Thread Starter
#1
Prologue:
I was in search for a new car due to my family requirement in 2018. Since it was our 4th vehicle, the requirements were very simple, it has to be a sedan or SUV within 10 lakhs, has to be an automatic, full option and need to be a driver’s car. Though I used an automatic dzire and thoroughly enjoyed the drivability of the engine despite of the fact that it’s an old school 4 gear automatic, dint want to go the Maruti route ( I cannot just live with a tincan).
Shortlisted choices were:
Dzire: Ruled out as it is very common to see it onroad and not a fan of Maruti. Though a car with good drivability and lot of blings. This was the 4th strong contender.
Baleno: the sedan bug was so bothering and compelled me to move out, otherwise would have bought this for sure – 3rd contender
Nexon: Liked it very much, but the dealer dint even bothered to respond for a quote/test drive. Thought Tata has changed in these years, disappointed. - 1st contender
Polo/Ameo: Dint like the Ameo by its looks, loved the polo but went off the grid due to cramped rear bunch. A real drivers heaven
Honda city: The AT full option was close to 16 lakhs, up above the budget.
Creta: Close to 17 Lakh on road for AT full option, no way
Ford Freestyle and Ecosport: Again, good drivers car.. freestyle was out due to the reason for being hatch back and Ecosport for poor rear bench.
Hyundai i20: Dint bothered to TD this one, but a good car with great features
Renault Duster: Poor interior made me walk away, dint TD
Maruti Brezza: Poor interiors, wasn't as per liking.
Winner: New Amaze (2nd Contender)
Why: Fresh looks, CVT compared to AMT in competition, decent equipment’s and paddle shifts (though I rarely use this)
Did the test drove happen before purchase? Nah. Perhaps if did, diesel would be the choice.
Booking and Delivery:
I live in Dubai and my hometown is in a remote place in Kerala with few Honda dealers around, who were really adamant on any offers/discount. I enquired with 2-3 dealers close to my home town, they dint budge an inch on price or offers (not even a mat) as the car was a new launch. I dint bothered to call them again. When they called later for an update, I gave them a lovely eargasm . Since my sis stays in Cochin and there were plenty of options, I decided to buy from Cochin and shortlisted 3 dealers Vision (I had a very bad experience with their Pathanamthitta Branch), Perfect and Peninsular Honda. I dint bothered to speak to Vision initially and initiated conversation with the other two guys, Peninsular guy appeared little fishy and after reading bad reviews online, I stayed away from them. Experience with Perfect was very smooth and the Sales guy (though not very knowledgeable) accommodated majority of my request and he was not at all pushy. So went ahead with booking and scheduled delivery for November. Later Vision Cochin called and gave a better quote (the Cochin team were really professional) I decided to stick to Perfect Honda based on customer experience.
D day: Delivery process was really good (I was expecting a red carpet balloon one though) and all staff were very cordial (I recommended many other customers to them later). After getting temporary registration plates, the executive even assisted me to outside shop to fit the accessories I bought online.
What I like:
Good seating comfort and useful interiors (though suspension is slightly bouncy)
Space space and loads of space..
Good boot capacity
Decent engine for daily use, well refined
Low maintenance cost and 10k service interval
Ac is a chiller
Its a Honda.
What I dislike:
1.2 liter petrol is puny, you need to boil this to get enough power. 1.5 liter diesel CVT is a butter rocket with good drivability in its class. It lacks the diesel torque on tap too..Period !
Body quality is not very great, so as the interior elements. This I realized when I happen to open the bumper for DIY job.
No full option (at that time) which misses out touch screen and projector lights, no auto lamps and wipers. Dzire brings lot of blings
The rubber band effect of CVT, you can reduce this to a greater extend by using paddle shifters. During spirited driving in ghats, the engine goes very loud without converting the noise to wheels.
No underbody engine cover or bonnet insulation, diesel gets this
Very poor audio in stock setup, disappointed. Need to change this for sure
No rear ac vents, not a big concern though
Fuel efficiency: 10-11.5 on normal condition, 15-15.5 on highway
I am a person who always modify vehicle as per my personal choice and the modification bug bit me in no time
Bug 1.
