[Iyencar]

My soon to be 70 year old father is looking to replace the Venue he currently has. He is a sedate driver and self drives around 40 kms a day to our factory.
Budget: ~25 L
Current drive: Venue Petrol Manual
Previous drive: Grand i10, Wagon R (both manual shifts)
Location: Trichy
Home parking: Street and a bit small

What he would like to have:
1. Ground Clearance
2. Petrol, 5 seater SUV
3. A true top end model: No saving money up front and have accessories fitted later. Need everything factory fitted
4. No down time due to niggles: the car will be in use every single day and cannot afford to be without one

What I would like for him to have:
1. Nice to have features: Sunroof, ventilated seats, good cabin, 360 cam, etc. He's worked hard all his life and deserves to have a feel good- vehicle now
2. Good automatic
3. Reliable
4. Mass market and easy serviceability
5. Safety: 6 airbags, TC, ESP, ABS, good body shell

The contenders:
Kia Seltos: The car he wants which is why it is number 1 here.

Pros:
1. Feature loaded
2. Facelift next month
3. Decent service
4. Sorted engine gearbox combos

Cons:
1. Crash test rating
2. DCT is an animal with a mind of it's own. Is the TC good enough and have the nice to have features that we are looking for?
3. Stiff suspension

Toyota Hyryder Full Hybrid: The car I want for him.

Pros:
1. Superb mileage and cutting edge hybrid tech providing for a relaxing ride
2. Toyota reliability
3. All the good features I want him to have

Cons:
1. Only one service centre in the city, Annamalai motors. Can anyone shed light on the quality of service?
2. The old Innovas, Crystas and Etios' seem to be the most common cars that side of the country. Will the service centre be able to handle the modern tech?
3. The very thin sunroof curtain: Summers can get quite hot there and don't want this to become a nuisance. So how bad is it really? Does it make the car difficult to live with? Has anyone tried tinting the roof?
4. Unknown build quality: probably more Maruti than Toyota

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?

Honda Elevate
Pros:
1. The best GC
2. Honda reliability

Cons:
1. Very poor feature list
2. Possibly lethargic engine gearbox combos, considering the weight of the vehicle and the engine specs combined with BS 6.2 regulations (have the BRV CVT so am familiar with the specs. No, I'm not saying the BRV is under powered)
3. A new car so not much is known about it-good or bad (shared parts bin not withstanding)

What are the Honda dealers like down there? Google reviews of the two dealers there are good.

Wild card: XUV 700
Pros:
1. Loaded with everything possibly needed in a car
2. Proven safety
3. Blockbuster hit
4. Initial niggles sorted out
5. Great engine gearbox combos

Cons:
1.Odds of niggles popping up are much higher than for the other cars listed above.
2. May be a bit too large. Don't need 7 seats and may have difficulty parking- will the 360 cam help?)
3. Poor FE in the petrol. DEF issues if he goes for the diesel

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.

[mgastor2022grey]

Hello @Iyencar, hope you are doing good!

For we BHPians, driving is our life and we respect it very much. I know that you will choose the best car for your father.

I will not recommend the Kia Seltos for your father. Considering that he is a sedate driver, the performance is pretty much useless. The stiff suspension is good for highway comfort, not for sedate driving, which will make people uncomfortable. Also, it scored only 3 stars in the NCAP, not to mention it splitting into 2 in an accident.

I would also not recommend the Grand Vitara/Hyryder too, as it would mean a significant downgrade in terms of interior fit and finish, and misses out on a lot of features too. It also has a significantly weak bodyshell and misses out on even basic features like TPMS!

The XUV700 should be ruled out too, as considering that your father is 70 years old, he would find it difficult to navigate a big car, and stating that you have street parking, will be cumbersome to park too. But it can be taken into consideration if your father has no issues with it, as it is a very safe car, and is extremely luxurious.

I would personally suggest the MG Astor. It is a very comfortable car, and it has lots of safety features like 6 airbags, ESC, TPMS, ABS and more. Your father will also like the car due to its small presence and ease of maneuverability. It is a petrol-5 seater, and fits all his boxes correctly. However, it has missed some features like auto dimming IRVM and ventilated seats. It is also fuel-efficient and drives inspiringly. The fuel efficiency is around 10-12 kmpl and has very less down time. Being an Astor owner myself, the car is very nice, and is packed with features.

Hope this helps, good luck!

