[indivic]

Car : Tata Indica V2 DLS

Owned : 2004 - 2013, sold at 85k on the odo. My first car

Pros : Workhorse of a car, space and then some in that segment, easy maintenance

Cons : Rear independent suspension going for a toss when overloaded, lack of grunt on the highways, rough edges ,electricals prone to failing


Ownership experience:
The car never once quit anywhere ,we used to take it into interior villages in TN in our quest to visit old temples , some of these villages didn't even have fuel stations or any workshops.

My car had its fuel injection kit/pump replaced once under warranty very early on and overhauled multiple times at TASS, this despite using reliable fuel pumps, never found out what the issue was till the end.

One SA taught me to hand prime the fuel pump - used it multiple times whenever the fuel pump didn't prime over the course of the ownership period and went on



Car : Tata Nano CX

Owned : 2012 - current , 47k+ kms on the odo.

Pros : Almost perfect car for our crowded cities, go anywhere and park anywhere convenience, mostly reliable (except for the AC compressor in my car)

Cons : Owning one is almost infra dig, AC compressor has been failing - replaced twice under warranty, tiny fuel tank, small tires cannot handle pot holes, electricals starting to act up



Ownership : For my usage in city - fill it , shut it but don't forget it (fuel gauge)



As per the AC mechanic who I go to nowadays, the design of the HVAC system is at fault since the compressor is at the back and the blower etc are at the front and the piping is prone for some leaks, This combined with its length is causing load on the compressor leading to failure. I am not sure how accurate this diagnosis is. Currently I need to top up on refrigerant gas every six months.


Car : Honda Civic 1.8S

Owned : 2007 - 2010 ( company lease) , sold at 20k on the ODO

Pros : Futuristic styling, smooth engine, decent performance & FE (it had a unique implementation of the i-VTEC - http://asia.vtec.net/Engines/RiVTEC/index.html)

Cons : Soft rear and lack of GC, ingress/egress not suitable for elders


Ownership : Was a short lived dream

[mi2n]

1. Hindustan Motors

Timeline : 1995-2003

Model - Would start with a 1995 Nova Diesel as I was not very familiar with upkeep of the Mark -IV we had before this. The 1995 Nova Diesel was replaced in 2003 with a HM+ Diesel. Again there was a feeling of disconnect with the HM+ and hence will only share my experience with the Nova.


Pros : The T-Fort of the 90's. Robust, reliable, King of the road! Held up very well mechanically for all of 3 lakh kilometers over 9 years of ownership. Sought minimal attention, if at all. I remember replacing all sorts of rubber bushes and filling oil without bothering about brands and specifications.



Cons : It was neither fun or pleasing to drive. But the sheer sense of pride behind the wheel was unparalleled. The interior trims would fall apart often needing inexpensive but frequent overhauls. There was no concept of aftersales and service, I do not recall visiting a HM service center at all. There were some rust issues in the later part of the ownership, but back in it's time, it wasn't something to frown upon.



Verdict : Our Ambassador Nova was my lifeline during my best years. It was so attached to it that when it was finally sold off without my knowledge and under guise of being sent to workshop for overhaul, i was devastated. I created a ruckus at home and never could accept the replacement. All my best memories of that time revolves around the numbers 0308. I would be glad if HM ever gives me the opportunity to relive the past.




2. Chevrolet

Timeline : 2010-2016


Model : The first ever non-HM car in the family was a Chevrolet Beat 1.2 which we owned between 2010 and 2016 and driven around 67k kilometers.



Pros : For the price of an Alto, Chevrolet provided a well built, funky and modern looking car. It was very refined and the front two seats offered a premium feel. On the open roads, it was sometimes fun to drive as well. Bought the car from the same showroom from which our Ambassadors were driven out. Probably the reason why the nod of approval from the headquarters came easily. Previous attempts at purchasing non-HM cars were vehemently opposed. The purchase experience was smooth and pleasant. After-sales and service too was great while the car was in warranty or till the time it did not need any major repairs.


Cons : For folks used to the Ambassador, the Beat was strictly a two seater. Nobody wanted to get into the second row. I was always left wondering where the 80 advertised horses actually were? Oh! and the blind spots all around. 5k service intervals and early wear and tear of items like the brake pads, etc. meant upkeep was costly. The experience with GM service post warranty coverage was abysmal. At around 55k on the ODO, the steering developed rattles and play and needed to be fixed. Was repaired at FNG since GM was advising to replace the part for an obnoxious amount. Then the suspension parts started to give away. The clutch was overhauled unnecessarily at 60k with a sneakily taken approval from my wife. The car was not used much after 2014 and by early 2016, the fuel pump started acting up.



Verdict : Once bitten, twice shy.