Seat Modification:
The fabric seats of Amaze where not to my liking (though they are good), I decided to change to custom seat on very next day of delivery. Since we already had a good experience with Right Fit seats in cochin, we decided to proceed with them (I did checked with many other vendors in Cochin based on google recommendation, dint like the quality of their work) Gave them vehicle at around 12 noon and they returned by 8 in eve. Let the pictures talk:
The quality is top notch and totally satisfied with their work - Material Leatherite
Bug 2.
Since this car was a new launch, customization options were very limited during the launch time. All that I could start with are few chrome garnish (dealer accessories where exorbitantly expensive, hence avoided). I ordered full set from carhatke and installed outside dealer’s premise on same day, unfortunately the front fog chrome fell off within 30 mins of install and we lost it on highway. That was an eyesore till the time I removed the second piece also. Some chrome parts were original OEM and others were duplicate.
Changed the stock bulbs to Osram night breaker and added exhaust chrome tip, both bought from amazon
1st Service:
As I work in Dubai for living, all I could get to drive is one or two months in a year. I could drive the new vehicle just for 7 days before long parking in the garage. I covered almost 3000 km in a week time and did the first service as well. The first service was with Vision Honda Pathanamthitta, the experience was not really good. During the first service, all they have to do is check the fluids and wash the car, they took ridiculous hours to return the car despite of prior appointment. I Installed the rain visors there (because of bad experience with online purchase earlier) which costed me 3000 INR. The car was parked at my home and I flew back.
Bug 2.
I could get a chance to fly to my home after few months (just for 4 days), I decided to give little modification to him (not a she for me based on the way car looks). I went to a car wrapper (yeah not rapper) close to my home town and asked him to make the car more masculine and the end result was a disaster:
His work was really unprofessional with melted vinyls at many places. Since I knew him for the past couple of years, I dint uttered a single word and left it for his imagination. After finishing the job, I paid the money (his cost was also dirt cheap) and left the place. I removed all wraps on very next day of installation as it looked horrendous. I will never go back to the installer ever in my lifetime.
Bug 3
I bought led bulbs from UAE and replaced every bulb (except fog and headlight). After the mod, I flew back.
The OEM type and holders:
I dint cause any major canbus issue (occasional hyperflashing once in a month and goes away once we turn off and switch on indicator). Brightness is really good and add charm to vehicle
Second service:
I called Vision PTA to send somebody to pickup and service the car, the did the job on time, nothing to speak about. Just regular checkup and wash
Bug 3:
The roof and front area wrap jobs were done in Foxglove graphics Ernakulum. The guy was a real professional and did a neat job. Since the factory drl (actually they are just park lights) were not prominent, I decided to add the iconic raptor light and here goes the Honda Raptor aka Brabus (it has nothing to day with Brabus tuning :P :P )
Added Front bumper Lip, mood light and Led Scuff plates from Galaxy Cochin, great job.
Issue faced so far:
After driving for few days I noticed a knocking sound from front of the car. Since the PTA dealer was nearby, I went to them with prior appointment, explained the issue and a service guy was allocated after some time. He test-drove the car and reported same issue and then the drama started. The car was parked there from morning to lunch time with only few cars in the service center. At around 12.30, I lost my patience and asked them why the car is not getting checked and suddenly few guys came and kept the car on service bay and went for lunch then after. At around 3, they asked me to bring the car next day and I was surprised (I knew that it was front arm issue which they never checked or acknowledged). I left the showroom and said will come next day.