[bijims]

The Mahindra XUV700 would be my pick here, but the AX7 L variant in the petrol guise costs around 29 lakhs on-road in your place, so if you are fine with that, I would recommend getting it, but mileage will be poor in the petrol, we have a diesel XUV700 AWD AX7 L in our family and we are loving it.

As regards the Toyota Urban Cruiser Hyryder, it feels more like a Maruti, and parts quality and fit and finish are as such too, not worth the money for the "premium" feel in my opinion, but the Hybrid setup has its advantages and may be considered for the same if you have relatively high running.

The upcoming Seltos facelift would be the best pick under a budget of 25 lakhs and the Diesel TC AT is an excellent, tried and tested combo with good fuel efficiency and sufficient power as well. It will have all the features you ask for in your budget barring the 3-star safety rating.

So, if you plan on extending your budget to 30 lakhs, the XUV700 is the way to go, but I would prefer the Diesel over the Petrol in that scenario, ese under 25 lakhs, my pick would be the upcoming Seltos, followed by the Hyryder Hybrid.

[antz.bin]

Any particular reason for leaving out Taigun/Kushaq? These cars have the longest wheelbase in the segment making them *theoretically* the most spacious. These are also 5* rated on the new Global NCAP ratings. I can understand that you would want to stay away from the DSG gearbox. But the 1.0 TSI comes with a torque converter, doesn't it? It also costs a good 2 lakh less than the GV/Hyrider hybrid.

The Astor is an excellent car as well. The best interiors of the lot and good NCAP ratings.

BUT, since the budget is 25L, you could opt to go all electric with an XUV400 (20L for top end) or a ZS EV (24L for the lower variant, 28L for the top end). 40km of commutes a day should be enough for these 2 to make sense.

40km per day for is a good enough usage to warrant an electric. Especially considering the fact that the XUV4OO actually costs 3 lakhs less than the Grand Vitara Hybrid but is wider, has a bigger boot, has the same wheelbase, is faster and is rated higher in crash tests (at least the XUV 3OO is).

[yedukrishnan199]

Considering your requirements, your options are limited to:

1. MG Astor
2. Toyota Urban Cruiser Hyryder Hybrid/ Maruti Suzuki Grad Vitara Hybrid
3. VW Taigun/ Skoda Kushaq
4. Hyundai Creta/ Kia Seltos
5. Hyundai Alcazar
6. Mahindra Scorpio-N (top end around 30 lakhs)
7. Tata Harrier (top end around 29 lakhs)
8. MG Hector (top end around 27 lakhs)
9. Tata Safari (top end around 30 lakhs)
10. Mahindra XUV700 (top end around 32 lakhs)
11. Jeep Compass

Considering he has a daily 40 km trip to make, he should be making around 12,000 km a year, which is quite significant and can warrant a diesel if the price of the diesel variant isn't too far off from the petrol.

Now, if you are looking for a true top-end model under 25 lakhs, options 1 to 5 from my list can be considered, but since you have already written off the Skoda-VW twins, Creta, Alcazar (also a Hyundai) and Grand Vitara, that leaves you with just the Astor, Hyryder and the Seltos, from the three the Seltos which is due a facelift in July seems the most appealing with almost all requirements fulfilled, barring 3-star safety, the Astor isn't a hot seller and has relatively poor mileage, the Hyryer, on the other hand, feels like a Maruti with cost-cutting highly evident but comes with a Hybrid engine to give you excellent fuel economy.

So, in short in my opinion, for a more feature-loaded car with good quality interiors and a good engine/gearbox combo, the Seltos would be your best pick, but if the mileage and hybrid tech is worth it in your opinion, the Hyryder is the way to go. Do note that the Hyryder has high waiting periods, and the Grand Vitara would be available much sooner.

Now, if you are willing to go above 25 lakhs for the right car, then out of options 6 to 11, the XUV700 is the safest, most feature-laden, and best-selling car aside from the Scorpio-N (I wouldn't recommend the Scorpio-N for your use case).

Hope it helps!

[androdev]

I think you should go for an EV or a proper Hybrid. Simply because there is a lot of to be excited about the technology, a lot to learn and familiarise oneself with how stuff works and the great feeling of being at the cutting edge of things - he would appreciate it. These cars make you curious like a child, which is a very good thing to happen when you are at an age feeling you have seen it all.