3. Ford

Timeline : 2014-present

Model : The small car from the big American. In 2014, a Ford Figo TDCi was brought into the family. I could never comfortably drive the petrol Beat and having got the opportunity to drive the other small petrol hatchbacks, I had deduced that i could never be at peace with these small petrol mills. They needed to be prodded and shoved a bit too much to make them move. A bit too much for my liking. I missed the low end grunt of the diesels and the resulting ease of driving. I am also too sedate to take advantage of the top-end performance of petrol engines.



Pros : The ownership experience with Ford has been excellent. Right from the experience of striking the deal to taking delivery and now after almost 6 years and nearing one lakh kilometers on the ODO. I fell sick and was hospitalized a couple of days before the scheduled delivery. When I finally turned up at the showroom, the car was kept ready and surprisingly was fitted with the best looking seat covers they had on their display. It wasn't part of our deal and I was told it was a gesture to make me feel good after having spent a few days at the hospital due to illness. The service experience has not been any less stellar. Upkeep has been relatively cheap with no major replacements or repairs till date. The regular wear and tear parts are a bit costly but they last much longer as well. Very rarely has any unnecessary/additional service been insisted upon. That apart, Ford would keep sending me mementos, Christmas cakes and Greeting cards every year. The car, is a bundle of joy by itself. It connects to you like no other in it's segment.


Cons : There's absolutely nothing wrong with the product, though many would rightfully say that the car could do with a more powerful engine. But, I feel absolutely at home while driving the Figo. It's tailor-made for my driving style. The car looked dated out of the showroom but I've somewhat managed to address that by adding alloys and custom headlights. It is easily the best looking car in my garage now. Off-late, I've switched to FNGs totally owing to exorbitant labor costs at FASS. FASS has also been unresponsive towards non-scheduled jobs and for addressing specific customer requests which as per them traverses their laid down policies. For e.g. they would not change a squeaking drive belt separately without changing all the pulleys alongwith.



Verdict : Cringer, as I've christened our Figo (named after the Tiger of He-Man of the popular Masters of the Universe series) has become my lifeline. He has been part of many of the happiest moments of my life including bringing my daughter home. I cannot think of parting with him ever. Would I want another ownership experience with Ford? Absolutely!




4. Mahindra


Timeline : 2016-Present


Model : TUV300 (going back to our diesel roots completely). By early 2016, I've made numerous trips to Sikkim with the Figo. I was falling in love with the Himalayas and being able to drive in my own car up there which provided such freedom and scope which allows one to actually see, feel and connect with the Himalayas like never before. While the Figo was immense fun on the windy sections, it was a nightmare to negotiate bad roads and rocky terrains owing to the low ground clearance. The rear would sag further upon loading which made it impossible to be used as a family tourer. The Beat was lying almost idle at home and it was decided to replace the Beat with a spacious vehicle with high ground clearance and oodles of torque. A vehicle for the Himalayas!





Pros : Sturdy, spacious, cheap, reliable, fuel efficient, wide service network, cheap to maintain, street cred, easy to drive and absolutely abuse friendly. The TUV has helped me fulfill many of my dreams and hopefully will continue to do so.


Cons : Below average showroom/purchase experience. Missed timelines. Vehicle delivered with low coolant, defective boot lock and stained door. Bumpy ride at middle row. Service centers are a mixed bag. Most are below par while a few would go overboard in addressing customer issues. While my initial service visits have been abysmal, the experience has been significantly better in recent visits. It finally boils down to the service advisor. If you are lucky and find a good advisor, your worries are all addressed in a jiffy. Drive down to the wrong folks and you'll revisit your worse nightmares. As is said here in Team-BHP, it's a hit or miss. The numerous reports of niggles and failures from fellow owners play on your mind constantly.



Verdict : After 3 years and 40k kilometers of tripping across the Northern parts of our country in absolute peace of mind and enjoying every moment without any bother, my love and trust towards the car and the brand have grown in leaps and bounds. I have found, through hit and trial, two service advisors and a head mechanic whom I can rely on. The TUV has cocooned us in harshest terrains and conditions and proven it's worth to us on all counts. So, Mahindra! Yay or Nay? Definitely Yay!




5. Toyota

Timeline : 2019-Present

Model : 2011 Etios 1.5 Petrol. Last year, we purchased the Etios for two reasons. Firstly, the parents wanted a car which has easier ingress/egress than the Figo and was more comfortable than the TUV. Secondly, my sister and the missus had just passed their driving tests and the Figo and TUV needed a decoy.


Pros : It is too hard to form any firm opinion about the Toyota. Maybe it is too early. Well for starters, it was very cheap. It is easy and surprisingly fun to drive as well. It is comfortable and spacious. Boasts of a surprisingly good safety rating. Parents like the Etios. My only tryst with the Toyota service has been satisfactory. They seem to be professionals.


