May 22, 2011 09:23 AM
14523 Views
Last October we started looking for a car that would seat my family of two adults and two children. Moreover, within our budget (Rs. 4 lakhs, initially) we wanted the roomiest car possible, in order to accommodate visitors and friends whenever necessary.
My initial choice was the Alto K10 (the family was not involved in the buying process at all). It was within my budget. However, someone who bought it recently told me that it was not too roomie, and would not suit my needs. So I decided to increase my budget a little, and brought the Santro, Beat, Wagon-R, and Figo into consideration.
I did not like the looks of the i10, and the Swift and i20 were above my budget. I first test-drove the Santro and Beat. The Santro felt light and unsettled. The Beat looked great, and drove pretty well, but the back seat and boot were way too cramped. The dealer tempted me to take the U-VA, and gave a hefty discount on it, but the wisdom on the internet seemed to be that it was an old and failed model. My next test-drive was the Figo. I loved the looks, and also the settled ride.
The steering feel was excellent, too. My mind got made up, and I did not test drive the Wagon-R at all. (I later traveled in the Wagon-R of a friend, and found it quite unsettled, too.) I selected the petrol Exi, which had the three key features I was looking for: AC, central locking, remote locking, and OVM car stereo. The Exi cost Rs. 4, 72, 000 on the road at that time. This was only Rs. 30, 000 more than the top-of-the-line Santro, which, I thought, was very much justified.
