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Hello Friends,
Need your sincere advice in selecting an automatic hatchback which will be primarily driven by my wife. She learned driving earlier just to pass her driving license test before marriage. She drove my Safari on highways for a while but never liked it, thanks to super heavy clutch and steering of Tata. She avoided driving for long time and was happy to be on the passenger seats.

The driving bug bite her again last year when we bought Ford Endeavour. She started driving to the nearby areas and market places. Gradually she has developed interest in driving which was once a tedious task thanks to the automatic transmission, bells n whistles and other driving aids in fully loaded Endeavour. As per her it is quite easy to manage it with front and rear sensor, reverse camera, automatic parallel park, super light electric steering etc.

As we do not have any other automatic so it is becoming difficult for me to manage things with single car among us. I am commuting to office in Endeavour and can't think of taking Safari in hectic traffic in Delhi/NCR. Moreover my younger brother is taking care of Safari now. It is impossible for me to commute 90 kms a day in a manual car specially after getting used to automatic 3.2 beast.

So it's time for a new automatic for her and max budget is 15L. I want a reliable hatchback or compact SUV which she can easily manoeuvre in Delhi/Gurgaon traffic. Below are the shortlisted cars, the good thing is I am not in a hurry to finalize. I am looking strictly for top end variants.

1. Volkswagen Polo TSI
2. Hyundai i20
3. Tata Nexon
4. Maruti Baleno
5. Ford Figo
6. Ford Ecosport

Kindly suggest as per my requirement. Please add other cars from this segment if I missed any.

Given the budget and priorities, going for a compact SUV than a hatchback would be better, also considering the fact that both you and your better half are habitual to high seating position, which will be missed in a hatchback.
Out of the given options you have stated, the Ecosport will be the top priority for you as you are familiar with the brand and smoother Ti-CVT gearbox than AMT in Nexon. Else, the Nexon in the diesel AMT avatar will be better than the petrol AMT.
If the budget can be increased a little, Creta SX Auto petrol will be a great buy, the car is loaded with features, light steering and super smooth AT, hence easy to drive too.

Since you are not in a hurry to finalize, maybe wait for the Hyundai's compact SUV which is expected to launch soon? The XUV300 too!

Cheers!

The Ecosport top end with 6 airbags would be the best choice for you. It would give your wife the desired seating position. It comes with ample features as well to keep you pampered. The only major negative would be the single digit FE in the city.

Next, I'd suggest the i20 Asta CVT which comes with 6 airbags as the next best option. You will save a lot of money and the CVT should return better mileage than the Ecosport. Hyundais are known for their super light steering. However, this combo of 1.2kappa+CVT is the worst from an enthusiast point of view.

I would never suggest a DQ200 equipped car to anyone, but if you are willing to take the risk, it should make for the best enthusiast buy. Do opt for the 4+3 years extended warranty. Tata Nexon comes with an AMT period. When you have a budget of 15L, the Ecosport is a much better choice than the Figo and the Baleno. Though that being said, the facelift Figo whenever launched should make for a good choice for the performance seekers, while the Baleno indeed is the most VFM of all the options stated here and has an engine which is far superior to that of the Hyundai. I would suggest it only after the Ecosport, the i20 and the Jazz.

Alternates- 1. Now this might be a bit too far fetched but since your wife has gotten used to driving a big SUV, the XUV W6 Automatic might be considered, though it will stretch your budget by a good 3L rupees.

2. The Creta S AT diesel at around 16L would make for a great buy as well. It might make for an ideal size which is something not as small as a hatch and something not as big as a Safari or the Endeavour. The negatives being a few missing features (nothing you can't live without) and the presence of only 2 airbags. That being said, the extra 100k which you spend will start getting recovered right from the day 1 since it's a high mileage diesel. Though being in Delhi, a diesel choice is something you may want to think about. I would suggest this alternative at par with my 1st choice of the Ecosport.

As DPetrolHead mentioned, she might not enjoy driving the hatch once the initial new purchase euphoria has settled, since she's used to high seating, good visibility and respect by other vehicles.

In fact your Endeavour might be in danger, and you could be left driving whatever you chose to buy :)

In terms of plush, welcoming interiors and a general ease of driving for ladies, nothing would beat the Creta in this budget. Petrol or Diesel auto is something you can evaluate, but both are good options. Frankly I can think of only the Creta as something one could live with happily, after being used to the Endeavour.

