Want D-Segment car, Booked Jetta 1.9Tdi

[bluesapphire 1]

Hi guys, 1st i got my queries solved regarding Cruze at its respective thread, my father wants to buy it in December, we are close on Cruze but are still thinking the Laura and Corolla. Laura is almost out as my parents doesnt likes its looks, to them its outdated in looks, we TD cruze and liked it and to my mother, she said we dont have any choice,

- Civic is pricey for features, she likes it but i and my father dont.

- Laura although lacks features, but has good performance, snob value, build quality and ride but looks dated.

- Corolla seems too boring actually although is equipped well and has image(Toyota) and resale too for same reason.

Now question is, are there any new engine upgrades, face lifts coming this January, especially a 1.8TSi in Jetta with same price and more features, am also waiting for 120bhp Tjet Linea with better interiors and more features. I am sure 325i must be knowing that what is gonna come,

so any Idea Sirjee???

Also FRG and members please let me know reagarding this query and should i go for Cruze?

EDIT - Just now read that all new Civic is on its way, is it really, when can we expect it?bluesapphire2009-11-08 13:35:57

[rahul1810 0]

First of all why do you wish to buy a car in december? Better buy it next year because instead of getting 2009 model you will get 2010 model, which shall face better resale.

I am not very sure about the civic, neither do I have any concrete information, so if I were you I would not think about it too much.

I agree Toyota is not a beauty in front of civic and cruze, but the simplistic look kind of grows on you and looks good in some colours like black. I have seen one with a modified grille and it was looking pretty awesome, so if you can adjust your taste a little bit, go for the Altis. It shall prove to be a better decision financially too in the long run.

Also this Auto Expo VW is going to take a big step. There might be something in store for Jetta too. So its best that you wait till the Expo.

[tanmay87 0]

I did check out the Cruze few days back, i feel it's a very good car and the only negative point was the brand and resale value.

I would suggest you to go for Cruze(even you like it), it's pretty good vfm.

[speed 0]

BS, I don't think there are going to be any significant launches in the D-segment during Auto-Expo.

Forget Jetta, it looks older than its cousin! Why are you not considering Civic?

BTW, have you decided between Diesel or Petrol, to make things easier!

 

There might be a surprise in the form of Mitsubishi Lancer at the Expo, who knows!

 

I would suggest you not to ignore the Laura, its a good car.

[creativebala 178]

Any news on Diesel Corolla, I think this will be worth a wait

[speed 0]

Yes that should be coming but 1.4L is not much worth waiting for!

[creativebala 178]

its all upon how they turbo/ super charge it

[bluesapphire 1]

Thanks all for your suggestion.

@Rahul, well Corolla is not boring by its looks but by its plastics, driveability and even the ride wasnt that great to me as Civic or say Cruze. This is was what i felt when i TD'ed it long before, after 16th(after my exams are over) i am again gonna TD it and Laura back to back with Cruze also. But overall it seems to be a bit dull actually but a good car indeed.

And regarding the december buy, i think we cant get some discounts and although in Jan our car will be registered for 2010, but the model will still be the 2009, for 2010 model i think we have to wait till Jan-end or Feb.

@Speed, i am for petrol only given our running but basically i am looking for a car in my budget i.e 13-15 with Build quality, ride, features, performance, looks and comfort, so if i am getting a diesel at a price of petrol with all my requirements and no compromise than its added advantage(bonus) actually, basically i am not looking for a diesel but a product to my requirements so rule out diesel corolla.

And regarding Civic, actually in next 2 years a new model will be out so am not willing to go for it, it seems old now, and other than that it is not having good features and the GC is too low actually, we are having the OHC 1.3 with low GC, although i havent faced much problems but have heard that Civic has more problems and am not willing to go for low GC, cant take it anywhere actually have to think a lot before doing that. Have to drive very carefully with full load so now i think i am not ready for that.

For Laura, yes i like it a lot although it lacks many features, but my parents are not ready for it, they love the Skoda brand but not Laura, to them now it has no more snob value, and other thing is that my mother has seen many Laura with 'L' of 'Laura' and 'Skoda' symbol missing and this is what irritates her.

And i think i am not ready any Mitsubishi's now, so no waiting even if its worth. In india now Fiat is better than Mitsubishi.

Regarding Jetta, well we love the brand, its looks, ride & handling and comfort. So if its getting the 1.8TSi, so we are in for that.

@Tanmay, so can you tell how was the experience with Cruze in comparision to the corolla, since you own it you can explain me better.

And as i already own a Chevy, till now i havent face any problem as far as A.s.s is concerned, so i guess to me it isnt a problem, its just that i dont want car who lose its feeling after 5-6 years, means it should be as new condition if we maintain it well like the feel of doors, plastics, etc. like we feel with our 2003 City.

