[mayank10]

Hi All,

As promised, here comes the first review of my Blu, Toyota Etios Liva G.

The Appetizer

It all started in March 2011, barely a month after i got married and shifted to a new house in Trivandrum, with wifey of course. I had always been a Bike guy and had my Pulsar 180 to take both of us to places, as it had done that umpteen number of times before. Drives to Kovalam beach and countless dates before marriage, the Pulsar had seen them all. It was a trustworthy companion but had just one problem, it was meant for the 2 of us. And THIS was a big problem.

So, here we were, after the marriage, with memories of our Honeymoon in Malaysia and Singapore still fresh in our minds. And then the In-Laws visited from Chandigarh. No big deal, right. Parents often visited us even before marriage and we used to visit places, roam around etc. etc. But it was different this time. We were married, and i had always hated hiring cabs for trips to Kanyakumari (For 3000 odd rupees), or taking an auto that charges exorbitant price for a city trip, since everyone loves to take folks from Technopark for a ride, considering us as millionaires.

We had already started discussing about the next big thing in our lives, a Car, our first car. Both of us were very excited, and even though the marriage expenses and overseas trip had left us broke with almost zero savings, we decided to sail against the wind. A car was inevitable, it had to come, and thus, we started calculating. I had never calculated this much previously in one go, but i was pretty optimistic. The target was, to get a Car in 4 months, before wifey's birthday, which falls on 12th Sep. The plan was set, got a go ahead signal from my parents while they visited us in June and bingo! We were all set.

The budget was decided, the car should not be more than 4.5 lakhs OTR (With accessories) on road, since for the 2 of us, a small car would be sufficient, and luxury was never on charts. The running was limited, not exceeding a max of 800 kms per month, since the office is just 2.5 kms from home, and most of the drives would be to the city or nearby places. Even for someone visiting us occasionally, a small car would serve the purpose. So, the appetite was limited. We never liked Alto/ Alto K10, Ritz, Spark, Estillo. I liked the i10 but wifey just hated the car (purely for looks, and i wonder why?). Instructions were clear, the Car had to look good, and it should not be a box, or a crazy design.

Honda did not have a small car, Jazz being priced for princely states at that time. Brio's launch was in the news, and we both loved the design of the car which was already launched in Thailand. So Brio was also in pipeline, though got to know that it will only come by Diwali, a little late for us
. Even then, kept our fingers crossed. We never seriously considered Swift as well, due to price of the middle variant and it being so common (It had been my favorite car since ages, just because of the looks). Parents tried to convince us for a diesel hatch or an LPG Wagon R, because of the ever increasing petrol prices. However, we already have a petrol Wagon R at my place, and thus we wanted a change, wanted to come out of the "middle class' - Maruti is the best car in the world philosophy". Also, a diesel did not justify our running, and also, a diesel was not available in that bracket. Beat diesel was also in news with the upcoming launch, but wifey was in the murdering mood, rejecting the looks of Beat (Again, i wonder why?). Similarly, Tatas lost the race, and Punto lost in terms of after sales and high pricing. IMO, Punto is the best looking, most neatly designed car in India. However, looks are deceptive, as they say!

Nevertheless, the choices were limited after the first filtering process and then we shortlisted:

1- Maruti Suzuki A-Star (Loved the cute design, peppy engine, VXI 4.1 on road)
2- Ford Figo (Since Petrol is not popular in Figo, we thought of diesel, thus overshooting the budget by a lakh, EXI version approx 5.6 OTR)
3- Honda Brio (Was to be launched at approx 4.5 OTR, had to wait)

Checked out A-star VXI, impressive looks, interior quality, lack of space at back and minuscule boot. And after discounts, 4.1 OTR. Discussed with parents and then, everything changed!

The idea was to run this car in Trivandrum till we are working here, and take it to North after 2 years or so. But a small car would have been a problem, since parents would also be travelling, and space along with a decent boot was required. So, the horizons were widened, and we started afresh.