Second day I reached the showroom at around 10 and gave the car and previous day story repeated. After the lunch I lost all my cool and confronted the manager and service head who started arguing with me. They said all amaze have this issue and they cannot escalate this to Honda from their end. I stated that my car was never checked and how can they claim that the issue is with all amaze. There were heated arguments and after realizing that they knew nothing about addressing the issue, I left the place and reported this to Honda. On second day, I called up Perfect Trivandrum and conveyed the issue and also said I only have few days leave left, they recommended me to service adviser Tom at Kottayam Vision Honda (he was with PTA branch earlier). The 3rd service was also falling at that time I called him and took an appointment. Tom was a gem of a guy, very knowledgeable and extremely professional. Upon arrival, his team checked the car and said that both front arm need to be replaced and they can do it next day (it was closing time by then). The very next day, service guy visited my home and took the car. I opted to change the alloy color to grey and side mirror to black during the time and the showroom did a neat job. Folks who are based out of Pathanamthitta, stay away from Vision Honda Pathanamthitta branch.
Long trip to Kodaikanal:
We covered almost 650 KM in 24 hrs and the ride was comfortable with no numbness. Stock seat slightly lack thigh support. In Ghats, I used the paddle shifters. When floored, the engine made heavy noise without actual speed (the typical issue with CVT) but no pickup issues were noticed(as per 1.2 standard). The car behaved well and maintained a top speed of 140+ on the butter smooth roads of Tamil Nadu. Handling and braking were decent and dint made me nervous at any time. Contrary, the fuel efficiency was 11, tank to tank basis.
Few mods (This don’t even fall in the category of Mods):
Mugen hub cap
Debadged and painted Honda logo to black using plastic dip paint at home + Lip from Amazon
The RT Emblem (RS or RT, different names, same purpose)
Issues faced so far:
The first edition comes with lower arm issue, replaced under warranty
Steering is bit heavy, as per ASC, it seems okay. Need to cross verify this
Rusting problem in brake rotors, lower arm and in few other areas.
The mileage is hovering around 12 constantly on village roads and 15-16 on highways with eco mode on. You floor the pedal and it becomes ford endeavor returning FE of 11.
As someone said, if you don't look back at your car after you park it you've bought the wrong car.
Adios for time being.. :)
I was in search for a new car due to my family requirement in 2018. Since it was our 4th vehicle, the requirements were very simple, it has to be a sedan or SUV within 10 lakhs, has to be an automatic, full option and need to be a driver’s car. Though I used an automatic dzire and thoroughly enjoyed the drivability of the engine despite of the fact that it’s an old school 4 gear automatic, dint want to go the Maruti route ( I cannot just live with a tincan).
Shortlisted choices were:
Dzire: Ruled out as it is very common to see it onroad and not a fan of Maruti. Though a car with good drivability and lot of blings. This was the 4th strong contender.
Baleno: the sedan bug was so bothering and compelled me to move out, otherwise would have bought this for sure – 3rd contender
Nexon: Liked it very much, but the dealer dint even bothered to respond for a quote/test drive. Thought Tata has changed in these years, disappointed. - 1st contender
Polo/Ameo: Dint like the Ameo by its looks, loved the polo but went off the grid due to cramped rear bunch. A real drivers heaven
Honda city: The AT full option was close to 16 lakhs, up above the budget.
Creta: Close to 17 Lakh on road for AT full option, no way
Ford Freestyle and Ecosport: Again, good drivers car.. freestyle was out due to the reason for being hatch back and Ecosport for poor rear bench.
Hyundai i20: Dint bothered to TD this one, but a good car with great features
Renault Duster: Poor interior made me walk away, dint TD
Maruti Brezza: Poor interiors, wasn't as per liking.
Winner: New Amaze (2nd Contender)
Why: Fresh looks, CVT compared to AMT in competition, decent equipment’s and paddle shifts (though I rarely use this)
Did the test drove happen before purchase? Nah. Perhaps if did, diesel would be the choice.
