[diffsoft]

@zenren

You are quite right, I am wrong in saying "all risks are outsourced". I possibly got carried away with a picture of someone driving the car in a jam packed place, moving at a snail's place, something your face frequently in Bangalore - Chennai travel.

But I wouldn't be wrong if I say "practically all non-systemic risks are outsourced". If someone qualified is risking his life driving the car, he will certainly consider his life more precious than the co-passengers' (practically speaking). This assumes that he can drive, and is not put under conditions you wouldn't put yourself under - like driving under sleepy conditions, driving drunk and so forth. So you are just as safe as if you were driving yourself. In other words, I do not see any additional risk when you ask a qualified driver to drive a car you do not own, driving under normal conditions. But there is far less tension, less worry and less hassles.

Cheers,

[raj_5004]

I am a tall person & the first thing I look for in a highway car is space. With our Indian road conditions, good GC & tall seating is a bonus.

So, my favorite highway cars are:

1) Scorpio - If I am driving
2) Innova - If chauffeur is driving
3) XUV - Under both circumstances mentioned above!

[suhas_raj]

Here's my first hand experience with my three cars so far. Surprisingly, my humble santro was a comfortable car for good highway runs. Your legs don't feel cramped & knees don't hurt due to the high seating thanks to tallboy design, although on bad roads it can be quite the opposite. The suspension is tuned to be so soft & bouncy that it can get cumbersome.

Long drives in my Punto are usually comfy for the passengers but gets uncomfortable for me as the driver due to its bad ergonomic set up.

My drives on my Rapid have been oh so good so far. I guess the massive torque is so much fun n keeps you engaged to think about anything else

[MuzzledMoose]

From My Previous Cars experience it is
Past:
Santro: Best used as a city car ONLY. Bumpy Ride and noisy engine after it crosses 100KMPH. Premium petrol can make it better for the noise though
Past:
Mahindra Renault Logan Petrol 1.6: Very good for drives less than 6 hours. Anything more than that with a bad highway road will make us tired. Also the footwell is not well designed for long drives and right foot aches
Past:
Mahindra Scorpio: Excellent Drivers seat for 12 hours of driving. Passenger seats are not very comfortable though but can manage a maximum 8 hours on that. Stonker of an engine on the highway above 2000 rpm and Driving dynamics is also good on highways (minus the body roll). Steering weighs up nicely too.
Current:
Mahindra XUV500 AWD: Very Comfortable for 12+ hours of driving. Potholes are not felt inside. Both drivers and passenger seats are very comfortable being leather and hard seat in nature. Can easily cruise at 140KMPH without sweating. Powerful engine and excellent acceleration for highway. Strong FATC with rear side AC too.

[nilanjanray]

The Fortuner gets the job done. Pretty comfortable for the driver and the shotgun rider, not so for folks seating in the middle and third rows. But can handle any surprises the roads (and no road situations - imagine traveling at high speed on a good road, suddenly the road dips, and there are slush and rocks at the bottom lol) can throw at it. Can cruise at 120kmph whole day if required, and is great for night driving.

Speaking from personal experience after having done some roadtrips covering thousands of kms each time. I have faced quite a few situations where a non-SUV wouldn't have been able to continue, or would have started limping badly, after what I went through.

[IshaanIan]

Originally Posted by nilanjanray

Speaking from personal experience after having done some roadtrips covering thousands of kms each time. I have faced quite a few situations where a non-SUV wouldn't have been able to continue, or would have started limping badly, after what I went through.

The argument goes both ways; I have also experienced several situations where nothing but a quality sedan can come out unscathed. Imagine a situation where you are travelling on a brand new stretch of highway, smooth and pristine. Naturally you are now cruising fast. BUT, India being India, you suddenly see a villager on a bike in the opposite direction, except even worse, in the fast lane(happened to me when cruising on a curve in a Ford Fiesta, quite scary), or a herd of cows crossing (the Akebono brakes on my Kizashi saved me here with no drama). The braking and steering finesse it requires to dodge such a situation, simply cannot be offered by any SUV.

