[sachin_cs]

Voted Yes, we use our Nano as beater car for running all the city chores.

Here's what happened- back in 2019 we owned a 2016 Sumo Gold and 2009 Estilo. After doing 2L kms in Estilo(which was an unrated car) we decided to get Rapid DSG. However, due to parking constraint we had to let go of our Estilo and unfortunately exactly a month later, Sumo met with an accident, so now we were left with only one car- Rapid. Initially we thought we would manage it with only one car but later realised that it's way too cumbersome to drive a sedan in old city lanes. So due to budget constraint we were not able to afford any "rated" city car and we ended up buying a Nano. We make sure to use it only for the city runs and for highway duties we have our Czech beauty.

In the future, if finances allow, definitely we would like to replace our Nano with something like a Tiago or a Polo.

At times its not always about wants, it's also about needs and affordability.

[2TR-FE]

Voted yes.

Yes only if I have the luxury of owning two cars. As of now, I have a single parking and therefore a single car.

Besides this, I do support the concept of having a beater car at home. Both these decisions go hand in hand for an ideal home garage.

Regards

[kamilharis]

Voted YES.

Even though the cheaper cars are poor performers in the safety rating tests, all of them come with a basic set of safety features these days compared to the old gen cars. Even the base variant gets Airbag & Reverse sensors as a part of safety regulation. And there are some safe entry-level cars like TIAGO available in the market if you could stretch your budget a bit. Nissan & Renault has also given decent kits in their new CSUVs!

[kiranknair]

Voted Yes. We have Baleno / Uber for city chores and Skoda for Highways.

[Guna]

Yes, I would use an unrated/poorly rated car within the city. We use two wheelers, take auto rickshaws at at times, which are far more un-safe in the event of a collision or a roll over.
I also believe that people tend to be more careful driving a car which 'feels' less safe (which may not be the reality) than while driving a car which feels indestructible (again, it may be just the feel and not the reality).

[John316_WRC]

Remember the movie franchise Final Destination (all the way 1 through to the cringeworthy 4 & 5). Accidents can happen anywhere. And accidents can also happen for no fault of yours. This is where better structural integrity of a car can be the difference between life & death/disability.

Yes I agree there are multiple factors, but when the odds are stacked against you, you're any day better off in a well built car than say a zero star car. You never know how much of a difference that little extra steel makes in saving us.

For those who are looking out for a first car, save up, use Ola/Uber. You might have to push your purchase by few months more, but please buy a better car. You & your family members deserve it. All Indians deserve it.

Voted NO.

[Big Smoke]

Voted a big YES!

The most important thing regarding safety is the driver. If the driver's mindset is towards maximising safe travel, 90% of your problem is solved.

But that too leaves the possibility for another careless driver ramming into your car. And that is where understanding the city part becomes instrumental.

Generally, cars do not travel at a very high speed in city. Major reason for this is the speed cameras which have now been installed throughout most major cities.
For example, I live in Newtown, Kolkata. Last month, there have been 5 speed cameras installed on the main road outside my house! And guess what? The speed limit is a mere 50 kmph! This ensures that cars do not get out of control, in most cases.

But then again, there are possibilities of technical failures in a car (brake fail, accelerator pedal getting jammed, etc) causing accidents. But that can happen on any kind of road. And majority of new gen cars usually do not fail in these critical parts (going by stats). And owing to the low speeds in city traffic, the damages caused are also insubstantial in most cases, far from fatal or serious injury - causing.

Hence, for city runs, I see no problems in using a 0 rated safety car.

Personally speaking, for a car that covers less than 5000 kms a year, and that too only in the city, I would buy a Certified & Inspected Maruti Alto with warranty from Maruti True Value for 2.5 Lakh bucks, than a Tata Tiago from a roadside dealer for 4 lakh bucks.

Fact is, until 5 years ago, most people around us weren't even aware of all these crash test safety rating and all. My family happily used a Maruti Dzire for 12+ years, and a Maruti Ritz for 2 yrs. Both cars had dismal crash test ratings, and were tin cans in the true sense. It is only now that these crash test ratings heavily influenced our new car purchase, resulting in a Ford Aspire & Harrier.

[skyocean]

Nice topic. My answer would be a firm NO. This is because in India we buy once and use it everywhere.

Only for city use is very subjective, by city does it mean slow moving traffic, crowded markets only or does it include 4 lane ring roads, flyovers which are built no less than highways these days. It’s better to stick with the ones which are certified safe than compromise and put restrictions (which never happens) on the mind. Compromise is a compromise and road accidents don’t announce their arrival ahead in time.

On a lighter note if it were the end of the world and I had to choose one of the tin cans I would at least device an automated GPS assisted system which would sound like "Exceeding city limits, please change car or be prepared to travel back in an ambulance "

[Philomath55]

Though I cannot vote for now it is definitely a yes for me. I also believe it depends on the number of cars a person has. My grandparents had a Santro for 12 years and it would be primarily used for city runs but never on the highways due to the lack of safety features in it, always ensured they would go in the Creta when they travel on highways.

[sentra26]

Originally Posted by GTO

An unrated economy hatchback is still 50 times safer than a motorcycle.

