[thomvee]

My wife travels approx 45kms to and fro from her work everyday and takes the bus. The way Bangalore bus routes are, it is usually a 4 bus switch. She's paranoid about using a two wheeler, and with my petrol Figo barely eking out 10KMPL, its not really an option using that for everyday travel in the city either. She loves the idea of a Reva and I'd have loved to make that a reality for her but for the atrocious pricing (4lakhs! after the budget incentive)! I`ve seen advertisements 5-8 yr old Revas for about a lakh and I'm flirting with the idea of purchasing one and installing a new battery. Does anyone have experience with buying a used Reva?
I`d be glad to receive any advice from anyone with any experience on the matter. Thanks.

[condor]

@thomvee, please search for reviews on the Reva & Used Reva's here on TBHP. You may get the ued one at 1L. But when you have to replace teh batteries, you'll have to shell out a huge amount. The price advantage you see will disappear in no time.

Suggest a used car if you dont want a new one. But all things said, a new car may make lot more sense.

[mayankjha1806]

Watch out for used Reva cost of spares and battery replacement is very high, this offsets any savings that you make because of it being electrical. Also net savings are much less as compared to what is claimed by the company. One of my former colleagues had a Reva.

The other option that you could look at is used diesel/cng/lpg car, surely the there is going to be some cost in running it but would be significantly lower than the Figo. Also i am assuming you explored all options for travel in Bangalore like Volvo/Company provided bus, IT Park specific buses etc?

[theMAG]

You might want to ensure the battery pack has been replaced recently/the existing battery pack is in its prime (<= 1 year from last replacement), since a battery pack replacement on the Reva was recommended by Maini every 2 years, and is not cheap.

[drmohitg]

Why not take a look at the Nano? Small and easy to drive and should give you a FE of 15+.

[ACM]

I would say spend about 1.75L for the mid level Nano rather than 1L for a 7 year old reva + batteries.

Better space, similar price, more reliability, warranty, better quality and even cost of running will be decent overall.

[thomvee]

Thanks all for your input. None of you seem enthused by my idea of going the used car route. I did consider the Nano option but I did read a few reports where the mileage has been very variable and as low as 11 KmpL. I just didnt want to end up with another fuel guzzler as I already own one . Besides, even though the nano is supposed to be a tiny car, its not that tiny at all! With no gears to manipulate in the Reva plus its (really) tiny size it would be ideal for my wife, who is not a confident driver yet.

The way I saw it:
Figo (mileage =10 kmpl @ 74 rupees per litre) = 7.4 Rupees/km x 45 km each day x 20 days per month = 6660.

Nano (mileage = 15 kmpl @ 74 rupees per litre) = 5 Rupees/km x 45 km each day x 20 days per month = 4500.

Reva (mileage = approx 60 kmp full charge (worst case) = 9 units @ 5 rupees max = 45 rupees) = 75 paise/km x 45 km each day x 20 days per month = 675!

Thats why I thought, even getting a battery change at 60,000 rupees would be justifiable.
Of course the cost of spares and maintenance on a used Reva is something I didnt have an Idea about and hence my query.

I`ve also Read about the Reva NXR/NXG coming out within the next 6 months. I asked the Mahindra dealers what the specs with regard to mileage etc would be but they wouldn't part with any information :(

[mayankk]

Problem with Reva is that the battery has a fixed life.
40odd k i recall, for a new pack(could be wrong.could be higher).
if youre willing to face that immediate expense with the cost of the car, then mostly a thorough detailed check of the mechanical bits is very necessary.

A cng/lpg may be more in your league, since a used car will throw up any hidden problems soon, and a reva may be hard to find a mech for.

But boy is that running cost tempting, though.
(nothing else on the spec sheet is, ill add.)

[roy_libran]

Why not a Used diesel? With your computation, you will not end up spending more than 2250 per month on running expenses, and you don't have to contend with either the long queues at CNG filling or the safety concerns of a CNG.
Look for a used Swift Diesel / Ikon D / Logan D. with CRDI engines, maintenance is a non issue and the engine lives for a long time. You should be able to pick up something at 2 Lacs.

[SS-Traveller]

Originally Posted by mayankk

... a reva may be hard to find a mech for.

But boy is that running cost tempting, though.

Wouldn't M&M dealers handle repair / maintenance for the Reva? And costs apart from battery should be much less since stuff like oil changes etc. are not there, and moving parts are also minimal.

And yes, if I had a (less than) 50-60 km/day commute, I would have been seriously interested in the Reva option too.