Booking and Delivery:
I live in Dubai and my hometown is in a remote place in Kerala with few Honda dealers around, who were really adamant on any offers/discount. I enquired with 2-3 dealers close to my home town, they dint budge an inch on price or offers (not even a mat) as the car was a new launch. I dint bothered to call them again. When they called later for an update, I gave them a lovely eargasm . Since my sis stays in Cochin and there were plenty of options, I decided to buy from Cochin and shortlisted 3 dealers Vision (I had a very bad experience with their Pathanamthitta Branch), Perfect and Peninsular Honda. I dint bothered to speak to Vision initially and initiated conversation with the other two guys, Peninsular guy appeared little fishy and after reading bad reviews online, I stayed away from them. Experience with Perfect was very smooth and the Sales guy (though not very knowledgeable) accommodated majority of my request and he was not at all pushy. So went ahead with booking and scheduled delivery for November. Later Vision Cochin called and gave a better quote (the Cochin team were really professional) I decided to stick to Perfect Honda based on customer experience.
D day: Delivery process was really good (I was expecting a red carpet balloon one though) and all staff were very cordial (I recommended many other customers to them later). After getting temporary registration plates, the executive even assisted me to outside shop to fit the accessories I bought online.
What I like:
Good seating comfort and useful interiors (though suspension is slightly bouncy)
Space space and loads of space..
Good boot capacity
Decent engine for daily use, well refined
Low maintenance cost and 10k service interval
Ac is a chiller
Its a Honda.
What I dislike:
1.2 liter petrol is puny, you need to boil this to get enough power. 1.5 liter diesel CVT is a butter rocket with good drivability in its class. It lacks the diesel torque on tap too..Period !
Body quality is not very great, so as the interior elements. This I realized when I happen to open the bumper for DIY job.
No full option (at that time) which misses out touch screen and projector lights, no auto lamps and wipers. Dzire brings lot of blings
The rubber band effect of CVT, you can reduce this to a greater extend by using paddle shifters. During spirited driving in ghats, the engine goes very loud without converting the noise to wheels.
No underbody engine cover or bonnet insulation, diesel gets this
Very poor audio in stock setup, disappointed. Need to change this for sure
No rear ac vents, not a big concern though
Fuel efficiency: 10-11.5 on normal condition, 15-15.5 on highway
I am a person who always modify vehicle as per my personal choice and the modification bug bit me in no time
Bug 1.
Seat Modification:
The fabric seats of Amaze where not to my liking (though they are good), I decided to change to custom seat on very next day of delivery. Since we already had a good experience with Right Fit seats in cochin, we decided to proceed with them (I did checked with many other vendors in Cochin based on google recommendation, dint like the quality of their work) Gave them vehicle at around 12 noon and they returned by 8 in eve. Let the pictures talk:
The quality is top notch and totally satisfied with their work - Material Leatherite
Bug 2.
Since this car was a new launch, customization options were very limited during the launch time. All that I could start with are few chrome garnish (dealer accessories where exorbitantly expensive, hence avoided). I ordered full set from carhatke and installed outside dealer’s premise on same day, unfortunately the front fog chrome fell off within 30 mins of install and we lost it on highway. That was an eyesore till the time I removed the second piece also. Some chrome parts were original OEM and others were duplicate.
Changed the stock bulbs to Osram night breaker and added exhaust chrome tip, both bought from amazon
1st Service:
As I work in Dubai for living, all I could get to drive is one or two months in a year. I could drive the new vehicle just for 7 days before long parking in the garage. I covered almost 3000 km in a week time and did the first service as well. The first service was with Vision Honda Pathanamthitta, the experience was not really good. During the first service, all they have to do is check the fluids and wash the car, they took ridiculous hours to return the car despite of prior appointment. I Installed the rain visors there (because of bad experience with online purchase earlier) which costed me 3000 INR. The car was parked at my home and I flew back.
Bug 2.
I could get a chance to fly to my home after few months (just for 4 days), I decided to give little modification to him (not a she for me based on the way car looks). I went to a car wrapper (yeah not rapper) close to my home town and asked him to make the car more masculine and the end result was a disaster:
His work was really unprofessional with melted vinyls at many places. Since I knew him for the past couple of years, I dint uttered a single word and left it for his imagination. After finishing the job, I paid the money (his cost was also dirt cheap) and left the place. I removed all wraps on very next day of installation as it looked horrendous. I will never go back to the installer ever in my lifetime.
