[nutcracker]

Originally Posted by self_driven

I'm not sure why diesel Toyotas are not on your list. You should definitely consider used examples of Fortuner and Innova Crysta 2.8.

Originally Posted by ashivas89

Highway car: Innova Hycross Hybrid VX (30 L OTR Delhi) or VX(O) (32L).

Originally Posted by Shreyans_Jain

1. Hyryder/GV hybrid + ZS EV.
ZS over Nexon solely because of the slightly bigger battery and support for 50kw DC charging, which makes long distance trips very convenient. If the EV will be city based, get the Nexon eyes closed.

2. Innova HyCross VX + Punch EV

Originally Posted by GTO

- Innova Hycross + new Sonet Diesel AT

[quote=SixPistons;5701092]Primary Vehicle:
Innova HyCross Hybrid/GV Hybrid

Originally Posted by AlphaKiloPapa

City car - Punch EV LR, will fall under 15 Lakhs OTR.
Touring car - Innova Hycross.

Guys, my bad for not mentioning it before: We are not looking for a 7-seater. While we did own a Pajero (bought solely because we loved how it drove, we really didn't care about anything else, it was sooo good), we have resolved that a 7 seater is of no utility to us. We are a small family, just me, my wife, dad, a pug named Tony and a kid coming on the way. So we prefer a 5 seater.

Second, the Toyotas and even the Mahindras are out of the question due to high waiting times. Hyryder has a waiting time of 3 months minimum. XUV700 and Scorpio N, same. We need two vehicles, out of which one is needed asap (screw you Delhi sporadic diesel bans), and the second one, in maximum a month.

A good music system is important to me, atleast in one of the cars. And street cred is important too.

Here is the update of my search from today:

Checked out the following cars:

New Creta: Loved the interiors. Feels better than the Seltos. 22L OTR is a good price. No TD vehicle. While I don't really have a problem with it, my wife and dad ain't vibing with the Creta. Plus, with the large amount of Cretas on the streets, the street cred requirement is left unfulfilled.

Walked into the Tata showroom:

Punch EV: I was interested in this vehicle. Looking at a video published by Tata, this vehicle seemed to be more of a pure EV than its siblings. The price was also attractive. In real life, the car looks kind of more compact than the normal Punch. No TD vehicle, but I am interested. If this car works for us, we will be able to fit within our budget.

Harrier: Now to the meat of my proposition and my thinking. I asked the Tata dealership if they had a 2023 Harrier that I could get at a discount. They did. They have the old trim Harrier, the Kaziranga Edition in green colour, the top variant. Now I love the display and speedo of the new Harrier, but the pricetag of 31L OTR for the top variant kept me away.

The story changed now. The dealership is offering a heavy discount on the old model Harrier Kaziranga edition - Diesel Automatic. I will be able to purchase the vehicle at around 25L OTR. This is down 5 big ones from the original pricing. That is huge! The discount means: where I was getting a Seltos/Creta at 22L, I can now get a Harrier with a 2.0 Diesel engine, much better build quality and interiors, a really good sound system, at just 3L extra.

I know I said that I want to keep away from Tatas, but the comments on this thread are making me change my viewpoint. So now this Tata Harrier old trim becomes a strong contender for space at my garage.

Altroz: The dealership even has an Altroz middle model from 2023, at a heavy discount (2L). That is whopping considering the vehicle costs around 11L OTR without discount. Yes, it is not automatic, but the Altroz is giving me very Polo vibes (1.5L Diesel engine, check. Size, check). I always dreamt of replacing my Polo with a Polo, why not do it with an Altroz? The price is attractive AND I will still be in touch with manual transmission (honestly I prefer manual but, family scenes ). I can buy this now and later buy a Ev that my wife can use.

So now the combinations that are seeming reasonable to me:
Harrier Kaziranga + Punch EV + (Car X after 1 year)
Harrier Kaziranga + Altroz.... + Punch EV later after 1 year.

What do you think about the previous Harrier trim? Yes, I have heard complaints from a known person, but I'd love some wisdom from the sages of T-BHP.

