[eragon92]

Though I have bought a diesel car as my next upgrade, I feel hybrids are the way to go in the near term. I am not sure when jokers at NGT will come up with another way of making our vehicles useless overnight, which have been bought with hard-earned money while govt and commercial vehicles are happily chugging along.

Problem with hybrids currently is the insane premium being charged over their ICE counterparts. All the current options available in market are overpriced for the value they bring. Additionally, current focus of local manufacturers and govt on just EV's is not realistic and practical as their are still multiple challenges for the day for them to become primary vehicle for people.

[Motorhead007]

For me, this would depend upon the use case of the vehicle. If it is meant for the regular city commute, it would be the Hybrid. Reasons being better fuel efficiency, lesser emissions in the city limits, silent operation and non requirement of huge boot space.
On the other hand, if the car is meant to do long distance trips, then diesel is the engine of choice. On highways, diesel is as much if not more fuel efficient. Add to it the pleasure of driving and ease of maneuvering tricky terrains by a diesel vehicle. Plus I I'll need a larger boot for longer trips, which is more probable in a diesel vehicle.

[Redex]

Hybrids are pointless, just a tax dodge in most countries. If someone chooses a petrol or diesel over a hybrid they should be allowed to make that choice.
If the government chooses to force the sale EVs or hybrids they should all be limited to the maximum speed limit in the country they are in. Taxation should also be based on BHP, to eliminate the ridiculous power outputs of electric vehicles !!!
What is the point of a car that can exceed 120kph, you cannot use it on a public road ?

[narayans80]

I clocked about 27K and 38K the last 2 years and I don't foresee it'll go below 25K unless I change my own home or work or retire. All of which aren't happening in the medium term.

Currently own the base model Alcazar diesel MT which was brough 19.xx L about 16 months back for the flexible 4+2 seating and diesel economy. And I get high 17s to low 20s kpl on commute, the only use case my highway FE is higher is during winter when we drive without AC. That roughly translates to about 5 Rs/km for fuel.

The Grand Vitara/Hyryder won't cut my use case. If I were to buy a Hycross/Invicto today. It has a sticker price of 33L minimum. The FE is not all that different from my current car. So why would I pay 25K extra EMI without any real gains?

If I want to reduce my operational cost, I would buy an EV.

[FAIAAA]

Voted Diesel given the choices available.
Current set of hybrids are not for the enthusiastic driver. I have extensively test driven the current gen Camry - yes, it has ample power and torque from the ICE and battery motors and may even win a drag race, but it's by no means enthusiastic. They are more practical than fun.
On the other hand, turbo diesels are practical and fun. When I owned a 320D, the FE would never fall below 15kmpl even with the most spirited driving.
Would I buy one? Depends on the segment -
1. Hatchbacks, sedans, upto 4.3M crossovers - turbo petrols
2. Full sized SUV/crossover - Scorpio-N /XUV700 /Thar - turbo diesels.

[IonHawk]

For me EVs aren't there with the charging infra another 5 years away IMO to being seamless. I wanted an SUV and for my mostly city running with the occasional highway runs a hybrid made more sense, despite higher cost. Quite happy with my Hyryder and the 22.5+ mileage I get. Love the interiors (big step up from my 2014 Polo, apart from one touch up only on the drivers side window), the NVH could have been better but post adding the free NVH kit, things are much improved. I'm definitely a hybrid convert.

[Carpainter]

Originally Posted by IonHawk

For me EVs aren't there with the charging infra another 5 years away IMO to being seamless. I wanted an SUV and for my mostly city running with the occasional highway runs a hybrid made more sense, despite higher cost. Quite happy with my Hyryder and the 22.5+ mileage I get. Love the interiors (big step up from my 2014 Polo, apart from one touch up only on the drivers side window), the NVH could have been better but post adding the free NVH kit, things are much improved. I'm definitely a hybrid convert.

Totally agree with you that EVs are still not practical for Indian usage and we're atleast 5years away if not more to have a proper charging infrastructure atleast throughout the tier 1 cities in the country for long roadtrips. Not to forget that some of us buy new cars keeping resale value in mind and I doubt any EV today will fetch similar resale to a similarly priced ICE car.

