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I don't think so! My reasons,

1. The initial buying cost for Evalia is much lesser.

2. Power/weight ratings are same while Evalia has a better Torque/Weight rating. As per reviews, pick up is at par with Innova.

3. Passenger & luggage space better in Evalia.

4. FE - This car is atleast 75% more efficient than Innova - TRUMP CARD for Taxi owners. Imagine the profits Evalia will make for the same distance trips compared to the Innova!!

5. Reliability at par with the Innova.

6. Stability - Car stable unless stunts tried, as per reviews. Now taxi operators do take care of the comfort of their passengers, don't they? :)

From all these, if I were a taxi operator, I don't find a single reason to buy Innova at a premium rate compared to Evalia.

Hotels would not really bother about the looks or the bulk right? So I guess Evalia scores there too.

But you are right about family guys choosing Ertiga over Evalia.

What speeds was your Qualis doing?

Cant agree more with Zappo. Looks sonewhat like daddy eeco. It 'could' fetch in some buyers but it cannot match the premium look that an Innova, or even an Ertiga provides.

Innova demand may dip. I see commercial operators embracing the Evalia (and possibly also the Ashok Leyland version), and also those private owners who (for some reason or another) like its looks. It drives well and has an extremely frugal and well proven engine powering it. Its loaded with features as well - ABS+EBD across all variants and front airbags on all variants but the lowest and a very cheap top end variant. Ertiga is there for all large family needs because lets face it, most families needing vehicles with 7-seater capacity only use the full capacity occasionally and Ertiga's car-like looks make it better than any other "van".

The only market I see the Innova still untouched is the chauffeured MPV market where an extremely roomy rear as well as a good image of the vehicle is needed; this too could be attacked if Renault does some miracle and makes a modern neat looking vehicle out of this (the way mahindra completely revamped the looks of the Verito) and sells it at a premium.

Price comparison sheet has been added to the 2nd post of the review:


cya
R

The pricing is closer to the Xylo & Tavera than the Innova. The former two UVs play the value-for-money card while the Innova has the premium tag (amongst people movers). Smart strategy in targeting the Xylo / Tavera owner as well as the Innova customer by parking the Evalia bang in the middle. I don't like any of their designs, but their pricing is always spot-on. Nissan is fast establishing itself as a true value for money player.

The base & mid variants are 1.5 lakhs cheaper ex-showroom than the Innova. That works out to about 1.7 lakhs on the road. With diesel at 52 bucks a pop, a taxi wallah is looking at 40,000 - 50,000 free kms (with the diesel bought for that price differential). At 10 bucks a km (minimum cost of hire), that's 4 - 5 lakhs in gross revenue!

Considering that the Evalia will in all probability work as reliably as the Innova, has more space, is more fuel efficient and can carry more cargo, it's going to be tough for any commercial owner to overlook this advantage.

Then, the running (fuel) costs will easily be 30% lower than an Innovas.

Just wait for this product to establish the all-too-important "street reputation". It's going to fly.

Absolutely spot on man.clap:clap:

However, I'm not so sure about the Ertiga - have seen one too many of them being used as the new people carrier (the passengers aren't too happy though) but the drivers are thrilled with the mileage and the driving pleasure ("bilkul gaadi jaisi chalti hai saab"). Now you have ertigas doing indica like maneuvers in gurgaon everyday. Curious to know why you skipped the Ertiga from your math?

What about the Xylo D2 and suchlike cheap-as-hell variants which do duty as in-city cabs as well?

Infact, for those bothering about looks - this reminds me so much of the typical toyota hiace buses which look darned ugly but do the job - this is NO different, except smaller.

I think your views are spot on. Yes indeed, Nissan is turning out to be the new VFM player.

:thumbs up

Good points indeed! But Evalia has got 165/80 tyres ,which i believe gives it the fuel efficiency advantage.Isnt it advisable to upgrade?It does feel different to drive a vehicle of this size with such wheels,more importantly the road grip.
The low power will surely be felt while going uphill. Overall the Innova seems more robust and stable.

I may be wrong in above points,its just my opinion :)
Being a new vehicle evalia will no doubt see good volumes,it needs to be seen whether it beats Innova in the long run.

