Jul 19, 2009 04:40 PM
13738 Views
(Updated Jul 19, 2009 07:59 PM)
Dear Fellows,
This review is divided in 2 parts because of space limit .
Part1
This forum is a great help for the prospective buyers to decide the car for which they should go for. I am an old user of the reviews and feels that it is my duty now to post my input after purchasing new Verna Diesel SX top end on 17th July 2009. Let me compare all the available diesel options in the Indian market. This is based on test drives and study of the technical specs along with practical experience.
1. Fiat Linea emotion pack diesel - This was the car which I wanted to buy. The test drive was good, engine power is good from family prospective but definitely it is bit underpowered. The features and outside looks are excellent as you all know. But some points to consider before going for it-a) A bit underpowered but same car is running successfully in other countries like Turkey, Poland, Germany etc. but fiat has launched 1.6 Lt Multi jet diesel(MJD) engine in turkey to make it more powerful and I hope in India too Fiat will do the same but it will come with a price as more than 1.5 lt diesel engine invites additional Rs. 15, 000/; excise duty and may be 60 to 70 thousand more money for this engine so the people who want to wait for 1.6 MJD should mentally prepare themselves to pay at least Rs. One lac more on the present price of Linea 1.3 MJD diesel cars.
Some of you might be wondering that same engine is giving very good performance in swift and vista. This is because Suzuki has retuned the engine and Japs are known for making light weight cars to get more power from engines and better mileage but making them less stable at high speeds and unsafe. Many of us give more weightage to these two things and compromise with the safety despite the fact many lacs of Indian meet fatal accidents on Indian roads every yera. Linea has launched the same model(heavy in weight for stable drive) which they have launched in Europe as per European safety standards.
b) Many of you might be unaware that Fiat has increased the price of Linea Diesel two times since the starting price of Rs. 8.14 lac top end(Delhi price) to Rs. 8.35 lac to make money without doing any new addition to the existing features, like in abroad the fully loaded Linea comes with rain sensors, six airbags and reverse parking system. This has become the practice and habit of overseas car manufactures to overprice their cars in India with least features and fleece the Indian buyers. They always compromise on safety features to make more profit. In Europe and America no car can be launched without these safety features. And our government is always sleeping with least care for the safety and rights of its citizens. I am making this true statement about all the car manufacturers who are making cars here. I will elaborate this when I will write about Verna which I have purchased.
c) About the dealership issue. I should say here that the people are right in raising this issue as TATA dealerships have not made themselves ready and competent to sell the product like Linea. I originally wanted to buy the Linea but as the company increased the unjustified price within a span of two months and secondly my local dealership could not get the car even in two months after the booking. The car available with them was having some paint issue(minor scratch and one or two spots) and ripped rubber beading on the roof. The odometer reading was 360 km which they attributed to use of this car in Car shows around my city. All these factors turned me away in spending more than 8 lacs on it and decided to wait for new arrivals which never came for next two months and then I switched my mind to look for another company. After sales service was a big component in my mind which forced me to decide otherwise.
d) Car resale value is another aspect which is still not clear about fiat products.
2. Swift Dezire-As birth of Dezire from swift hatch back has not convinced me this car as a sedan I did not even think to consider this as a buying option. Just adding a tail to swift hatch back don’t make a worth looking sedan. I don’t know why people encourage car companies like Suzuki to make Jugaad(make shift) products for Indians. They should actually launch good tested products for Indian market without making them overprized just because they have monopolized Indian car market. Compare new Maruti products like Ritz, A star and SX 4 with their competitions both feature wise and price wise and you will reach to same conclusion that they are heavily overpriced. But full credit goes to Maruti for their excellent service quality and network. Good after sales service always contribute the most while deciding to go for new car purchase. I am a happy owner of Maruti Alto which is with me since 2003.
3. Logan diesel-It is good diesel option and is available at very attractive price. I have test driven this vehicle and found the engine good and responsive but gearshift is very stiff. Renault France has acquired this car from one old soviet bloc country and is dam cheap option available to French people in France. Our Mahindra top brass has chosen this outdated and cheap product of Renault to make money here in India without even spending money to customize this for Indian conditions. All of you are aware of its box like looks and its cheap price has attracted taxi fleet operators to run it as taxi.
See part 2 in comments on this review which I am posting alongwith.
Complete review at https://praveengju.blogspot.com/