Coming to the Hyryder, I own the GV hybrid which is its doppelganger cousin and I also owned Polo 2011 model. While the feature list is of no comparison between the two, I still believe first gen VW cars had better interior and build quality compared to Hyryder GV twins. So I doubt it's a step up in terms of quality but definitely a step up in terms of features and engine power as mine was a 1.2 NA petrol. Also I feel for those with high city usage, hybrid makes better sense although it may not be as fun as any diesel or petrol. But so are EVs. So hybrids are probably the best transitional choice and I applaud Toyota/Honda for offering it in India. I believe more people would have opted for hybrid if the price difference was not that big.

[Thyag]

On any given day, I will choose the diesel whatever might be the condition till it gets totally banned. My usage is only 10,000 KM per year, but those 10,000 Kms are a bliss in the diesel. Like to have damn good Engine, superb handling - Not worried about the looks & useless features like sun roof, moon floor & starry windows !

According to me all the people who are buying an EV are mere Test Subjects for the next 5-10 years, Prices are high, Infrastructure is not available & above all the mere factor of us being used as a lab rat is unacceptable - I feel very bad for the person who bought a Volvo for 70 Lakhs and seeing it going up in flames. I feel the better is yet to come !

Hybrids in India - showcased in a very poor state, the Government is not recognizing or giving advantage to the manufacturers. I feel the leap by government from ICE to EV's are not a boon but bane to all of us.

[linuxworld]

I will choose an EV anytime over ICE. It meets my requirements and makes sense if I want to save on fuel. I will hesitate to go with a Hybrid because I have yet to see significant benefits regarding fuel cost savings compared to other engine options such as EVs. For Highways, I agree that having alternate fuel options makes sense, but looking at the growing charging infrastructure on highways, EVs make more sense if I have to use my car for the next ten years.

My personal opinion is if I have a phone with two different processors, Snapdragon and Dimensity, I feel it will impact the overall performance and efficiency of the phone. Similarly, in cars, if it's ICE+CNG or ICE+EV, I am doubtful about the overall efficiency of such cars. I may be wrong in my assessment, but I feel Hybrids are complex in nature and will bring more operational and maintenance challenges. For these reasons, I am not yet convinced about Hybrids.

[IonHawk]

Originally Posted by Carpainter

Coming to the Hyryder, I own the GV hybrid which is its doppelganger cousin and I also owned Polo 2011 model. While the feature list is of no comparison between the two, I still believe first gen VW cars had better interior and build quality compared to Hyryder GV twins. So I doubt it's a step up in terms of quality but definitely a step up in terms of features and engine power as mine was a 1.2 NA petrol.

Yeah build quality like the solidity of the doors and such were better on the Polo (mine was an MT highline) , but the interiors of the hybrid twins IMO feel more luxurious, with more soft surfaces, leatherette treatment, and of course all the tech available. I also love the seat colour, did not like the beige seats on Polo that kept getting dirty, plus maintenance expenses were quite high and mediocre service center experiences. I also do not care that lot of the interior parts are shared with much cheaper Maruti cars, they do the job well and look good IMO.

[Lifeographer84]

Diesel crossovers anyday. And my opinion is heavily influenced by the brilliant gems we've had in the past. Duster, Ecosport to name a few with their brilliant 1.5 diesels. Real workhorses having bulletproof reliability. Then we had the likes of the Fiat Aventurra and the Etios Cross.

Ofcourse the Duster in its AWD avatar needs a special mention...go anywhere you like without any hesitation whatsoever. And so does the S Cross 1.6 diesel...I can write a novel on its brilliance!

Unfortunately in today's day and age they're hardly good examples left. I hope that the Compass doesn't go the way of the Dodo, a brilliant product being let down by the not so brilliant after sales service.

[vividhavasthi]

Few points from my thoughts
- I live in NCR, car does more than 200km per day visiting various work sites
- bought hyryder hybrid top model, 30,000km done, average fuel econ? 26.2kmpl
- why would I choose a diesel car that lasts 10 years compared to 15 on the hybrid?

Comes down to use case, driver drives it, have other cars for longer journeys/ tougher terrains, boot isn't used for the use case commute. I'm very happy with my choice of the Hyryder/ vitara hybrid - but only because it suits what I need from it. We aren't after speed or boot space.