Which family used Car/SUV?

skumarit · 21st August 2005, 02:51

We are waiting for Silver Swift Zxi in Bangalore, it will take 2-3 months.

We have a family of us, parents, two kids and we would like travel on weekend to explore places around Bangalore. So we started thinking about our 2nd car for family travel, mostly outside the city. Thought of new Safari/Innova, but then looking at the current trend and having sold our two new cars for throwaway price in US, we decided not to spend too much money on new cars.

So we are now thinking of buying a 2-3 years old used Car/SUV. Here are my criteria? Also, advice on what is the best way to buy new cars? Online/traders in Bangalore? We need to make a decision in few days.

Thanks in advance.

1. Used Car/SUV - 2-3 years old
2. Budget around 3-5lakhs
3. Should seat 5-6 people comfortably
4. Good Performance, Comfort, Handling
5. Good mileage
6. Low maintenance

In general, Tata Sumo or Qualis came to my mind.

-SKumar

v1p3r · 21st August 2005, 03:05

Hey

Except for the performance bit, the old Tata Safari seems to fit the bill perfectly. You can get a decent post 2000 piece for 3 lakhs. Then again, if you define performance as the ability to cruise at 120 effortlessly all day, the Safari performs pretty darn well.

The Sumo has the image, atleast in Bangalore, of a call-centre cab. The Qualis isn't far behind, and you're not likely to get a good one for anything less than 4.5 lakhs.

gr8guzzler · 21st August 2005, 03:28

Here is my list....

1. Qualis - Is thebest fit for what you are looking for....best part is you can be sure it's gonna last and be trouble free...go for it if looks is not a major issue.
2. Safari - If not for the maintanence & under powered issue, this would be a good choice.
3. Fiat Advanture/Boleno Altura - Not too sure whether you will get these in the used car market due to the low sales numbers.
4. Sumo/Bolero - Would not recommend these unless price is a major factor.

This is my personal choice.......let us know what suits you best...

Cheers!!!

skumarit · 21st August 2005, 04:40

v1p3r and kishore: Thank you both for the quick response.

what is the best places to look for preowned or certified used cars in Bangalore?

I will add Tata Safari to my list, I am not too worried about performance/speed.

Here is the list:

Toyota Qualis
Tata Safari
- http://uv.tatamotors.com/newuv/safari/index.asp
Tata Sumo
- http://uv.tatamotors.com/newuv/sumo/index.asp
Fiat Adventure
- ???
Maruti Baleno Altura
- http://baleno.marutiudyog.com/alturaindex.asp

-SKumar

gr8guzzler · 21st August 2005, 04:48

Quote:

Originally Posted by skumarit

what is the best places to look for preowned or certified used cars in Bangalore?

I bought my used Ikon from Auto Mart India (www.automartindia.com) in Mumbai, overall i'm pretty happy with the deal. But I don't think they have Qualis or Safari's with them. If you have someone technically good and prefer a cash down payment, the newspapers is the best bet. Or else you can check out the used cars showrooms of the manuacturers itself....like Truevalue for Maruti. Not too sure if Toyota or Tata's are into it...

man23ish · 21st August 2005, 14:46

You might want to check out the Tavera too..

v1p3r · 21st August 2005, 17:24

skumarit, a member in Hyderabad was offering his Safari for sale a while back. You may want to scope out the Marketplace section...

You may have to do some legwork to get a decent Safari, but I don't think you'll regret it. Nothing, but nothing, gives you the imposing presence of a Safari. All pesky autos and bikers, and even the neighbourhood bully in the Scorpio will run for their lives.

Steeroid · 21st August 2005, 18:16

Quote:

Originally Posted by man23ish

You might want to check out the Tavera too..

Sensible advice. I second that.

man23ish · 21st August 2005, 19:05

Quote:

Originally Posted by v1p3r

You may have to do some legwork to get a decent Safari, but I don't think you'll regret it. Nothing, but nothing, gives you the imposing presence of a Safari. All pesky autos and bikers, and even the neighbourhood bully in the Scorpio will run for their lives.

