Retirement car for a middle-class man

niruvrs9669 · 11th March 2022, 13:31

Quote:

Originally Posted by SR-71

If you have an useful response, please share.

@SR-71, My response has been posted in 2 lines, I hope it will be useful to the newbie.

I was honestly 'amused' at the amount of content being posted, no offence to your lengthy post

.

kratant · 16th March 2022, 12:16

Would urge you to consider the Toyota Camry. It is easy to maintain. It has plenty of luxury, good fuel efficiency. Being a Toyota it is highly durable and will not give you the headache of maintaining a European brand. It is over priced definitely but it covers everything in the long run. It is also bigger than all entry level European brands like a BMW 3 series, Audi A4, Mercedes C-Class. Competes with A6, and BMW 5 Series in terms of size. It is not a sporty drive but rather a cruiser. It would fit the bill perfectly. Happy hunting.

zaid qazi · 16th March 2022, 12:54

I would recommend you to go for the Toyota Camry. As you have already mentioned that he is not an enthusiast but loves powerful cars, Camry according to me is a perfect car for him it has all the characteristics that he might need

1. Camry is not purely a enthusiast car but is quite powerful
2. Easy on pocket
3. ASS of toyota is also good enough
4. Reliability would never be a issue
5. Rear seat comfort of the camry beats all the entry level German cars and even that of the superb .

Livnletcarsliv · 16th March 2022, 20:25

There are some ambiguous contradictions that probably I would like to highlight.

1. "Middle-aged man retiring and finally looking to reward himself at the end of his career"?
2. 45 Lakhs budget, opulent interiors can be compromised and want a fairly comfortable car? - Interior quality is very important for great comfort and ride.
3. 330i is out of Budget, but want a European car with a brand value of the german trios? - That leaves only the option of Volvo S60 and JLR. JLR is not as reliable as the Swedish brand. So the only option is S60. It is not an apple to apple comparison to compare Skoda/VW with the 3 series/A4/C Class.

However, given your reasoning out of your friend's life choices of "Middle Class" living and your list of requirements, shortlists, and evaluation feedback, your friend needs a car that is highly reliable, easy on maintenance, fairly comfortable, and fun to drive with a powerful motor (if not the most powerful neither most comfortable), good engineered, and good brand value in India.

The only car that qualifies almost all of your requirements/conditions is the Toyota Camry Hybrid - Very comfortable, pocket-friendly, most reliable, fairly powerful, Spacious, City friendly, Highway friendly as well (since your friend is not an enthusiast).

SoumenD · 17th March 2022, 02:15

Toyota Camry Hybrid

Nothing else would suit his requirements IMO. BMWs or any German would cost much more in maintenance. However the Toyota would be pretty good on pocket comparatively and better mileage (due to hybrid) would again be an added bonus.

P.S: Wish the words ‘middle class’ weren’t used. It sounds pretty stretched considering the budget. Borderline click-bait.

IronDrago56 · 17th March 2022, 06:57

I think the Camry is the safer bet. I remember I drove my Uncle's 2010 Camry and it was an amazing car. Though quite basic in terms of Perks and Features, but its got a punchy engine and the gearbox is quite responsive too.

My Uncle says that maintenance with Toyota costs him annualy around 1-2 Lakhs. And they even give him an option for an AMC too which means he only pays for Labor for most of the work. He still has it with him today and has driven nearly 1.5L km on it.

BharathXUV700 · 22nd March 2022, 16:05

Seeing that the Jeep compass is amongst your likes and the only thing in it that you dont like is the space and the value for money feel, my recommendation would be the upcoming Jeep Meridian which is expected to cost around 45 Lakhs. It will have a more powerful state of tuned engine (which it shares with the compass) and the interiors are very good. Plus, it is expected to have all the bells and whistles including ADAS and ventilated seats. The ride is very likely to be Jeep quality and clearly even you agree that the compass ride and handling is good. It is being showcased this month if i am not mistaken and the prices will be announced in a couple of months.

torquelover · 23rd March 2022, 06:48

Best option is Camry!
New Camry is powerful, decently loaded with features. I TDed it last month. It's fun to drive. Eats potholes like it's hungry for them. My BMW X1 gives me jerks on the same potholes. Fortuner tumbles on the same potholes.
At this age, it's better to go for reliability above enthusiasm, head above heart.