[sachinayak]

I too was/am in the same boat and some inputs. Feedback i got from an existing Reva owner is as follows

My Reva is now almost four years old. It is a Reva-i. I think they have newer models now, but I don't know about their performance. I was very happy with my Reva for the first 2 1/2 years, as it was giving me around 65 km on a full charge. The warranty for the battery was for two years, and as soon as that period was over, the mileage started dropping. By the time the car was three years old, I had no option but to change the battery. Now changing the Reva battery is like getting a new engine for your car - it costs a bomb, and negates almost all the savings on fuel that one has been enjoying up to that point. I faced an additional problem - my new battery also did not perform properly. But the new one comes with a three year warranty, and they changed it again for free. I am still not happy with the mileage this one gives - it varies between 40 and 33 km per full charge, which is about half of what I used to get. But since the battery has a warranty of three years, I'm going to hang on to it till then. After that, I don't know - will cross the bridge when I come to it

Apparently the original Reva battery, right in the beginning (before Reva-i) was the best. The engineer who comes to check my car (they have at-your-doorstep-service, unless something needs to be done at the workshop) drives one of those, and the battery has been working well for 7 + years. He drives to my place in Malleswaram all the way from beyond Koramangala and back, so I'm sure the mileage is great. So if your friend is looking for a second-hand Reva, tell him to make sure it is one from the early lot, not a Reva-i. If it has the original Reva battery which came from the UK, it is a worthwhile buy. Though I wonder if anyone with that battery will want to sell it - I wouldn't

[mayankk]

Originally Posted by SS-Traveller

Wouldn't M&M dealers handle repair / maintenance for the Reva? And costs apart from battery should be much less since stuff like oil changes etc. are not there, and moving parts are also minimal.

And yes, if I had a (less than) 50-60 km/day commute, I would have been seriously interested in the Reva option too.

I meant more from the emergency roadside repair POV, but now that you mention it, there wouldnt be all that level of intricacy, no, considering the more complex moving bits are not present.

yeah, running costs are 5-star, but i would not sacrifice my 70 bucks/10km a litre/70 km a day ride yet.
Its too much fun.
barely affordable, but still within the balances

[Abhi_Automobile]

I generally try no be as direct and as harsh, but in this case I'll be so:

Stay away from the Reva. Its a piece of plastic than runs on cheap electricity. Its pint sized dimension means that to be seen in one, is such a downer! Doesn't it look like a car that was made at home by a couple of students doing their Physics project

Although I am not a big fan of LPG either, you can consider getting your Figo converted to LPG by getting decent kit. It will blunt the performance a wee bit, and the running costs are not very very affordable either. Its net significant savings still.... Since you are at Bangalore, you only have two options for affordable motoring: Diesel or LPG. Take your pick.

I generally am not great fan of LPG coz I don't think it gives significant benefits. It blunts your car's performance by say 10% and helps you cut costs by say 30%

1. Runnung on pertol: 66/11 Rs/km= 6 Rs/km
2. Running on LPG : 45/10 Rs/km= 4.5 Rs/km [LPG gives lower mileage than petrol engine]
3. Running on Diesel : 40/16 Rs/km= 2.5 Rs/km
4. Running on CNG : 32/21 Rs/km=1.5 Rs/km [CNG is sold in Kgs; so the mileage is per kg]
{ All figures Delhi to have a fair comparison since also took CNG into consideration}

So for pure running cost:
CNG?Diesel>LPG>Petrol.

You have 3 choices:

1. Spend moolah to get a diesel [unrealistic ]
2. Get current car converter to LNG [ not great savings but ok]
3. Damn! Just use the car.


Hey, I could not resist:-->
Running a car on CNG in Delhi is cheaper than running a bike in Bangalore on petrol

[brraj]

Even my wife is in the same dilemma.

But i am suggesting her used Reva mainly because

- Automatic - Ease of driving in city especially for women who does not want to press the clutch and switch gears.
- Small car - Believe me the way i was able to sqeezein in city traffic left other cars for shame & Easy parking.
- Used costs - 85000rs
- New batteries - around 70k for the whole set (Usually you will be changing 2-3 depending upon their life)
- Dent Free - hitting the car at 5kmph does not make any dent.

The points i didnt consider
- Cost per km
- Looks of the car

[honeybee]

Originally Posted by thomvee

Thats why I thought, even getting a battery change at 60,000 rupees would be justifiable.
Of course the cost of spares and maintenance on a used Reva is something I didnt have an Idea about and hence my query.

I`ve also Read about the Reva NXR/NXG coming out within the next 6 months. I asked the Mahindra dealers what the specs with regard to mileage etc would be but they wouldn't part with any information :(

If you wait for the new generation Reva, you might end up paying 4L + which you want to avoid in the first place. So if you are looking for a cheap alternative, a new generation Reva is definitely not on cards.

If you are still sure about going for a Reva, please make sure you have the charging infrastructure in place (or can get it in place). If you live in an apartment building, setting up a dedicated charging port might be difficult.

Apart from the battery pack replacement, there are routine things to watch for, such as tyre wear. You may be glad there is no engine oil, transmission oil or coolant to check/top up/replace. So the so-called periodic service would just include checking and topping up battery water.

On the plus side, the Reva is utterly silent, peppy and fun to drive. Since its body is made of ABS, it is virtually dent-free and may not even easily scratch. It sure looks odd but that should not be a big worry.

Being in Bangalore you should be able to access charging points and other service related to the electric car quite easily.

If the battery cost is not a worry and if you can set up the charging infrastructure I would say go for it.