[Parthasarathig]

Originally Posted by dkaile

Comparo - Toyota Camry vs Skoda Superb in India by OVERDRIVE
No prizes for guessing who wins!!

In every segment Skoda is offering more vfm and fun to drive products. For chauffeur driven bosses, camry fits the bill perfectly. I dont think petrol or diesel matters much to a man who can afford a 20+ lac sedan.

Skoda superb is perfect for those who prefer to be chauffeur driven on work days and self driven on weekends. The way that engine pulls is mind blowing. I was on the highway few days back and a Superb petrol was waiting to overtake me due to traffic in front. The way that TSi pulled and pulled i was just awestruck. And to imagine that coming from a luxo barge. Wow!!!

Btw in the video they were using the spare tyre on the rear LHS of the superb. So doubt if their 0-100 timings would be accurate. Is it a full size spare or a space saver?

For me the European beauty wins over the camry or any other competitor.

[dkaile]

Originally Posted by Parthasarathig

Is it a full size spare or a space saver?

It's a full size spare albeit with steel rims and not alloy like the Camry.

[dkaile]

After Overdrive magazine, its now the turn of Autocar India to give a similar verdict for the Camry - http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/test-d...ml#post2918281

It does come in 2nd though but the price tag was a big letdown and Toyota should seriously give that a thought.

[n:CorE]

Urging navin & chinmoysc to pen down an initital ownership report soon. Would love to read it, took a test drive yesterday. It is a really comfortable car, completely in character with what we are used to from the Toyota stable. A no nonsense luxurious and comfortable car that can easily last a decade. Any word on the fuel efficiency? The Shinrai Toyota test car had averaged a 4.5kmpl. That could well be because its a test-drive car and is usually trashed around by people to test acceleration, speed & stability. How much does it average in the city with a light foot on a tank-to-tank basis?

.

[chinmoysc]

Dear Friends,

I could not complete my ownership review because of work pressure . Will post in a day or two.

[tj123]

I have a 6th Generation Camry having a 100K miles on it and it still gives me 10-11 kmpl easily in city driving condition.

[P76]

Originally Posted by navin

I would not say that. It is just that on Mumbai's pot riddled roads and terrible traffic a chauffered Camry makes more sense than say a self driven C200 or 320d. The Camry's target audience is the city based 40 something family person and business owner.

If you are 25 and single then maybe a small German might make more sense. If you have the budget a A6, E class or 5 series machine could be an option. The Germans have a tight/stiff ride and handling designed in for a reason. They are drivers cars. The Camry/Accord etc.. are softer and wallow a bit becuase they are meant for the chauffered. The Passat has similar ride and handling as its German brethern but a Camry/Accord (similar leg room) price point.

However you are right in that the Japs are, in general, more reliable. I expect the Camry to be more reliable than the Accord, only time will tell. The Germans have so many features, something is bound to break down.

Do I miss the outright performace of my vRS? Sure I do. I am a BHPian na? Would I trade outright performance for rear seat comfort - after 8 years of being bounced around a cramped back seat (vRS) I am happy to have the comfort of the Camry. I enjoyed the performance of the vRS maybe 15 days a year (when my chauffer was sick or on holiday), I will enjoy the comfort of the Camry 350 days in the year. Last I checked 350 > 15!

In addition, I used to borrow the office Accord when I got the chance (especially for long distance travel) now I dont have to.

Another thing, with my vRS I used to fear valets wrecking it partly because of the number of diesel Octavias on the road. My fear was that a valet would mistake the car for a diesel and floor the accelerator only to get the shock of his life especially when the turbo kicked in. With an autobox like the City or Camry this is less likely. The vRS's free-revving engine and wide power band made it dangerous in the hands of most. The Camry is capable but not outright enjoyable when behind the wheel.

If you drove a E350 or 530 you'd miss some of the goodies; why even compared to the Passat you'd miss some goodies but you trade that in for reliability. Sure one would like to have both.

Most goodies I can live without but simple things like a memory of the seats (since they are electric), sun blinds, an intergrated rear camera and Adaptive headlights (even my vRS had them) are found in many cars that are lesser priced. Leaving these are out for a car in this price class is, in my view, in-excusable.

