Looking a New Petrol Car For Rs.7 Lakh (Bought VW Polo 1.2Petrol HL)

greaet · Oct 11, 2013

Hello everyone,

This is my first post in TAI. Wonderful website. The reason I registered is I need your help. Read the topics in " The Automotive Shopper" and the points given by you guys are pretty helpful and sensible, I must say. Coming back to the topic, here is my requirement.

> Budget: 7 Lakh (+- few thousands)

> New or Used: New

> Location: Chennai

> Top Five Priorities: (Eg: Performance, Handling, Safety, Low Maintenance, Comfort, Design.

> Monthly Running: Between 1,000 – 1,500 Kms

> Type of Fuel: Petrol (I guess)

> For What Purpose: Regular Use

> Seating Capacity: Maximum 5 Adults (Generally 4, might increase to 5 sometimes)

> Type of Segment: Anything that covers the above requirements

This is my first car (Age 24). I have been driving cars for the past 5-6 years. I was using my family's car - 2008 Swift VXI. It did its job perfectly (except the rattling). I have shortlisted Polo 1.2 P, Swift ZXI, Liva TRD (P).

Liva has too much body roll and that is the only thing that is stopping me. Oh yeah, one more. Dealer's attitude towards TRD cars (Seriously? [confused]

).

Anyways, I don't mind having the Swift again (I love it). I decided on Polo (For some reason I love this car too, not just the looks but something else.... German cars are seductive [lol]

. I was about to pay the booking amount and there comes a shock. AMC is not available if you don't go for VW finance (With VW finance, AMC comes for free). This is a deal-breaker for me after reading infinite posts, spending months to understand that VW is robbing customers in A.S.S.

Please help me decide the car. I am open to suggestions.

P.S : Polo (P) & Swift (P) owners, could you please pen down your service costs. I appreciate it.

Thank you guys and gals.

Happy motoring.

icecool · Oct 12, 2013

Re: Looking a New Petrol Car For Rs.7 Lakh

For a Petrol variant I personally wont suggest a polo because of 3 cylinder and less power. TSI may not fit into your budget. Swift is still the king of segment and suits perfectly if you like spirited driving.

Other options you may try out is i20 (class, but but soft suspension), i10 grand (newest boy in block).
Would you be interested in sedans? If yes then you may try amaze or dzire. Etios may also fit your requirement, and it has a better suspension and less body roll than liva.

greaet · Oct 13, 2013

Re: Looking a New Petrol Car For Rs.7 Lakh

icecool said:

Thank you for the suggestions. Sedans.. hmm never thought about them. I will test drive Amaze and dzire and keep you updated.

What do you guys think about Brio? I can save at least 2 lakh on this and use it for fuel [:D]

Last time I was told that insurance is free and the SMT was about 5.3L OTR. (This was in July when we got our Honda City). Any updates on the pricing for Brio? Now that SMT (o) is not there, do we get airbags and ABS in VMT?

icecool · Oct 13, 2013

Re: Looking a New Petrol Car For Rs.7 Lakh

Brio is a good car, and being a Honda is smooth, refined and easy to mantain. It does have a smaller boot. But then it is a segment smaller than Polo/Swift/Liva. If you are OK and i meets your requirements you can go ahead for it. But in your 7lakh budget you get the elder brother(amaze) which has extra cabin space and bigger boot (more comfort) and being a sedan more stable.

firstdrive · Oct 14, 2013

Re: Looking a New Petrol Car For Rs.7 Lakh

Hi greaet,

Well my cousin in the same dilema.....
Have also created a new thread for the same.
Did you drive the Amaze S ivtec?? How is the car?
i20 is loaded with features & sportz version is the best buy.
Any members who have bought Amaze petrol S ivtec please give your feedback.

Rightnow · Oct 14, 2013

Re: Looking a New Petrol Car For Rs.7 Lakh

greaet said:

You can check my thread for servicing costs:
First service was for Rs. 5.5k and second was for Rs. 7k.
http://www.theautomotiveindia.com/f...al-volkswagen-polo-1-2-petrol-highline-7.html
http://www.theautomotiveindia.com/f...l-volkswagen-polo-1-2-petrol-highline-16.html

Certainly swift's service bills would be lesser than polo's.

Surfer · Oct 14, 2013

Re: Looking a New Petrol Car For Rs.7 Lakh

Hi ,This is just quote taken from carwale

Ford Figo Duratorq Diesel Titanium 1.4

On-Road Price Quote
Ex-Showroom Chennai 6,25,972
RTO 67,597
Insurance 22,923
On Road Price 7,16,492

Accordingly for the following model On-Road price for channai will be arount 7L

Toyota Etios Liva : Xclusive Diesel
Tata Indica Vista : D90 VX BS IV
Maruti Suzuki Swift : VDi

So pleaes consider these DISEL cars!! Will save you a lot on your pockect later.