And then, suddenly heard the word- ETIOS. Had never seriously noticed the car before, as the car is not known for the looks, even though there are many Etios in Technopark itself. But it was a T, not the Indian T, but the biggest T in the world. Got to know that a hatch of the Etios is to be launched soon, in less than 10 days. Googled and saw the scoop pics, impressed with neat design of the LIVA and thought, what can be better than having a Toyota as your first car!

So, since the budget was revised up to Rs. 5 Lakhs for a Petrol and 6 for a diesel (Although, we were not in favor of the diesel), we waited, with fingers crossed, for the launch of Liva. It might be a surprise to many, but i had not taken a TD of any car till date, and on 27th June, i was glued to my monitor screen to get the pricing, features and variants. By afternoon got to know that the middle variant was 4.58 Ex showroom with decent features, and the car was available in my favorite color- Blue. Even though we thought the price could have been at least 10k less than the launch price, we decided to GO FOR IT, if all goes well. So, at 6 pm, we were at Nippon Toyota, which is 100 mts. from my house (In fact, just opposite), and 1 km from my office. The appetizers were over, and we were hungry for the main course!

The Big Main Course

This was the second time i was in a car showroom, first time was when i had checked A-Star, and was a little nervous. However, the moment we entered, a representative (Shyam) came to us and helped us out. The showroom is big, airy and nice. It was the day the Liva was launched, and there were other families too for the Liva/ Etios. We saw it from a distance, and wifey said WOW! This is it. Liva was sharing space with its bigger sibling, looking better than Etios and available in better colors (I mean blue). Display car was a silver VX version, with decent interiors and sporty looking seats. Blue Liva was not available and we saw a Black Liva G to get an idea of the interiors on the middle variant. The interiors were a tad below than some other cars, and frankly, nobody even noticed the plastic quality. It did not look cheap to me, just that the shade could have been better. The good part was, it was twice as spacious than A-Star, middle variant had PS, All PW, body colored ORVMs, handles etc. etc. Looked like VFM to me. Price of Liva G was 5,05,894 OTR, almost in our budget. Music system was not included in G and had to be purchased along with, and including other accessories, price was coming up to approx. 5,20,000 OTR. OK, it was around 10-20k more than our budget, but the decision was made, we had planned to have a T as the first car. Called a good friend, who has good knowledge about cars, and he too loved it. Car was not available for TD, man... it was the first day. So left our numbers with Shyam and promised to come again.

Calculations were done again, parents were informed. TBHP was consulted (Review was out on day 1), and GTO was impressed with the car, and so were all other experts in all news channels. Car lacked some instrumentation, some goodies were missing and interiors were not as exquisite as some other cars. But it was a T. One of my previous managers, who is considered an expert in 'Cars', told me that Toyotas can be run for lakhs of kms. without a problem, and he advised me to stay away from the VFM Figo, since in long run, as it was my first car, and a Ford would not be as reliable as a Toyota. So, once this confusion was cleared, i thought of procuring a loan of 3.6 lakhs, and rest in cash for down payment (Including booking amt. of 50k).

Since the showroom was very near, we visited at least 4-5 times before the booking, to check on accessories, colors, variants, to ask simple questions, and above all, to have another look at our prospective car. Showroom guys were very helpful and courteous, and responded to all our queries. Overall i would rate it a very good experience. after a couple of days, Shyam (who had known both of us very well by now) called me and told that he was waiting for me for the TD. I called wifey (who works in next building), my friend Mitra (Who started driving since 7th standard, and The famous Car expert in Technopark; my previous manager, to join us for the TD. The test vehicle was a VX(forgot the color though) and 4 of us joined Shyam for the TD (i was the least experienced of all drivers and most nervous for the first TD of my life!). The expert started the drive, followed by Mitra, was both were pretty pleased with the response, reverse view, AC cooling, driving comfort and drive-ability of the car. I tried at last, when everyone else was satisfied, and since it was the first time i was driving a Power steering driven car (Have an old Wagon R at home, without PS), i liked the car and steering response immediately. It was a breeze to drive, and PS was just awesome. Overall, Liva gave a feeling of a Big car, and even though i pushed the seats all the way back, there was space enough to keep a nano in between