Cons : The Etios is a split personality. It is a car with strong fundamentals and a good engine. But it looks bland and dated. It is feather-light and the thin sheet metal is easily disturbed. There is absolutely no cabin insulation and you cannot have a conversation at highway speeds. You simply wouldn't be able to hear the rear seat occupants over the noises that merrily intrudes into the cabin. In the city, honking neighbors or for that matter the meek horn of the car itself will irritate you and force you to rake up that volume slider on the head unit. The dashboard makes you feel sad when to look at it but is otherwise quite functional and everything falls in your hand. Everything inside the cabin looks and feels too cheap and sometimes embarrassing. A huge departure from the touted "Q Class" standards. They do seem to age well however. There is not a single rattle or squeak in the 8 year old car.



Verdict : Honestly, I have not formed my opinion on the Toyota yet.

[freakmuzik]

Name of the car brand - Maruti
Cars owned from that brand - Wagon R 1.0
Number of years I have owned/used a car from that brand - 9 years and counting
The number of Kilometers covered - 82,000 km

Pros
1. Reliable and gives no reason to worry
2. Plentiful Service Centres available
3. Extremely easy availability of spares (Genuine and Otherwise)
4. Cars are pretty much functional even after many years
5. Constant follow up from Service Centers
6. Very approachable service staff and sales staff

Cons
1. Poor Build Quality and Plastic Quality
2. Seats are thin and not so supportive
3. Overcrowded Service Centers
4. Sometimes try to push unnecessary works
5. Body shop can be a rip off
6. Feeling of being unsafe in the car.


Name of the car brand - Tata
Cars owned from that brand - Nano LX (2010) and Nano GenX (2015 - present)
Number of years I have owned/used a car from that brand - 10 years and counting
The number of Kilometers covered - 60,000 kms combined

Pros:
1. Ease of use in the city and there was no such car in the price range with the space
2. Servicing was so easy on the pocket
3. Though Service is slow, they do sometimes try to help
4. They try to keep improving their cars (2009 Nano to 2015 Nano was some incredible improvement esp observable in long term ownership)

Cons:
1. Service experience has always been mixed bag.
2. Inconsistent quality across many cars of Tata
3. General refinement
4. Long term wear and tear - a Nexon test drive vehicle had worn off steering wheel and door pads and didn't give me a good impression
5. Brand image


Name of the car brand - Hyundai
Cars owned from that brand - Eon
Number of years I have owned/used a car from that brand - under 6 years
The number of Kilometers covered - 38,000 kms and counting

Pros:
1. Quality of interiors and fit and finish across the brand
2. No nonsense car
3. A better brand perception compared to Maruti and Tata

Cons:
1. Have hated the service experience from Day 1.
2. EPS module malfunction, Boot hinge is kaput, poor ground clearance - have had not so happy moments with my car and I cannot buy a Hyundai again anytime soon due to fear of reliability.
3. What further escalated that fear is the lack of escalation to Hyundai team. It always just comes back to the service center and it's like you have no one else to talk to.
4. Rip-off mentality of Service Centers (at least the three different ones I've tried)
5. Characterless-ness in the cars I've driven (sans the old Santro)


Out of the three brands, I will surely not buy a Hyundai anytime soon as I've not been able to have a positive impression in my mind yet. With Maruti, I might buy only if I find a product where they've really improved in terms of build quality and feel of the vehicle. Only S-Cross has left me impressed across their entire portfolio as the next car I buy surely demands a well-built and feel-good interior. Tata, I sure am open to buy again as though there's been misses in terms of servicing, they have only improved from the first time I bought one.The cars have matured drastically and the 2015 Nano is just so ahead from the 2009 iteration. Altroz feels superiorly built compared to Nexon. So yes, Tata will still be in my list of possible brands in the future.

[SS-Traveller]

Originally Posted by Samba

We have ownership reviews in Team-Bhp, which gives us an excellent insight on the car & it's brand.

A similar thread exists on this topic -
https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/india...-team-bhp.html (Reliability and hassle-free ownership: Perceptions of popular car brands on Team-bhp)

I will request to post on the car brands which we have owned/used for a substantial period of time. Want to keep this thread limited to just first hand experiences from the owners.

The purpose of this thread is to have a gist of pros & cons of the manufactures/brands available in India. The focus will be more on the brand rather than the car.

Very well-chosen topic, Samba. On the one hand, we have ownership reports, where one needs to trawl through multiple pages to find out the ownership experiences, and on the other hand, there's the 'Perceptions' thread, where one may not own the brand but has certain opinions based on second-hand or third-hand information. For example, I think VW/Škoda cars are terrible in their reliability and service costs, but are fun to drive. OTOH I think Toyotas are the epitome of reliability, but are overpriced for the package they offer. Both opinions can be discounted because I have never owned either a Škoda or Toyota, but have owned Maruti, Mahindra, Tata and Hyundai vehicles (as also HM Ambassadors - at least 3 of them since the time I learnt driving - but let's not discuss those here).