IF I were to upgrade from a bike to a Wagon R, that definitely is a step up in Safety. Even though the wagon R is an expensive full body helmet, it's still better than the bike . Full disclosure - I have travelled extensively in an Ambassador and driven many a highway trips in a Wagon R. The only safety feature in the car was a statue of Lord Ganesh . Then I bought the i20 which was rated 5 stars when it launched (the Asta edition). This was years ago, and I am now in the market for another car.

Originally Posted by GTO

Being a great, safe driver is as important - if not more than - your car's safety rating

Completely agree. But what about a car that is used by people who are getting used to driving - could be the wife, a son, or a daughter. If I make the choice for another, safety becomes the default parameter.

Originally Posted by GTO

Due to inherently lower speeds + more discipline + closer hospitals, city driving is far safer than highway driving (2/3rds of all road accident deaths are on the highway).

I live in a part of Bangalore where traffic speeds can at times dip into the negative. There is no fun in driving too. But the voice/virus in my head says , what about the friendly neighborhood water tanker driver who races around at 80 kms per hour. What about that one time where you have to drop someone off to the airport at 2 in the night. I never go past a 100 in highways too. In addition to my boring driving style, I have multiple speed governors in my car (my wife, mom, son) who point at the speedometer if/when (in the rare occasion) that I want to speed up.

Personally for me, once the thought of safety has entered the mind, it is very difficult to let go of the thought and buy a car. I was all about to buy a car with 2 airbags when a friend jokingly said - "oh you must hate the passengers in the rear seat?" Now, I am in the market for a car with 6 airbags

Originally Posted by GTO

If I owned just a cheap hatchback, I would happily drive it in the city.

This is yet another issue. It's not that big a price gap unless you go for a car like the Datsun Go. The rest of the options differ by 2 lakhs (in the same segment) and I agree that the 2 might make a huge difference to some who are upgrading say from a bike to a car. If I have to buy a car, and I know for a fact at say a similar price (or maybe a couple of lakhs more) I can get a vehicle with more airbags, better build, ESP etc then I'd definitely go for it.


My peeve right now (ranted about it in several threads already) is even at 30L, cars like the India specific Innova is not tested by GNCAP. At the end of the day (at the risk of sounding cliched and dramatic), should safety not be a right? Safety is not for the 99% of the time when things go right. It's for the rare occasion when things do go wrong.

[ketan007]

Voted No.

I have gone through a disastrous accident at a very low speed, around 30 kmph.
My vehicle was Maruti Astar, and a huge container-carrying truck just kissed my car. Fortunately, no one inside the car was injured, but the vehicle suffered a lot of damage. So, I think safety should come first.

[lapis_lazuli]

If you have only one vehicle, you really can't guarantee its going to be used for city runs only. In that case, it's a firm NO. One car, a sturdy car. You have more than one, you could possibly get away with one of them being crash rated and the other being unrated. But having said that if for 10-15% more you can lay hands on a better one, please do by all means. City speeds too, can be insane, at night.

[shancz]

Voted Yes.

Reasons being affordability, feasibility and lack of better alternatives. But those have been discussed so will leave with a line, from my ex manager, which aptly describes this situation :

Safety is always relative.


PS: Hope that there is a day when this discussion isn't needed as a standard rating system (GNCAP/equivalent) with minimums is used for all vehicles and also hope that day comes sooner

[Aravind_M92]

Well this is quite the trick question! City use warrants a car for daily errands and compacts dimensions. Even though the odo on such cars would be low, the engine goes through a huge number of start-stop cycle causing more damage compared to those highway loggers and require proper timely servicing. Further in cities due to legal and literal (congestion and traffic) cars are seldom run beyond the 50 kmph mark. Averaging out at 30 kmph for the entire trip!
In India there is ALWAYS a compromise. Maruti and Hyundai out rightly opted out of ratings, have excellent service networks, do form the major bulk of those "city" cars used for daily errands. While cars with better ratings compromise on service support.
I mainly blame on our part. We all are money driven and the choices we make are ultimately based on cost effectiveness. An average customer would be interested in touch screen and sunroofs rather than a bland car with great ratings. It's like we choose quantity over quality.
I was shocked when Suzuki South Africa clarified that the Espresso, manufactured in India being exported there has 2 star rating while the same car sold in India scored 0! Is that the value we put on ourselves? Also Transport ministry which can come up with brilliant ideas like 'Auto headlamp on' feature on scooters, very useful for blinding oncoming traffic can't set up Crash guidelines in India. I believe our country is the largest car market in South-East Asia and still don't have crash safety guidelines.
Can't blame car manufacturers as well. Making a car well compliant with safety ratings results in car costs going high. Ultimately losing competition to the next cheap service provider. Thus reduces their presence and lower service centers.
Unless stricter laws centering crash safety is implemented, our markets will be filled with unsafe tin cans.
Well to answer your part, Would have to vote yes due to constraints and choices available

[charanreddy]

Voted Yes, but only if an equivalent safe car is unavailable.

In the less than Rs 6 Lakh budget, I would buy the Tiago.

In the Rs 6 Lakh - Rs 10 Lakh budget, I would buy the Altroz or Amaze.

If I had a really small budget and no other options and definitely needed a car, then would go for the Alto or Kwid or go pre-owned route. Recently got an extremely well maintained 130K run 2013 Honda City for 3.5 Lakh for my brother.