[extreme_torque]

Tata Safari - For starting the affordable large SUV segment in the Indian market
Fiat Palio 1.6 - A fast, good looking sturdy hatch with a stonker of an engine. Would not be out of place even today.
Honda City 1.5 - Performance, Economy, Reliability - A yes too all car if ever there was.
Mitsubishi Lancer - Back when Mitsubishi was a force. Great chassis, great engine, great reliability and gave the mighty Honda a run for its money
Toyota Qualis - Virtually indestructible, honest to goodness almost to a fault. First real taste of Toyota reliability for Indians and we can't have enough.
Maruti Zen - Hatchbacks could be fun
Hyundai Santro - Quirky car from a brand new unknown to Indians manufacturer. A veritable "Doomed to fail hatchback" that made itself into one of the biggest success stories in India's automobile market. Stuff of legends.
Tata Sierra - Could be bought on looks alone
Maruti 800 - Put a nation on wheels. Cheap, cheerful and reliable.
Tata Nano - A honest made by Indians for Indians effort marred by initial teething issues. Still a landmark car.
Tata Indica V2 - A good looking safe and reliable hatchback with oodles of room and came with a diesel for the price of a small petrol hatchback
Mahindra XUV500 - A monocoque good looking fast 7 seater diesel SUV from built grounds up by an Indian manufacturer.
Maruti Wagon R - Honest, practical, fuel efficient and reliable. As a city car there are few that better the Wagon R.
Toyota Innova - The first un-utilitarian 7 seat family hauler with the same bulletproof Toyota reliability.
Ford EcoSport - You can do a sub 4 meter SUV and still make it look good.

[johannskaria]

Originally Posted by Torque-ative

My List in no particular order

Hindustan Ambassador 1.8
Ford Ikon 1.6 sx
Maruti Zen 1.0 (mpfi) VXI
Mitsubishi Lancer slx 1.5
Hindustan Contessa 1.8
Honda City V-tech 1.5
Maruti Gypsy King MG13W
Mahindra Classic 2.1
Mitsubishi Pajero SFX 2.8 (Dual colored variant)

I think you forgot the AMG of Maruti line-up, Maruti 800 5speed.
Got one parked in my garage out of pure nostalgia.

[troublemaker]

You have to add the 'sporty' car in those days - the choice of youngsters:


Premier Padmini 1100

[saket77]

It would have been great if people could list the 'good points' of their choice. I think it will add more value to the thread. So here it goes for the cars I have owned.

Maruti Zen:
Sporty package in a small form factor. Many disliked it as it was hardly a value buy for an average Indian compared to the 2X price of Maruti 800 back then. However it developed its own cult following soon, given the smooth and truly rev-friendly nature of the 1.0L engine. Great pick-up; handling was good too, till you hit three digit speeds. Great steering feedback in non-PS versions. Honestly, still to find a better corner craver among the mass market cars. Puny wheels, average brakes take away the fun for enthusiasts. So does the poor boot space for the average family.

Fiat 1100D:
Someone mentioned this car in this thread. I too feel it does deserve its space. What I liked the most about this car was the engine sound & the exhaust note
Handling, pick up were good too. It was fairly modern when compared to the peers in 1967. Poor ground clearance (128mm!!), soft rear suspension reared their ugly heads when this car was loaded.


Ambassador (petrol):
The only true 6 seater around back then Relatively silent petrol engine, great boot space and good suspension were the things I liked in this car. Hard steering, poor brakes, poor ergonomics (like the switches running all the way to the LHS door/ foot operated Dipper dimmer switch among others) where the biggest turn-offs.


Thanks!

[Roy.S]

Originally Posted by johannskaria

I think you forgot the AMG of Maruti line-up, Maruti 800 5speed.
Got one parked in my garage out of pure nostalgia.

Ah yes! That brief period when Maruti made cars which were fun to drive. There was one at every price point. The 5 speed M800, The Mpfi Zen and Esteem. Build quality used to be good. The panels on my '99 Zen had no dings or depressions even after 17 years.

[SmartCat]

So "GOAT cars" is a catch-all phrase for all the adjectives we use to describe cars here on Team-BHP? The list seems to be a mix of -

- Iconic cars
- Enthusiast cars
- Cars that were ahead of its time
- Path breaking cars
- Characterful cars

My vote goes to Tata Sierra - it was apparently fully autonomous

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LPX9VLTFlD4

[landcruiser123]

I'll judge by how the car has stayed relevant in the market for a long time. They may not necessarily be enthusiast cars.

