Advice needed: Which SUV for my dad under 30L

Should I wait for the XUV 700 to be delivered, book the Scorpio-N instead or should I extend my budget and get an Innova Crysta?

BHPian desertknight73 recently shared this with other enthusiasts.

Hello everyone,

I’ve something to ask, if wrong thread please excuse the newbie here.

Imagine walking down a lane with a hungry tummy, all famous food outlets have placed their posters outside with mouthwatering dishes and wallet tempting offers. You are hungry and want to grab a meal at earliest, first dilemma; which franchise to choose from? You chose an outlet with public reviews, past experiences and your tastes of course, you entered the outlets, checked the menu card and decided to go with a food that suits best for your requirement from the breathtaking menu. You look at your spouse and she hints at the prices and the acidity or upset stomach you’ll get the next day. So you give a thought and place a sensible order. Now begins… the wait. People around you are waiting too, obviously you are not alone. And it’s self service so the humbly dressed manager and the bill desk guy don’t bother you anymore as they’ve done their job of getting the money out of your pocket and making you buy their offering.

But the reality behind this is that the kitchen’s are busy and lacking the schedule requirements and the waiters and bill desks are pouring in orders the chefs simply cannot cook in time. You have to wait for more time than expected, you think you made a wrong choice but you already have paid up. What could go wrong here?

Imagine your order number flashes on the screen sometime before dinner time, but you had ordered the food during lunch hours, would you eat it? Would the excitement of the trying out this dish today be still the same?

A buyer right now is facing the same questions and worse plight when it comes to buying a car.

You don’t randomly walk into showrooms checking out cars! You go deliberately when you feel the need of buying one. And I’ll not further elaborate how miserable you become in the long waiting periods expecting your dream set of wheels to arrive.

All this starters for what?

The main course of my post is the guidance I want from expert, amateur, experienced chefs like you.

I want to gift a car to my father.

Issues:

• His birthday is in July last week, the car has to be his birthday gift.

• I want him to go safe wherever he goes, safety takes priority and kicks out Korean spices and the Indo-Japanese tinned beans from the recipe.

• I don’t want him to make random runs to the workshops to get minor niggles and issues fixed, so decently reliable vehicle required.

• It got to be BIG , he’s lived a humble life and now I want him to be in a car that suits his status quo.

• He is an inquisitive child and loves to play with technology, so adequately specced vehicle with android auto as mandatory requirement.

• Has to be tough, these wheels will be visiting the rural regions of India hence the potholes and broken roads have to be at peace with the car, low slung sedans I’m sorry!

• Sales and service networks: Tier 3 town reduces availability of the essential care the car requires, so brand must have well spread out network.

Budget: 30 lakhs. Cannot extend beyond that.

Vehicles already test driven:

• XUV7OO : All great vehicle, booked the AX7L AWD D AT already, delivery date is 90 weeks away. That’s XUV 7 O_o for me.

• Scorpio (now Scorpio Classic) : With the newer avatar knocking at the doorstep as M&M showing us the Scorpio-N the same way Ekta Kapoor introduced a new Mihir Virani in Kyuki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi. I have decided to check out the Bichhoo once it launches.

• Innova Crysta : Well the new one off the shelf shoots my budget in the leg and me in the heart. Advices towards buying the GX or VX variants will be treated like Elaichi in Biriyani.

• Thar : Mum couldn’t climb into the rear seat, Dad unanimously agreed and Thar was deserted.

• Harrier/Safari duo: Honestly, good cars, but I cannot convince myself to pour in 15+ lakhs in a Tata. Plus the dealer in my hometown has serious customer-relation issues (personal opinion).

Tata has copied two names to make this duo, and both have disappointed the legacies; (Toyota Harrier and Tata’s very own THE OG Safari) Also I don’t want my Dad’s car creaking and squeaking in few years, he uses cars for 7-10 years so tata bye bye dear Tata cars.

Now I’ll serve the dish to everyone:

Should I wait with the booking of XUV 7O_o or go ahead and risk stinging myself with the Scorpio-N, or should I extend my budget and go for the Innova which Toyota is Innovating for new launch whose timelines are not Crysta clear.

Sorry for the long post but I had to ask.

Happy lunch times to you!

Here's what BHPian sulliavi had to say on the matter:

Since above points are crucial for you what I (an amateur chef ) think is, upcoming Hyundai Tucson (Completely new design which will come with long wheelbase) can be considered. The fourth-gen Hyundai Tucson has scored a 5-star safety rating at the Euro NCAP with 86 percent for adult occupants.

Its presence in Tier 3 cities with reliable after sales network and their customer centric approach makes Hyundai a top contender.

If you have Toyota in & around your place then Innova can be considered, but its an MPV.

I haven seen TATA and Mahindra lacking Sales/service networks in tier 3 cities so not commenting on their vehicles.

peace

Here's what BHPian dicor had to say on the matter:

You should have started earlier man if you know his birthday coming in July.

Tips:

Stay away from new products like XUV7OO, Scorpio N for an year. I know what I have been through with XUV5OO 2012 model and Scorpio 2015 model later enhanced by Mahindra in 2016.

Look for ride quality then handling. People at this age are more sensitive about their spinal cord then adrenaline rush

May I suggest something

Issues: Solution

Buy a used Honda CR-V Petrol or used Endeavour (age less than 5 years) or brand new M&M Alturas G4 (22L ex showroom)

I am assuming, they will have a beater car too. Less selling vehicles have spare parts issue and sometimes may stay longer in service station.

1. His birthday is in July last week, the car has to be his birthday gift.

CHECK

2. I want him to go safe wherever he goes, safety takes priority and kicks out Korean spices and the Indo-Japanese tinned beans from the recipe.

CHECK

3. I don’t want him to make random runs to the workshops to get minor niggles and issues fixed, so decently reliable vehicle required.

CHECK

4. It got to be BIG , he’s lived a humble life and now I want him to be in a car that suits his status quo.

CHECK

5. He is an inquisitive child and loves to play with technology, so adequately specced vehicle with android auto as mandatory requirement.

Not Sure but I am sure it would be there.

6. Has to be tough, these wheels will be visiting the rural regions of India hence the potholes and broken roads have to be at peace with the car, low slung sedans I’m sorry!

CHECK

7. Sales and service networks: Tier 3 town reduces availability of the essential care the car requires, so brand must have well spread out network.

CHECK

8. Budget: 30 lakhs. Cannot extend beyond that.

CHECK

Here's what BHPian 84.monsoon had to say on the matter:

I would recommend stay with your XUV booking and tweet tagging Anand Mahindra and some of the top brass at M&M like Anish Shah and Veejay Nakra about the passion you feel for their vehicles, how badly you want your Dad to have the car on his birthday, how much he deserves it etc. They seem to be an emotional sort of company and there seem to have been several cases of them jumping allocation queues for "special" situations to "spread the joy" and "celebrate with pride", "make the moment special" etc.

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