For hotels,yes they dont care about looks ,but why pay more when you have the better looking ertiga from a trusted brand like Maruti.

For a private buyer, an upgrade could be the first on his list. But will a taxi operator bother? Most probably NO ! Personally I don't expect much private sales for Evalia.

I don't think so, since this engine is too good on driveability & near zero turbo lag. Read a similar feedback on the 85 bhp Sunny making no fuss on an incline. And mind you, Evalia has a better torque/weight ratio than an Innova. If Innova can do the hill, Evalia will do it in an easier manner!

From the cost perspective, yes! But Ertiga is a compromise as a people mover [5+ people]. You cannot really expect people to fit in or adjust when you offer premium services. The hotels will not know the height / weight details of the guests and imagine what if the complete group is really tall / well built carrying decent luggage and an Ertiga goes to pick them up? This is where Xylo / Innova / Evalia trumps Ertiga.

At the same time, Ertiga can function as a spacious and efficient 5 seater too which others except Evalia can't. Now see the versatility of Evalia. :) It can be a 7 seater MPV & also a 5 seater fuel efficient car. This is why I think an Evalia will be a better bet for tour operators / hotels for pick up service.

Sweet pricing. If only the backside wasn't so hideously boxy. The specs too seem good enough.

My question might be silly, but can we get the glove box cover as an add on accessory from Nissan?
I really feel that the car is incomplete from the interior without it, also how much difference would it make if Nissan would have offered the cover as a standard fitment?

There are many such small things which can be aggregated and will only cost a max of Rs 1000/- to 2000/- additon to the cost at bulk level which an automaker can add to the vehicle to make the customer delighted.

I am still clueless why these design engineers omit these minor attention to detail which can make their product stand out in the crowd. :Shockked:

Even asked one of my friend working in a Popular Indian Auto maufacturer's design office and the reply was that they have strict timelines and they want the innovations put to only to their high end vehicles to make it seem attractive.:Frustrati

So the Newyork's offical new taxi is soon going to rule indian taxi segment too. Right from day one i had a feeling that Nissan is only targeting taxi segment with such a van like vehicle. Isn't that what toyota did(still doing..None of the toyota cars are great looking either baring say new Camry)

Pricing is sweet spot and Nissan is around 2 L cheaper than the innova yet has a premium tag(compared to Tavera,Qualis) without costing a bomb.

With a proven 1.5 ltr engine, i am sure it is going to be light on pocket too. with better FE and better handling(than Xylo) I am sure Nissan has a winner in hand.

I expect the fleet operators to line up in large numbers since this is a better alternative for Tavera,qualis and as well as Xylo and premium Innova

I dont expect many takers for the high end though !! since private buyers are bound to stay away as far as possible(But Nissan would be busy serving taxi segment for long time)

P.S: Its interesting to see How Ashok Layland will price the Stile(which is more of a low cost Evalia)

Very intelligent move by nissan. Economy, comfort & space go a long way in the Indian market. In my opinion when a product delivers perfectly on many of the burning requirements of a consumer then it becomes an emotional connection & looks beautiful to the consumer. It happened with cars like the santro, quailis & innova. This Nissan has a very good chance getting that respect. 2 Big misses I feel is the 2nd row window only partially opens & the open glovebox.

I'm not a fan of the looks, but in the Autocar review they talked about practicality, I think they are absolutely right. If this is being positioned as an urban utility vehiccle (UUV) they have a great value proposition at hand !!. We have to mature as a user community interms of what we want out of a vehicle, Very rarely does a vehicle stike all the requirement /expectation chords. Evalia is not an exception to this rule; but if you are looking at cost of ownership, convenience , comfort and practicality, this model scores well. This may not go with say the Delhi crowd (no offence meant), but really this makes sense for someone who has a large family and is looking at a family mover in comfort as well as safety. You are not going to make this strut at a fashion show ofcourse!! Don't be surprised. this was never supposed to be there in there in first place. As far as Indians go safety comes as the last priotity, human life is in plenty in the country and therefore cheap. gald to note that Nissan has taken cognisance of precious human life, and provided safety features in most models. I have had questions about safety in this forum with dismal participation, all people look at is looks, acceleration, pulling capacity... safety , anyone???