Here's my list: (I was born in the mid 90s, so forgive me if I left something out)

1. HM AMbassador
2. Tata Sumo
3. Tata Safari
4. Tata Indica
5. MS Swift
6. Hyundai Santro
7. MS WagonR
8. Honda City (although a part of me doesn't agree now- the car described what a sedan should be for many years)
9. Toyota Qualis/Innova
10. Mahindra XUV 500

[_nitink_]

Almost all the cars have been mentioned here, but I think one of the highest selling SUV is missed. Here I am talking about the Mahindra Scorpio. Each and every one of us would have sat inside a Scorpio once in our lives. It was a great success for Mahindra and everyone loved it.

[rajamuneeb]

Also missing on the list is the Daewoo Cielo. It was an enthusiast car which also became a kind of status symbol for the urban rich.

[Doge]

Surprised that no one mentioned the Baleno or I missed it. Maruti was indeed a great brand back then, the 800 5 Speed to the Vitara, they had them all.
Others:
The Subbie Forester as it was the only Subaru we ever got. A great car anyway.
The second generation Grand Vitara, this is my favourite type of car, rugged, handsome honest and fun. I would love to ownn one.
Ford Mondeo. Still a handsome car and good to drive too, from what I heard.
Ford Ikon 1.6, the sweet josh machine.
Skoda Octavia, the original one.
Getz CRDI. What a sleeper, could still give the GT twins a run for their money.
Optra SRV, one sweet looking car.
Honda Civic, never have I ever been so stunned by a mass market car. What a beauty she still is.

[ghodlur]

Few cars I would like to add in the list are
1) Premier Padmini NX
2) Ford Fusion
3) Maruti Esteem/Baleno
4) Hyundai Accent 1 gen
5) Fiat Uno

[Ketan T]

1. Fiat UNO. We had a Petrol 1.2 version. This was different than the FIRE engine. It had good pick up and good build quality. Handled well too. Built like a Battle Tank. FIAT card we're never bad, just the service ruined everything.

2. Toyota Qualis: I drove this about 2.5k kms in 5 days through very bad roads. No driving fatigue at all. Loads of space and very practical. Sold it off after completing 150k kms when the production has stopped. Still got pretty got resale.

[itsashishsharma]

Cars I had in my family, driven by my father and me:
1) M800
2) Esteem
3) Baleno, the good one
4) Palio 1.2
5) Swift 1.2k 1st gen
6) New Fiesta
All of these are cars with character. Only the current car that my father uses, a Zest is one which can't make it to this list, otherwise investing huge sums in buying a car and not getting the feel/character is something I just can't do.

[bharatbits]

Tata Safari - the older one with the spare wheel on the rear door.

Thats one macho car. I grew up admiring it and wanted to own it one day. It might be crude, ladder on frame chassis, manual transmission, rattly, very un suave but still oozes a lot of character. However, Tata stopped producing it. Let's see if I can lay my hands on a pre worshipped one. Pearl white, silver, Arctic white, Mineral Red, Ferrari red, Earth brown, Black (not suitable for our all time summer conditions) are my favourite colours. The newer Safari is more gentlemanly.

Edit - Omg, this just reignited my desire to own one again. Checking classifieds now.

[Sonubbsr]

My list would be based on Cars that I wouldnt mind buying or driving or be driven in even if they were parked for a very long time. Say 10 years or were a generation older.
1. Mahindra Classic - For the Looks only(I own a thar, yet crave for a classic)
2. HM Ambassador - For the rear sofa that HM called a seat.
3. HM Contessa - For being the most desirable sedan of its time and the muscle car looks.
4. Maruti Gypsy - For the go anywhere capability.
5. Tata Sierra - For being a propper three door SUV! (Tata could forsee a cult which Maruti Suzuki still can't with the jimny in its kitty)
6. Tata Estate - For the acres of space inside and the mercedes inspired looks.
7. Maruti Baleno - For being the only car that, in its time, while accelerating, could make the passengers skip a beat.
8. Mitsubishi Pajero SFX - In love with all aspects of this vehicle.