[akj53in 0]

@ bluesapphire

It will be best to buy after Auto Expo in January. You will get a 2010 model and fate of all new models will be announced in Auto Expo, so you can make a better decision then.

Out of the cars which you have mentioned, Civic should be ruled out as it not VFM, low on features, low GC, high fuel consumption, lower seats so not comfortable for your parents, lower ingress and egress position so again un

comfortable for your parents. Further it is the oldest model in your choices and feels outdated.

Laura petrol is a good car for spirited driving and not good as a comfortable family car. Further it has the Skoda A.S.S. problem so buying it is a risk.

Cruze appears to be a good car with good service backup with no known problems so far. Main advantage is diesel engine. Resale vale will be low. Check this for comfort factor with your parents.

Jetta is a solid & long lasting car with a boring engine. Cant say about maintenance standards but costs will be high. Suspect resale value. Check for comfort levels. No engine upgrades expected immediately as VW is busy with

Polo launch. Buy it if you want to keep the car for long period.

Altis is fuel efficient, comfortable and a trouble free car with least maintenance costs and problems. High resale value. High torque in low rpms makes it best to drive in town. Take your parents with you to TD it and they may find it most comfortable. Also try the Automatic version. They may love the silky smooth jerk less drive.

There is no ideal car ticking all the boxes. Define your priorities and select one which meets most of your criteria. Good luck.

[5u3zEr0 0]

I don't think VW will bring the Jetta with the 1.8TSI, the petrol Jetta's hardly sell to my knowledge because of its measly power and there is a diesel option. Thought it would be great. I spent two days in 2.0 TFSI Sportline spec Jetta and I fell in love with the car, the power was awesome and the interiors were classy. Except for the engine options VW India is offering, the Jetta is a good car. By the way its a hit here in Madras off late.

 

If its for your parents, looks like the Corolla is the safest bet. If you want power and handling look no further than the Laura 1.8TSI.

[bluesapphire 1]

Well my father felt Corolla is too simple for its segment, its a good car but nothing special. Regularly i and my mother will drive it in City, while on highways it will be my father and sometime i will drive too. He is impressed with the features and power of Cruze, they hardly will sit at back seat, its me who will sit most of the time.

As far as resale goes, i think after 5-6 years down the line, resale doesnt matters much, what do you guys say??

For between Laura and Cruze, they have decided on Cruze, now its between Cruze and Corolla.

@Akj, no we arent interested in automatic, as our other cars are manual so it might be uncomfortable for them to drive other cars in day to day use. Mostly this will be a highway car as we have H.city and Spark for city(Getz will be sold off).

We like the Jetta but its engine is too old, but i guess it might get new engine atleast before april due to emission norms, what do you guys say about this???

Still i think tomorrow i will check out Jetta, and other cars will go on 16th or afterwards.

We were planning to go for a U.S.A trip in november and thus postponed the car to jan-feb, but now we arent going anywhere so my father is planning to buy the car early.

ACi, please do a comparo between Laura, Cruze and Corolla without considering the diesel Vs. Petrol factor.

I want to know the quality, handling, ride, features and other technical comparisions.

[tanmay87 0]

Cruze is definitely better vfm compared to Corolla, you get a diesel car with more features at the same price. The interiors look better(not sure about the quality). But there was some turbo lag and it obviously won't be as reliable as a Honda or a Toyota.

The Corolla looks better to me, has a very responsive engine and better rear seat comfort. It does almost everything well and will be very reliable too.

Even i feel resale value won't matter much if you intend to keep the car for more than 6 years.

[sarabjeet 2]

@ sapphire

ruk ja mere dost

there maybe huge discounts on euro III models , plus i think the new octivia will be launched in the autoexpo and also 1.6 linea

[5u3zEr0 0]

Re-sale value should not be a deciding factor when buying a car. I don't give it importance at all, I just buy what I like and serves my purpose. Anyway if you are going to keep the car for 5/6 years you should not even think about it.

By the way you guys are taking a real long time to decide on a car, I have been reading it from months now.

[rahul1810 0]

@5u3zEr0

I am sure its the new  launches like laura and cruze that have been delaying his deccision

@BS

I think you should wait for the expo. There should definitely be something for this segment. Its highly unlikely that the whole segment will go unnoticed. Also the new octavia has been in news for a while, though there have been news of its price to be cut to around city levels, but we can only tell it after the Expo, so its better to wait for two months and then finally make your decision.

[BonFre 0]

I guess new Octy. would come somewhere towards the later half of 010.

Big new launches could come in the form of Lancer only.

