Honda Fan Seeking Car Advice. Budget Rs.5 Lakhs

[mickey]

Hi...I am a new joinee
I can see that there havent been many replies off late to this thread, but i was going thru it n thought it was suitable for my query.

actually I will b starting my professional life soon, and I am looking forward to by my own car withing next 6 months. just to give a heads up, i have always been obsessed with Honda. a great fan of evry model. now considering that, I have always dreamed of owning a Honda City, any model, but the fact that i will start earning only now, I cant afford to straight away go for the new model wich will cost me around 10 Lakhs, i guess.

so i want help in deciding whther i should go for a used Honda City..or shall i wait for the new Honda Brio wich is expcted to b launched by Diwali this year..frankly speaking, when i saw that concept small car in the auto expo last year, i had my hear set on being my first car but recent designs hav kind of let me down as it looks no where near to that concept, but more of Chevy Beat but still being a Honda, i wud love to have it..and the other confusing fact is that Maruti are going to launch the new Swift wich again is a gr8 car n one of my favs.

I hav a budget of Rs 4-5.5 Lakh in mind. i guess both Brio and Swift will be fighting for that spot. so i request the more knowledgeable guys here, to please help me out in selecting out of the three though my heart still wants a city

also it wud b a great help in deciding, if you cud just giv an idea of an avg annual ownership cost of a City, to jst plan on my budget and expenses.

a big thanx in advance to all..

 

[350Z]

Hello Mickey, First off, welcome to The Automotive India. I have created a separate thread for your query so that it can receive better response. But before, I would like to ask you to answer the questions from this thread. It will help us to advice you the most suitable car under the given budget. Thanks.

Drive Safe,
350Z

 

[mukeshus]

Welcome to TAI mickey.
Well reading from your post i think your are brand conscious esp Honda.
Why go for Honda alone, i would suggest you to go for the facelifted Swift which will be launched within few days, the new Swift has interiors similar to Kizashi.
So wait for the launch instead of going for small Brio.

 

[emperor]

tell us your requirements so that the members can advice u the best.
do u run very low, since honda doesnt have a diesel version & petrol prices sky rocketing. if u runnin is low, can definitely go to honda.

 

[mickey]

First of all thanks to all of you for paying ur kind attention to my query..and @350Z for starting this new thread.

@mukeshus : that is why i mentioned my confusion between a Brio and the New Swift especially when there is still much more info available about the Swift rather than Brio. also the fact it will be a Maruti brand, my parents will be more convinced and satisfied with me going for it, for obvious reasons of trusted Maruti ASS and reliability which they wont feel the same about a Honda. for them owning a Honda will be an expesive fare. But as i mentioned and agreeing with you, I m brand concious and have always loved Honda cars. thus this fight between hear(which says Honda), and brain(which says Swift)

 

[mickey]

@emperor and 350Z: as you suggested, i was going through the thread "Looking to buy a new car..."

These are my answers to the questions in the thread:

My Budget: starts from 4 lakhs and the maximum i am willing to spend is around 5.5 lakhs.

My Location: i am currently putting up in New Delhi with my family, and hope to be here for time being.

Top 5 Priorities:

1) Power and Handling of the car.
2)Good FE though i know it will be inversely related to my top priority, but the category or the cars I m considering, i guess i cn get both.
3) ASS and availability of spare parts, or mechanic at any time and place
4) Safety
5) Comfort and quality of make(interiors).


Monthly Running: I intend to use this car for my commute to the Office withing the city, which would be on 30-35 Kms per day...apart from that, a couple of weekend outings nearby Delhi and places upto Agra can be included in a month...

Basic Purpose: to be used as a family car.

Maximum Seating capacity: should seat 5 persons comfortably, (6 if it includes 2 children)

Priority of fuel type: I personally prefer Petrol over diesel considering the "low petrol prices" these days, it will also help me to change over to CNG if i need to. considering i have a Zen old model, which is running on CNG for almost 9 years now with quite satisfactory performance. i wouldn't rule out that possiblity. my parents would feel the same though i have no idea at all how a Honda esp. City would feel like on CNG[thinking]

Body Type: i prefer sedans, and would have been considering VW Verna along with the ANHC, only if i wasnt restricted by my Budget


so i guess i have covered these basic issues and maybe you guys will be able to help me out better now. thanks.

 

[350Z]

Thanks for posting the complete requirements. You should wait sometime for the Honda Brio and Suzuki Swift to debut in India. Being a Honda fan, I think this news will make a smile on your face. Honda has reduced the pricing of Jazz significantly. This is said to be a gimmick to clear the existing stocks. But the car is definitely worth the price now. It will fall a little above your budget but no harm to check out: http://www.theautomotiveindia.com/f...ity-honda-reduces-price-jazz-2.html#post86507

Drive Safe,
350Z

 

[cooldhaya]

Hello Mickey welcome to TAI. Now since you have finalized down to two cars i don't want to confuse you more with other cars. Both the cars you have considered are going to be launched pretty soon , wait till they come to the dealerships , take a TD and decide with which you feel comfortable.