So here goes my perspective:

Name of the car brand: Tata

Cars owned from that brand: Indica V2 DLS (2001-2005)

Number of years you have owned/used a car from that brand: ~3.5 years

The number of Kilometers covered by the cars from that brand: ~100,000 km

Pros & cons of that brand:
Pros:
- Big & spacious
- Comfortable ride quality
- Good fuel economy
- Cheap spares
- Easy to service anywhere

Cons:
- Breakdowns, niggles are too frequent
- Technology used is not current
- Poor durability of components
- Not an enjoyable car to drive enthusiastically
- Authorized service stations are perpetually crowded and offer a miserable experience
- Poor resale value

Disclaimer: Since my ownership experience of 15+ years ago, Tata has moved on and addressed some of those cons I believe. But my perception has remained, and I am averse to buying Tata vehicles even today.
_______________________________________

Name of the car brand: Maruti

Cars owned from that brand: SS-80 (1988-1990; 2001-2003), M-800 (1998-2001), Zen (jellybean)(2003-2006), Swift ZXi (2006-2018), Ciaz Alpha (2019-till date)

Number of years you have owned/used a car from that brand: Too many years!

The number of Kilometers covered by the cars from that brand: Over 500,000 km combined

Pros & cons of that brand:
Pros:
- Easy to maintain, spares available anywhere, lots of ASCs, FNGs are familiar with the car models
- Fun to drive (especially the SS-80 and Swift)
- Durable and reasonably fail-safe
- Decent fuel economy
- Good resale value, quick resale
- Reasonably up-to-date technology (Ciaz's Smart Hybrid system)

Cons:
- 'Tin can' perception of poor build quality - I haven't managed to crash any of my cars yet, so cannot comment on this. My perspective on this: I believe the toughest and safest of cars can maim or kill occupants in the right circumstances, and I try my utmost to not be in a crash
- No exclusivity - too many Marutis of every shape, size and colour on our roads
- Some Marutis rattle (especially the Swift)
- New Marutis lack some safety kit, like rear fog lamps, side airbags etc.

Disclaimer: No, I am not a die-hard Maruti fan. I just drive them for the convenient ownership experience they offer.
_________________________________________

Name of the car brand: Mahindra

Cars owned from that brand: Scorpio VLX 4wd (2009-2019, Thar CRDe (2017 - till date)

Number of years you have owned/used a car from that brand: ~13 years

The number of Kilometers covered by the cars from that brand: ~175,000 km

Pros & cons of that brand:
Pros:
- Go-anywhere capability
- Reasonably reliable and fail-safe, very robust, can handle a lot of abuse on bad roads
- Easy to maintain, spares available anywhere, lots of ASCs, FNGs are familiar with the car models
- Good resale value, quick resale
- Good road presence
- High driving position with good all-round visibility

Cons:
- Not the most comfortable vehicle to drive enthusiastically
- Lack of safety kit - no rear fog lamps, no airbags in both the models I own/have owned. That said, The Scorpio VLX was one of the first of the common vehicles to come with TPMS as OE
- Authorized service centres have become unusually expensive lately
- New vehicle costs have spiralled up over the last 10 years, more than other manufacturers
___________________________________

Name of the car brand: Hyundai

Cars owned from that brand: Accent Viva CRDi (2004-2009)

Number of years you have owned/used a car from that brand: ~5 years

The number of Kilometers covered by the cars from that brand: ~103,000 km

Pros & cons of that brand:
Pros:
- Cutting edge technology - the first common rail diesel engines were introduced by Hyundai at that time
- Good build quality
- Comfortable to drive enthusiastically - always wondered why people complain that Hyundais have 'boat-like' dynamics
- Service costs were reasonable in the initial ownership years
- Decent fuel efficiency

Cons:
- Service costs shot up a couple of years later, and started to become unreasonable. I believe they still are on the higher side
- Spare parts were not easy to come by, and FNGs were not familiar with the technology under the bonnet
- Not very fail-safe - probably the only car other than the Indica that has left me stranded on the road
- Resale value not good

[tacho9000]

Originally Posted by Samba

1) Car brand -

Maruti

Attachment 1962692

Cars owned - Maruti Alto, Maruti Alto K10

Number of years I used cars from Maruti - 5 Years

The total number of Kilometers covered by the cars from this brand- - 60,000 km

Pros & cons of the ownership-

Pros-

1) Reasonable service cost.
2) Huge number of service centers available, so it's easy to find one even in a remote place.
3) Spares parts are easily available.
4) Outside service centers, local FNG mechanics are pretty well versed with cars manufactured by Maruti.

Cons-

1) Service centers are over crowded.
2) Many of the service executives will try to convince you on getting some extra jobs done, which are not mentioned by Maruti. They try to fleece the customers.
3) Work done is not always up-to the owners satisfaction. They are always in a hurry and they do not give much time.
4) Once a body repair work was done on my Alto K10, the work was pathetic.
5) After the warranty period, I preferred FNG's.


Note- The above pics are not clicked by me. Shared them from Google.

