[ajayc123]

Note. please feel free to participate in the poll, only if you ha(ve/d) considered the recently launched HyRyder or Grand Vitara Strong Hybrid and have reach(ed/ing) a purchase decision. If you still are undecided, you can poll after you have reached a decision. Comments are welcome from all.

Strong Hybrid* is a new creature that has arrived in the country in 2022.

*technically we had a couple of items like the Camry, Vellfire around for sometime, but far from the maintstream awareness.

Trumpets ! Drums ! Crowd Roars !

We are honoured that Toyota has considered India to be worthy of this species of vehicles after gaining world-wide experience over 140 countries and 25 years of maturing this technology. With such an diverse experience across all terrains, and refinement over decades, the fine drivetrain (think of it like fine wine matured over decades) has arrived. Only after so much experience and refinement did Toyota dare to release it to the connoisseurs that we are .

The launch of the vehicle has been happening forever, and news bytes about booking numbers have been flowing steadily and keeping volkman10 pretty busy, and even a lot of us who have beaten the subject of the strong hybrid to death.

Many of us have been info-taining ourselves about this new creature out of curiosity, and then there are other members in foreign lands “been there, done that” (i.e. actually driven or experienced hybrid) have been generously contributing to the discussions. We have discussed a lot of things under the sun about the strong hybrid including but not limited to:

- Otto vs Atkison
- Car Care Nut you tube videos
- Kitna deti hai & breakeven calculations
- Price premium over weak hybrid
- Battery life and replacement cost of hybrid battery
- 3 cylinder & NHV concerns
- Power and Torque concerns
- Headroom & boot space concerns
- Pure EV range
- Blah blah and one more blah

Honda City eHEV (strong hybrid) was also launched recently, but has received a very tepid response. On the contrary, Toyota and Maruti have been marketing a really solid booking pipeline, and now its time for the people to show their wallets (or hide them / take them elsewhere). And this is a thread to unravel the thinking in the minds of the esteemed members of this coveted Team BHP community [you require more attempts to join TBHP, than to join an IIT ]

Verdict

Enough has been talked, and now is the time to bite the bullet. Talk about your decision (or opinion): buy or not buy? If buying the strong hybrid, then which product / variant, if not buying the strong hybrid, then what’s your preference? What are your main decision drivers?

[Aditya]

Thread moved out from the Assembly Line. Thanks for sharing!

[Malyaj]

Not buying hence not voting. But:

After sitting on the fence for considerable time and at considerable discomfort to the metaphorical posterior, I am almost on the verge of withdrawing from the search for Shangri La, a.k.a the perfect car. Though neither Maruti, nor Toyota asked me to wait this long, I gave respect to the seniors and waited it out to see what sage advice comes from their quarters. Turn September and the advice was 'kafi deti hai', and that panaromic sunroof addresses all of life's anxieties.

I wish I could go back in time, stand in a mile long queue and plonk my money on the desk of uninterested Kia/Hyundai salespeople. At least I would have been half way through. The enthusiastic salesman from Toyota messages me every now and then to tell me that if I book N-O-W, I might get the vehicle in March '23. Sorry, that was last month, now it is April'23. Considering the rate that everyone in our family is putting on weight at, the Hyryder back seat may become inadequate for us.

On a more serious note:
1. Reports about sun roof liner being thin and affecting air conditioning effectiveness is a deal breaker. I like my cabin chilled
2. Space in the rear is not great
3. Interiors don't feel premium enough
4. Waiting period is a bummer

[bijims]

The Toyota Urban Cruiser Hyryder Strong Hybrid S variant seems to be the most value for money Hybrid and I am switching over to it over the Maruti Suzuki Grand Vitara whose Hybrid prices seem to be a bit high. The Rs.50,000 premium over the Toyota Hybrids doesn't seem justified. Moreover with manufacturing being at Toyota's plant and Engine also from Toyota, I had a feeling the Strong Hybrid of the Toyota would land up cheaper, adding to that Toyota offers the Strong Hybrid from one variant above base spec whereas Maruti offers it only on the top two trims.

