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-   -   My <10 lakh ex-showroom new car conundrum (https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/what-car/198942-my-10-lakh-ex-showroom-new-car-conundrum-3.html)

To me, it seems then that your best bet is to compromise on the convenience of an auto transmission and go for the Creta's base model.
Space. Size. GC. Ride (soft and comfy, if a little bouncy over bigger bumps). Quality not as terrible as the rest. Adequate power.

What are you leaning towards now?

The post seems like trailer of what the Team BHP review is going to be like. Honda really knocked it out of the park with this one.

Thanks Suhas. If GC was not a consideration,would have gladly got the amaze.. I have atleast a foot deep potholes on my way to work most of the time and single lane tar villlage road where i need to get on to the unpaved shoulder if vehicle comes in opposite direction. So Worried that amaze / other hatch's like i20 will scrape.. Been lucky with my Beat though will the occasional scraping only. Manufacturers know our dismal roads so why dont they increase GC ? Beats me..


BTW.. Took a really long test drive on the Vitara Brezza AMT ZDI+ today, Approx 40 Kms from Pratham Motors Outer Ring Road to Sarjapura Village and back with my parents and relatives riding with us.

First Impressions:

-> Space both at Front and back is adequate. Just Adequate (Not even in the league of the Amaze).

-> Engine power is adequate. However the AMT + Diesel engine combo felt weird to me probably because this is my first AMT. This combo is Dr. Jekyll and Mr Hyde. The engine is low sound and smooth till about 2500 RPM. Above that sound is gruff. What makes this combo weirder is how 1st and 2nd gears in the AMT work with the engine. They are very reluctant to downshift. At 30KMPH in first gear around >3000 RPM the car is still in first gear producing a pronounced engine hum. Tried taking my foot off and on back on the accelerator but no luck. I recollect the RPM Needle jumping to 4000RPM in 1st gear before down shift. I understand the good folks at Maruti may have wanted to avoid a down shift in the middle of an overtaking maneuver. Similar problem from 2nd to 3rd and from 4th gear the car runs fine. At 80 KMPH in Auto Mode the car is still in 4th which is very unlike how we drive a manual.

-> I put it in manual mode and then things were more controlled. I could downshift at around 2500 RPM mark with out much hassle and very little lag. However the engine hum was pronounced vs the Beat I drive currently despite this being a 3 Cyl engine.

-> Brakes were pretty good, much better than what I have on the Beat. Handling was also pretty good, better than Creta where I felt a bit of body roll.

-> Interiors : This is where Maruti was plain dumb :Frustrati. There is not a lot wrong with the interior except the poor choice of plastic. The swift interior plastic looks much better. The pattern on the black plastic is :deadhorse

-> The Kit on the ZDi + was very good. It has got all the bells and whistles except Cruise. However at Rs 13.1 Lakh on road (~10.5 lakhs ex-showroom) for the dual tone this is not cheap by any means.

-> Zdi seems a lot more value for money. ~1.5 Lakhs for the Touch Screen HU + Arm Rest + Indicators on side Mirrors + Push Button start + Auto Headlamps, Wipers. I would probably care only about the HU and Armrest. My One plus Five T will help with the navigation duties, I can get a better designed arm rest from outside, the current one is set too back for comfort.. Others I dont care about..

-> Considered the Duster AMT briefly but the 15 Lakh Price Tag + impending face lift made me drop it out of contention.

-> I got a soft copy of the new Brochure which is not available yet on the net. Will upload as in some time as currently the upload feature is not working.

Which is why I believe Honda may be missing a trick by not giving the WRV the same diesel engine-CVT gearbox combination.

The WRV has not been a massive hit, but I can say that it has salvaged it for Honda with decent numbers.

This diesel-CVT combo can change its fortunes, and will certainly make the WRV a formidable opponent to all other cars in the segment.

By the way, driving the Amaze gingerly over the rough stuff should ensure that you come out unscathed. Think about it, and don't dismiss it immediately. :)

I have been thinking about your dilemma some more, and I might have a slightly odd suggestion for you. I didn't realise how bad the road conditions were, where you live and commute so given that should rightly go for something with a higher GC.. so how about a Renault Duster - I think that should be a more practical option than the Creta as it's considerably cheaper and fits your budget while offering all the advantages of an SUV that you want. I know it's a little dated and probably doesn't have a great resale value but it's still a nice car and if you get bored from it after a while, you can always get it modified. I believe DC has done some great mod work on Duster. (As I said slightly unusual suggestion, may be something to think about).