Bug 3
I bought led bulbs from UAE and replaced every bulb (except fog and headlight). After the mod, I flew back.
The OEM type and holders:
I dint cause any major canbus issue (occasional hyperflashing once in a month and goes away once we turn off and switch on indicator). Brightness is really good and add charm to vehicle
Second service:
I called Vision PTA to send somebody to pickup and service the car, the did the job on time, nothing to speak about. Just regular checkup and wash
Bug 3:
The roof and front area wrap jobs were done in Foxglove graphics Ernakulum. The guy was a real professional and did a neat job. Since the factory drl (actually they are just park lights) were not prominent, I decided to add the iconic raptor light and here goes the Honda Raptor aka Brabus (it has nothing to day with Brabus tuning :P :P )
Added Front bumper Lip, mood light and Led Scuff plates from Galaxy Cochin, great job.
Issue faced so far:
After driving for few days I noticed a knocking sound from front of the car. Since the PTA dealer was nearby, I went to them with prior appointment, explained the issue and a service guy was allocated after some time. He test-drove the car and reported same issue and then the drama started. The car was parked there from morning to lunch time with only few cars in the service center. At around 12.30, I lost my patience and asked them why the car is not getting checked and suddenly few guys came and kept the car on service bay and went for lunch then after. At around 3, they asked me to bring the car next day and I was surprised (I knew that it was front arm issue which they never checked or acknowledged). I left the showroom and said will come next day.
Second day I reached the showroom at around 10 and gave the car and previous day story repeated. After the lunch I lost all my cool and confronted the manager and service head who started arguing with me. They said all amaze have this issue and they cannot escalate this to Honda from their end. I stated that my car was never checked and how can they claim that the issue is with all amaze. There were heated arguments and after realizing that they knew nothing about addressing the issue, I left the place and reported this to Honda. On second day, I called up Perfect Trivandrum and conveyed the issue and also said I only have few days leave left, they recommended me to service adviser Tom at Kottayam Vision Honda (he was with PTA branch earlier). The 3rd service was also falling at that time I called him and took an appointment. Tom was a gem of a guy, very knowledgeable and extremely professional. Upon arrival, his team checked the car and said that both front arm need to be replaced and they can do it next day (it was closing time by then). The very next day, service guy visited my home and took the car. I opted to change the alloy color to grey and side mirror to black during the time and the showroom did a neat job. Folks who are based out of Pathanamthitta, stay away from Vision Honda Pathanamthitta branch.
Long trip to Kodaikanal:
We covered almost 650 KM in 24 hrs and the ride was comfortable with no numbness. Stock seat slightly lack thigh support. In Ghats, I used the paddle shifters. When floored, the engine made heavy noise without actual speed (the typical issue with CVT) but no pickup issues were noticed(as per 1.2 standard). The car behaved well and maintained a top speed of 140+ on the butter smooth roads of Tamil Nadu. Handling and braking were decent and dint made me nervous at any time. Contrary, the fuel efficiency was 11, tank to tank basis.
Few mods (This don’t even fall in the category of Mods):
Mugen hub cap
Debadged and painted Honda logo to black using plastic dip paint at home + Lip from Amazon
The RT Emblem (RS or RT, different names, same purpose)
Issues faced so far:
The first edition comes with lower arm issue, replaced under warranty
Steering is bit heavy, as per ASC, it seems okay. Need to cross verify this
Rusting problem in brake rotors, lower arm and in few other areas.
The mileage is hovering around 12 constantly on village roads and 15-16 on highways with eco mode on. You floor the pedal and it becomes ford endeavor returning FE of 11.
As someone said, if you don't look back at your car after you park it you've bought the wrong car.
Adios for time being.. :)
![[clap]](https://www.theautomotiveindia.com/forums/images/smilies/Clap.gif "Clap [clap]")
. Actually , for most cars with rear drums , i don't prefer the rear to be painted red , but in your case , i felt it suits quite well . I also don't encourage Tow hook , as its quite flashy . The background colour of logo could also have been left . If its possible can you share links of the items ourchased , especially the front Raptor LEDS. 