Agreed, but there is no point in going for a used safari. Actually that holds true for every under powered vehicle. Coz, more often than not.. the useful life of the engine has been sucked up by the previous owner.. What remains behind is a load of engine maintenance and a lot of heartache..

Reminds me of a friend who never bought any other used vehicle after his experience with the Opel Astra.. (Not for the love of the Astra) but because he ended up emptying his wallets at the service centre afterwards.. Note the Astra was also very underpowered, i am told..

skumarit · 27th August 2005, 07:11

The search has ended with new Baleno, thanks to our Desi_Samurai for his help. After looking for used car/SUV for two days, we bought new Baleno LXi for 6.17 after 58K rebate. Depending on the trend, we will probably look to own bigger SUV after 2-3 years. Till then, just rent it as needed.
-SKumar

Samurai · 28th August 2005, 20:18

Quote:

Originally Posted by skumarit

The search has ended with new Baleno, thanks to our Desi_Samurai for his help. After looking for used car/SUV for two days, we bought new Baleno LXi for 6.17 after 58K rebate. Depending on the trend, we will probably look to own bigger SUV after 2-3 years. Till then, just rent it as needed.
-SKumar

Congrats! How's the new ride with fatter tyres? BTW, I go by just Samurai in this forum. Don't forget to vote in this thread by 28th.

http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/showthread.php?t=6816

Insane Devil · 30th August 2005, 11:16

Congrats on ur purchase of the Baleno! hope u make great memories out of it.

IMHO... the best vehicle for you would be the Mahindra Scorpio DX model.
a 2-3 years old, around 50k driven vehilcle u can get for around 4.5 to 5 lk.
Scorpios are trouble free, and very very low on maintainence, and its spares are also very cheap, so even if some problem shoots up in a used vehicle, it wont cost u much to get it repaired.

It will happily seat anwhere from 5 to 8 ppl comfortably. and its a great pleasure to drive it.
the only -ve i can see about the scorpio is the extra smooth power steering, which infact is great for city drives where u want to cut in traffic and make quic turns in lanes and u turns. but in the highway, that seems a problem as u hafta slow down a bit in the turnings.

other than this particular problem, the Scorpio is a superb car for a family or bachelor ~

Surprise · 30th August 2005, 12:21

Quote:

Originally Posted by skumarit

We are waiting for Silver Swift Zxi in Bangalore, it will take 2-3 months.

Congrats on your new purchase. Is the Swift order still alive or you have cancelled it. Since you purchased Baleno after looking for a SUV, the question pops in my mind

21st August 2005, 02:51	#1
skumarit BHPian Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: Bangalore Posts: 40 Thanked: 0 Times	Which family used Car/SUV? We are waiting for Silver Swift Zxi in Bangalore, it will take 2-3 months. We have a family of us, parents, two kids and we would like travel on weekend to explore places around Bangalore. So we started thinking about our 2nd car for family travel, mostly outside the city. Thought of new Safari/Innova, but then looking at the current trend and having sold our two new cars for throwaway price in US, we decided not to spend too much money on new cars. So we are now thinking of buying a 2-3 years old used Car/SUV. Here are my criteria? Also, advice on what is the best way to buy new cars? Online/traders in Bangalore? We need to make a decision in few days. Thanks in advance. 1. Used Car/SUV - 2-3 years old 2. Budget around 3-5lakhs 3. Should seat 5-6 people comfortably 4. Good Performance, Comfort, Handling 5. Good mileage 6. Low maintenance In general, Tata Sumo or Qualis came to my mind. -SKumar
	() Thanks