Very true what you have said about Maruti Suzuki. The service centres are usually very overcrowded, more so if one gives the visit during the weekends. Lots of minor miscellaneous small jobs are left unattended and washing quality for those who opt for it is pretty pathetic. The best option for an MSIL car user is to visit during the weekdays except for Friday as they have relatively far too less number of cars to attend to and the minor details are taken care off. Unfortunately this is something not a lot of people can afford to make possible and they're left not so satisfied. Another point highlighted is unnecessary add-ons despite the car not needing them. As an attentive person, I've been able to survive through this fleecing tendencies, though know enough number of persons who've been fleeced with add on services. And the parts availability makes it a true dream for anyone who wants his/her car to be serviced at an FNG. I myself do the minor bits and pieces at FNG. One Pro Tip for MSIL service centres is to try and develop a good rapport with an SA and a mechanic which will help get the nitty-gritty issues get attended to. As usual an awesome thread.

Regards,
Subhra

[PointZero]

Fantastic thread Samba Da. This single thread is suppose to be really helpful for future car buyers. Is there any similar thread for motorcycle ?

Brand:- Mahindra

Cars owned - Bolero-SLX-M2DICR

Number of years I used cars from Mahindra - 6 years and continuing.

The number of Kilometers covered by the cars from that brand - 1,15,000 KM

Pros & cons of the ownership-

Pros-

• Reliable and peace of mind.
• Easy to maintain. Lots of service centre on highways and parts available in rural areas.
• No Nonsense mechanicals.
• Go anywhere capabilities.
• Almost zero blind spot and commanding driving position.
• Good service backup from Mahindra even after warranty period is over.
• Not to worry about fuel quality in rural areas.
• Very spacious engine bay and easy access to most of the components.
• Value for money.

Cons-

• Driver and co-driver seats have very less thigh support and overall not a comfortable car.
• Missing basic safety features and horrible braking.
• Missing basic features. Like - No option to adjust ORVM internally. No option of a/c air flow direction. No option of bluetooth or USB drive in 2013.
• Less utility space, you can keep only one 1L water bottle. If I keep two then it is difficult to engage the back gear.
• Third row is not at all a seating options for adults and the a/c is not capable enough for cooling the third row.
• Mahindra is increasing the car prices thrice a year.

——————-
Brand:- Maruti

Cars owned - Esteem-LX

Number of years I used cars from Maruti - 4 years

The number of Kilometers covered by the cars from that brand - 50000 km (approx)

Pros & cons of the ownership-

Pros-

• Reliable.
• Fun to drive.
• Value for money.
• Good fuel economy.
• Pocket friendly maintenance.

Cons-

• Poor build quality.

[Teqhead]

Just my two cents on my experience:-
Maruti- Alto
Pros- spares easily available, service stations almost everywhere, repairs can easily be carried out in local garages(specially for alto), cheapest servicing.
Cons- low reliability of repairs, crowded service stations, ‘desi’ approach of professionals.

Chevrolet- Aveo
Pros- luxury at a low price, sturdy built quality, silent petrol, powerful engine in its category, quick servicing aka no crowd😃.
Cons- poor availability of service stations, costly spares, frequent repairs after 5 years of ownership( air conditioning, rubber belt, seals etc), poor economy.

Honda- Brio
Pros- solid built, excellent engine (ivtech) characteristics, Comfortable at high speeds, clean and well organised service stations( bangalore, karnal, delhi), no niggles.
Cons- spares are sparse, costly paid servicing(9k paid for normal servicing), fewer service centres, cannot absorb bumps at all.

[BoneCollector]

A very nice thread. This thread can become an encyclopedia sort of thing. Let me contribute.

Brand 1.
Name of the car brand- Maruti Suzuki

Cars owned from that brand-

• M800 - 1987 to 2005/6
• Alto 800 LXi - 2005 to 2008
• Ritz - 2010 to 2018
• Wagon R - 2012 till date
• Brezza - 2016 till date
• S-Cross - 2018 till date

Number of years you have owned/used a car from that brand- 1997 till date

The number of Kilometers covered by the cars from that brand-

• M800 - over 150000kms
• Alto - around 25000kms
• Ritz - around 75000kms
• Wagon R - 48000kms right now
• Brezza - 18500kms right now
• S-Cross - 20000kms right now

Pros-

• Service network.
• Local MASS is like a FNG to me.
• Ease of upgrades.

Cons-

• Over crowded.
• Parts are not that robust like it used to be earlier.
• Service cost is increasing.
• Extra stuff during service.
• Poor build quality except Ritz>S-Cross>Brezza.

Brand 2
Name of the car brand- Hyundai

Cars owned from that brand-

• Santro 2005-2012
• Santro 2012-2013

Number of years you have owned/used a car from that brand-

• 2005 to 2013

The number of Kilometers covered by the cars from that brand-

• around 70000kms (60+10)

Pros-

• Well built car, although the first Santro was much better built than the second one.

Cons-

• Very poor service station, atleast locally and the one at Patna.
• Service advisors had less clue as to what has gone wrong.
• Parts unavailability

.


