[abaliga]

Elevate and Grand Vitara Hybrid/Hyryder Hybrid are the top contenders considering your requirements, I would shy away from Hyundai/Kia twins for their lack of safety in terms of crash ratings, I wouldn't bet on the Seltos facelift to improve here considering none of their made for India cars score well, I would be very happy to be proved wrong on this aspect as Seltos otherwise is a fine car.

I haven't had a chance to check out the Elevate, the Grand Vitara Hybrid however is an amazing city car with instantaneous throttle response aided by the battery, it's 3 cylinder motor is alright for the use case you have mentioned and it is also based on a platform that has fetched 4 stars in GNCAP ratings which gives me some confidence on the safety front, Interiors too are half a step above other Marutis with padded finish on the dashboard, one big flipside though is the sunroof curtain on top end variants, It allows way too much light/heat to filter through. Good luck with your Hunt!

[mgastor2022grey]

Originally Posted by aseem23

The upcoming seltos will have a panoramic sunroof. Kia confirmed it today. Regarding safety, I hope they will make some changes to improve structural safety.

Hi BHPian, though Kia adds the panoramic sunroof in the Seltos, the structural stability will never be in par with the Germans/Chinese (ie:Kushaq/Taigun and Astor). Kia will surely hike the price of the top variant by 2-3 lakhs, and the on road price will cross 23-24 lakhs, which IMHO is not for a car which is unsafe. But to be frank, driving feel is unbeaten by any other competitor, and feature rich car makes it for a good rival to the others.

[SID7115]

As an upgrade from the Venue, I would strongly suggest the Astor, Taigun and Kushaq
The facelifted Kia Seltos is a good contender, but safety is a matter of concern.
Avoid the Elevate at all costs, it's too boring and won't feel as an upgrade from the Venue.
Also, get the XUV700 only if he needs that big of a car. As the owner of an AX7 L Petrol AT for the past 1.5 years, I'd say buy it only if you're OK with a big car.

Some wild card entries from my side
1. Kia Carens 1.5 TGDI AT/1.5 NA IVT
2. Mahindra XUV400
3. Citroën C3 Aircross AT
4. Tata Nexon EV Max (if you can stay with a sub-4 metre car)

[kadanaJ]

Your top 2 pics of Kia Seltos and Toyota Hyryder / Maruti Grand Vitara are both good options.

Both the above 2 cars should be relatively niggle/trouble free, so they solve that purpose of yours. Both have a decent feature list as well.

Personally, I would choose the Hyryder for myself. Practical, reliable, great fuel economy, and hybrid tech are all selling points for me.

That said, the Seltos has much nicer interiors, features, and drives better. It definitely feels more premium at a similar cost.

Best to let your father choose. If his heart is set on the Seltos, let him get what makes him happy.

Other members have suggested the MG Astor / ZS EV. My only argument against depends on how comfortable your 70-year old dad would be with the screen and tech? Best to take him and check it out, and see if he's comfortable operating the screen. It's a good option, as the Astor is a seriously underrated car.

[infiniti85]

I agree with most of the other suggestions but doubtful if an electric will be feasible for you since mentioned of street parking at home.

[sgmuser]

I would recommend a Maruti or Hyundai for a niggles free ownership experience. Creta is my choice. Kia isn't comparable to Hyundai. Creta is compact, fairly equipped well, easy to maintain as it's a Hyundai. Also provides nice and comfortable ride which is important for a 70 year old daily user. You won't regret. No XUV 7OO for him yet. MG service coverage and its origin are not suitable for someone like your dad from maintenance perspective. Only issue is that the 5 seater capacity is not fully met with a Creta.

[sunnysideup_]

Originally Posted by Iyencar

If any Bhpian can shed some light on Annamalai Motors or life with the Hyryder down south then that would be extremely helpful. Is Toyota service as excellent as it is in the Tier-1 cities?

I wish I could help with selecting a car from those that you have shortlisted but I don’t have first hand experience in the segment, and I really wouldn’t be of much help, but I would personally lean towards the Hyryder.

Anyway, I reply because my family’s Crysta got punctured inside my college in Thuvakudi. We called the Anaamalai Toyota a while away from Paal Pannai to assist us. Their response and service were both prompt, and they were extremely helpful and accommodating, getting the work done as fast as they could as we were to drive a long distance that evening. I would assume the same kind of treatment would extend to their other services as well. They have practically monopolised Toyota dealership in TN apart from Chennai, so I doubt that they wouldn’t be technically adept to handle the newer technologically advanced cars. They handle Land Cruisers, Camry Hybrids, and Vellfires so this shouldn’t be any difficult for them!

[ferrarirules]

Originally Posted by Iyencar

Not considering the Compass, Kushaq and Taigun for their reliability, niggles and service centre experiences in general. Not considering the Nexon, Exter, Punch, XUV300 since they aren't much of an upgrade from the Venue. No Creta because we don't want another Hyundai. No to Renault, Nissan and Citroen because of their poor service network and lack of any aspirational models. Not considering the Vitara because I would rather we get the car from the same co which makes the hybrid, i.e. Toyota. Any other vehicle I've missed? Looking forward to your opinions.

