[fiery enzyme]

Mustang,

Thanks for the reply.I can live without ABS, tell me about the airbags. Do they make a difference if one was wearing the seat belts?

[Mustang.101]

@fiery enzyme : They are really effective in saving you from frontal impact, Have a good life saving rate in frontal impacts.It cushions you during a frontal impact, But in case of an impact from the side/rear, they are completely useless.

[Brix]

How important is ABS in India?

I thought it was pertinent to frozen/slippery roads.

I do a daily commute of 20KM on city roads. Is it important for me.

Originally Posted by Mustang.101

@fiery enzyme : depends entirely on you, i dont care much about airbags but if you can manage without ABS then buy it.

[scorpio07]

Originally Posted by fiery enzyme

Hi All,

Now I'm really tempted and confused. The only difference is the ABS and Airbags. Should I wait for the titanium or should I go for the ZXI? The feedback from family and friends are for both sides of the arguments.

Should I wait or go for the ZXI?

Zxi= if your are gonna drive with atleast 4 passengers and city driving conditions
Titanium: More of highway driving,and safety is top priority.
end call is yours

[Gilead]

Originally Posted by Brix

How important is ABS in India?

I thought it was pertinent to frozen/slippery roads.

I do a daily commute of 20KM on city roads. Is it important for me.

You have no idea how useful ABS is in our dusty roads with some light mud on it. It's also super useful on wet roads. My heart's always in my mouth when I have to brake hard in my 800 on a wet road or on a road with mud layer on top of the tar. I have had wheel lock up at times and it's not a pleasant experience. Always get an ABS equipped car if you can afford it.

fiery enzyme, my suggestion would be to wait for the Titanium.

Originally Posted by scorpio07

Zxi= if your are gonna drive with atleast 4 passengers and city driving conditions
Titanium: More of highway driving,and safety is top priority.
end call is yours

A car can easily skid in city conditions as well. And how will the presence of 4 passengers inside prevent wheel lock up? The TD cars that were crashed in Bangalore were being driven in the city and the airbags probably saved the passengers inside.

[scorpio07]

Originally Posted by Brix

How important is ABS in India?

I thought it was pertinent to frozen/slippery roads.

I do a daily commute of 20KM on city roads. Is it important for me.

City drive we can do without ABS, but if your prone to Panic braking then ABS would be more useful. to avoid skidding due to brakes locking the wheel

[Mustang.101]

Originally Posted by Brix

How important is ABS in India?

I thought it was pertinent to frozen/slippery roads.

I do a daily commute of 20KM on city roads. Is it important for me.

I believe that ABS is the most important safety feature in India. Its more relevant at high speeds though .

It basically allows your vehicle to steer without locking up the wheels when you brake hard, Thus if unexpectedly you see a stationary object on the road & you cant stop by then, then simply you can brake as hard as you want & at the same time can also steer the car away from the object.
Detailed explanation can be found at wikipedia

Check this out!

Ford - Ford Fiesta Safety

[Brix]

I read the tech part, but had booked a Zxi.
Will book an ABS on my next car though.

I'm generally a sedate driver. For the rest, TIG.

Originally Posted by Mustang.101

I believe that ABS is the most important safety feature in India. Its more relevant at high speeds though .

[Gilead]

Originally Posted by scorpio07

City drive we can do without ABS, but if your prone to Panic braking then ABS would be more useful. to avoid skidding due to brakes locking the wheel

Only bad drivers are prone to panic braking. Even good drivers have to resort to panic braking at times to avoid obstacles on the road. IMO most panic braking and wheel lock ups happen in the city and not on the highway. E.g. kids running on the road, share autos suddenly cutting across lanes to pick up or drop off passengers, cyclists weaving around to avoid potholes, traffic signals suddenly changing to red and policemen jumping in front to stop you etc. Highways are relatively far more peaceful.

Originally Posted by fiery enzyme

OK. I will wait for the titanium then Sigh!

You definitely won't regret it.

[PYSO]

Originally Posted by Mustang.101

It is steering adjustment/alignment, The steering gaiters have to be removed & then steering has to be adjusted, Dont even think of getting this done outside.

+1 to that. Doing wheel alignment / wheel balancing with outside tire shops has always been a let-down in my experience. At least, dont consider this option for cars which are less than 5 years old.

[Gilead]

Originally Posted by PYSO

+1 to that. Doing wheel alignment / wheel balancing with outside tire shops has always been a let-down in my experience. At least, dont consider this option for cars which are less than 5 years old.

As Mustang has pointed out, it's not just a simple alignment/balancing issue but rather a steering issue. Outside tire shops are always better at balancing/alignment from my experience. But one needs to ensure that the tire shop has modern equipment.

[ownerofazkaban]

[+1 to that. Doing wheel alignment / wheel balancing with outside tire shops has always been a let-down in my experience. At least, dont consider this option for cars which are less than 5 years old.
]
I would say never, I had to get my car alignment re-done after the one-and-only time the wheels were balanced & aligned outside. This was at the Vijay auto after the free installation of michellins brought from lalbhag rd.

[scorpio07]

Originally Posted by Gilead

Only bad drivers are prone to panic braking. Even good drivers have to resort to panic braking at times to avoid obstacles on the road. IMO most panic braking and wheel lock ups happen in the city and not on the highway. E.g. kids running on the road, share autos suddenly cutting across lanes to pick up or drop off passengers, cyclists weaving around to avoid potholes, traffic signals suddenly changing to red and policemen jumping in front to stop you etc. Highways are relatively far more peaceful.


You definitely won't regret it.

I would have opted for an ABS if there was an option on the ZXi, wouldnt mind the extra safety feature. Within city, chances of wheel locking at speeds around 50 kmph are less IMO. Even with ABS, one won't have the space to manoevre the vehicle. I feel its the highway when ABS helps, load falling of a truck, stray animals and the wayward people trying to cross highways.

[fiery enzyme]

Will the steering alignment be a problem in the cars going to be delivered in the month of may?

[Mustang.101]

@scorpio07 : for ABS to be effective, one does needs space but we cant rule out city use completely.

@fiery_enzyme : The steering problem was only with 50-100 cars already produced, It has been now corrected so you need not worry for may deliveries, Guys taking delivery today also need not worry, problem has already been sorted (those taking delivery prior to march 31 should check)