The reason we have stuck to Maruti is due to my peace of mind with respect to the service aspect.

[chiranjitp]

1) Maruti


Cars owned - Maruti Omni (1999-present), Maruti Zen (2015-2018), Maruti Swift (2018-present).

Number of years I used cars from Maruti - 20 Years & counting

The total number of Kilometers covered by the cars from this brand- - 150,000 km approx

Pros & cons of the ownership-

Pros-

1) Parts are cheap & easily available.
2) MASS are available everywhere.
3) Every FNG can work on a Maruti, parts are easily available in the open market.
4) Very reliable & abuse friendly vehicles.
5) Good resale value.


Cons-

1) Very light build quality & perceived lack of safety.
2) Poor NVH & rattle prone interiors.
3) Very common, you won't stand out in the crowd.
4) MASS have a bad tendency to inflate the service bill by including unnecessary items.
5) Even for normal servicing, MASS has gotten expensive over the years. Better to go the FNG way for old vehicles.


2) FIAT


Cars owned - FIAT Punto MJD (2012-2016)

Number of years I used cars from FIAT - 4.5 years.

The total number of Kilometers covered by the cars from this brand- - 103,000 km

Pros & cons of the ownership-

Pros-

1) Perfect balance between ride & handling.
2) A driver's car with that awesome steering, brilliant brakes, perfect suspension calibration.
3) Solid build & stunning looks. NVH is good as well.
4) FASS doesn't unnecessarily push for useless things, they even skip some necessary things .
5) Exclusivity, you would be driving one of a kind vehicle on the road.


Cons-

1) Resale value is really bad.
2) Parts are not easily available, many things need to be ordered from the factory.
3) Not as reliable as a Maruti, niggles are common.
4) FNGs are not well versed with FIATs, parts are also not easily available in the open market.
5) Some parts are a bit expensive & require frequent replacement (e.g brake pads).


3) Ford


Cars owned - Ford Ecosport TDCi.

Number of years I used cars from Ford - 3 Years & counting

The total number of Kilometers covered by the cars from this brand- - 66,000 km.

Pros & cons of the ownership-

Pros-

1) Solid build with rattle free interiors.
2) Fun to drive with good NVH.
3) FASS has been good so far, service costs have been surprisingly cheap.
4) Reliability is good enough (My cousin has a Fiesta 1.6 with 160k km on the odo) .
5) Parts are priced reasonably & are also available in the open market (they have their own spare parts outlet like MGP store).


Cons-

1) Suspension tuning not set for comfort.
2) Some parts cost a bomb to replace (e.g alloys, bonnet hinge).
3) Fords are still a bit complicated to work on, especially for FNGs.
4) Nowhere near as many service centers as Maruti.
5) Fuel efficiency is on the lesser side (especially for petrol models).

[Leoshashi]

Originally Posted by chiranjitp

3) Ford

Pros-

3) FASS has been good so far, service costs have been surprisingly cheap.

Cons-

2) Some parts cost a bomb to replace (e.g alloys, bonnet hinge).

This is a common trait I have noticed in all current Fords. The spares which you need on a regular basis like the service items or consumables are surprisingly cheap. I won't be surprised if the total service bill of a Maruti is twice that of a comparable Ford.

But go beyond that and spares which aren't commonly needed, you end up knowing where they are earning from. Thankfully for most such needs, insurance is there.

Regards,
Shashi

[advenk999]

Cars owned :

Maruti Suzuki :

Coming from all three generations of the Swift, I can vouch for their reliability of the last two.The latest one being the AMT, it has done only 5000kms, so I'm yet to see if this is a reliable machine or not.

Period of Ownership : 2006-2012 (Black Lxi 1.3GBB - 84,000kms)
2012-2019 ( White Vxi - 81,000kms)
2019 - (Midnight Blue ZXi+ AMT - 5000kms currently)

Pros :

- Being a Swift Fanboy, I can vouch for a go-kart like handling and decent ride quality. Tyres make a world of a difference, so chucked the rubbish OEM Goodyear's to brilliant Continentals.

- Smooth petrols. The refinements improved further with the 1.2K series with the introduction of the variable valve timing (VVT).

- Hassle free ownership with availability of parts and parts off the counter. Part support is never a problem.

- Never broke down even during heavy rains and flooding. I once picked up a stranded Mercedes owner on a flooded road and that guy genuinely thanked me for my efforts and said that "Your Maruti is definitely the king of Indian roads! The Benz is nowhere close in terms of reliability especially in such conditions!"

- Service center is a good 2kms away from home. Enjoy my walk upon dropping it for service. Plus, service networks all over the place.

- Fuel efficiency : Improving greatly over generations. Now couple that with the fun factor and you've got a product of great value!

Cons :

- Lighter build quality over the generations. Although every variant is equipped with dual airbags, EBD and BA, the abysmal 2 star safety rating is nothing home to write about. Small stones and chips over the highway cause minor irritating dings on the car.