I would recommend looking at MG ZS EV. The excite variant gets everything except sunroof. The range is around 350 kms. So would need charging after a week based on his driving pattern.

Based on the daily running numbers provided by you, it makes big sense to have an EV.

[lina]

As a ZS EV owner, I would highly recommend the ZS EV Excite version. It will be within your 25L budget.

Driving experience will be better than any ice car in this price range. Running cost will be next to nothing.

[46TheDoctor]

My recommendations as follows:

1. If Kia improves crash safety of Seltos in the facelift, there is no better option as it is feature rich and fun to drive as well - Diesel AT recommended. Even i will replace my father's Nexon with this if safety ratings are good.

2. Honda Elevate - Has excellent 1.5 engine and should be a great buy with good back seat also, even though a little less features. Again, i am assuming that it will have good crash safety ratings.

3. HyRider/Grand Vitara hybrid - Great cars to own and drive but the back seat isnt good enough for the class. I guess they have 4 star rating for crash safety - correct me if I am wrong.

4. Nexon EV Max - Great car overall in terms of features and capabilities, but misses out on 6 airbags.

5. Honda City Hybrid - Great car with great feature list except the ventilated seats. Should be fun to drive, super reliable, economical. Also, I think it has Asian NCAP 5 star rating. Ground clearance should be good enough for our roads.

[SoumenD]

I would not like to see my 70 year old parents or for that matter anyone in a Kia/Hyundai because of the first con you mentioned. If they fix that, it would be the default choice but until that’s done, just can’t recommend the Koreans.

Toyota Hyryder would be my first choice considering the hybrid tech & toyota reliability. Build & Feature-wise it’s decent enough although yet to be tested by GNCAP. Considering the flimsy Etios too was a 4* rated car, I don’t expect Hyryder to perform any worse.

Next would be Honda Elevate again for the tried & tested 1.5 iVtec+CVT combo (should be good enough for sedate driving) & honda reliability(we have 2 hondas over 10 years) which is more or less similar to Toyota. While featues aren’t as extensive as the koreans please check with him if a panoramic sunroof & other features are really important. It’s not really a severely under-kitted car as such in isolation.

Happy shopping

[OpenRoads]

First of all I am happy to hear your father is driving around 40Kms daily by himself at 70. Wish him many more years of good health.

Let me start from the bottom.

1. You mentioned street parking and small. Hence electric cars are out of the picture. Also, would suggest compact cars. Try to avoid 7 seaters or large SUVs.

2. Zero niggles - Stick with brands which has good after sales in Trichy. By default Toyota, Honda, Suzuki and Hyundai have good after sales service. You will know which works for you. Even though Astor checks all the boxes not sure about the after sales. The same goes for Citron C3 aircross. Avoid Volkswagen.

3. The car -
a) If you want things to be premium or fancy then wait for new Seltos.
b) Sonet diesel automatic is a gem with 6 speed automatic torque converter.
c) Creta is tried and tested. But it's just everywhere and I don't like the looks. The old generation looked way better.
d) Hyryder - This is an excellent fit in terms of your requirements ( high gc, excellent mileage, compact and realibity, tech). The only downside is after spending 22 lakhs when you will not have any premium feel.
e) Elevate - Cannot comment as I have not driven it. But for now it's just bolated City till hybrid comes to the picture.

So I will suggest test drive Sonet Diesel auto not the DCT one for piece of mind.

Hyryder and Seltos should be your backup.

[samabhi]

I would propose something off the list and look for a pre-owned Volvo XC40. We have one in the family used by my sister as her daily drive. It's compact, absolutely safe and very convenient to drive in the tight corners of the city. You can get one in the budget that you are looking for. However, consider this only if you can find one good example and you have a Volvo Service Centre in your place.

[bravo82in]

Honda Elevate is the car worth waiting for if you intend to keep it for long and don’t want to drill a hole in pocket after 5-6 yrs of ownership. It has Honda’s proven 1.5 Na engine and CVT gear box. Honda offers 10 yrs warranty on all cars, they age really well and likely to be 5 star safety rated.
Kia and Hyundai etc with all those electronics may be a problem in long run. Also at 70 I believe your dad won’t be interested in all the modern electronic features. Also safety is always questionable.
MG ZS EV is worth considering, it’s a different league all together.
Both MG ZS and Astor are safe cars except the China connection.

[Tanmay_868]

I would recommend both the MG Astor and ZS ev.
Since your use case warrants a EV you should look seriously at that option too.
Seltos is also good but with facelift maybe pricing could see a shift making it expensive.
The feel and interior quality of the MG’s is great as said in many reviews. Your father would feel a sense of luxury in it and would be a good upgrade from Venue’s feel which itself has a premium feel to it.