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Reasons why these affordable dream cars didn't end up in our garages

25th May 2022, 18:02 by Rahul Nagaraj

Over a period of time, I have realised that on occasions even the simplest of dreams remain unfulfilled for some reason.

BHPian Emvi recently shared this with other enthusiasts.

"Dreams don't work unless you do" - John C Maxwell.

It's no secret that all of us dream and it's no secret that everything we dream about might not always be feasible, affordable, possible, and practical, cars included. Over a period of time, I have realised that on occasions even the simplest of dreams remain unfulfilled for some reason.

Homing in on my topic, I am discoursing about those affordable dream cars that never made it to our garage. Here is my list of such cars.

Maruti Omni

Walking down memory lane, circa the mid-90s, Maruti Omni was the car everyone at home wanted to own. Many a time, my father thought of going ahead with the purchase, but never did it materialise. Reason- the roads we had, or the lack of it. Our garage consisted of 2 Mahindra UVs back then, a 1991 MM540 and a 1968 Jeep (which we still have). We had a river to cross, the banks of which were unbridged back then, no vehicles other than the Mahindras could tackle our terrain better. This meant Omni never made it to our garage.

Daewoo Matiz

When Daewoo launched the Matiz in India in the late 90s, my dad and I fell for it immediately. Although we dreamt of owning one, never did we seriously think of purchasing the bug-eyed hatch. A bridge was constructed (in 1997) across the river which had kept Omni out of our reckoning alright, but, the roads were still too nasty for the cute little car to tackle.

Mahindra Bolero

In the early 2000s, during an impromptu visit to a Mahindra showroom, the newly launched Bolero just blew me away instantaneously. A few days later, I persuaded my dad to have a test drive of the vehicle & he was left mighty impressed too. Impressed he sure was, but at the back of his mind, he always felt that Bolero had quite a few "Jeep" like traits. Since we already had two Mahindra UVs, did not go ahead with the purchase. We did think of trading our MM540 to Bolero, but then, with roads getting better in our region, we thought a proper "car" made more sense.

Ford Ecosport

Although we ended up purchasing a "car" in 2002 - Fiat Palio 1.6 GTX, we were never comfortable taking the car on broken/rural roads. The obsession for higher ground clearance only grew with time. I closely followed the development of Mahindra Quanto and kept believing that it could well be our next vehicle. Once the vehicle was revealed, all such thoughts went down the drain. About a year later, one of the significant launches in the Indian automotive industry happened- the Ford Ecosport. Father and I were cock-a-hoop when the crossover was revealed for the first time. Without much ado, we pre-booked the diesel top variant even before the prices were announced. What followed later was a terrible dealership experience (Cauvery Ford, Mangalore) which ultimately coerced us to cancel the booking. Ours was booking No.36 in the city, forget delivery commitment and even a test drive wasn't offered after repeated requests. Approaching a different dealership was out of the question as this was the lone dealership in the entire district.

Ford Ecosport still remains one of my all-time favourites.

Tata Punch

Tata Punch is not my dream car per se, but I really love the micro/mini crossover concept. From the get-go, I found the HBX/Hornbill concept super impressive. I must admit I am neither a great fan of Tata cars nor their after-sales service, still, the new chunky little Tata did strike the right chord for our family. We were on a hunt (which we still are) to replace our Alto K10 which is our second/third vehicle at home. Our must-haves aren't too complex- good looks, compact footprint, high ground clearance, quick and responsive engine.

Tata first disappointed me with the strange nomenclature, but the biggest disappointment remains the mediocre engine. Each time I spot a Tata Punch it excites me big time, but when I remind myself of the test drive I had, the excitement just dies down in a jiffy.

So, here ends my tale for the moment. Fellow BHPians, I am interested to know yours. Thanks!

Here's what GTO had to say on the matter:

Just like girlfriends, there were so many. But the one car that I absolutely lust for, the one which makes my heart skip a beat, is affordable, but still hasn't made its way to my garage is the 2nd-gen Mahindra Thar Diesel AT. Why?
I already own a Jeep.
I have 4 cars which have minimal usage, due to WFH. 2 of my cars are on trickle charging just to keep their batteries from dying.
I have 4 cars which have minimal usage, due to brand new test-drive cars every week. In the last 2 weeks, I've fired up my 530d twice, and the Jeep once. That's it. I thoroughly enjoy driving 3 - 4 new cars every month, seeing where manufacturers have hit the bull's eye and where they have missed.
The last thing I need is to own a 5th car which will see almost zero usage and be connected to a battery tender. But when I see such posts, I lose sleep for a night or two. I just love this Jeep way too much.

Here's what BHPian dr.aviansh had to say on the matter:

Lexus LS400: Very recently while watching Scam 92, my dad who's an independent Loss Accessor for motor insurance said that in the early '90s, he was once offered a Lexus which was used in some embassy for about 4-6 Lacs. I literally banged my head to which he said that the spare parts were exorbitantly expensive and since his running is 100kms a day, fuel costs in that car would have been senseless. I respect his practical decision and he has invested wisely in real estate.
Fiat Linea T-Jet/ Abarth Punto: They were discontinued just about when my internship got over and I had recently gotten a government JRship. So yeah budget issues.
Skoda Rapid: I had almost zero'ed down onto the 1.0L TSI AT, but then since my parents were considering a girl for me, so I ended up buying a pre-worshipped Altis CVT for a little prestige.
Toyota Liva/Etios: Primarily because of the way they looked. First considered in 2013 when we bought the Duster, then in 2014 when bought the Grand i10 and then in 2015 when we had booked it but that the last moment we ended up buying an Amaze. Trust me it would have been way better than buying an Amaze or a Grand, I regret my decision now.
Honda City Mk5: Like the Rapid, that too was on the cards but spending 15L for a Honda City in my garage didn't make the slightest sense to me. I would rather buy a Seltos for that money. In my subjective opinion, it's the City moniker that doesn't appeal to me for that kinda money. Had they launched it with some other name and a bigger engine?
Mitsubishi Lancer 1.8 INVEX: The first car I bought with my savings was a Honda City ZX 2008 CVT in 2019 which I kept for 6 months. I was actually looking for an Automatic Lancer 1.8 Invex. But finding that thing is more difficult than finding God himself.
OG Toyota Innova: Back in 2005, Innova was launched at about Rs 8 Lakh. We had almost decided on it, when my dad bought a Viva CRDi instead. We just fell so much in love with its silhouette and that Torque Surge that we overlooked the best car India ever got.

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

HM Ambassador
Missing out on the Amby is why I consider myself to be born a decade late. If only my parents had met in the 70s. Our family-owned a black one when I was still a baby but sold it about a year after I was born since we were going back to Oman after the gulf war ended. The next time I sat in one was in the mid-2000s when I returned to India. Always wanted to own one, and decent models are available in the 70k - 1.5 lakh range but issues with a retest of old diesel vehicles, parking space constraints and the difficulty of maintaining a 30-40-year-old car have held me back. The coastal weather of Kerala also has been brutal on these cars. Either way, there is nothing like cruising in the back seat of an ambassador. Sofa on wheels. I still stick my head inside open Ambassadors when I am able to find one, a rare sight in urban Kerala, and take a whiff of that interior smell. For those few seconds after that, I am transported back to the 90s.

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

It was a Ford Freestyle 1.5L TDCi for me. Peppy engine, compact car- made it a wonderful driver's car to chuck around! With Ford making an exit and their BS6 diesel with DPF woes, this dream car never made it to my garage.