[dicor]

My vote for 90s.

For millennials, obviously it's 2010's decade where they have seen massive growth. 2010 anyways brought so many new car brands and as well as many variant of same cars.

Post 95, with the arrival of Daewoo Cielo, market has changed drastically.
Until 1990, you've had to choose between Jeep, Ambasador, Padmini or Maruti (Omni/800) and lesser known HM Tracker, Tempo Trax but after 1995, it was

1. Pal Peugeot 309 GLD (first affordable silent diesel car compared to noisy Amby Nova or crude CJs),
2. Opel Astra,
3. Ford Escort,
4. Mahindra Classic,
5. Mahindra Armada,
6. Matiz,
7. Daewoo Cielo,
8. Daewoo Nexia,
9. Hyundai Santro,
10. Hyundai Nubira,
11. Hyundai Sonata,
12. Toyota Qualis (I loved that black colour millenium edition),
13. Fiat UNO and

there are few more which were launched between 95 to 2000).

I still remember Auto India (magazine), December 1996 issue where they had published the list of all available cars and there were 22 pages dedicated to that.

The excitement for Gen X and Gen Y was same as millenials do feel now.

[dragracer567]

I belong to the school of people who believes that newer is always better, so I obviously voted for the 2010s (and I'm sure that the 2020s will be even better), here's why:

1) Cars were faster, achieved unbelievable fuel economies and were generally more refined which made commuting everyday a less of a chore.

2) The Indians homeboys i.e Mahindra and Tata finally started punching above their own weight with the XUV500, XUV300, Harrier and Tiago!

3) Indian bike makers also started punching above their weight with the Royal Enfield 600 twins, Bajaj Dominar and TVS Apache 310 RR.

4) Touchscreens with Apple Carplay and Android Auto has made navigation a breeze!

5) Torquey turbo-petrols and VGT diesels made driving so much easier!

6) Interiors started improving so much that even the best interiors from the 2000s look spartan now (Except maybe the old Civic).

7) LED lights can be found even in a Swift, you don't need a fancy Audi anymore.

8) Automatics went mainstream even if its the hated AMT.

Some negatives?

1) Makers like GM had to leave as the market consolidated.

2) The market no longer enjoys the attention it got from global car makers like in the 2000s and now we are at a stage where Toyota and Honda are clueless on what to do.

3) Luxury car makers like BMW and Audi saw their sales peak and then dive into the ground while Mercedes stood its ground thanks to cars like the E class long wheelbase.

4) Cars unquestionably got less fun though the new-gen BMWs and even Toyotas are reversing that trend!

[Rajeevraj]

Voted for the 2000's and maybe first part of 2010's, I think this was when manufactureres were really exploring the market and bringing in a lot of good, diverse models into the market.

Post early 2010's I think everyone realized we are a lot into herd mentality and considering the purchasing power of the consumer, they would always play safe. So although we are seeing a large spike in models and volumes in the last 5-6 years most of them are cookie cutter models with very little differentiation from an engineering perspective and mostly overpriced.

One of the reasons my last purchase was in 2013.

[ShivWason17]

2000s without a doubt.

As a 15 year old boy, I was always in awe of the low slung sedans and true meaty SUVs to go with it.

No other generation could actually match the aura of the cars launched in that period.

[Aravind_M92]

Of the given chopices, 2000s were the time for good cars in India. The new major players started off in the late 90s and started bringing in cars of Global standards into India unless later when they realised India needs "custom tailored" read lowered build standards and dumping off Globally backward engines making them "compliant" to the Indian norms and regulations. From the Honda were the VTec and the i-VTec lineups! The City, Civic, CR-V and Accord. The Hyundais lined up Santro, Tuscon, Elantra, Terracan, Sonata and Accent. Accord and Sonata even came with a V6! The Ford came out with the Josh machine, The Ikon! The Fiats had Palio, Avventura and the Sienna. The Tatas had Safari (I call it the Indian X5!) and the rest were just Cabs. Skoda offered the Octavia, Fabia and the Laura. The Toyota started off with Qualis, Innova and Corolla 1.8! I wouldn't comment on the high end cars because those cars quite improved with time.
In conclusion I would say the best of cars came out just before the Major oil crisis. The era before the '73 and '08 crisis! The manufacturers barged in the best of their minds and engineered up the machines when the crisis hit them and they had to revert back and improve the engines once again to match up the performance and economy!

[stanjohn123]

I would definitely choose 2000's , there were really awesome cars during that period, like the Esteems , Safari's and Octavia's , oh and not the forget the Vtec's from Honda and I believe Innova or Qualis as well.

What was even more interesting was the fact that, car's were way reasonably priced back then with not much taxes. Unlike now, where we have to pay taxes through the nose and the car's are priced much higher as well.

[landcruiser123]

Voted 2010s. I really like how the big domestic players - Tata and Mahindra upped the game. Yes, there is some still unfulfilled potential at Mahindra, but I'm hoping we can see a turn around with the Thar and upcoming XUV 500. Tata has come a long way from the agricultural Indica, Indigo, and Sumo to the sexy Tiago, Tigor, and Harrier. Mahindra has launched some desirable products (and some undesirable) like the Thar, XUV 500, Marazzo, and XUV 300.

I must add that Bajaj also has made some wonderful progress - especially taking their Pulsar to the next level. RE has brought out a new parallel twin powered cruiser.