Hence, the Toyota Strong Hybrid wins it for me being the more accessible one of the lot.

[rahulcmoulee]

Have the top end strong hybrid booked for both. Decision will be made after seeing the car in person and doing a test drive. Will most likely cancel the GV booking as the hybrid variants are more expensive than Hyryder.
If test drive experience is satisfactory, will go ahead with Hyryder booking. Otherwise will start evaluating other alternatives in the segment.

[Durango Dude]

I'm not falling for either so didn't vote. From the Road Test Reviews, I'm not that sure it's going to be such a huge hit, after the initial excitement settles down. Would you buy a car just for the fuel efficiency, when all else is lackluster?? I wouldn't. If I were to buy one I'd get the Sonet/Venue instead of the Brezza and Creta/Seltos instead of the mild hybrid and would definitely get a Carens/Alcazar instead of the strong hybrid for around the same money. You've more options (engine/transmission) with the competition than GV/Hyryder. I'm sure NVH and performance wise a Swift would be a better option than these two.

[chaudh2s]

Originally Posted by ajayc123

Note. please feel free to participate in the poll, only if you ha(ve/d) considered the recently launched HyRyder or Grand Vitara Strong Hybrid and have reach(ed/ing) a purchase decision. If you still are undecided, you can poll after you have reached a decision. Comments are welcome from all.

Are you interested in these 2 vehicles and in the technology thereof as a market analysist or as a market influencer? I learnt from you in another thread that you are not interested in any one of them as 3 pots are not your cup of tea. Then, what keeps you motivated to keep posting in these threads (and as I observed) mostly negatively? What will you gain (or lose) if these 2 product are either a success (or a failure)?

[ajayc123]

Originally Posted by chaudh2s

Are you interested in these 2 vehicles and in the technology thereof as a market analyst or as a market influencer? I learnt from you in another thread that you are not interested in any one of them as 3 pots are not your cup of tea. Then, what keeps you motivated to keep posting in these threads (and as I observed) mostly negatively? What will you gain (or lose) if these 2 product are either a success (or a failure)?

I have nothing to do with the automobile sector/domain other than the fact that I happen to be a mechanical engineer and have taken one course in Internal Combustion Engineering in my third year. I love to get deep into things. I am not an analyst or influencer, and am doing my day job in a technology company.

I am in the early stage of research for my next car (due in the next 1 or 2 years) , and a strong hybrid is on my radar.

As for my comments, I just put what I felt based on available information and my preferences of and my conclusions are based on my interpretation in my world view. My approach is to look at each decision point very deeply (It is better to play a devils advocate in buying decisions) and reach a solid decision in high expense areas like personal vehicles, rather than regret later.

If you perceive those as negative, that is your perception, and I cannot do much about that. For me that is an input for my decision. or my interpretation of some information. What may appear to be positive to me may be negative to another person. We have to acknowledge that each one of us is wired differently, and have to really not be judgemental, but try to interpret why other person is thinking differently.

As for.3 pots vs 4 pots, I have arrived at a conclusion after a lot of research, simple I dont like NHV so 3 pot is not a priority for me.

At this same time I have a positive view about the Honda City Hybrid eHeV.

My motivation: Giveback to the society. Hope to bring some reality check in the world of a lot of fake hyper marketing which I don't like -( for example the 25 km pure EV range claimed for HyRyder at the time of launch in every media publication, or a reality check on the constant drumbeat of booking pipelines (get a sense of how many of the 55k bookings will convert into purchases). An attempt to help us all collecively understand a little bit of the ground reality amidst so much paid marketing

If this thread, can debunk a myth or two, and help somebody take a more informed decision, I happy to contribute a few minutes in creating such a thread.

The only online social place I spend time online is.TBHP, because I see a lot of valuable information, and moderators demonstrate a lot of character.

[Mustang_Boss]

The moment the unofficial prices came out around august end, Opted out.

Switched to Diesel Venue.