[nilanjanray]

Originally Posted by IshaanIan

The argument goes both ways; I have also experienced several situations where nothing but a quality sedan can come out unscathed. Imagine a situation where you are travelling on a brand new stretch of highway, smooth and pristine. Naturally you are now cruising fast. BUT, India being India, you suddenly see a villager on a bike in the opposite direction, except even worse, in the fast lane(happened to me when cruising on a curve in a Ford Fiesta, quite scary), or a herd of cows crossing (the Akebono brakes on my Kizashi saved me here with no drama). The braking and steering finesse it requires to dodge such a situation, simply cannot be offered by any SUV.

Good point. It is a tradeoff. The Fortuner's sister - the Hilux - dances like a moose pretty well.

But one needs to drive knowing the strengths and limitations of one's vehicle. A tall SUV needs to be driven differently than a low sedan. I would take a curve at higher speed in a sedan, more confidently. And I would drive faster in the night on unknown roads in a 4WD SUV knowing that the vehicle can handle horrible bumps and craters.

Given my usage needs - long roadtrips, visiting forests and mountains, trail driving, sustained 1000 km night driving - a SUV is best for me. A sedan might suit you more based on your needs.

Having said that, I would not drive at 100++ kmph in any vehicle unless I have a clear view of the road ahead, and unless I have visibility into both sides of the road.

[IshaanIan]

Originally Posted by nilanjanray

But one needs to drive knowing the strengths and limitations of one's vehicle.

Having said that, I would not drive at 100++ kmph in any vehicle unless I have a clear view of the road ahead, and unless I have visibility into both sides of the road.

Rightly said. It is sad to see people taking cars way beyond their limits. Some folks just cannot sense or feel the limits of a car's traction or composure

[Sheel]

Originally Posted by IshaanIan

Imagine a situation where you are travelling on a brand new stretch of highway, smooth and pristine. Naturally you are now cruising fast. BUT, India being India, you suddenly see a villager on a bike in the opposite direction, except even worse, in the fast lane(happened to me when cruising on a curve in a Ford Fiesta, quite scary), or a herd of cows crossing (the Akebono brakes on my Kizashi saved me here with no drama). The braking and steering finesse it requires to dodge such a situation, simply cannot be offered by any SUV.

Originally Posted by nilanjanray

Having said that, I would not drive at 100++ kmph in any vehicle unless I have a clear view of the road ahead, and unless I have visibility into both sides of the road.

+1. Moreover, in a sedan/hatch, you will get tired after some distance, in a SUV, you will get further.

That truck like seating is there for a reason, like a truckie, you can haul for 12+ hours. You might overtake me in your fancy car, but you will soon take a rest or encounter a bad road and I will keep chugging at a cruising speed.

Most marathon trips/travelogues on the forum are documented on a SUV & for good reasons.

Originally Posted by IshaanIan

Rightly said. It is sad to see people taking cars way beyond their limits. Some folks just cannot sense or feel the limits of a car's traction or composure

Or roads & their unpredictability of popping out a surprise. Like the one you stated, hope it made you wiser :-)

I would never ever be in the fast lane of a corner if I can't see through it.

I was a car guy all along, you can very well see in the Car vs SUV thread, but Indian roads & its uncertainty has made me look elsewhere. The attributes described about the SUV suit my style of driving. I am so less fatigued now. I do a bi-monthly drive to Siliguri (~400kms) and start there at no fixed time. In a Scorpio, Pajero, Fortuner I never felt tired, whereas in the Yeti, Vento, Figo, Swift, Baleno some amount of fatigue did always creep in and I wanted the drive to be over after some 100kms (mid distance, one way)

Interestingly, the fastest time in which I managed to cover this distance was in a 2WD Scorpio.

To each his own

[joybhowmik]

Originally Posted by Sheel

+1. Moreover, in a sedan/hatch, you will get tired after some distance, in a SUV, you will get further.