Also, does the latest entry to my options, the Altroz, make sense?

[46TheDoctor]

My suggestions as a fellow Pajero Sports owner:

Ideal Touring car for you:
Scorpio N - If i was to replace my Pajero Sport today, only Scorpio N Diesel 4x4 AT will satisfy me. Naturally, it will be perfect replacement for your Pajero too.

Ideal City car for you:
Tata Nexon EV - Tried and Tested product for our roads. We have been using Nexon Diesel AMT since 2019 and done 87k kms so far. No issues at all, car seems good for atleast few lakh km more. So I have booked 2024 Nexon EV as my next city car now.

[SPMercMan]

Well if it was me I would eyes shut go for a Japnese+Indian combination
My choice
Innova Hycross + Tata nexon. I know you said that you don't need a 7seater as your just a family of 4 but trust me once you buy it you will find things to fit
Tata harrier + City
Vitara Brezza+ Tiguan

[asit.kulkarni93]

I really doubt you will enjoy driving the hycross. It's still a NA petrol with CVT. Coming from fun turbo-diesels, it's going to be a lousy experience.
Since you have maintained a Pajero Sport, The Jeep Compass honestly shouldn't be an issue for you. The AT won't have typical DMF related issues. I feel the Compass diesel AT + a small EV should fit the bill perfectly.

[shiv11bhargava]

Options according to me:

1. Tata Punch EV + Harrier Kaziranga. Both are beautiful cars! Amazing duo?!
2. (used)Kia Sonet Diesel + Toyota Innova Hycross. A very very good Korean car with a masterpiece right next to it.
3. (Used) BMW 320d + Punch EV. Should be doable in 45 big ones. Trust me about the BMW. You have my word on it! Unbelievable is an understatement.

[nutcracker]

UPDATE

We have booked the vehicles! Here they are:

Tata Altroz XT White 1.5 Diesel
Why did I not notice this car before? This is the only Diesel hatch available right now. It is indeed a perfect replacement to my Polo. Yes, it is not Automatic, but at around 10L rupees on road, it is very light on the pocket. Plus the engine is a beauty. Amazing audio system and 5-star safety. We miss out on the automatic, but at this value, it will suffice.

TATA Harrier Fearless+ DT AT Sunlight Yellow
Since the Altroz made us save some, we splurged on the Harrier top variant that is readily available. Costing us 29.20L OTR with insurance and accessories etc.

That means we have got 2 great cars in under 40 lakh. 9 years back we bought three cars (Polo, Vento, Pajero Sports) for a total of 51 lakhs.

How does the community feel about my decision?

[SixPistons]

Great choices both: All or nothing!
Both good offerings from Tata.
Only bother is 10 year Diesel expiry while both powered by engines that can do more! But hey, live diesel while you can in NCR.
I’m sure you will take great advantage of the Diesel mill that the 10 year expiry won’t bother you at all.
Congratulations and wish you many happy miles on both.

[nutcracker]

Originally Posted by SixPistons

Great choices both: All or nothing!
Both good offerings from Tata.
Only bother is 10 year Diesel expiry while both powered by engines that can do more! But hey, live diesel while you can in NCR.

Yes, that seems to be the only downer. Well, considering we just sold 2 of our 3 diesel cars after using them full on, I think 10 years is a good time to keep a car before upgrading. One gets bored of the vehicle in that much time, plus in 6-7 years the car tech also changes considerably. So we don't mind!

We are sorting out the finance now. Funnily, I'm more excited for the Altroz than the Harrier, even though the Harrier is fully loaded and has way more features than its little cousin. It's weird how the brain works. I'm just super happy that I found Altroz, this is exactly the car I was looking for. I'm an entrepreneur so I need a beater workhorse car, and the Altroz feels perfect.

[greenhorn]

I hope you have a lot of highway miles on your daily routine - the BS6 diesels need to stretch their legs on flat out highway runs every now and then, or their DPF's will start to complain. I think PrasannaDhana is one altroz owner who is happy because he's on the highway all the time. I was reading the first page and wondering if I should suggest an altroz (Buying a tata car is a like investing in a mutual fund - read all the complaints here carefully, so I do not generally recommend them) but looks like you have figured that out yourself- congrats!