- Paint quality. Nothing great. Clear coat scratches easily and needs waxing/polishing regularly. Mid night blue, though sexy, is a nightmare to maintain. Paint is also thin. A friend's swift scraped a bike and the paint flaked off like flaky wall putty.

- Rattle king. The previous two cars owned rattled from areas you couldn't even figure out. Infact got my prev gen stripped at my FNG to diagnose and the door pads had all sorts of dangling bits and the horn pad on the steering had come loose!
So far, the new car has not had any rattle till date, fingers crossed. Never know!

- If you thought Maruti service was cheap, think again! It has become expensive over time and the cost with GST factored in comes nothing short of 8.5-9k. The use of complete synthetic oil adds to the major portion of cost. But yes, Shell synth oil is great! Motul 8100 Xcess is even better.. Now Ford service is cheaper!

- Overcrowded service centers. The way the boys drive the cars inside makes your stomach churn. I make it a point to personally drive into the service bay. I've seen them brushing cars like driving bumper cars in an arcade. Pathetic attitude when it comes to handling cars.

- Pathetic OEM parts especially below par output of headlights and tyres. Swap the tyres immediately and check out for better headlamps. The ZXI+ LEDs seem useless during heavy rains.

Rest apart, I stick to this brand only for its reliability. I'm honest in this regard.


Ford Ecosport : (2017-2019) (Ecoboost 1.0)

Pros :

Excellent vehicle. Solid and bulletproof vehicle and a beast to drive on the highways. Absolutely a driver's delight!
Two years and 49k kms was done in a blink of an eye.
Build quality of a tank.

Sync3 - one of the best units out there.

Reliable service. Pretty reasonable and good SA's. Definitely better than Maruti. Diagnose over replacement!

Cons :

Low on rear space. Wasn't too comfortable on long drives.

The clutch was heavy and dad was finding it difficult to use it especially in the city. Tiredness used to build up easily as the low end driveability was weak. The dragon has a nicer lower end.

Kia Seltos(2020 -) (3000kms at present)

The launch of the KIA and availability of automatics in all three engines made us inclined towards convenience. Hence the poor Ecosport had to find its way out. I still regret and miss it today.

However, that said, the 1.4 GTX+ puts a smile to the face on a free stretch of road!

Cons : Misses the Ecosport build.

Drive on!

[vishchan]

Name of the car brand - Ford
Cars owned from that brand - Ford Figo 1.4 TDCi
Number of years you have owned/used a car from that brand - 7.5 years
The number of Kilometers covered by the cars from that brand - 84000
Pros -
Extremely well designed and comfortable car, does good job both in city as well as highway. Great stability at high speeds, high quality hydraulic power steering which gives great confidence.
Service centres aren't very crowded, and usually can even walk-in and give the vehicle for service of ad-hoc checkup
Cons -
Cost of spares is little high.
Supervisors are more eager to replace and diagnose and repair. Repair is almost unknown to them. Ex - Had a AC issue after 80k, Service advisor said, they have to open the dash, replace thermistor which would cost more than 10k and would require 3 days to procure the part. 3rd Party AC service guy checked the pressure at the compressor and re-filled the gas which costed 1300Rs, took about 30mins to fix the issue, after which AC is working without any issues.

[SaiSW]

Brand - Tata
Car - Tiago XZ 2016 petrol
Pros
Build quality: i do think they make amongst the best built cars in their respective segments. Good high speed stability of my Tiago is a result of this, on the other hand, i fear to take the swift anything above 80.
Features: yes there have been some feature deletions, but they still, in my opinion, have the best feature set for the price
Reliability: - i am only referring to the engine- yes this might not be a popular opinion but my family owns a tiago and in my extended family, there are several nexons and tiagos and not one of them have had issues mechanically, like injector issues or anything else. I do think their engines are pretty reliable now.

Cons
Service - i would not call it bad, rather inconsistent. The service experience of my Tiago has been far from satisfying.
Fit and finish issues - i will not include the altroz in this list as I'm yet to extensively check one, but their current product range certainly has fit and finish issues. The black plastic which runs along either side of the roof ( to cover the weld marks i think? ) are loose on the front end and i can pull them outwards with my hand, same goes for the door insulation material and various other plastic panels.
I'm not talking about my Tiago alone, but the Nexon and tigor also has the same issues.
NVH - my car is a 2016 make and the NVH is bad. It vibrates pretty bad and sounds like a diesel almost, down the rev range. The engine is audible from pretty much any rpm.
But i have to say I've driven a 2019 Tiago and it is much better, although still not upto the mark.

[TejasKinger]

Cars Owned:

Ford

Cars Owned: Ford Ikon 1.3 Nxt

Period of Ownership: 2003 - 2014

Kilometers Driven: 95,000

Pros:

1. While not a patch on the legendary Ford Ikon 1.6, the 1.3 was still the mini-Josh Machine.
2. Sharp Handling, Still felt pure and mechanical.
3. Build quality and looks for its time were still far better than contemporaries.
4. Fairly reliable during its tenure with us.