That truck like seating is there for a reason, like a truckie, you can haul for 12+ hours. You might overtake me in your fancy car, but you will soon take a rest or encounter a bad road and I will keep chugging at a cruising speed.

Most marathon trips/travelogues on the forum are documented on a SUV & for good reasons.

+1 to this. The biggest advantage of a high seating position, and a leaned back posture is the benefit of carrying on hour after hour with nary a break in between.
Oodles of space helps.

I would never dream of doing a Delhi-Kolkata in a sedan.

[JoseVijay]

My pick would be Tata Safari. Last Sunday, I had to make a 250kms round about trip and I was suffering from a severe back pain. I tried sitting in Skoda Ocativa, but could not drive for long. Drove the car for a kilo metre and came back home. Tried the same with my brother's Bolero, again could not sit in the driver's seat for 5 mins.

In the end, I decided to try out the Safari and lo what a change it was. It was very comfortable. Completed the trip without any difficulty. For me, it is a Safari any day.

[bigron]

I have always preferred sedans over MUVs/SUVs. The E , camry and the Sonata are all great long distance cruisers. Contrary to what alot of people think , the innova with its lack of power and creature comforts coupled with high engine noise that seeps into the cabin is not very comfortable over long stretches of over 700/800 kms.

[anujmishra]

For long distance driving, I prefer only SUV/MUV that too with some choice.

1. Scorpio : A big no for my frame of above 6 feet. Neighter front or back is comfortable and my knee hurts badly. It is very cramped. However, engine (mHawk) point of view it is very good car. Also, I don't like its suspension.

2. Qualis (Yes old Qualis): I have done many long distance driving in Qualis and Innove and I prefer Qualis over Innova

3. Safari : This is most confortable car for me for long distance driving. I have driven many thousands of KMs in it and almost covered 3/4th of India (covering 15 states). Either I drive or sit at back, it is comfortable in both conditions. Once I driven it to 26 hours continously (From - Rajamundry, AP to Giridih, JH through GQ) of course with some short breaks in-between. I have done numerous 1000+ Kms in a day with 14 - 16 hours of drives in a day. It gobbles bad road quite comfortably, this was very evident when I was crossing MP throug NH7.

[cotterpin]

Nice Thread.I owned Zen,OHC VTEC and NHC VTEC(2006).Quite surprised to see hardly any one found NHC to be comfortable.

My exerience was otherwise.I did a couple of long distance hauls (close to 450 Kms) in my NHC without a single halt and found it to be quite comfortable.Infact I had no problems working close to 5hrs after completing the trip.The rear bench is undoubtedly very comfortable in NHC.Well again, it was just my experience and no offence intended to any one.

[Rahul Rao]

Originally Posted by IshaanIan

Never really understood the whole Innova thing. Either people have never been used to much else but the Fortuner (which has terrible ride quality), or they just haven't sat in any good sedans

Till date I have used large no of vehicles right from sedans to SUV's, the only dis-advantage in an Innova is engine noise once you cross 80, and the low GC of the cross member below the gearbox.

Compared to any sedan the headlights of on coming vehicles do not trouble you your thigh has full support, so pressing the clutch is not a pain, and right foot on the accelerator dose not get cramped. All sedans premiums included are tiring after 500-600 km. View over other vehicles helps one pre-plan, and average speed remains high even though top speed is lower. Finally you have the Innova which is the mean of both almost has the stability of the sedans and the high seating of the SUV's without the harsh suspension and body roll of the SUV's.

Long distance runs started for me in my dad's Ambassador, then his Contessa and then my Tata Estate members of my family even went in for premium sedans even C class but I found all of them tiring beyond a point. Other than the Innova, I had a drive from Pune to Rajkot in a friends Q5 which was great, and recently to Goa in a XUV500 which I found good too. If refinement is improved, the XUV may be the first under 20 lakh vehicle to compete with the Innova for comfort.

Rahul