[condor]

Having used AT's in the hills of USA on various trips, I would happily take one on such routes. But like has already been pointed out, the engine needs to be good enough. And definitely no AMT for me.

[RajeevMD]

Going by your requirements and budget, I’d suggest an automatic with either a torque converter or a DSG. Also having a Diesel engine with good amounts of torque would be a bonus. In such a scenario AFAIK the car which would suit your budget would be the VW Ameo DSG comfortline trim. It would cost close to 9 lakhs. But if you could stretch your budget by another lakh and a half, you may be able to rope in a Highline variant of the car. All this given you could live with Ameo’s weirdly designed boot or as many say, the ugly boot. I own a VW Ameo highline DSG and it has been a gem in the hills of South India like the Ooty and Yercaud ghat section, don’t know how it would perform in your location. But overall it’s a good package with ample driving pleasure and top class fit and finish for this price bracket.

[Holyghost]

Go for an AT with Torque converter. TC boxes has an advantage of Torque Multiplification which will act like a low range transfer case. You will get additional torque while climbing uphills and this will help you climb tricky slopes with ease while MT vehicles will struggle on such slopes. The torque multiplication in itself is a good enough reason to go for TC automatics in hilly areas. Freeing up your left leg and hands is just a secondary added advantage.

[singleton]

I am looking for an automatic hatch, to be primarily driven in the hills of ooty, by my MIL.

The budget is around 6 lakhs, and the options we have seen so far include the grand i10 magna automatic, Brio and Micra CVT.

Brio is almost out of the budget since it is around 7.5lks OTR. i10 comes at 6.35 and Micra at 6.7lks.

We also saw the ignis but didn't like the looks. Now it is a question between i10 vs Micra. Not many Micra CVT long term experience stories.

Other inputs : Sedate driving usually , fuel economy does not matter much as it will be less driven, peace of mind is absolutely needed.

Anybody with experience driving these two, please provide your inputs.

[deep_bang]

Micra is a better product in many ways, the engine+cvt transmission being one of them. But yet, I suggest the I10 purely because of the service factor. I assume Hyundai has better reach around Ooty . Even in Bangalore Nissan service is not much to talk about. So, in Ooty it's probably much worse (someone from Ooty may have a more reliable answer).

The Micra also excels in fuel efficiency but as per you , fuel efficiency does not matter much.

So all in all, i10 it is in my opinion.

[crdi]

The i10 is much refined than the micra and the long term maintenance also would be good for the hyundai, but if the speeds at which your car will be mostly driven is going to be around 40 to 50 kph, there would be too many gear shifts in the i10. On mild throttle inputs on flat terrains, i10 upshifts to 4th gear at around 45 kph and downshifts to 3rd if the speed falls below 40 kph. Though the shifts are smooth, you might find it annoying if they are too frequent.

I had to reject a brio due to this factor. The car was constantly shifting between 5th and 4th at 60 to 80 kph, which was mostly the speed range of the intended usage (kerala highways).

Among the given choices, one might have to opt between the rubber band effect of the micra or the shifts of the i10, whichever is the least bothersome for the driver, in their pattern of usage.

Have no idea how these small capacity automatics will behave in the hills. Hence strongly suggest multiple test drives in the terrain/traffic that the car would mostly see.

[benu9714]

I have owned an i10 Asta Automatic for the last 7 years over nearly 35,000 KM. The car remains "like new" in driving - firm, responsive, no rattles, smooth shifting. I have not spent any money on repairs, apart from routine servicing, two battery changes and a new set of tyres (after 5 years due to my own rule for tyre change at 5 years). The mileage has been low because my wife drives it most of the time. The only negative is poor fuel consumption - 8/9 KMPL in Kolkata city (but 15 on the highway). However, in this case this does not matter.

Other attributes - such as easy steering, good brakes, powerful AC, good sound system - are as good as I had wished them to be.

I have driven this car up and down the Dehra Dun-Mussouire hill a number of times. There was absolutely no problem at all. The 1.2 liter engine is powerful enough to zip up the slopes without any sign of stress.

Of course, I have never driven a Micra. Hence I cannot make a comparison. My opinion relates to my experience of the i10 alone.

[Rahul Rao]

If you want an automatic in the hills stick to a torque converter one. So the i10 is your best choice.
You are likely to burn the clutch in an Micra CVT on graded starts. On plain roads it lasts about 80K km, but hill starts will stress it, and it single unit planetary reverser combined with the clutch assembly.
I would suggest that you take a test drive of the i10 and check weather it shifts to lowest possible safe gear with converter locked when you do a quick double (-) in the manual mode, so you have engine braking.
I have used that while descending hills in a Creta and SantaFe, but I'm not sure weather the 4 speed in the 110 has it.