[sjain2054]

Originally Posted by nutcracker

UPDATE

We have booked the vehicles! Here they are:

Tata Altroz XT White 1.5 Diesel
Why did I not notice this car before? This is the only Diesel hatch available right now. It is indeed a perfect replacement to my Polo. Yes, it is not Automatic, but at around 10L rupees on road, it is very light on the pocket. Plus the engine is a beauty. Amazing audio system and 5-star safety. We miss out on the automatic, but at this value, it will suffice.

TATA Harrier Fearless+ DT AT Sunlight Yellow
Since the Altroz made us save some, we splurged on the Harrier top variant that is readily available. Costing us 29.20L OTR with insurance and accessories etc.

That means we have got 2 great cars in under 40 lakh. 9 years back we bought three cars (Polo, Vento, Pajero Sports) for a total of 51 lakhs.

How does the community feel about my decision?

Marvelous stuff, Nutcracker!

While I would have gone with the Punch EV (the most apt and complete city car which will give a huge amount of running cost savings for your kind of running) and the Hycross combo (fold the last row if you do not use it), I think you know your requirements best and you have chosen truly fantastic cars.

The wonders of innovation at Tata Motors can be seen in your buying journey. A buyer getting what he wants in one showroom itself! The 1.5 diesel Altroz at 10 lakhs is such a sweet buy. That car will keep you grinning on highways. Is the Harrier the latest iteration of the car? If so, it is such a damn good looker! Plus all the latest features make it perfect for all the creature comforts one can get today. It is almost a complete car at that price range.

Good going! Now just focus on enjoying the drives and keep us updated on your ownership experience.

[nutcracker]

PLOT TWIST

So while I'm pretty sold on the Altroz, today I test drove the facelift-Harrier Top AT and honestly, I didn't really like it. I had based my opinion on driving the pre-facelift model and I trusted it, but thank heavens I test drove the car. The new one, just didn't feel robust and snappy enough. As is, I'm not really a fan of Tata's curvy avatar (the reason why Nexon is out of the question).

I felt that the steering wheel on the facelift Harrier wasn't really comfortable - for me. The Horn mechanism especially. It just isn't tactile enough. I also felt that the armrest's position was way too behind for my liking, even with my seat all the way back (I'm 5'11).

The car was, well, "OK" to drive. I miss the traction of 4x4s, even on tarmac and streets. And the Harrier felt like somewhat small in size. I am comparing it to Pajero Sport. I am used to the big car feel, have my arms usually comfortably stretched and relaxed. The Harrier, especially with its Black interiors, felt kind of claustrophobic. I think the reason I liked the previous gen Harrier was because of plush brown interiors and a proper steering wheel. While I like the way the new steering looks - really cyberpunk stuff; I hate the way it feels and works.

The windows switches mechanism didn't feel as good as our Polo, Vento and Pajero. The one-touch window close/open mechanism is terrible, it requires a pretty long duration press and atleast for me, the success rate was below 25%.

The indicator and wiper controls also felt a segment below. I'm getting a feeling that I prefer cars to have tactile and soft switches with a little bit of weight to it. The Harrier just doesn't have that.

The music system that is praised so much online is well, a 7/10. I would have liked more extensions in the highs. I feel the centre speaker is a weak link in the setup, and the amplification needs to be cleaner.

Last, but certainly not the least, the piano-black interiors, is not for me. It kind of looks cheap, and will attract fingerprints and scratches like it's nobody's business.

All in all, 29L didn't seem worth it for Harrier. Even the lower trim at 24L is just not making sense.

If my pocket allowed I would have picked a 4x4 any day. The Jeep Compass 4x4 seems perfect but at 38 big ones it is out of my budget.