Equally, I must add that it is sad to see Honda chase volumes and make a mess of their brand image. (Not commenting based on the new City)

[Romeo_Mike]

Voted 2010s. Mostly because we saw some parity in terms of products and choices available as compared to other markets. This was the period when many global players recognized India as a worthwhile market and it showed in their lineup.

While we surely had some FTD cars before that but the options were not nearly as many as the 2010s. Now we have even started having global launches of products in India. Combine this with how the domestic players have raised their game - good times indeed!

[SuperSuri]

I would vote for 1990.

With the introduction of many 1st generations (for India) cars, Hyundai Santro, Daewoo Cielo, Hyundai Accent, Daewoo Matiz, not to miss the Honda City vtec and Mitsubishi Lancer. These were eye-opener cars for Indians. Good naturally aspirated petrol motors, no fuss driver’s cars, except a couple from the list I mentioned.

[RD150]

Voted 2010s

Post 2010, car manufacturers started taking safety a bit seriously. Also, now one does not need to spend 20 lacs for experiencing all the feel good features, today a car costing 10 lacs may do the job fine.

[aravind.anand]

In general 2000s produced some iconic cars that were reliable (compared to any other decade that we had come across) and the quality was rather nice too. I remember sedans like Ikon, Accent, Honda City, that really had their unique traits.

Think of it, Ikon had three engine options - 1.3L & 1.6L petrol, and a 1.5L diesel. Fiesta had three too - 1.4L petrol, 1.6L petrol and a 1.4L diesel. Accent had 4 different engine during its lifetime - 1.5L SOHC petrol, 1.6L DOHC petrol, 1.5 IDI diesel (TUD5 borrowed from Peugeot, IIRC) and then a very enjoyable 1.5L CRDi. The Swift had a very nice 1.3L free-revving petrol engine.

Parts sharing and cost optimization was much lower in the agenda, as compared to making nice and desirable cars. Today, that passion is somehow gone. Every car gets larger and larger touch screen infotainment, but engines are either shared across the stable or carried over from the previous generation to keep costs in check.

SUVs back then were Scorpio and Safari kind - the real deals, with all the flaws like a huge turning radius that could put a Tata 407 truck to shame, high ingress and bad ride quality. Today, the line between SUV and cars is gone, with most of them being pseudo-SUVs, but yes they are easier to love with in the city, and the target audience love that.

The sheet metal thickness has gone size-zero, in the hunt for lower weight, to improve fuel efficiency, performance and also emission levels. But the fun factor and the sturdy feel of the cars made in the 2000s has been lost in the transition.

Many who have enjoyed driving the cars of that decade will agree to this - the 88PS Swift 1.3L felt much much more involving to drive as compared to a 96 PS Figo or 90 PS Brio today. On paper specs have improved, but the real world feel tells a totally different story.

And more importantly, back then almost all the new entrants believed that they could break the market and challenge Maruti Suzuki for leadership, today even Hyundai, despite being second for so long, have admitted that they are not into the numbers game. VW, Skoda, Honda, Toyota, Nissan, Fiat/Jeep, Ford have all lost faith and decided to focus on areas where Maruti Suzuki wouldn't come and grab their share. So the enthusiasm among all these car makers has taken a nose-dive, and it shows in the kind of cars they make too. Boring, sedate, safe (from sales point of view) and involving lesser costs for R&D, so that the risk is lower.

Infotainment and electronics apart, 2000s were definitely the decade of much better cars

[mufeez1234]

My vote goes for the 2000's because I am a 90's kid and it was then that my interest in automobiles started to bloom.

But for the sake of argument, why just stop at the past three decades and not go further beyond?

Agree that the Indian automobile scene was way backward , but the most iconic automobiles in every segment be it bikes or cars or aeroplanes or dare I say bombers, belong to the 60s and the 70s.

[jayanttalwar]

So many good reasons for the 2000s to be the favourite decade of many including me. Fuel economy, features will increase with years to come with technology. I feel cars with character and quality came in the 2000s. Most of the cars I have owned or own were from the mid-late 2000s.

Here are my favourites

Our first gen Innova was still going strong at 2.4 lakhs when we sold it after taking us to the corners of the country in comfort. Our Skoda Laura which we got when it was being discontinued introduced us to quality and driving pleasure,I personally feel the quality levels in the new Octavia have gone down and it misses on the manual 1.8! I also have a 2016 w212 e class (facelift) bought in 2018. It was one of the last batch of the w212 which was introduced in 2009. The newer gen just doesn't have the quality/ heavy feel of the old one and uses detuned engine in the 220 form in India.
Now coming to my latest acquisition which is a 2012 manual honda civic, I feel there are hardly any cars under 10 lakhs which can give the same overall pleasure of a civic with its amazing steering wheel, gearshifts, engine , comfort and looks. Honestly the new civic is letdown compared to what the older one was famous for.

[j0sh1rish]

2000s gets the vote from me. I liked the Swift and Getz! (owned the Getz). Next evolutionary step from the Premier Padmini/Ambassadors to the Santro/Maruti 800 to these hatchbacks.
Tata ironed out issues with the Indica during this decade and truly became a car manufacturer from a truck maker.

[Amsdoc]

The 2000s obviously gets my vote. Lots of new players entered the market with lovely cars which were great to drive as well as being affordable. The cars from 2010s were better in most aspects but the pricing increased exponentially which put lots of them out of reach. The increasing SUV trend is killing off the sedans now so 2020s don't seem very promising from a driving enthusiast point of view.
I think the 2020s will be made up of wheezy small hatchbacks, unwieldy midsize suvs and at the top the unaffordable premium sedans.