Compare Ford Figo vs Toyota Etios Liva vs Tata Indica Vista vs Maruti Suzuki Swift - CarWale

amitpshelke · Oct 14, 2013

Here are my suggestion, if you are looking for car in terms of Performance, Handling, Safety, Low Maintenance, Comfort, Design

1. Maruti Suzuki Swift Dzire ZXi/ZDi : [NotchBack/4 meter Sedan] [Petrol/Diesel]
+ bigger boot as compared to Hatchback
+ proven Maruti engine
+ 15 inch wheel for better ground clearance and stability
- poor design ebony black interior
- no improvement in interior space for rear seats.

2. Tata Indigo eCS Vx CR4: [NotchBack/4 meter Sedan] [Diesel]

+ bigger boot as compared to Hatchback
+ proven Tata engine in mileage and maintainence
+ new interior / new feature [check website]
- the Indica shape - crowed in India refer it as Taxi shape car

3. Hyundai i20 Sportz/Asta [Petrol/Diesel]

+ Smoother engine
+ great mileage
+ great interior
+ great features
+ big on space, comfortable and great look
- engine struggle at lower RPM

4. Fiat Punto 90 HP [Diesel]

+ very powerful
+ good aero-dymanics
+ well design interior
+ 15 inch wheel for better ground clearance and stability
+ super performer
+ car for rough handling
- need to compromise on mileage
- spares are little bit costly

5. Tata Indica Vista D90 Zx+ [Diesel]

+ very powerful FIAT engine
+ new interior / new feature [check website]
+ low maintainence
+ car for rough handling
- the Indica shape - crowed in India refer it as Taxi shape car

6. Volkswagen POLO [Petrol/Diesel]

+ good handling
+ well tuned German engine
+ new CROSS POLO is available with new bold finishing
- poor mileage
- costly in terms of maintainence
- spares are little bit costly

- I havent compare Maruti Swift since paying few amount for buying DZire will give more boot for luggage and not big for parking problem.
- Above are my driving experience, opinion can change from person to person
- not included Toyota Etios LIVA since not driven this car.
- Will add more about Renault Pulse in next month.

icecool said:

Amaze will give you bigger boot only. I feel, space inside the Amaze is similar to Brio. Honda's are good in design, but if you are mileage hungry then personally speaking Brio is not a choice.

greaet · Oct 15, 2013

Re: Looking a New Petrol Car For Rs.7 Lakh

Guys thank you so much for the suggestions.

Regarding Figo, I somehow don't like the new headlamps. I don't think it is something I can live with till I have this car (No offence, just that my view over styling is a bit different).

Coming to Liva, wonderful car. I almost paid the booking amount for the TRD Sportivo (P) but the dealer attitude put me off. Take it or leave it kinda thing which I don't like.

Tata Indica, had one hell of a hardship of having one in the family. It visited service center more than it went to the petrol pumps.

Amaze and Dzire, I don't like the styling. Somehow it doesn't grow in me. Also I don't feel paying a lakh premium for a car that just gives me a boot at the cost of performance.

Polo scares the hell out of me by its service bills as my EMI's will be around my neck and I am playing a moneyball game with Polo. VW has created a company policy that the AMC is only for people opting for VW finance. It is losing a prospective buyer (OMG, I love Polo).

i20, lovely car, excellent place to spend time but the suspension and the steering puts me off. I want a car with good driving dynamics. Lovely diesel engine, heard petrol is a bit lousy rider in highways (I don't want to embarrass myself when I do some highway runs).

Punto 90HP is out of my stretched budget. 8L OTR.

All the suggestions above makes me think 1 thing. The budget I have fixed is too much for a hatchback and it leaves me in the middle of nowhere.

icecool said:

Looks like Brio go the edge there. I don't need more cabin space, as everyone (including me) in my family of 4 are of 5'4" 5'5".

firstdrive said:

I did read your thread. I drove the Amaze sometime back. I will be driving it again tomorrow. I don't feel anything special about Amaze. A Brio with a boot. For a first car (a bachelor), I feel Brio checks the list to the T. For a married man, Amaze makes more sense rather than going for a Swift or anything in the market. The lines from a outspoken Honda SR : "If you are going for a petrol car, go for the Brio. If it is a Diesel, go for Amaze". And his line makes sense.

All the best hunting. The answers we get in each other's thread would be mutually beneficial.

Rightnow said:

Thank you for the service costs. I was reading your thread but yet to complete. Nice journey there.

Surfer said:

I have mentioned the reason why I didn't consider Figo. The old gen Figo was much better.

amitpshelke said:

I have mentioned my points on each car above. Looks like Renault was running some offers. I don't like their customer service. Had a bad (awful, insulting) experience when I checked Fluence before buying the City.

Guys, reading all the points, it looks like I can reduce my burden (lesser loan), enjoy more.
Any Brio owners here? How is driving dynamics in city and highway?