16th March 2022, 12:16	#32
kratant BHPian Join Date: Sep 2021 Location: Gurgaon Posts: 29 Thanked: 39 Times	Re: Retirement car for a middle-class man Would urge you to consider the Toyota Camry. It is easy to maintain. It has plenty of luxury, good fuel efficiency. Being a Toyota it is highly durable and will not give you the headache of maintaining a European brand. It is over priced definitely but it covers everything in the long run. It is also bigger than all entry level European brands like a BMW 3 series, Audi A4, Mercedes C-Class. Competes with A6, and BMW 5 Series in terms of size. It is not a sporty drive but rather a cruiser. It would fit the bill perfectly. Happy hunting.
	() Thanks

16th March 2022, 12:54	#33
zaid qazi BHPian Join Date: Aug 2021 Location: Hyderabad/NCR Posts: 55 Thanked: 74 Times	Re: Retirement car for a middle-class man I would recommend you to go for the Toyota Camry. As you have already mentioned that he is not an enthusiast but loves powerful cars, Camry according to me is a perfect car for him it has all the characteristics that he might need 1. Camry is not purely a enthusiast car but is quite powerful 2. Easy on pocket 3. ASS of toyota is also good enough 4. Reliability would never be a issue 5. Rear seat comfort of the camry beats all the entry level German cars and even that of the superb .
	() Thanks

16th March 2022, 20:25	#34
Livnletcarsliv BHPian Join Date: Feb 2021 Location: TN66/TN14 Posts: 860 Thanked: 2,152 Times	Re: Retirement car for a middle-class man There are some ambiguous contradictions that probably I would like to highlight. 1. "Middle-aged man retiring and finally looking to reward himself at the end of his career"? 2. 45 Lakhs budget, opulent interiors can be compromised and want a fairly comfortable car? - Interior quality is very important for great comfort and ride. 3. 330i is out of Budget, but want a European car with a brand value of the german trios? - That leaves only the option of Volvo S60 and JLR. JLR is not as reliable as the Swedish brand. So the only option is S60. It is not an apple to apple comparison to compare Skoda/VW with the 3 series/A4/C Class. However, given your reasoning out of your friend's life choices of "Middle Class" living and your list of requirements, shortlists, and evaluation feedback, your friend needs a car that is highly reliable, easy on maintenance, fairly comfortable, and fun to drive with a powerful motor (if not the most powerful neither most comfortable), good engineered, and good brand value in India. The only car that qualifies almost all of your requirements/conditions is the Toyota Camry Hybrid - Very comfortable, pocket-friendly, most reliable, fairly powerful, Spacious, City friendly, Highway friendly as well (since your friend is not an enthusiast).
	() Thanks

17th March 2022, 02:15	#35
SoumenD Senior - BHPian Join Date: Feb 2013 Location: India Posts: 1,757 Thanked: 6,320 Times	Re: Retirement car for a middle-class man Toyota Camry Hybrid Nothing else would suit his requirements IMO. BMWs or any German would cost much more in maintenance. However the Toyota would be pretty good on pocket comparatively and better mileage (due to hybrid) would again be an added bonus. P.S: Wish the words ‘middle class’ weren’t used. It sounds pretty stretched considering the budget. Borderline click-bait. Last edited by SoumenD : 17th March 2022 at 02:19.
	(2) Thanks

17th March 2022, 06:57	#36
IronDrago56 BHPian Join Date: Feb 2022 Location: Chennai Posts: 76 Thanked: 115 Times	Re: Retirement car for a middle-class man I think the Camry is the safer bet. I remember I drove my Uncle's 2010 Camry and it was an amazing car. Though quite basic in terms of Perks and Features, but its got a punchy engine and the gearbox is quite responsive too. My Uncle says that maintenance with Toyota costs him annualy around 1-2 Lakhs. And they even give him an option for an AMC too which means he only pays for Labor for most of the work. He still has it with him today and has driven nearly 1.5L km on it. Last edited by IronDrago56 : 17th March 2022 at 06:58.
	(1) Thanks

22nd March 2022, 16:05	#37
BharathXUV700 BHPian Join Date: Sep 2021 Location: Bangalore Posts: 51 Thanked: 78 Times	Re: Retirement car for a middle-class man Seeing that the Jeep compass is amongst your likes and the only thing in it that you dont like is the space and the value for money feel, my recommendation would be the upcoming Jeep Meridian which is expected to cost around 45 Lakhs. It will have a more powerful state of tuned engine (which it shares with the compass) and the interiors are very good. Plus, it is expected to have all the bells and whistles including ADAS and ventilated seats. The ride is very likely to be Jeep quality and clearly even you agree that the compass ride and handling is good. It is being showcased this month if i am not mistaken and the prices will be announced in a couple of months.
	() Thanks

23rd March 2022, 06:48	#38
torquelover Newbie Join Date: Nov 2021 Location: Raipur Posts: 8 Thanked: 11 Times	Re: Retirement car for a middle-class man Best option is Camry! New Camry is powerful, decently loaded with features. I TDed it last month. It's fun to drive. Eats potholes like it's hungry for them. My BMW X1 gives me jerks on the same potholes. Fortuner tumbles on the same potholes. At this age, it's better to go for reliability above enthusiasm, head above heart.
	() Thanks