So now realistically I have two options:
1. Jeep Compass 4x2 Longitude: Seems like a better quality than the Tata, minus the tackiness. Love the way it looks. It is a tad smaller in size though.
2. Wait 3-6 months for Scorpion-N. The price and features seem apt. Is it worth the wait?

[TheRandomGuy]

Originally Posted by Shreyans_Jain

Atto3: if you are willing to spend so much, well, there really isn’t quite anything like it. But it will screw up your budget for the second car. If you go down this road, you will have to settle for something like Baleno or Exter as your second car. The only catch here is the resale, which is basically an unknown - The car is expensive, a slow seller, rare on roads and the manufacturer is Chinese. You very well know that when you want to sell, the market is purely sentiment driven.

Originally Posted by GTO

- BYD Atto 3: Since you & your family loved it, go for it. BYD is the king of EVs worldwide and they recently surpassed Tesla globally too. With a realistic range of ~400 km, you can get away with some highway road-trips too. Use it in the city for laughably low fuel costs. Use it on the highway & plan your charging carefully (road-trips possible, but with a little planning & appetite for inconveniences).

Off-Topic
Such conflicting views on BYD by two very distinguished members of the forum.

As someone who is very interested in Atto3 as my next car, and stuck in a limbo whether to go ahead or not the two opinions above makes me question it even more.

Biggest problem with BYD is as Shreyans_Jain said, its the Resale and future of BYD in India. They are not ready to invest in marketing, not bringing many cars, slow in delivering updates (Many of the owners have not got features which were promised during release like wireless AA and remote app features).

They can shut shop anytime, and we will be stuck holding the bag. Cannot sell as the chinese sentiment will be strong, and no future of the brand too.

Such a risky proposition, really confused about my situation.

[rayjaycleoful]

Originally Posted by nutcracker

PLOT TWIST


2. Wait 3-6 months for Scorpion-N. The price and features seem apt. Is it worth the wait?

Can't suggest which car to go for in this situation but as a recent shopper (in a diff segment) I can assure you cars even with "waiting period" are available readily (Maybe not in your primary colour choice). Visit few different M&M dealers and I can assure you that there will not be a "wait".

[Shreyans_Jain]

Originally Posted by TheRandomGuy

Off-Topic
Such conflicting views on BYD by two very distinguished members of the forum.

As someone who is very interested in Atto3 as my next car, and stuck in a limbo whether to go ahead or not the two opinions above makes me question it even more.

Biggest problem with BYD is as Shreyans_Jain said, its the Resale and future of BYD in India. They are not ready to invest in marketing, not bringing many cars, slow in delivering updates (Many of the owners have not got features which were promised during release like wireless AA and remote app features).

They can shut shop anytime, and we will be stuck holding the bag. Cannot sell as the chinese sentiment will be strong, and no future of the brand too.

Such a risky proposition, really confused about my situation.

The view is not conflicting in the sense that both of agreee that the Atto3 is a mighty fine car and is well suited to the OP’s needs. The point is that potential resale value of the car a decade later is a gamble. It may be very good, it may be very poor. But the fact remains that extreme geopolitical turbulence aside, BYD is not going anywhere. My personal reading is that many of us will be driving BYDs by the end of the decade. That being said, an Atto3 purchase today will have to be done with cognisance of potentially poor resale. Saying anything else will be dishonest. Then again, every 35-40L rupee car except Innova/Hycross also has pathetic resale!

[Red Liner]

Originally Posted by nutcracker

If my pocket allowed I would have picked a 4x4 any day. The Jeep Compass 4x4 seems perfect but at 38 big ones it is out of my budget.

So now realistically I have two options:
1. Jeep Compass 4x2 Longitude: Seems like a better quality than the Tata, minus the tackiness. Love the way it looks. It is a tad smaller in size though.
2. Wait 3-6 months for Scorpion-N. The price and features seem apt. Is it worth the wait?

I would simply get a small electric car (quite a few options now) for the city and GRAP shenanigans and a Hyundai Tucson diesel 4wd and be done with it. Nothing comes close to the Hyundai. With the low or zero running costs of electric, you can safely up the budget for a tuscon.