Don't buy a Honda - they sell boring utilitarian cars in India. Avoid gigantic cars like XUV700. Go for sophisticated and cutting edge - that would be EV or Hybrid in my opinion. All the best.

[GTO]

Originally Posted by mgastor2022grey

I will not recommend the Kia Seltos for your father. Considering that he is a sedate driver, the performance is pretty much useless. The stiff suspension is good for highway comfort, not for sedate driving, which will make people uncomfortable.

No longer. Kia has now made the suspension way more compliant, based on customer feedback & complaints. The current car rides very differently from the launch Seltos.

Seltos Facelift launch is also around the corner. I'd consider that for the OP's Dad, along with the Toyota Hyryder Hybrid & MG ZS EV.

Please also make him take a test-drive of the Elevate. It looks handsome, that 1.5L motor is the best NA engine in the country and the CVT is very smooth.

The Seltos Facelift & Elevate could be worth waiting for. Test-drive all of these and bring home the one that makes him .

[aseem23]

The upcoming Kia Seltos facelift will be the best option. Do consider taking the test drive.

[Shreyans_Jain]

Absolutely agree with GTO’s suggestion. Options can be limited to the upcoming Seltos facelift, Elevate and ZS EV. I will strongly suggest taking a long test drive of the EV, it is just in a different league for day to day local driving.

[ergon_9700]

Some of the options I can suggest as other have already said are(with my reasoning):
1. Seltos (fuel choice upto you but would recommend Diesel-TC just because TC is a proven transmission or if running is less and necessitates for petrol go for iMT. If the Nat-asp engine alright you can choose CVT as well)
2. Hyryder/GV(Reliability and fuel efficient hybrid powertrain but sunroof blind, if you prefer top end variants, are virtually thin, tight rear headroom for tall passengers, lower boot space for Hybrid variants)
3. Elevate(Honda reliability, NA engine is the best and CVT of Honda is pretty good)
In EVs you can consider ZS and as a wildcard entry Nexon EV Max.

Even though these are good choice, I would highly recommend for you to take a test drive.

[Aviator_guy]

Originally Posted by Iyencar

My soon to be 70 year old father is looking to replace the Venue he currently has. He is a sedate driver and self drives around 40 kms a day to our factory.
Budget: ~25 L
Current drive: Venue Petrol Manual
.

Got my father (70+) Seltos IVT last year and he is super happy. He is sedate driver and needed the car for city driving (mall hopping, doc visit etc) and very occasional highway runs. Ingress/outgres is easy for senior citizens and car has everything he was looking for. Creta IVT top end would have got him all bells and whistles without the worry of issues related to DCT or Diesel DPF. But he had driven almost all Hyundai cars all his life and wanted a change this time. So panaromic sunroof and ventilated seats were compromised for Kia badge.

I'd highly recommend Seltos (fuel choice is yours) - good styling, maintenance free, perfect size and comfortable to drive. I just wish they had IVT top end model. Sonet can also be good contender if he is ok with the compact size.

[raptor_diwan]

Why not consider the Tata Harrier? It fulfills most of your requirements with its spaciousness, good comfort, adequate ground clearance, and being a proper SUV.

[SeniorC]

Would strongly recommend Kia Seltos facelift, and if Honda service is good in Trichy, then the soon to be launched Honda Elevate could be a great choice too. Not sure about the longevity of MG brand as many domestic suitors are trying to buy large equity stakes, as also services of MG in the city, MG Astor could be another choice. Updated Creta is expected early next year, if the wait could extend till then.

[mgastor2022grey]

Originally Posted by GTO

No longer. Kia has now made the suspension way more compliant, based on customer feedback & complaints. The current car rides very differently from the launch Seltos.

Seltos Facelift launch is also around the corner. I'd consider that for the OP's Dad, along with the Toyota Hyryder Hybrid & MG ZS EV.

Please also make him take a test-drive of the Elevate. It looks handsome, that 1.5L motor is the best NA engine in the country and the CVT is very smooth.

The Seltos Facelift & Elevate could be worth waiting for. Test-drive all of these and bring home the one that makes him .

The Elevate would be worth waiting for, but IMHO, the new Seltos isn't great either due to 2 things: It is still not safe, and @IyenCar had stated that he needed a safe car for his dad. Also, he said that his dad deserved the best and hence needed a panoramic sunroof, which might not be there in the facelift too.

But for sure, the Honda Elevate is a premium product, and is worth to wait for. However, it also misses on the panoramic sunroof.

[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.