Another option could be Nissan Kicks. The interiors seem plush enough, and the rest of the mechanical package is anyway quite mature and trouble free.

Easiest "What Car" query ever :)

Women love crossovers
Women love automatics
Women LOVE the Creta

Get her a Creta AT. It's so smooth that I wouldn't be surprised if you yourself start taking it out for drives.

rl: rl:

Why not Duster? The ride quality beats most of the competition and is a proper SUV if you get the AWD.

I am mighty impressed by it's handling as well as ride quality when we took it to the mountains in HP last year.

Even you can use it for your daily commute, if needed.

The AMT is nowhere as smooth as the Creta's torque-converter AT, and the manual's clutch + steering is heavier than women like. Plus, I've noticed that women are very particular about interior design (more than men) and don't like "old" products.

Don't think the Duster will fly here.

Considering you already have the Endeavour, my vote would be for the GT TSI. Small, compact, can be used to potter around town or really have a blast with it when needed thanks to the TSI+DSG combo.

Second choice would be the Ecosport. Ticks all the boxes.

The Creta Petrol AT I remember did not come in the top variant.

What kind of monthly running are you looking at? Since you have the Endeavour, I guess this will be only for city use. Unless you have the use-case of 3 people at the rear seat often, go for Ecosport Titanium+ petrol AT eyes closed. Since your wife already likes the Endeavour AT, this would be a mini-endeavor which would keep her happy for a long time to come. With this new facelift it looks closer to the Endeavour and on top of that it comes loaded with active safety features like 6 airbags, ABS, TCS,HHA etc. Interior quality too aint bad at all and it falls under your budget easily with some savings which would offset the low city mileage :thumbs up


P.S: Not suggesting a diesel as I see you are from NCR.

True, AMT is probably the worst type of GB to have.

I guess Duster has CVT in petrol version. That might be worth checking as it might fit in the 15L budget.

agree:

One factor to consider is your spouse's height and how easy and comfortable will it be for her to ingress and egress any car wearing a saree or a skirt. I cant offer suggestions as I wear neither but do talk to her about this. SUVs or cross overs are usually a little higher and a bother for a shorter person. Automatic, great interiors are a must. Think also about the Honda Jazz - automatic, semi-tall boy, decent interiors. Best of luck.

And by the way - "Which car for the better half" - always the better car :-)

Thanks all for replying. Did a test drive of Polo GT TSI today and was quite surprised, what a wonderful car it is. Me and my wife both drove it for more than 30 minutes and she is going gaga over it. I think the car selection process is almost done and the upcoming test drives of other cars is just a formality.

I am shocked my wife didn't liked i20 at all, the interiors and other bells and whistles didn't make her happy. The downer was the CVT gearbox which is the worst automatic I must say. Press the pedal to metal and there is only engine noise no progression with car lugging like a cart.

By any means I don't think me or my wife are enthusiasts but still we liked the most driver oriented car. Planned a test drive of Ford Ecosport tomorrow morning and will try the Creta in evening but I am sure will go with GT TSI only. :)

That is the problem with driving the TSI first up :). Everything else in the segment will pale in comparison with respect to the drivability. The success of the TSI DSG is that even a complete non enthusiast will be able to appreciate the drivability of the TSI. One of the few things that VW got perfectly right for the Indian market.

The Ecosport should not be too bad either.

Done with the test drive of EcoSport. It was a fun drive much better than i20 but Polo TSI is still on top. Trend MY18 carry a good 75k discount which I believe can be stretched to 1L. Titanium MY19 might have 50k discount. I found EcoSport to be tight on space inside and one only get better headroom compared to hatchbacks. The seating position is higher but the bonnet is not visible while driving. The drive was decent and gearshift were quick with minimal lag.

I am planning for a second test drive of Polo TSI to confirm whatever we felt on first encounter holds true. I don't think Creta will be as fun to drive like Polo or EcoSport but will give it a try.

I would suggest you to go for All New Figo Aspire 1.5 Automatic. It's a proper Automatic with TC and added FTD from Ford.


Or just wait some more time. If rumors are something to believe, All New Figo 1.5 Automatic is on the way with almost everything as Aspire sans boot and with dark interiors.


Cheers!