Like I said before, with the 2012 Camry, Toyota had the opportunity to hit a home run. To make life diffcult for the Passat and Accord. Most of the goodies mentioned above (except maybe the Adaptive headlights) would not have cost much. Instead they grounded the ball to first base. So in a way I am both content but disappointed.

After the initial burst I expect Camry sales to settle down to the same level as the Accord. If Toyota is happy with that, they aimed too low. A new Accord is expected out next year. Toyota should know this and should have planned for this.

I agree with Navin, and would like to add some more. I visited a MNC Engineering Company's Office here. There was a fleet of about 10 Brand new Corolla Altis Petrol cars, which were owned by the company. These cars are meant for their senior level personnel, who would be chauffered from and back home. The cars would be used for 2-3 years max, after which they would be replaced. There were also a couple of Merc E-class, and an Audi A4, which may be for the higher managerial staff. But what I am trying to say is that there exists a huge market for Corollas/Camrys no matter how mundane they are to drive. Therefore not all buyers are after Handling and Road Manners. In this case, all that the Company requires is a comfortable and reliable car with a decent equipment list. They are meant to give trouble free running with that exact level of feel good factor for those who are chauffered.

[chinmoysc]

Here is my initial ownership report.

http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/test-d...ip-review.html

[dkaile]

Toyota Camry Vs Skoda Superb - Autocar Web Exclusive 7th Nov 2012 - http://www.autocarindia.com/Feature/...da-superb.aspx

Verdict
Plush, soft and comfortable, the new Camry is everything a luxury car should be. The back seat is perfectly cushioned and supportive, the low-speed ride is incredibly comfortable and the interior quality is so much better than the earlier car, this car feels like a mini-Lexus. Then it is smooth and relaxing to drive and the car feels more than adequately powerful. The biggest plus, however, comes from the fact that the Camry is a Toyota, and that means bulletproof reliability and top-class after-sales service.
The Superb, difficult as it is to believe, gives you even more, feeling for all the world like a barely scaled down version of a full-fledged limo. Finer detailing on the inside, better-quality materials and a more up-market design make its cabin an even nicer place to spend time. There’s more space on the inside and the Skoda is better equipped too. The direct-injection turbo-petrol motor is more powerful and more refined, its twin-clutch gearbox is nicer to use and the Superb is much more fun to drive. Overall, the Skoda is the better car, and to top it off, it’s cheaper by Rs 4 lakh, which somewhat compensates for the fact that the Skoda is nowhere near as reliable or well supported as the Toyota.

[IshaanIan]

NO ESP? 2 AIRBAGS? I hate how certain manufacturers try getting away with such things in our market. True. Indians don't tend to care much about safety but it is purely unethical to give into that fact and deprive the population of safety features especially at such a price. In a country where no lane discipline is observed, at highway speeds esp is a must in emergencies.
Even the smaller things like the lack of lining on the inside of the glovebox, all add up.
Don't get me wrong; I like it and the car is brilliant in its own right, but the obnoxious manner in which Toyota is trying to sell it in our country just disgusts me.

[dkaile]

Originally Posted by IshaanIan

I hate how certain manufacturers try getting away with such things in our market.

But they are not able to get away with it. The Indian customer is much more aware today. That is why Camry is a sales dud for Toyota in India.

[avira_tk]

The Camry Hybrid launch should be around the corner, last evening (21/8) there was one with a factory registration KA 41 TC xxxx at the Koramangala RTO.

The car has been covered by ToI in today's Zigwheels supplement.

[nik_kapur]

The Camry Facelift has been revealed.
A diesel Heart and these new looks. We have a winner. Sadly, Toyota won't invest in a diesel heart in India owing to the volumes.

Source: Paultan.org

[swiftnfurious]

The design is a bit way too loud for the segment it's aiming at. For the engine options, it's neither as sporty as it looks nor it has the understated looks for the chauffer driven sahibs.

I loved the red car with the fibre in the front; the one with slats didn't make a cut.

[IshaanIan]

According to me they really have a winner if they can bring this here as a CKD with the diesel heart, it could begin to steal the crown back from the Europeans.