[rahul1810 0]

If the new Octy has to come it will be before the April 2010 deadline because of the E-IV regulations and I am pretty sure the very old Octy engine is not E-IV.

[BonFre 0]

That's right old Octy is not Euro4 compliant & will see a boot from Metros but continue to sell in tier2/3 Cities, till a new one arrives later in 010.

[5u3zEr0 0]

I don't think the Octavia would suit them and is worth waiting for. Its just too old a car now except if it come's in a RS version !5u3zEr02009-11-10 11:52:11

[bluesapphire 1]

Yup its too old a car and with Laura already filling the gap now, they will position it to lower segment and i dont think its coming in 2010. I heard that it will come only in 2011 or so. Anyways i am not interested for that.

@Subzero, well i started this thread on 8th nov only, so not that a time and from the very beginning i said that i am buying in dec-jan, so thought that i should keep experts thoughts coming in. And we replace a car only after 4-5years(in between we buy smaller cars), so its better to take time than regret later.

Well today i checked out Jetta and i think the 1.9PD tdi isnt that bad as i thought when i drove it a year back or so. It was powerful and smooth though noisy, and for other than black color, all the colors get now latte-beige interiors which looks pretty good with a new VW sirocco type steering and some changes in pattern of climate control buttons. It was overall a good car but expensive at 15.70lacs onroad. And the guy was like criticizing the Cruze like hell like he said that Cruze metal quality is extremely cheap, its interiors plastics are like M800, then i said hey stop it, its not that bad and whatever it is at a good price.

Then i checked out the rear seat comfot and it was good too, and asked about petrol and said that we dont have petrol as nobody buys it and are not keeping it only, diesel is better, he said who buys petrol nowadays, i said no one is buying because you have decade old 1.6 102bhp petrol.

Then i asked that i have seen many VW's with stolen symebols, then he said that 1st it used to be a sticker now its not like that but yes rear can be stolen easily and about cost he said the symbol costs around whopping 10k, i was shocked actually.

But overall i liked the car and i think my parents will like it too, my mother is insisting on VW but after seeing Cruze's price i dont think my father will be ready to shell out 2lac extra that too with less features and TDi engine. Well lets see what happens...

Edit - Meanwhile he also explained me about their 'India Assist' facility. Its the 24X7 road side assistance, wherever our car break downs, they will reach us within 45min to 1hour max, they will then take the vehicle via trailor and not by towing, and will arrange for hotel arrangements for their customers and also the food and expenses amounting not more than 4500rs per day for max. 2days. And this is for 2years.bluesapphire2009-11-10 14:43:46

[5u3zEr0 0]

BS: You had test driven the Jetta a year back and that time you had said that your family was planning to buy a new car. Also around the time the Linea was launched, I read again that you were planning to buy a car that is why I said that you guys are taking a long time to buy a car, thats all. No offense itended.

[bluesapphire 1]

Well i Td'ed jetta last year not keeping in mind that i will buy. And regarding Linea, my father said that we will buy because i kept asking him, now he is ready and will buy for sure. Also in between he was planning for Superb but now we are planning for D segment only.

In all those thread, it was just that i may consider while i am buying and thus was looking for it, nothing else, my father never said me that we are buying, he maintained that we will buy around Nov-Dec, now its me who is thinking for waiting till Jan.

No problem buddy, no offence taken.

[bluesapphire 1]

UPDATE.

We are going tomorrow to check the VW Jetta, my parents are more interested in VW brand and they like the looks and comfort of it.

[rahul1810 0]

Yeah VW brand is progressing nicely in India. However especially if you go ahead with the Jetta you should wait till the Expo, because it shall be a big stepping stone for the, and I feel there will be atleast some changes to the car if not much and it cant hurt to wait 8 more weeks, can it?

Also I heard somewhere that Cruze 1.8 petrol maybe showcased at that time. Since your requirement is not of a diesel you may save even more money.

So whatever you decide wait for the Expo

[Durango Dude 2]

I go weak in the knees when I see the Laura 1.8 TSI and it's spec's. 6 speed manual, 160 bhp and 25 kgm torque from 1500 rpm even the diesel Laura 1.9 PDI doesn't make that torque till 1900 rpm. If only Skoda's improves their service in the next one year; or if I go mad in the next one year, you all can be sure I'll be driving one probably end of next year...shhh my wife doesn't know I have this idea. It'll show a clean pair of heels to all the VW cousins and also the 3 series 320i, A4 2.0 TDI, Accord 2.4, Camry2.4, etc, etc, And it would fit correctly in my portico. All at some 15.5 lakhs otr Chennai, delicious. This the vRS for me, literally. The Corolla's, Civic's and Cruze's are a mundane lot compared to this insane beauty.

Durango Dude2009-11-21 16:12:57