Cons:

1. Expensive to service (early Fords were known for this).
2. Weak Brakes (felt like they were made of wood, had a few minor mishaps and a lot of near misses due to this).
3. Electrical failures - Horn, Power Windows, Lights, etc., towards the end of life.
4. Dealership/Service experience was never something to complain about, neither was it anything special.
5. Below average resale value.

Mahindra

Cars Owned: Mahindra Scorpio 2.6 CRDe

Period of Ownership: 2008 - 2016

Kilometers Driven: 65,000

Pros:
1. Rugged, Abuse-friendly, reliable vehicle.
2. Butch, intimidating nature. No one would dare to cut you off.
3. Refined diesel mill, great mile muncher.
4. Great resale value.

Cons:
1. Ergonomic disaster.
2. Excessive nose-dive during hard braking, bouncy boat-like ride quality.
3. Lack of safety kit.
4. Too many crude edges for its price.
5. Dealership/Service experience was never something to complain about, neither was it anything special.

Hyundai

Cars Owned: Hyundai Grand i10 1.2 P, Hyundai Creta 1.6 P Auto

Period of Ownership: (2015 - Continuing - Grand i10), (2018 - Continuing - Creta)

Kilometers Driven: 50,000 (Collectively)

Pros:
1. Hassle-free, feature-loaded, comfortable cars.
2. Superb refinement.
3. The Grand i10 is perfect for a congested city like Bangalore, the Creta is great for both city driving as well as Highway driving.
4. Reliability.
5. Superb sales and servicing experience.

Cons:
1. Thirsty petrol engines.
2. Lack of safety kit (Grand i10)

[maravind]

Car Brand - Maruti Suzuki
Cars Owned - Alto (2006), Swift(2009), Ertiga (2013), Ertiga (2019)
Number of years we've used Maruti cars ~=14
Total number of Kilometers covered by cars from this brand - 2L+9K+2.5L+40K~=5L

Experience with this brand:

Right from the purchase of the Alto in 2006, we've been greatly satisfied with the experience of owning a Maruti car. We frequently travel to our native place which is around 450 kms from Chennai. In fact, the car could accommodate 8 members (4 of us were under 10 years though). We clocked around 2L kms before selling it. We were completely satisfied with the experience of that car (I was very young back then, but still dad keeps telling that it was one hell of a car for that price)

Then we bought a Swift. To our bad luck, it developed an axle problem right after six months and it required to be serviced very frequently. I think there was some defect in manufacturing in our car. So, we were not at all satisfied with the experience of owning a Swift. Dad didn't want to buy a car from that dealer again.

Then we bought an Ertiga in 2013. It suited our requirements very well. We became 'grown ups' so all of us preferred an individual seat for ourselves. Excellent Mileage, Low Maintenance Cost are two key factors which made us happy. We used it for 6 years and the odometer clocked around 2.5 lakhs. Added to that, we drove it for around 10k-15k kms while the odometer was not working. It started giving a lot of problems - gear box transmission, timing belt and eventually every part started to wear out. So, we decided to not to keep it with us any longer.

Then in 2019, we booked the new Ertiga after considering Marazzo and XUV500. There was no looking beyond Maruti and since it was an Ertiga, the alternatives were immediately turned down. So, we booked an Ertiga in the month of Feb in 2019. At that point in time, the waiting time for Ertiga was approximately 3 months due to the huge demand. Even after three months, our car wasn't ready. We booked Metallic Grey color but since our previous car needed a lot of repair to be done if it needs to be used, we decided to go with the Pearl Red color. My dad also liked that color. So, we went ahead and told the dealer about it. The dealer also agreed to it. Since then, it has been a good 6 months with the new Ertiga.

To sum up, the pros and cons of owning a Maruti (as per my limited understanding and experience) are:


Pros:

• Easy to maintain
• Easily available spare parts.
• Many of the FNG mechanics knew to work with it. Our old Ertiga literally broke down in the middle of a national highway. A mechanic from a nearby roadside shop temporarily fixed it and there were no further problems in that journey
• Plenty of Service Centers available. We had an issue with the brake pads and battery while on a tour to Chottanikkara (a small town in Kerala). We were able to get the brake pads serviced and also the battery charged in a couple of hours.
• Good resale value. Even after using our Ertiga for around 6 years clocking 2.5L+ kms, it fetched around 3L when it's condition also wasn't great

Cons:

• Service centers are mostly overcrowded. Since Maruti sells a lot of cars in the lower segments, service centers receive many cars everyday.
• As they receive many cars everyday, they are pretty much cramped for time to service the cars. So, there are high chances that services don't meet our expectations. So, after the initial few services, we give our car to a well known FNG for service. Though, it would take a longer time compared to an Authorised Service Center, the work done is satisfactory.
• Not so great build quality. A minor crash makes the car look odd - either the paint goes off (or) a big dent is formed.