Rahul

[blackasta]

I do not think it would be wise investment in a Nissan Micra outside of metro / tier 1 cities.

The t/c box of the i10 may be thirstier than the micra cvt box, but I have never heard one of going rogue (including mine, 8+ years & 86K kms done in city start stop traffic).

Chief gripe against Gi10 Magna AT - only a single driver airbag and no ABS - this is ridiculous to say the least at a time when 2018 is knocking on the doors.

If you are concerned about the constant upshift / downshift between 3<->4 gears, press the OD OFF toggle switch (does the Gi10 AT have one? my old I10 has the same) which should limit the gearbox till 3rd gear.

[koolguy_ani]

Sharing my experience of hill driving
Petrol cars:Santro petrol + CNG , Alto K10 : sluggish low end leading to problem while shifting from 1st to 2nd on moderately steep inclines esp when fully loaded. CNG was a pain. Is irrelevant in this case. Speed at first gear fully revved in Alto K10 was not enough to climb quickly and where rev matching is difficult while slotting to 2nd. Was a pain.
Ritz diesel : short second gear can't generate enough speeds to negotiate overtakes on inclines esp while changing from 2nd to 3rd.
Welcome Baleno CVT : no lag while negotiating any overtakes. Press the sports mode button if fully loaded or else D mode is also enough. On very steep inclines, L mode is helpful. It retains the ratio if the accelerator pedal is being depressed continuously. Want a quick overtake, slam the pedal and it will downshif quickly without any pause! It's the best that I have experienced on winding roads. For downhill,sports mode is sufficient.
I don't know how it does,but it automatically increases the gear ratio if it senses a slight incline with the same accelerator input.
At 9 lakhs, he could get Zeta easily or Alpha with all bells and whistles upon stretching the budget a bit.

[reignofchaos]

Not sure why this question is even relevant unless one is talking about some terribly underpowered engine with a really old 3 or 4 speed box. On a personal note, my GT TSi with the turbocharged engine and dual clutch box absolutely laughs at hills and is a blast to drive on b-roads.

[SmartCat]

Originally Posted by koolguy_ani

Welcome Baleno CVT : no lag while negotiating any overtakes. Press the sports mode button if fully loaded or else D mode is also enough. On very steep inclines, L mode is helpful. It retains the ratio if the accelerator pedal is being depressed continuously. Want a quick overtake, slam the pedal and it will downshif quickly without any pause! It's the best that I have experienced on winding roads. For downhill,sports mode is sufficient.
I don't know how it does,but it automatically increases the gear ratio if it senses a slight incline with the same accelerator input.
At 9 lakhs, he could get Zeta easily or Alpha with all bells and whistles upon stretching the budget a bit.

Yours is the most accurate assessment of how a CVT performs on hills. You are always in the "right gear". You will never drop out of the power/torque zone.

The only caveat -> the driver and the engine/gearbox should in sync. Accelerator inputs at the right time based on how the terrain is up ahead. This is possible only when one has driven a particular CVT + engine combination for a few thousand kms.

[haisaikat]

This is exactly the kind of thread I was looking for. And indeed some great suggestions provided. I have a related question. If both cars are torque converter equipped AT then will a Naturally aspirated petrol fair against turbo Diesel engine in higher altitudes where air density is supposedly less than on plains

[Durango Dude]

A Torque Converter AT or CVT, would do well. AMT's and DSG's without hill hold would roll on an inclined start. I think a Duster AMT comes with Hill Hold or a Creta AT would be the ideal choice.

[haisaikat]

Originally Posted by Durango Dude

A Torque Converter AT or CVT, would do well. AMT's and DSG's without hill hold would roll on an inclined start. I think a Duster AMT comes with Hill Hold or a Creta AT would be the ideal choice.

Thanks. But my question is different, in high altitudes where air density is a less who will be more impacted, a naturally aspirated engine or a turbo charged one since both will have the same source to draw air from. So if NA is drawing 50% air than usual due to less density of air outside then I am assuming turbo will also be similarly affected even if it draws more air artificially but still the deficiency is going to be proportional since I am assuming that the turbo will not give a 2nd cycle of pull to fill in deficiency rather go with what has been pulled already.