It didn't make any sense buying this combo in any form. Be it mild hybrid or strong. They are trying to sell a glorified old Brezza at 2x+ the price with a battery (10K) and a motor(25K) plonked in.

All the synergies lead to Suzuki learning, how to price the products "The Toyota way" and nothing else.

[dr_TJ]

Don't know why I was still holding on to my Grand Vitara pre-booking even after Hyryder Mild Hybrid V AT price reveal. And subsequently the expected pricing of Grand Vitara.

Expected pricing stands true now.
And I canceled my Grand Vitara pre-booking today. Immediately after I saw the price list.

Not worth the premium over a Brezza or XL6 for me.

[d-g-p]

Right now I can only comment.
I have cancelled the Hyryder V eCVT full hybrid booking and also going to cancel the Grand Vitara booking.
As regards to the full hybrid of both OEM, benefit is in regards to fuel consumption in predominant city drive and more so for bumper to bumper traffic. Which may not be so for highway drive. This limits practicality for me. Boot space is the second biggest drawback. I think the prices are right for these variants if the cars are supposed to be used in cities primarily. However lack of power has been pointed out in many reviews for occasional spirited drive and in hilly terrain. Why to spend 20L+ for a car with limitations and only benefit is fuel cost ?
There is no point in downgrading to mild variant as these are not VFM and quite pricey for what it offers.

[Mortis]

I was interested in in picking one but unfortunately after checking out the reviews, the answer is neither. The common points among the reviews point to things that I can't overlook and bother going for a test drive either.

1) Hybrid is purely focused on efficiency without even a smidgen of the extra torque that an electric motor should add, making for a fun driving experience
2) Maruti quality body and same old flimsy interior plastics without a decent amount of sound deadening.

My next car purchase will probably be my last petrol powered car and I want it to be a bit special and something that will last a long time. I don't see either of these two being that car.
I'm willing to wait 2-3 years to get a replacement. Fingers crossed for the Jimny and maybe the Yaris Cross

[SDx]

I am holding my Hyryder booking for now and voted as such.

Will make the final call once I TD the vehicle.

[lawdgawd]

I did not pre-book, but was definitely curious. For me, more than the price, it was the overall package. Every single reviewer said, in some way or the other, that the car was underpowered.

I am a non-enthusiast driver who nevertheless enjoys cars, and there are times when an occasional spurt of acceleration is required. And there, the strong hybrids fail.

Toyota (or Maruti) reliability, features like sunroof, high fuel efficiency are all great but not having adequate power is a dealbreaker. I would have happily traded 5-7 kmpl of economy for a more powerful car. I would still end up with 15 kmpl, which is very reasonable for a car of this size. And I would feel like an idiot if 12 months down the line, they launch an RS variant or something.

Just can't risk that.

[baarish84]

I am keeping the booking of Hyryder strong hybrid V variant.

I have cancelled the booking of my grand vitara strong hybrid alpha variant.

Here is my thought process.

I think myself a sedate driver. I am in the market for a car with budget of 22L OTR.

Since last 12 years I have been driving almost exclusively in my hot/humid city with bumper to bumper traffic. I hardly go on Highway road trips.

My requirements for 12K annual running , with preference sequence:
1. Automatic CSUV (CVT or AT)
2. Safe car
3. Fuel efficient car (prefer NA petrol )
4. Ventilated seats

What I am specifically trying to avoid :
DCT (i fear over-heating) and Turbo engine (no empty road patch to enjoy).

Accordingly, I had shortlisted Hyundai Creta SXO IVT and Hyryder strong hybrid V. (skipped XL6 as we are family of three)

Feature wise both cars are nearly identical. They have similar engine output . They both have CVT transmission.

Creta (20L) has following extra- gets Electronic parking brake with auto hold, subwoofer and electric adjust seats.

Hyryder (22L) has following extra- gets 360 camera, HUD, wireless Android Carplay. Strong Hybrid tech will recover 2L extra by fuel savings.

Dropped Creta, due to very low safety ratings in global ncap. It barely avoided 2 stars rating by 1 bps .


Really I see Hyryder as the only viable option.