Buying a car

In the 3 years since I bought my Santro, I’ve been quite happy with it, but there are times (especially on the highway), when I wish I had a car that feels more at home on the highway. I’ve been thinking about upgrading for the past few months, but it has been an exercise in frustration.

I want a car that is a size bigger than the Santro, not particular about a sedan or a hatchback. But, I definitely want it to have a powerful engine that will go from 0-100 in less than 12 seconds and a top speed of around 180 kmph. Not that I would ever do 180 on Indian highways (maybe when the NICE road is completed:-), just that a car capable of reaching those speeds will be extremely comfortable at the speeds I drive at (100-120 kmph). It should have space for 5 adults, safety features like airbags, ABS, disc brakes all round. I absolutely want a car with alloy wheels, an Ipod compatible music system so that I can plug in and control my ipod from the HU. Good mileage is a must, atleast 12 kmpl in the city and 16-18 kmpl on the highway. I don’t care about petrol or diesel. And I want all this at an affordable price (max 7 lakhs on the road). But, I find it frustrating that a Hyundai Accent costs 14000 dollars in the US, while we pay almost 800,000 rupees or 20000 dollars. Manufacturers price their lowest end model with no frills at an attractive price and gouge for everything from diesel engines to interior trims to safety features that should be mandatory to begin with.

I've gone through 2-3 cycles. It always starts with me thinking that I should just stop bothering about the robbery and go ahead and buy the damn car. But then when I start thinking about options and digging deeper into road tests and user opinions, I find compromises in every single choice.

Indica: love the space, but engine is too rough, image is an issue

Chevy-UVA: love the looks, but can’t get it with a powerful engine beyond the 1.2L

Palio: really want the Palio Stile 1.6, pricing is attractive, but am still not comfortable with Fiat

Swift:interior too small, don’t like the styling

Getz: lprobably the closest I've come to liking a car, it's just wonderfully packaged and the one car I've driven a bit, but it’s too expensive, the 1.3L option

Fusion: great car at a good price, but why did they take out the frills like alloy wheels? Where’s the new Fusion+?

Ikon/Esteem: good cars, but are 10 year designs. Only an idiot would buy one of them at this time

Coming to the C-segment

Aveo/Fiesta/Verna Petrol: their loaded version costs 8 lakhs!!! And no safety features like airbags, ABS.

City: the only one I want is the VTEC and it costs 9.5lakhs, out of my budget

Fiesta Diesel: only 68 bhp. Indica DICOR is going to have more

Verna Diesel: base model at 8.5 lakhs lacks even basic equipment. The SX version has more but its almost 9.5 lakhs

I also briefly considered a couple of C+ segment cars

Elantra: seems a good value at 8.5 lakhs, but then you realize that it’s the lower end model that lacks many essentials. It does not have a reputation for good mileage. The diesel is better but its over 10 lakhs

Optra : the magnum diesel is new and initial impressions are good. But the loaded version is way over my range at 11.5 lakhs

One car I haven’t mentioned till now is the SX4. I really like this car, it has everything going for it, fully loaded, good safety features, Maruti’s service and it comes at a price of 8 lakhs. It has really exposed the way in which the other manufacturers are ripping off the Indian public, which is why it has a 3+ month waiting list. I am leaning towards it, but then you can’t get one right now unless you’re Sonia Gandhi. Another car I’m looking forward to is the Getz with a CRDi diesel (hopefully the Verna’s diesel at a decent price).

At this time, it does look pretty bleak, maybe I will just wait a a few months until the landscape changes and make a decision. Until then, it’s up to Santro KA-19-P-1615 to keep me entertained…