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Old 30th June 2021, 18:59   #61
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Re: What car for under 14 lakhs ex-showroom?

Updates to the original post -

We have tested Jazz (3x), City (3x), XL6 and Nexon so far and Urban Cruiser is up next. I drove them along a particularly terrible patch of road along my daily commute. My impressions -

Jazz: A no-nonsense car. My personal favorite and there is a certain allure to a car that can slink to the background of your life and be there when you need it. Sort of like my fridge or phone or TV... However my wife felt the back seats were plain Jane (poor headrests, no armrest - the kids can become very territorial, no A/C vents). It is still in contention, though a notch down. I tend to use this as a reference point for the other cars. Like "does the extra 3000 a month over Jazz make sense".

City: I felt this to be a straightforward upscale to the Jazz. At 1.5x the monthly payment I get roughly an 1.5x car which is fair. The rear seat comforts missing in the Jazz are present here and I get a better engine and safety like 6 airbags. It is a segment or two above, something that I don't care. The car's front bumper did scrape an especially large pothole.

XL6: My son's favorite. He gets good visibility through the windows. My favorite too because this is the first hop north of Jazz on the budget. My wife was somehow put off by the utility/van nature of the vehicle. It's good that at least someone in the family is still young at heart .

Nexon: The neighborhood Tata dealer didn't have an AMT for TD and even claimed that AMTs are not given out for TD. Having driven to the dealer, I took the diesel manual for a spin, came home and took the wife and kids for a short drive. The car handled the potholes really well and felt premium overall. My wife liked the car a lot and we are in talks with another dealer for an AMT TD. Sadly their AMT TD car has been in "service" the for about a week now. There are a couple of threads here about AMT woes and I think that's something that will be at the back of my mind. I will wait till Monday and if I cannot test an AMT Nexon, will drop it from shortlist.

Almost any review of the Hondas and XL6 always tend to mention their transmissions - CVT, or the 4 speed TC in unflattering ways. The Jazz felt like it was laboring hard when driven spiritedly, the XL6 felt adequately powered - possibly due to a boost from the SHVS system? There was also some confusion on whether the OD was on or off during the drive... And I have no complaints about the City.

Summing up, the overall impression that I get from my wife is a preference to SUV. I widened my search and immediately ruled out the likes of Venue, Sonet, Kiger, Magnite etc. because of the unusually long wait times. Having been in Ecosport for 2 years now, my daughter is unimpressed with the ride quality. She gets queasy. That rules it out. I was left with Brezza and XUV300, the looks of which I don't like at all. That's when I remembered the Urban Cruiser. I liked the understated looks of the car from videos and have requested for a TD to be arranged this Friday.

As I said earlier, the Honda City gets me additional airbags and a premium feel for the money I spend over the Jazz. With XL6 I get more seats and never needing to rent a zoomcar for the price premium. In other words, in my view and for my usage pattern, the 3 cars are on the same value vs. price curve. Apart from the CSUV form-factor and the added GC, I am not sure where the Nexon and the Urban Cruiser fall on this curve. Definitely below I suppose.

If the Nexon or Urban Cruiser TDs don't materialize, we'll have a huddle and choose one of the remaining 3.

Last edited by sramanat : 30th June 2021 at 19:06. Reason: fix typo
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Old 30th June 2021, 21:07   #62
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Re: What car for under 14 lakhs ex-showroom?

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Originally Posted by sramanat View Post
Updates to the original post -

We have tested Jazz (3x), City (3x), XL6 and Nexon so far and Urban Cruiser is up next. I drove them along a particularly terrible patch of road along my daily commute. My impressions -


As I said earlier, the Honda City gets me additional airbags and a premium feel for the money I spend over the Jazz. With XL6 I get more seats and never needing to rent a zoomcar for the price premium. In other words, in my view and for my usage pattern, the 3 cars are on the same value vs. price curve. Apart from the CSUV form-factor and the added GC, I am not sure where the Nexon and the Urban Cruiser fall on this curve. Definitely below I suppose.
Having both the Honda City(4th generation) and the XL6 in the family, I just want to add some points to your observations.

1.) The XL6 will be much more comfortable than the Honda City out on the highway on long road trips by the virtue of its settled ride quality and vastly superior rear seats and seating position. We have experienced close to zero fatigue even when covering almost 900kms in a day (with 1-2 breaks). That was (and is) not the case with the City where rear passengers started feeling tired after 200-250kms with the front occupants following shortly after.

2.) The Honda City ought to be generally safer than the XL6 ( the City has 6 airbags + 5 star ASEAN crash test rating). But, a higher vehicle is inherently safer in some collisions.

3.) Forget the Jazz. It's a very small car and your family will outgrow it rather quickly.

4.) XL6 Zeta AT is the most VFM variant should you opt for the XL6. Most reviewers are wannabe Schumachers' and frame their thoughts accordingly. Not relevant to the average Indian driver who does not floor the accelerator every chance he/she gets. The 4 speed TC is highly competent for the kind of car it is in (and so is the CVT unit in the City).

