Hello Folks,
Apologies for not sharing the most exciting update for me, the car coming home. Let me try and share the entire experience:
The car: A Silver G CVT Variant. It gets all the regular features like projector headlamps, steering mounted controls, rear wipers, center armrest, alloys, Apple car play & Android Auto, etc. What it misses out mostly is on DRLs, Auto headlamps/wipers, rear camera, UV tint glass to name a few.
Toyota Lakozy Andheri East: The entire experience of dealing with this showroom has been top notch. My benchmark for service and responsiveness is Maruti and these guys are right there. I was negotiating the price with them & Millennium Toyota Santacruz & considering the final offer given by Lakozy & the fact that their outlet is a 5 min walk from my home, I decided to buy the car from them.
I walked in their showroom with a cheque book & the final price was negotiated in ten minutes as 90% of the price alignment was done on phone. I have been dealing with Mr Hiren who has been extremely professional, methodical and clear in communication. The day I booked the car, I got a clear list of docs to be shared. I took company car loan that got approved in a week. I got a 60K discount on the on-road price.
The day I paid the full money to Toyota, my ask was that the car should go for registration AFTER I do the PDI & I only opted for basic accessories like mats, mud flaps & asked them to fit the rear view camera as it was the only major feature I feel missing Vs the V variant.
Also, the day I paid them the money, I was added in a whatsapp group that has Hiren, The insurance guy, the service manager of that outlet & the dealership manager. I thought this was an extremely good gesture as they all are super responsive to any query I have. This just makes the entire experience so hassle free unlike some other companies where my experience was pathetic while I waited for weeks for simple reverts. In Insurance, I opted for RTI, zero dep & have taken the extended warranty, taking the total warranty to 5 years or 1 lac kms.
Day of PDI: It took me a week to pay them in full. I was kept well updated about the cars arrival. For the PDI, the car was kept inside the showroom. It took me 40 mins to complete the PDI after which the car was moved back to its parking area.
Delivery day: The next 5-6 days went by in completing few formalities and the delivery day arrived. By 12:30 me and my wife went to the showroom. All the documents were handed over, features were explained, Dos and Don'ts for an automatic were explained and in 30 mins we were out. I was not expecting them to do any pooja rituals considering the Pandemic situation.
The car: I come from a humble Ritz VDI that served me beautifully. It was my first car and will remain special to me for all my life. Compared to the Ritz, below are my observations:
Likes:
- NVH. The basic difference between the diesel clatter & the petrol humm. Frankly, I love the diesel clatter, but my family loves the calmer more polished experience when it comes to NVH.
- Features: This is the first car I am owning which has a Day/Night auto IRVM, steering mounted controls & ACC & I am never going back to a car without these features. What a beautiful difference it makes in the whole driving experience. Especially the steering mounted controls & ACC. No more looking at the central console while driving.
- Space: The primary reason why we wanted a new car was the lack of space in Ritz. This has been covered enough so I won't elaborate more on this.
- The CVT: Loving it. At 80 the RPM needle is near 2K mark and it cruises so smoothly. I am learning the art of throttle input to get the best out of the CVT and considering that I live in Mumbai and won't ever do a drag race, this is just so perfect. CVT is MILES better than an AMT as I recall all my test drives of AMT equipped cars.
- Headlights: This car has LED Projectors and I find them way better than the Ritz but frankly, now that I am experiences rains, the yellow light is no match for the white LEDs. But it is not too bad either and in normal situation they are more than adequate.
Things that I am getting used to:
- The lower stance of the car: Ritz is a beautiful tall boy and it felt more airy, this doesn't. Vertical space is a compromise, length and width of the car is an upgrade.
- Throttle input: Coming from a Diesel, Petrols need more revving and I am learning it. The 1.3 Diesel was a breeze require mild inputs once it was in its Turbo range. Petrols need some more revving right from the word Go.
I have only driven it for 50 kms or so hence the list of dislikes will need more observation. I am never behind squeezing FEs from the cars but for those who are curious, I am getting 12 KMPL as of now as shown on MID. The upcoming Nasik/Pune trips will give a better idea.
This is the first automatic in my family, including my maternal & paternal first cousins. After driving it, I have come to a realization that 90% of irritation while driving was a result of our crazy traffic and the pain the legs went through. I now drive very calmly, letting the speed build up and I don't give a damn about anyone entering my lane or cutting me in traffic. For folks in metros, please do consider automatics if manuals have been your preference all this while.
Sharing some pictures. I think this color looks elegant.
Some observations on buying a car in a Pandemic: The sales guys are under pressure considering that people are struggle financially and emotionally and hence buying a new car is not a priority anymore. Footfalls in showrooms are down drastically and that is the only place where a new car is sold. Some pointers from my end:
- Its a great time to buy, be assertive on getting a good price. Don't be arrogant and demanding. As a sales profession in a non-essential category, it is a nightmarish time. I always spoke in a cool calm manner & I think I was offered a good discount. I am buying the car for many years and would want to keep wonderful relations with all the folks from whom I am buying it.
- Be patient. I could see that Hiren (the sales guy) was really multi-tasking. From getting me the forms, cars follow-up, document follow-up from me, etc. They are short on staff due to Covid and people are stretching their capacity to get work done. If there are a few days delays, be considerate. I consider myself blessed and lucky to be in a position to buy a car when many are trying to survive and trying to save their jobs. In my entire interaction with Toyota, I was very clear that they should ensure no Covid related safety compromises are done for me. I am buying a car, not a life saving urgent equipment, I can always wait and accept the delay.
- I gave detailed feedback whenever asked for. For us, its a trivial thing, but for them, getting a good feedback from customers/clients can be the difference between a great hike & an avg hike, or even a promotion. They did their part, I should do mine.
That is all from my end. Thank you!