21st August 2005, 03:05	#2
v1p3r Senior - BHPian Join Date: Feb 2005 Location: BLR / DXB / LON Posts: 5,334 Thanked: 6,896 Times View My Garage	Hey Except for the performance bit, the old Tata Safari seems to fit the bill perfectly. You can get a decent post 2000 piece for 3 lakhs. Then again, if you define performance as the ability to cruise at 120 effortlessly all day, the Safari performs pretty darn well. The Sumo has the image, atleast in Bangalore, of a call-centre cab. The Qualis isn't far behind, and you're not likely to get a good one for anything less than 4.5 lakhs.
	() Thanks

21st August 2005, 03:28	#3
gr8guzzler BHPian Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: Navi Mumbai Posts: 653 Thanked: 87 Times View My Garage	Here is my list.... 1. Qualis - Is thebest fit for what you are looking for....best part is you can be sure it's gonna last and be trouble free...go for it if looks is not a major issue. 2. Safari - If not for the maintanence & under powered issue, this would be a good choice. 3. Fiat Advanture/Boleno Altura - Not too sure whether you will get these in the used car market due to the low sales numbers. 4. Sumo/Bolero - Would not recommend these unless price is a major factor. This is my personal choice.......let us know what suits you best... Cheers!!!
	() Thanks

21st August 2005, 04:40	#4
skumarit BHPian Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: Bangalore Posts: 40 Thanked: 0 Times	v1p3r and kishore: Thank you both for the quick response. what is the best places to look for preowned or certified used cars in Bangalore? I will add Tata Safari to my list, I am not too worried about performance/speed. Here is the list: Toyota Qualis Tata Safari - http://uv.tatamotors.com/newuv/safari/index.asp Tata Sumo - http://uv.tatamotors.com/newuv/sumo/index.asp Fiat Adventure - ??? Maruti Baleno Altura - http://baleno.marutiudyog.com/alturaindex.asp -SKumar
	() Thanks

21st August 2005, 14:46	#6
man23ish BHPian Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: Bangalore Posts: 626 Thanked: 18 Times	You might want to check out the Tavera too..
	() Thanks

21st August 2005, 17:24	#7
v1p3r Senior - BHPian Join Date: Feb 2005 Location: BLR / DXB / LON Posts: 5,334 Thanked: 6,896 Times View My Garage	skumarit, a member in Hyderabad was offering his Safari for sale a while back. You may want to scope out the Marketplace section... You may have to do some legwork to get a decent Safari, but I don't think you'll regret it. Nothing, but nothing, gives you the imposing presence of a Safari. All pesky autos and bikers, and even the neighbourhood bully in the Scorpio will run for their lives.
	() Thanks

27th August 2005, 07:11	#10
skumarit BHPian Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: Bangalore Posts: 40 Thanked: 0 Times	Baleno The search has ended with new Baleno, thanks to our Desi_Samurai for his help. After looking for used car/SUV for two days, we bought new Baleno LXi for 6.17 after 58K rebate. Depending on the trend, we will probably look to own bigger SUV after 2-3 years. Till then, just rent it as needed. -SKumar
	() Thanks

30th August 2005, 11:16	#12
Insane Devil BHPian Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: Hyderabad Posts: 987 Thanked: 173 Times View My Garage	Congrats on ur purchase of the Baleno! hope u make great memories out of it. IMHO... the best vehicle for you would be the Mahindra Scorpio DX model. a 2-3 years old, around 50k driven vehilcle u can get for around 4.5 to 5 lk. Scorpios are trouble free, and very very low on maintainence, and its spares are also very cheap, so even if some problem shoots up in a used vehicle, it wont cost u much to get it repaired. It will happily seat anwhere from 5 to 8 ppl comfortably. and its a great pleasure to drive it. the only -ve i can see about the scorpio is the extra smooth power steering, which infact is great for city drives where u want to cut in traffic and make quic turns in lanes and u turns. but in the highway, that seems a problem as u hafta slow down a bit in the turnings. other than this particular problem, the Scorpio is a superb car for a family or bachelor ~
	() Thanks