-Vadodara with just one break, Pune-Bangalore with just two breaks, Pune-MT Abu one stop, Pune ahmedabad one stop.
In terms of Cruise Control, i regularly do Pune-Mumbai, maybe due to the traffic conditions, have never been able to use it much.
Did you try the XL6?

[JishD]

I think many of us on this forum are in a similar predicament - I just sold my Polo GT since my parents were having a real trying time getting in and out of the car.

My needs and elimination criteria
-------------------------------------
1. Next car should have comfortable ingress and egress - Bye Sedans
2. Parents should not have to climb into the car - Bye bye Harrier and Hector
3. Should have a proper auto (AMT's are too agrarian) - Bye Nexon
4. Should n0t be too big, considering parking challenges - Bye XUV700
5. Should have comfortable kneeroom - Bye Venue and Sonet
6. Should fit 4+1 comfortably and have a modern exterior/interior - Bye Brezza (for the interior) and S-Cross (exterior)
7. Responsive Turbo engine (spoilt by the GT)
8. ~15L budget. I ended up extending this one.

Considering pts 1-8 :
1. If on a tight budget go for the Magnite/Kiger top end CVT
2. If turbo or proper auto is not a requirement, the Seltos iMT is the bargain in the market
3. For all the bells and whistles and flexible budget , go for the Creta or Seltos 1.4
4. If you require 4+1 seating , useful features, proper auto, and turbo , in the 15L price bracket the Kushaq 1.0 AT makes sense , especially in Ambition variant. Similar for Taigun.

I ended up going for the Kushaq 1.0 Style (had planned for Ambition, but got swayed) - its performed flawlessly so far. If I had a budget of 20 onroad and unlimited waiting time, I would have gone for Seltos GTX. The Nexon is a fantastic package and would have saved me a fair bit of money, but Tata insists on plonking an AMT , something I just can't live with.

[Engine_Roars]

Apologies for the delayed response guys. Thanks you for all the wonderful suggestions & there have been a quite a few. God bless the forum & its creators/moderators.

There have been many responses and instead of responding each one of them individually, I am summarising my response here.

1. Few of you have suggested Sedans, however as mentioned earlier, one of the primary reason for changing the car is for making it easier for my parents to get in & out. They are senior citizens with knee & back problem. Can't deal with a full blown SUV because of the height & neither would a sedan help.

2. S-Cross has come up quite a few times & honestly speaking this vehicle makes absolute sense but I don't want to regret buying a car at end of it's lifecycle specially when there are talks of a major facelift coming in near future. I am keeping this option open, if Maruti wakes up sooner then later, this will definitely be the top contender.

3. Honda WRV - Good option, had not considered this(says a lot about where Honda stands today). Will take a test drive and see how it goes.

4. Astor - After so much hype around the product, MG looks like has messed up the handling of delivery and also not being transparent is not helping. If nothing else works out, I will still wait it out for this. I like the package but I don't trust it as yet.

5. XUV/Creta/Seltos/Kushaq - I don't intend to increase the budget for now. However, if nothing else works out. These will be considered.

6. Used Corolla or any such vehicles - The asking rate for used car's is sky high in current market & I am kind of mechanically challenged to figure out if a car is lemon or not & I also am not good at negotiating good deals. I am kind of scared in dealing with used car dealers.

7. IMT Gearbox - Had not considered this far due relatively this being a new technology & I was not sure. Thank you for all the real world reviews. I have added Seltos IMT to test drive list.

[kvsriki]

Thank you for starting this thread and for all the replies on this. It has helped me make my decision for my first car. I have been researching for a CSUV for the last couple of months and have done TD for all the CSUVs listed in this thread.

Sonet appealed the most to me, in terms of features offered, and my wife, in terms of its design and quality. I understand that it's safety is questionable at the moment, but given the fact that since last 30 years my family had cars like Maruti 800, Wagon R and Swift Dzire, and these cars are rated worse than KIA cars when it comes to safety, Sonet is still an upgrade from my point of view.

Based on our requirements and the TD experience, I have booked the HTX iMT variant (mid range) today. There is a 7 day period where I can opt to change my variant selection and I was wondering if it is worth to invest an additional 2.5 Lacs and get the top variant instead. My usage will be very limited (2-3 days a week for office and the occasional weekend trip) and I don't usually drive too fast, between 80 and 100 kmph on open highway with minimal overtaking.

To summarise, looking for help to understand if it's worth to invest in the top end model of Sonet iMT, as the only major useful difference is the increase in number of airbags.