Apr 20, 2009 11:01 PM
38525 Views
Well I was looking for an upgrade to my Dads Maruti Zen 99 model. We bought the vehicle in 2003. Its a very good car, but we needed a change.
I wanted a vehicle a small car or a decent hatchback , as I already have a Hyundai Accent GLS another sedan was not considered.
Budjet: This was only around 4 lakhs as maintaining two cars would be difficult.
HomeWork: Neither me nor my dad likes to burn tarmac, so we were not judging that car by sheer handling or by performance but looking at comfort, build quality, space, service, mileage. We had no problems with the Zen, owning it was hassle free, we just used to call the MSM Service guy once in 6 months and he used to take it and return to doorstep. Mine was a Zen VX non power steering model so that steering overhaul and service was due, so we decided to sell it off instead of spending 10K on it.
Price when brought(2nd hand) : 194000
Price sold after 6 yrs: 120000
just check the resale value, this is one of the key reason is did not consider fiat and service being another.
We mainly use it in city (daily office commute) and both of our car runs about 10000 k per year.
Models Driven before buying:
Hyundai Santro: Its looks had become boring and neither I liked the ride quality, I never felt this as an upgrade to my Zen.
Price: Around 3.5 L
Maruti A Star: I liked its looks more than the swift, but its too cramped and dark, the visibility felt poor and the test car which had run just 5k had all sort of rattles in it. Engine was nothing to talk about, not better than my Zen, even NVH levels and vibrations were more. Boot space I thought was to only to keep a Helmet. Maruti cars are very good in reliability, performance, I am not sure why Maruti is not doing better R & D in its designs.
Price: 4.10 L (are you nuts!)
Maruti Swift: Engine was smooth, but the rear seats, rear windows completely turned our opinions against it, mom was feeling suffocated at the back, Neither the boot space was good. I also thought that this model looked sporty and wouldn't suit my dads character.
Well what ever cars I drove new I also drove it in 2nd hand market just to know how it will feel when the car becomes bit old. 20 K driven swifts were giving all sorts of noises (2 cars I drove, single owner may be hardly driven) so swift was out.
Hyundai i10:Nobody in family liked its looks, so never drove it.
Hyundai i20: I liked the looks, I loved the build quality. But it was out of our budget.
Hyundai Sonata 2003/4 model: Why I drove this? just because it was in my budget. quoted only 3.5 L neg fully fully fully loaded, But greeds apart had to think practicality.
Finally:
Hyundai Getz 1.1:
Why:
Decent looking: thought the looks are good enough for Dad and family. Neither too much van like, neither too sporty just right.
Its Big: The space is huge. The legroom in the front and behind is certainly 50 % more than my Accent. The car is so big I was not able to reach the internally adjustable rear view mirrors as I used to reach in my Zen from the drivers seat.
Ride Height: Well we sit higher in this than other small cars, in Zen it was as if we used to sit in the floor. The road view is excellent from that height, it gives a sense of command authority. After getting in to this I am not liking to sit down in my Accent.
Ingress/Outgress: This is the only car in which my mom , wife and dad was comfortable to sit in. the ingress / 0utgress is certainly less pain full than in my accent and zen.
Interiors: It has beige interiors, very airy. The dashboard is little brownish looks good. The glove box also has a light when we on the parking light.
Build Quality: Really this car is very well built, it also felt more better than my Accent, dont even compare the zen. The door thuds are good.
NVH: ON this babe rev it, its ultra smooth, the Accent at idle is heard inside the cabin.
AC: Silent and super cool, well even though the cabin has large glass area, it cools the front seats ultra fast.
Drive: The cluth is very light, and gears are very smooth. it really feels as a serious upgrade from the zen and the quality fit and finish all feels very upmarket. I thought this car was floating, the good year GT3 tubeless tires also does its job well. the Zen used to bang its chassis in with the occupants, but with this car we never really feel how bad the pothole is. I will say ride quality is excellent.
Engine: People say engine is underpowered? I say underpowered to what?
If Nano is drivable in city this one is a beast. I will say people please do not compare this babe with Santro's engine because its light years ahead of santro, the engine is smoother than it is in santro, it revs smoothly and freely than in santro, space and ride quality is incomparable with santro.
Yep, you cannot do overtaking instantly in the gears 4th or 5th if you are doing below 50, just slot it in 3 and rev it, it will surely do wonders and its more than enough in the city. ihave currently fallen in love with the initial response of this car than my Accent. But the accent certainly has more power/torgue!
Fuel Economy: Seems to be getting 11 + with AC 100 % city and also 1 hr + waiting with AC. Will update this as I rum more, My accent at 1/2 tank shows 150 kms, this showed 220.
Misc:
Lots of storage space.
Seats can fold 60 : 40 as well as fully
Rear seat has 3 inclination settings, this is very good.
Visibility all around is very good.
Not so Good:
Horn in the steering wheel feels hard, doesnt sounds at times.
Rear OVRM are ok.
Purchase Price: With the recent discounts and loyalty bonus, the onroad comes to
3.80 L, thats a steal cheaper and twice as big as A star.
i 20 : 5.4 L - 3.8 L = 1.6 L, I can feed 4 years of fuel for that price difference to this babe, but I liked the I 20.
After driving this is feel I should trade of my accent, whats the use to drive it n city with a big boot, as accent is a fuel eater it eats petrol as I get only around 8 to 8.5 in city with 100 % AC. But a drive in the accent turns everything around again.Well whatever it is, I am loving both if my cars, and also miss my Zen.
Buying a car is a subjective decision. But people who are in a budget and require a comfortable, spacious sedan like space and ride quality in a affordable price tag, please have a look at Gets prime 1.1.
Thanks
Krish