Boot was good and useful, and everyone was pleased at the end of the drive. Thus, we told Shyam that we would be booking the G variant in 2-3 days, once the loan is finalized. Confirmed with the back, and after the dates for booking the car were provided by mom (After looking in a calender), we booked the car on wednesday, 6th July. The color choice was obvious, it had to be Aquamarine blue, since it was my favorite and Liva looked best in that.


We were told that we would get the car in less than 2 months (Though i was sure that we would get it before, since we had booked it within 10 days of launch). And thus, one of the most important decisions was taken. Thereafter, no other cars were seriously considered, and Liva was going to be our first Car.

And it did become our first car. On 16th, checked with the dealer and as discussed earlier, the car had arrived. Was looking amazing in blue, and we made a list of all the accessories that were to be fixed. The delivery date was fixed as 18th August (Credit goes to mom again), and there we were, on 18th Aug, to check the Blu. All accessories were installed, seat covers were looking great with 3M underbody coating done already, JBL music system with 2 oval speakers at the back, floor and trunk mats, and a car cover supplied (Of course nothing came free, except for a car perfume given by the dealer). Did a small check, and after being satisfied, took the keys and posed for a pic.

We also received a box of chocolate pies, a Toyota T-shirt, A Toyota Cap, a pull back small model of Liva and an Etios Calender, all from the dealer.

This is my Blu on the date of delivery. Smiling at us!



This is the first drive, to crush the lemon to stay out of troubles.



Executive handling us the car keys. Yippee!



The rear view. Looks better than Etios.



The side profile.Meanwhile, look at the mighty Fortuner in the background, peeking and bidding good bye!



The not so popular dash area. Trust me, it doesn't look cheap at all, yes, but definitely, not as impressive as in some other cars(Due to light grey plastic color). The JBL music system in the pic did not come with the car, got it installed along with 2 rear oval speakers, Great sound. Also, i have got used to the center console, and the design grows on you. Just my opinion though. Though, i wish that they had provided the same steering in all the variants. (The steering of VX is sporty and looks awesome)




The front seats with fabric seat covers. The seats are thin but very comfortable and create a lot of space. In G variant, the seats were plain black, so got the covers which cost me 3500, and these have got seat pockets at the back.



The back seats, again, very comfortable, though i don't know how will these fare during long drives. head rests are a little low, but very soft. Rear visibility is very good.



The leg space with front seats pulled all the way back. Loads of space. Some premium car owners can be jealous.



And with normal driving position. I am thinking of purchasing a Nano to keep here 3 people can sit very very easily, and you can think of even fitting a fourth.



A very useful and deep boot. Check the rear speakers.



And here comes the important part, the rubber beading. As posted incorrectly by some losers, these are indeed here, and these do the job pretty well. No water, dust, lizards, cockroaches, elephants etc. go inside and i have checked that personally. There are no beading on the door though, and this hardly makes a difference. Even when the Blu is parked outside in the rain, no water goes inside, and i think this should put an end to all the rumors in the market regarding the issue.



Also, single wiper (Not in the pic) does the job pretty well. Have personally verified this during heavy Kerala rains. Also, check out Overdrive Sep edition where GTOs have checked the car in constant rains. In fact, single wiper does not distract. Don't know if this is cost cutting, but a blessing in disguise.

The Dessert

Since the main course was pretty heavy, dessert would be sweet and short.
All the pics above are taken through my camera, and have not be modified (Except for the size). Please let me know if i need to add some more pics.

I have driven my Blu for more than 1300 kms in 55 days, and i am very happy with the car. The car is very easy to drive, and can be taken off in second gear on a plain road. The car is peppy, and since i have not driven a Swift, i can't compare a Liva with a Swift in this department. Since the car is light, it feels good to drive.