P.S: Don't go for the sub-compact crossovers. They suffer from the same drawbacks the Jazz does.

Last edited by sierrabravo98 : 30th June 2021 at 21:11. Reason: Missed some lines.
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Old 30th June 2021, 21:34   #63
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Re: What car for under 14 lakhs ex-showroom?

Going by your original post, I'd suggest:
1. If you are going to buy a bigger car a few years down the line, buy the Jazz now and save $$$
2. If you'd like to buy a bigger car now, followed by a smaller car later - buy the City or XL6 - whichever wins most votes at home. I'd personally pick the premium feeling City over the XL6. (which is not a bad car by any means)

You have a healthy budget, I'd avoid AMTs.
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Old 1st July 2021, 13:31   #64
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Re: What car for under 14 lakhs ex-showroom?

Since you mentioned your daughter is queasy, I'd also urge you to have a look at the S Cross too. The compliant ride quality on the highway is a big boon, it's more spacious than the Brezza, and with the same engine.

Another option is the Yaris which is well built with decent ground clearance and ride quality, hopefully some decent discounts though it would loose out on space compared to the City.

Last edited by lamborghini : 1st July 2021 at 13:35.
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Old 3rd July 2021, 21:17   #65
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Re: What car for under 14 lakhs ex-showroom?

XL6 is ruled out, as my wife hates the van form factor. Come to think of it, it is due to the airiness of the cabin that exposes the entire floor which was dirty in the TD car. In any other car, including the one that we drive now, you really have to make an effort to look at the floor and the dirt. Anyways, moving on,

We did a TD of the Urban cruiser yesterday. The dealership had a pall of gloom with a sole UC in display - no innovas or fortuners either. There were no SAs and not even reception staff. After a couple of calls I was told someone would attend me shortly. They did and after this inital experience, things could only improve. Which it did. The car was put together we'll and felt pretty much like XL6 and my wife liked it too. One of the kids liked it and the other is ambivalent. So, now the decision in front of me

1. Jazz, an easy on the wallet car which is probably at the top of the hatchback rung. Any regrets I may have will pale in comparison to what I have to pay. An overall safe option.
2. UC, at 4k more a month, gets me something similar to the existing 2014 ecosport, but pales in comparison to the current gen models in its space.
3. City at 9k more a month gets me a truly premium sedan at a time when sedans are going out of vogue exponentially every day. And this was a car that was supposed to be a poster boy for sedans.
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Old 4th July 2021, 12:21   #66
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Need a to Buy a Reliable Sedan

Hello Everyone,

I need your help in deciding which car to buy for my father who just turned 60 and is planning to get himself a new car. He currently drives a Baleno Sedan from 2006 and would like his next car to be a sedan too. We usually buy pre-owned cars for the value they offer (I bought a pre-owned Corolla Altis in 2018, which is my current car and he bought the Baleno pre-owned, which is his current car), however, at the present time we are having a hard time finding a good pre-owned car for the right price (in Nasik), so we have decided to go for a new car.

My father and I have been discussing it for days and cannot make up our minds. We have a budget of around Rs. 10.00 lakhs (On the road) which may be stretched a bit if the car is compelling. He is an enthusiastic driver and loves being behind the wheel. He has been driving since he was 20.

The car will mostly be used in the city, except for a couple of trips a year to Rajasthan, when it will need to seat 4 people (occasionally 5) and luggage.

My father wants to get a reliable and frugal sedan for the least amount, and the way I see it, the only car that fits his criteria is the Honda Amaze V (Petrol) which is about 8.82 lakhs on the road and decently equipped.

However, I have been eying the Honda city for quite a while and am quite fascinated by it. The on road price for 4th Generation Honda City SV comes to Rs. 10.77 lakhs, which is just a couple of thousands more on the EMI, so manageable.

I am only looking at Honda as my father has just crossed 60 years of age and I want his ownership experience to be as fuss free as possible. This rules out Skoda Rapid and Tata Tigor. He already has a Maruti, and wants to try something else this time, so that rules out the Ciaz (we are not even considering the Dzire).

I love my experience with Toyota and would have loved to get a Yaris, but it is too expensive for us right now.

So I am in sort of a conundrum and would really appreciate your help in making up my mind.

Thank you everyone.

Last edited by pareekvirendra : 4th July 2021 at 12:36. Reason: Made an addition
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Old 7th July 2021, 12:02   #67
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Re: What car for under 14 lakhs ex-showroom?

It appears that the longer we are in the market, the more confusing it gets. What is unnerving is my company's fixed timelines and the COVID impact on the automakers' delivery timelines. Below are a few more which we considered and rejected (might be useful to others reading this thread). I am to take delivery of the car by end of August.

After driving the Urban Cruiser, we decided to huddle again and look at comparables - essentially all sub-4m CSUVs.

1. Nexon AMT - the ride comfort is nice, there are adequate features on offer and the AMT, though far from perfect was adequate for my driving style. However my wife felt it to be a distinct step down from fully automatics. It is one thing to consider stretching an MT budget for an AMT, but a completely different thing to throw AMT in the mix when you're considering ATs. Plus the delivery timeline of 12+ weeks means I will miss out the lease window.

