[RedOne]

Hmm. I must be the odd one here. I didn't care too much for the inaugral TopGear. The international section had too much of the expected British-Car hype. RangeRoverSport-Touareg-Cayenne comparo, Range Rover on top by big margin. Best car in world, 4 (I think) Brit cars in top 5. And they go on and on about the Aston. And the Bentley. And the Rolls... (The Enzo-Maser comparo was nice).

The Indian section contributors are mostly old pharts (no dis-respect, OK, maybe a little bit), oozing pessimism and negativity. Maybe they felt because Jeremy does it, they have to diss everything in sight as well.

And what's with them and iPods? They mention it about 10 times in the issue.

So it's ACI & BSM for me.

Gears,
Red-One

[GTO]

Maybe they felt because Jeremy does it, they have to diss everything in sight as well.

Well said. 'Nuff Said

GTO

[shibujp]

Hi,

Heard about Top Gear on this site and picked up a copy yesterday...boy!!..what a waste of 60 bucks.

Browsing through the magazine there was very little substance. Read an article on American muscle car testing by the pilots of the Top Gun academy...in the whole article there is about 2-3 paragraphs about the cars in question. And the whole magazine seemed an advert for the new Range Rover Super Sport.

I think the only entertaining article in there is Jeremy's article on the iPod though one wonders what it is doing in a auto magazine. The whole magazine is like putting your car stereo on a 10 sec scan mode....no details and no info.

It's still Autocar India for me guys!!

Drive on,
Shibu.

[Aditya]

Autocar India for the Indian car scene and Top Gear for their international content.

[F50]

I never enjoyed Autocar thats why im subscribing Overdrive from past 5 yrs.
I dont understand one thing no matter which mag u read the bhp figures and other numbers are same in all most all mags and that should matter. You should decide yourself which car is the best and not coz your mag presents a particular car in better way so thats the better car!!
No offense to anybody but, I have seen people who sees Top Gear just coz Jereme says this car is best they blindly follow it and no matter what happens they will stick to it.
I may be wrong, these were just my views.

[ajmat]

I read the latest CAR in a book shop - pathetic compared to the original. Does not have the "bite" like the original mag has

[veyron1]

although all are good in their own respect, i feel that the new mags have a long way to go before they can build up the sort of brand loyalty that autocar and overdrive has garnered...

even though TG is the best with respect to the newcomers, (v/s car...) i would still stick with ACI, OD and BS....initially it was only OD for me, but ACI is getting simply too good at getting their act together, and they often do more than what most expect...so, it has been both for me since the past year or so (ACI getting more points now)...and recently, BS is getting more of my attention simply due to the way their articles are put together....it's just high octane reading material...superb...

and finally, my vote would have to go to ACI...mainly due to the fact that they were the first (and only ones till date) to do something for the motorsport-hungry afficionados....by organizing the speed runs....it's a different topic regarding the organisation of the events (i'm pretty sure the 2006 S.R will be better organised)....

[Dippy]

I have a subscription with ACI and I can say that it has been serving the purpose very well. It was always worth looking forward to though in recent times quite a few of the SCOOP cars they preview dont seem to be seen here in the Indian market yet. I like their new look in their anniversary issue and I hope they carry it on.

Of course I have ACI to thank for sending me to the F1 Malaysian Grand Prix '04 as winner of the ACI F1 game last year. Was a dream come true for me.

Of the new lot I found TG better than CAR and decent for 60 than 75 for car. But will have to wait and check the real Indian motoring stories from next month since the inaugural issue had loads of international content. I would subscribe to TG.

I read BSM off and on for the simple reason that they write their exotic car and bikes tests from the heart.

Dippy

[gr8guzzler]

I have never subscribed to any Automag......but prefer to go through ACI/Overdrive/BSM (in that order) whenever I get a chance....

Cheers!!!

[Beemer]

As per now , Nothing comes close to ACI . They are just fantastic , the only magazine i mostly (if not fully) rely on .
Top gear is good too but all of us want to see the local news and tests rather than the international .
BSM is good again but not more than a timepass .

As far as subsribing to a mag is concrned , i would happily do it to ACI but at the same time i dont want to as i dont even wait for a day to get a copy (once it hits the newstand) and i dont rely on ACI staff to do that in a day .....

[BUSA]

Its Autocar and Topgear for me, Autocar for Indian News and Top gear for Foregin Content, excellent. Lets see what OD has to hold up to.

[Steeroid]

Amongst the Mags mentioned, ACI tops it for me. Its a toss up between Overdrive and BSM for 2nd place, whereas the former is insipid the latter's reviews have to be taken with a pinch of salt as they tend to go overboard with their 'favourites'.

I bought Top Gear and Car last month and frankly they're a waste of good money. I guess Jeremy Clarkson has got some kind of a fan club in India, but I dont set store by what he says. So Top Gear was out even before it hit the stands - what came in print only made that feeling stronger. Its a lifestyle magazine and not an auto journal.

Car has been most disappointing, given their credentials abroad. I'm quite taken aback by the fact that the three existing mags seem better than the johnny-come-latelys...

[carfreak]

i agree with steeroid.autocar is still the best,be it the scoops,pictures,write-ups and everything else.i feel i can relate with autocar the most among all.not yet read top gear but even i feel jeremy clarkson's opinions are wrong.hasnt anyone ever noticed the fact that he is very partial towards british cars?any comparisons involving a brit car and it is sure to win.car is a total waste of money.their write-ups need certain effort to grasp.
but i like motoring very much.true to their ad,they have it in their blood!!that will definitely be my second choice.
though i dont prefer car,i feel bike is a good magazine though i have seen only one issue so far.
and then the malloo mag-top gear(kerala edition!!)if none of you have seen it please do get a copy.it has excellent picyure quality and articles

[sajo]

No matter what the content, I would buy BSM without giving it a second thought.Their sense of humour and style of writing is the best one around, and they are also the most creative onesof the lot. Even their titles are fantastic.
For Indian cars, I would buy ACI, or it could be OD too....For me, both are equal. Havent checked out the Sept issues of both, but will do so soon.
The only reason I would buy TG is that I am a big Clarkson fan, and love to read his Classic Clarkson stuff. The earlier ones were too good, but one that was simply unparalleled was the one on his wife.(If you havent done so, please read it . I can post it here if anyone wants). Apart from that, I like the photography in TG. Will wait for the Indian content on it before passing the final judgement (ie subscription).

[kallil]

Originally Posted by raja_ys

overdrive is the only magzine that gives us a near close fuel efficiency of cars whereas auto car is totaly vague

If you havent noticed-OD milege for the RS was 20!! and that for the NHC is around 25.in which way is that accurate???