If you really love City that much then with your budget you can easily find a well maintained used City. But buying a new car is always more exciting compared to buying an used one. About maintenance cost of City , i think a regular service will cost around Rs.2000-3000.

 

[mickey]

@350Z : Thanks for the update on Jazz. I always loved that car but the price and the info about its engine being underperformer, I didnt really feel like giving it a chance. But after the news of that huge discount, I started to do some research on the car, reading the reviews, and to tell u truly, I havent found an unsatisfied Jazz owner. True that car has some issues about power and suspension, but then, every car has some drawbacks, and the overall package that it is, I guess I can truly give it a shot over Brio or a used HC(if just looks are to be considered, Jazz looks much better than Brio). The only worry here is, about its continuation in the Indian market after Brio is launched.

@cooldhaya: thanx for the advice. I guess I have to wait till both the cars are there in the market. As I said above, now there is another contender in Jazz so I will just have to stop myself till Diwali.

 

[jalex]

@350Z : Thanks for the update on Jazz. I always loved that car but the price and the info about its engine being underperformer, I didnt really feel like giving it a chance. But after the news of that huge discount, I started to do some research on the car, reading the reviews, and to tell u truly, I havent found an unsatisfied Jazz owner. True that car has some issues about power and suspension, but then, every car has some drawbacks, and the overall package that it is, I guess I can truly give it a shot over Brio or a used HC(if just looks are to be considered, Jazz looks much better than Brio). The only worry here is, about its continuation in the Indian market after Brio is launched.

@cooldhaya: thanx for the advice. I guess I have to wait till both the cars are there in the market. As I said above, now there is another contender in Jazz so I will just have to stop myself till Diwali.

The Jazz is not a hot hatch, But its no under performer and handling is pretty good like all Hondas. And the suspension issue you said is news for me, I haven't come across any suspension issues on the Jazz. Its suspension is among the best in class.

 

[350Z]

@350Z : Thanks for the update on Jazz. I always loved that car but the price and the info about its engine being underperformer, I didnt really feel like giving it a chance. But after the news of that huge discount, I started to do some research on the car, reading the reviews, and to tell u truly, I havent found an unsatisfied Jazz owner. True that car has some issues about power and suspension, but then, every car has some drawbacks, and the overall package that it is, I guess I can truly give it a shot over Brio or a used HC(if just looks are to be considered, Jazz looks much better than Brio). The only worry here is, about its continuation in the Indian market after Brio is launched.

As for now, we cannot see any indication that Honda will be discontinuing the Jazz in future. Brio will be placed below it. Just like Hyundai has i10 and i20.

Drive Safe,
350Z

 

[mickey]

The Jazz is not a hot hatch, But its no under performer and handling is pretty good like all Hondas. And the suspension issue you said is news for me, I haven't come across any suspension issues on the Jazz. Its suspension is among the best in class.

I haven't actually driven a Jazz, but extensively read expert as well as user reviews. And it comes from there, that Jazz has a stiff suspension which makes the ride bumpy especially at lower speeds(upto 40 kmph), at which you usually are able to drive within the cities. But as the speedometer goes past 50, the stiffness starts going away, suspension quality improves, making it a better ride. As for the handling, it surely is one of the best handling cars.

 

[jalex]

I haven't actually driven a Jazz, but extensively read expert as well as user reviews. And it comes from there, that Jazz has a stiff suspension which makes the ride bumpy especially at lower speeds(upto 40 kmph), at which you usually are able to drive within the cities. But as the speedometer goes past 50, the stiffness starts going away, suspension quality improves, making it a better ride. As for the handling, it surely is one of the best handling cars.

If it had a soft ride below 40kmph, It sure would have wallowed at 80. Its a big hatch and the handling it offers for one is impeccable. I would give it a 4.8/5 in the ride and handling department. And do take a test drive before jumping to conclusions. And drive it for some 10 Kms at least while at it and evaluate the car for yourself.

 

[jayadev]

If it had a soft ride below 40kmph,

soft ride below 40 type of cars are all boring to ride (high end cars are exempted).
example are hyundai i10,i20,indica vista etc.


considering the economy tag of brio i dont think there would be anything except honda badge in brio to

you being a honda fan i wouldn't recommend you to go for new honda city. it is again a boring product from drivers point of view.untill now honda has been cheating indians with higher price tag.
jazz is excellent .well laid out interiors and funky exteriors.
after jazz, honda have civic.
consider buying used civic and be a leader on road.
a true honda fan deserve nothing less than civic..!!

 

[350Z]

consider buying used civic and be a leader on road.
a true honda fan deserve nothing less than civic..!!

Honda Civic is a good choice, but for that, be well-prepared in advance to stretch the budget to at least Rs.6 Lakhs (more or less) for a well-kept model.

Drive Safe,
350Z