Forgot to mention, I was about to book Ecosport P trend few days after the release. They quoted long wait time and I thought the wait period will come down after few days. Now they have stopped booking for petrol. How could Ford be so reluctant to lose customers. I may not be the only one here.

Ajay Sreedhar · Oct 15, 2013

Re: Looking a New Petrol Car For Rs.7 Lakh

greaet said:

The Brio is a Honda. Honda goes as a synonym of petrol mills. It is the most refined mill in the segment in my view. Highly stable and planted on highways. They say top speed is 140kmph but I have touched 150kmph. You dont run out of confidence when driving it at those speeds. Its a completely different beast on the highways.

Saw someone posting mileage concerns on the brio. I own a Brio and it gives me 14-15 km in the city and easily goes above 20kmpl on the highways. I touch 23 often with 100-120kmph driving. All this happens when the company claims a ARAI mileage stat of 19.4kmpl.

The decision is yours. Test drive every vehicle and take a call. Brio is a gem of an engine. But you will have to compromise with boot space.

All the best. [:)]

draneeshpm · Oct 15, 2013

Re: Looking a New Petrol Car For Rs.7 Lakh

Hi greaet,
There is only one car that fits your bill SWIFT ZXI.No second choices.I have driven the old and new Swift,boy the new one is miles ahead of the old one.I booked Ecosport because I need an Automatic,but still thinking of buying Swift ZXI,because its the only car that brought a big grin on my face right after the test drive. I test drove the T-jet immediately after Swift,but the long clutch travel and quirky ergonomics and the rubbery gear shift put me off.
Regards,
Aneesh.

greaet · Oct 15, 2013

Re: Looking a New Petrol Car For Rs.7 Lakh

Ajay Sreedhar said:

I will be visiting Honda, VW and Maruti showroom tomorrow. Thanks a lot for dropping by. It is always good to hear from a owner.

draneeshpm said:

Aneesh, no doubt. The car I am replacing is my 2008 Swift. I would love to get the same car again. The comment coming from you after driving a T-jet speaks for the car. Thank you.

greaet · Oct 16, 2013

Re: Looking a New Petrol Car For Rs.7 Lakh

Guys, quick update.

Just returned from Grand i10 (P) test drive. 83PS power, auto folding mirrors, Start/Stop button, rear AC vent, comfortable rear seats, 250L boot and goes on. And this costs 20K more than Brio SMT. Driving is pretty good. Performance is good too (for city driving, no clue about highways). OTR Chennai : 5.7L which looks VFM for me. I have almost decided on this car unless you guys have a different opinion about this car.

Brio costs 5.53L OTR. With free insurance and 5k discount, it comes to 5.33L. I feel paying 40k more for Grand i10 is not bad at all.

Worst part : Honda has increased Brio prices by 3K and Maruti has increased Swift prices by 7K.

GM88 · Oct 17, 2013

Re: Looking a New Petrol Car For Rs.7 Lakh

I think you've made a great choice with the Hyundai Grand i10. Its the new kid in the block, will surely turn a few more heads than Brio and comes loaded with useful features and gizmos. Haven't driven the Grand i10 myself, but have heard it rides better than the i20 also with the new stiffer suspension setup, so the body roll and vertical movements must have been worked upon by Hyundai engineers. 40k above Brio SMT seems justifiable for all the extra bells and whistles your getting. In my opinion you should go ahead and book the Grand i10.

greaet · Oct 17, 2013

Re: Looking a New Petrol Car For Rs.7 Lakh

GM88 said:

Thank you. It just feels VFM. Wish Hyundai included the rear defogger (at least in the Sportz variant) if not the rear wiper. A sore miss. Overall more than satisfied. Interiors feel miles ahead compared to Brio in terms of sheer quality. [:D]

Yes, the drive is pretty good. Heard the steering is predictable unlike Hyundai(s). My father wants to check the backseat (P.S : He is very happy when I told him about the rear AC vents). The SA will be coming with the car either today or by Monday. I am leaving to Bangalore tomorrow morning. I will be doing a test drive there to check the drivability in the infamous Bangalore traffic and those huge speedbreakers. [evil]

Here I am, 99.99% sure that it is going to be Grand i10. I am going for the Sportz version. Waiting period is 4 weeks which means if I give the booking amount in the first week of November I will get the car in December. Shall I take delivery and register it in December or wait for a month and get it registered in January? [confused]

Looking a New Petrol Car For Rs.7 Lakh (Bought VW Polo 1.2Petrol HL)

greaet

V4

icecool

V6

greaet

V4

icecool

V6

firstdrive

V4

Rightnow

V10

Surfer

V10

amitpshelke

V8

greaet

V4

Ajay Sreedhar

V8

draneeshpm

V8

greaet

V4

greaet

V4

GM88

V8

greaet

V4