Space and comfort are the biggest USPs of this car, and even though it does not look very premium from inside, it gives you the BIG CAR feel. It manages the potholes and bumps prett well, and is a very good car for families IMO. It has NOT given me any problems so far, though i wish the doors were a little heavier, since now they need an extra push to close.

Also, i agree, dash could have got a better color and some features (Available in middle variants in other cars) like seat belt reminder, Tachometer (sorely missed), etc. etc. Agreed, that the car does not look like i20 or new swift from inside, but it drives without a problem, No rattles, good AC, great steering response (No, i am not mentioning i20 problems)

I have been using the Blu for mostly short trips to office and to the city. I am getting a mileage of 13 for all short trips (I was forced to use the car for short trips since the bike needs servicing, and i am not driving it).

I have not used a Tankful method till now, and plan to do it at the end of this month. I am hoping to get a mileage of around 15 with mixed driving. Will update all shortly on this. Got the Blu serviced after a month of purchase (700 kms) and the experience was pretty good. The car was cleaned and wiped, and all levels were checked. Received a Parker Vector from the dealer after filling a feedback form.

Coming to NVH levels, since i got the car with under body coating, i have not faced any engine sound getting inside. I have driven the car at 100 kph, and engine sound coming in at that speed is acceptable. There is a bit of Tyre noise that gets into the cabin, but it is not irritating and with music, one will hardly notice anything. The same is the case with vibration.

Will try to drive at higher speeds to notice and report anything.

So, if you ask me, i would recommend this car to all those who want a car and not a cockpit. This is a Quality car which drives well and it does not have any problems/ issues. Whatever is the limitation, can be easily overtaken with after market purchases. My Blu looks much better now after all the interior fittings, and i plan to purchase better looking floor mats and other accessories shortly to beautify the car. Till then, i am happy with my Blu.

So far, so good.

[.anshuman]

Thread moved here from Assembly line section. Thanks for sharing the excellent review with us.

[swiftnfurious]

Congrats on the new car. Something which is going to help a lot of potential customers too ! Wish you miles of happy & safe motoring !

Edit:: Please do keep updating us about your trips, highlights & low lights [if any], mileage for the drives & service costs incurred.

[shantyrocks]

Post deleted by the Team-BHP Support : Please do NOT post one-liners that add little or no informational value to the thread. We need your co-operation to maintain the overall quality of this forum.

Please read our rules before proceeding any further.

[AdrenalinJunkie]

Congrats buddy, a T car means peace of mind indeed. I personally dont like the car but then thats a very personal thingy aint it
For your requirements and budget, the liva makes a lot of sense and it must have seemed 2 sizes larger when compared to the A-star!!!!

The interiors do feel a little spartan but my friend owns the Etios sedan and having travelled in it extensively, i can vouch for the comfort aspect that you were worried about. The rear bench could do with more under-thigh support though, dont know how different the bench is on the LIVA.

Since yours is the 1st Liva on tbhp, its your moral duty now to update this thread regularily or you'll start getting mild tempered pestering for the same from other members and prospective buyers

OT : I found the RED-BLACK seat covers to be quite a mismatch for the blue car. Pure black would have been better IMHO.

[aaren]

Congrats Mayank10 on your new acquisition !! Liva looks great with the blue color and photos are real good. Do post more photographs with the lush greenery of Kerala as the background.

Keep this thread updated with ownership experience. Wishing you miles of safe drive !!

[Porschefire]

Congrats Mayank10!!Its one of the best VFM hatchbacks available.

I'd been to take the delivery of my uncle's Liva (who has bought the same model as yours but in a different colour.) and i was impressed with the reception that we got.The best part was when the executive handed over the keys to my uncle,the entire showroom staff got up and started applauding and wishing us a safe ride!!I can rightfully say that you can never go wrong with a Toyota!!