Your heart is clearly sold on the Creta. I would suggest stretching your budget and picking the Creta Diesel AT. Remember, the better the car you buy today, the longer you will keep it. That's one of the reasons I am able to run my cars for an average of 8 - 10 years. Instead of sticking to a 12.5 lakh OTR budget and replacing it within 5 years, spend 16 lakh OTR and keep it for 8 - 10 years. You'll be pleasantly surprised at which one works out cheaper. And the main bonus = you drive a better car.

If you still don't want to stretch your budget, among the Diesel ATs, go for the Amaze CVT or Verna AT. I find it hard to recommend the Diesel AMTs (jerkiness) & DSGs (reliability).

If you don't want to stretch your budget too much and are open to Diesel MT, pick the Creta 1.6L Diesel MT. You live life just once man - buy the car you really like.

Haha.. are you reading my mind or is it really a coincidence. I too took a test drive of the AMT Brezza yesterday and my thoughts on the Zdi Plus are similar to yours. In my opinion, after driving the jerk master for the last 3 years, I think you should by default drive any AMT (irrespective of car) in the manual mode.

The price gap b/w Zdi and Zdi plus too jumps coz once you cross the 10 lakh mark on the base price, the road tax goes up by I suppose 3% or 4%.

I think we should shop this one together lol: as my uncle too is likely to finalize on the Zdi Brezza AMT and me mostly on either Brezza Zdi manual or Ertiga Zxi.

The Amaze actually has 170mm of GC from what I recall, which is quite impressive for it's segment. Do try it on your usual commute and take a call.

Also, GTO has some solid logic on his points. If you compromise today, you will end up wanting to replace the car much sooner which will definitely cost a lot more money in the long run.

Agree that the WRV would be perfect for my purpose. I had test driven a used WRV Petrol when I was considering pre-owned but that didnt go through. If it gets a CVT nothing like it.

Would you suggest a petrol Amaze over the diesel, I can probably spend that much more on the fuel with money saved upfront. Is it under powered for normal city usage?

I will get the Honda folks to give me an extended test drive to my home and back and if all goes well, will book.

Thanks GTO. With the uncertainty in today's world / job markets, I didn't want to over extend, but will evaluate this closely and take a decision. Its just that I value my peace of mind more and by nature I am conservative on spending :)

Thanks for the validation. I thought me being new to the AMT may have contributed to the experience but clearly it is a known devil.

My disappointment with Honda Amaze is absence of the large touch screen with AT. While the top trim gets it, omission in AT is a big surprise. Manufacturers have to start realising that AT buyers deserve a shot a the top end too. The current offer is a plain, so last generation, single DIN something.

Have you considered the Verna E? It will give you the big car feel as well as the 1.6 Crdi which is lacking in the Creta. If you can stretch your budget, the EX variant is quite a VFM proposition.

I would suggest the petrol Amaze CVT only if your driving is limited to city streets.

The moment you take it out onto the highway, you will definitely feel the need for more power I'm not saying the petrol car is not capable, but I have my reservations especially with 4-5 people and luggage.

For the city though, it should get the job done, no problems. Be warned however, that the infamous rubber-band effect is pronounced more in the petrol car.

All : Update - Took a long test drive of Diesel Amaze Auto today (>25 Kms) on all kinds of roads with very deep potholes with 4 people on board including me. The 170 MM ground clearance seems to hold and only on one speed breaker did I scrape as I was careless enough to not slowdown enough. I guess relatively short wheel base and lower front overhang really help!

My Mother was a back seat passenger and was impressed with the space on offer but her complaint was that there was a lot of wallowing on road undulations. i.e. Lot of vertical movement due to soft suspension. Is this is a known issue with Amaze or Cars with soft suspension set up ? Almost sold except for this one concern.

I am still unable to forget the Brezza and its VFM quotient. Almost all the reviews have praised this as being one of the better AMT boxes, However my experience was very different with the gear box acting in a non-linear way. Is the bad engine performance under 2K responsible for this or Was I being a novice with the AMT + Diesel combo or was there any thing wring with the TD vehicle ?

I haven't driven the Amaze but if it has a soft suspension as you mentioned then you would get a lot of vertical movement every time you hit a pothole. That is the downside of having a soft suspension. Remember the old Hyundai Verna, it too had a soft suspension and a lot of people complained about how it dealt with potholes and Hyundai responded by making it a lot more rigid this time around with the new 2018 model.

Although to be honest I am a bit surprised to find out that Amaze has a soft suspension because the Honda City does not. And its odd that Honda would have two very different approaches to their main volume driving cars. Am I missing something here, I wonder?

As for below par performance, I guess Honda's AMT is not meant for the enthusiastic driver. Its more about cruising than chasing the redline.

^^ Correction. Honda uses a CVT.