2. XUV300 - We were hoping that this AMT performs better than the Nexon AMT, but the local dealer couldn't get a TD car or promise a shortened delivery timeline. So we decided to move on.

Circling back to the Jazz that ticks most boxes for us we decided that only cars with 6 airbags and a proper AT to be upgrades from Jazz.

3. Ford Ecosport petrol AT - the transmission was utterly smooth, the suspension marginally better than our current diesel Ecosport. Two cons - my daughter who used to feel queasy in the Ecosport didn't feel the ride comfort to be an improvement over the one that we already have. The honest SA said that real world fuel economy to be in single digits in city driving conditions. That was a huge red flag. Must have known the moment the car felt like a typical American AT with mpg rating as an afterthought. A neat design quirk(?) - the sunroof was placed a bit towards the middle of the cabin allowing rear seat passengers to enjoy it. A big plus when kids are the ones likely to enjoy it. The ICE misses out on Android Auto/Apple CarPlay and necessitates turning the hotspot on the phone for the maps to read traffic data. A minor issue during the TD, but would definitely be an irritant over the years. Estimated delivery was in 4 months!

4. Kia Sonet/Venue - the Venue doesn't have an AT with 6 airbags. So it was ruled out immediately. The Sonet had everything + some more, though I felt the many gadgets and contours and materials in the dash to be distracting. The ride comfort was better than the Ecosport. The engine was more than adequate for our driving style and the additional warranty for 20K alleviates some of the DCT anxiety. The ventilated seats were a boon on the humid day we TD'd the car, but it cooled only my back. The SA helpfully blamed it on my jeans. 18-20 weeks of delivery time is simply atrocious.

My employer has requested the leasing company to update us on the availability of Ford and Kias. Pending an update, the contenders are Jazz, City, Sonet and Ecosport. From the way things are panning out, the Sonet and Ecosport may rule themselves out due to timely availability. That would leave me with the Jazz and City.

What the Jazz has going for it - a relatively cheap car that the dealer has in stock. Delivery wouldn't be a problem. My gut feel is that every family will have a room for a hatchback, no matter how the fortunes change. If things improve, I can consider a proper mid size SUV - throwing hitherto omitted parameters like manual transmission, used/new etc. into the mix.

What the City has going against it - I will be stuck with a premium sedan when sedans are out of favor in the market. Sort of like what happened with my 2006 Baleno - instead of the model going out of production, sedans as a whole may go niche. When we have room for a second car, it has to be a cheap hatchback and thereby ruling many juicier options out. The dealer doesn't have one in stock, but estimates one can be delivered in 3-4 weeks once decision is made.

I suspect this thread may be a misfit in team-bhp with some maddening omissions, rejections and curve ball parameters thrown in. Balancing the taxman, leasing company, COVID impact, kids and wife with divergent requirements... that's how I had to roll
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Old 8th July 2021, 13:00   #68
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Re: Need a to Buy a Reliable Sedan

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Originally Posted by pareekvirendra View Post
Hello Everyone,

I need your help in deciding which car to buy for my father who just turned 60 and is planning to get himself a new car.

However, I have been eying the Honda city for quite a while and am quite fascinated by it. The on road price for 4th Generation Honda City SV comes to Rs. 10.77 lakhs, which is just a couple of thousands more on the EMI, so manageable.


So I am in sort of a conundrum and would really appreciate your help in making up my mind.

Thank you everyone.
If you are not bothered by the few thousand EMI difference that the City represents over the Amaze, then go for the City SV with both eyes closed. You simply cannot go wrong with the Honda City. The added bonus being that the 4th gen City is faster than the 5th gen City. Your father will love it (considering he is an enthusiastic driver). The Amaze is a class below the City and that is visible everywhere in the car. My 2015 City SV still brings a smile to my face when I redline it in the 2nd gear.
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Old 9th July 2021, 11:17   #69
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Re: What car for under 14 lakhs ex-showroom?

From your posts it seems like you have not test driven the S-Cross yet. Suggest you do that before you make your final decision. As a second car it is almost perfect. More space than anything else comparable, low maintenance, will last 10 years easily, disc brakes all round, reasonably safe (based on Global C platform, not made for India Heartect)

If you do not require the hard acceleration, it will comfortably cruise at 100 on highways. There is no comparable package. As an added bonus it is only 14.xx OTR for top spec so well within your budget.
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Old 10th July 2021, 12:03   #70
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Re: Need a to Buy a Reliable Sedan

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Originally Posted by sierrabravo98 View Post
If you are not bothered by the few thousand EMI difference that the City represents over the Amaze, then go for the City SV with both eyes closed. You simply cannot go wrong with the Honda City.
Thank you so much for your reply. I am definitely getting the City now.

On a side note I think I may have posted my query in the wrong place.

If that is the case I request the MODS to please collapse my post.

Thank you.
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