Last year I had planned to go for a Grand VItara, but had to shelve the plans due to the economic downturn. This month we finally decided to go for a new car – an SX4. The car will be driven mostly by my wife in the next few months (she has a longer commute), but I don't think SX4's positioning would get affected much - my wife is an ex-naval officer.
I booked the SX4 Zxi yesterday at Pratham Motors, Bangalore. 2.4L Vitara is planned...someday!
Reason for choosing SX4
Wanted a car that can handle the city + highway + rough roads - hence a crossover sedan. We often drive to places (e.g. in the jungle or in the hills) that have dirt tracks. Could have looked at the Linea, the ANHC, Verna and the Scorpio SLE (within my current budget). Didn’t even TD the other sedans because they won’t be able to handle the rough roads I am planning to throw at the car. And I didn’t want to settle for a Scorpio when I have plans to buy the GV someday.
Wanted to mention that I was impressed by the SX4’s Raid de Himalayas participation and travelogues (especially Leh trips) – those threads helped me make up my mind.
Dealer
Was talking to Mandovi and Bimal, but Pratham was the closest to my place (I stay on Sarjapur Road), and they matched the other offers.
Test Drive
Test drive experience was good with all the dealers. Took the cars till Sarjapur. Loved the brakes, the surefootedness and the presence. The sound system wasn’t that impressive though. Neither were the sound of the car boot slamming down, and the ‘give’ when I pressed the car body to check toughness.
Colour
My favourite colour was black, but my wife loved the copper colour. We know who won. I did tell the dealer that black was our second choice – but that we strongly preferred Sunlight Copper.
Discounts/Freebies- 15000 consumer discount
- 25000 loyalty discount (my dad had a Maruti)
- No corporate discount (not eligible)
- Complementary sunfilm: Nanolux Nano 50. Apparently they only keep Garware and Nanolux. Had asked for the Lux variant, but they said that it was too expensive to give as a freebie.
- Rear parking sensor: Red Soul C4, with 4 body coloured sensors
- Mats, flaps, perfume, idol etc. (standard)
The salesguy refused to write on the letterhead that he was going to give me the free accessories. I got him to write things down on a white piece of paper, but he refused to sign it, saying that it was against Maruti policy. He requested me to trust him :-). Is this normal?
Planned extras- Plan to upgrade tyres at the earliest. Have been thinking of Michelin Pilot Primacy 225/55/16. Wanted to know (can someone help?) whether going for wider tyres would affect any insurance or warranty clause. If so, will go for Michelin but as per stock specs.
- Plan to go for 3rd & 4th year warranty.
Booking
Paid 25K to book the car. Expected waiting time 4 weeks. Plan to use the Team BHP PDI checklist (didn’t have much of a clue about this earlier). I was originally dealing with a sales rep, but the booking was done by the team leader who initially tried to negotiate on the sunfilm (asking me to pay 50%).
Want to ask whether anyone has senior level contacts at Pratham Motors (ORR), Bangalore – in case issues crop up.
Financing
Haven’t closed this yet, but have a pre-approved 100% ex-showroom offer from HDFC. Last month end they were offering me 10.25% for a 5 year loan. Beginning of this month they are offering 11.25% (I am sure they will offer 10.25% close to the month end), but I hope to push them down – especially with the new SBI offer (8/10/10 for first 3 years), and Axis Bank rates. Hoping that interest rates don’t go up due to the government fiscal deficit.
Next Steps
Sales guy will get back in a couple of weeks and let me know about the expected delivery date and colour availability. Will keep the forum posted as I go through the important car buying milestones.
P.S.: Had a few interesting driving trips in the last 6 months – Masinagudi X 4 (am a regular at Wild Haven), Ooty, Wellington, Coorg, Karwar/Palolem. Plan to post the travelogues when I have time. One interesting incident – a wild elephant pushed my car for 5 feet, and gently kicked it (I was not inside the car then). Posting a couple of pictures of that incident below.