However i do wish that the quality of some of the materials used improves over time.I was disgusted looking at the fabric used to cover the rear hatch door from inside.Ditto for the plastics used inside!But overall,the car is very good.

Enjoy your Liva and drive safe!!

[avingodb]

congrats Mayank!
I was desperately looking for an ownership thread on Liva since my brother has also booked the G variant recently. And here you are! Thanks for sharing your experience. Liva looks like a no-nonsense car that does its basic tasks right!
wishing you happy miles in your ride.
And yes as mentioned above, keep this thread updated!

[nkrishnap]

Congrats Mayank. Like the saying better late than never, the review is finally up.

A very well documented review and will be found very useful to prospective customers. Nice pics as well.

I am prospective customer to this car and the very same variant G, though a different color.

By the way, whats covered under the first service and the cost incurred. Would you please post the bill of the first service.

I'll be bugging you with a few more questions in the near future

[drmohitg]

Congrats Mayank on your first car. The T badge is surely gonna make you smile for many years to come. The central console still looks odd to me though and I never understood why did Toyota play with this idea. How did they save money by going to this un-conventional set-up?

The blue looks good on the LIVA. Wish you lots of happy miles!

[mayank10]

Originally Posted by nkrishnap

Congrats Mayank. Like the saying better late than never, the review is finally up.

A very well documented review and will be found very useful to prospective customers. Nice pics as well.

I am prospective customer to this car and the very same variant G, though a different color.

By the way, whats covered under the first service and the cost incurred. Would you please post the bill of the first service.

I'll be bugging you with a few more questions in the near future

Sure buddy, would love to respond to all the queries. Meanwhile, the bill for the first service was Rs. 19 (Yes you got me right, nineteen only). This was for the plastic straps which are used to tie wheel caps with the wheel body.
Rest everything was covered.
Second service would be at 10k kms or 1 year(Whichever is earlier).

[samarth.bhatia]

Hi Mayank,

Congratulations on the Blu!
It's a special moment to have your first car, and a Toyata is a Toyota is a Toyota!
You can surely expect to have a good ownership experience. Very good decision indeed.

And it is so nice to hear of the experience at the dealership.
I knew Toyotas are more dependable than other brands, but such a sweet experience I have not heard of. Good for you.

I enjoyed reading your buying experience, and hope that you shall continue updating it regularly.

Also, as has been requested earlier, it would be nice to see some pictures of the Blu with the Kerala landscape .

Enjoy the ride.
Cheers and drive safe.
Sam

[mayank10]

Originally Posted by drmohitg

Congrats Mayank on your first car. The T badge is surely gonna make you smile for many years to come. The central console still looks odd to me though and I never understood why did Toyota play with this idea. How did they save money by going to this un-conventional set-up?

The blue looks good on the LIVA. Wish you lots of happy miles!

I was checking out Toyota Yaris pics the other day and realised that even it has got a central console. I am quite sure they have got the idea from Yaris. It definitely looks odd in the beginning but as you spend some time with it, it does not look that odd. Well, thats just my perception, and since this is my first car, does not look too odd to me.

Meanwhile, i was talking about this.

[predatorwheelz]

Excellent review. A first car is always special, and the way you've documented the purchase process and reviewed the car is commendable. We look forward to your long term ownership updates with Blu.

[drmohitg]

Originally Posted by mayank10

I was checking out Toyota Yaris pics the other day and realised that even it has got a central console. I am quite sure they have got the idea from Yaris. It definitely looks odd in the beginning but as you spend some time with it, it does not look that odd. Well, thats just my perception, and since this is my first car, does not look too odd to me.

Oh yea I totally agree. I have grown up seeing the Dash set up in the conventional way. So its difficult to digest the new look because the new set up combined with that dull grey colour gives the whole interior a very bland look. But I am sure one will get used to it pretty fast. And like you said the dash in the pic looks pretty good on the Yaris. May be its because of the choice of interior colors.