[Samba]

Well as you are a college student i would say go for something funky.
1)You can check upon a Maruti Gypsy (soft top) and modify the car later as your pocket permits.
2) Fiat has poor resale, check out the Palio 1.6.
3) Ford Ikon 1.6 is a dream car to drive and that too have poor resale value.

You can really have fun with the above cars with lesser price tag. But if you plan on any of the above cars get it checked by a very good mechanic as the maintenance cost of the above cars are high.

If you want to play safe then you always have cars like Alto, Estilo, Wagon R, Swift, Santro , i10 or a bit older honda city or accent. They are always more reliable and cheaper to maintain. But it will be a common car.

Lastly if i were in your place i would have bought myself a Duke 390 or an Enfield Cafe race!

[Imran Ahmad Ali]

Greetings
So getting a car for college. That's a tough one. Coming from the tricity too and studying in the PU I have a feeling you ll be inclined towards an SUV or a sedan. Now the options although limited if you look well you ll be able to manage a good enough vehicle. The Sunday car bazaar you need to be careful because the dealers try and pass off an accidental vehicle.
You could see a safari maybe not a 2.2 but the earlier model ? Tatas are depreciation disasters. Yes there are a fair share of unkept, badly maintained vehicles but there are a few good ones too !
Older sedans like the lancer which have brilliant build quality and go on till you want them to.
Gypsys etc there are government car auctions where you can pick them up but you ll need to invest a great deal of time and money bringing it upto your standards.
Regards
Imran

[Dopamine]

Well, at this point my shortlist priority-wise is,
1)Swift zxi(for obvious reasons) I think I can stretch the budget easily if I find a clean piece.
2)NHC. I'm not sure how good the ones in this price bracket will be, though people do seem to buying these cheap.
3)Mitsubushi Cedia- Am really tempted by this one, but a little unsure about how easy it'll be to own.Can anyone help me make a informed decison about this? If the cost and hassle in maintaining one is in the bearable region, this will shoot to the top of the list.
4)Palio- Dad likes this one. I'm not so sure.

Cars like the alto,M-800,wagon-r or a new nano are not being considered because Im really used to the punto back home and they feel a lit flimsy and tin foil-ish. Dynamically that weight is important to me, more so than the 'peppiness' of the these rides.

Originally Posted by manikjeet

If you want I can get you a 1993 W124 200 D for 1.50 lacs

And the devil on my shoulder says ''Go on!!''
I can't afford to listen to him right now.

[manikjeet]

Originally Posted by Dopamine

And the devil on my shoulder says ''Go on!!''
I can't afford to listen to him right now.

These cars are very cheap to maintain if you find a nice example. And will give you good FE and merc diesels will last you a life time

[Loud]

Originally Posted by Dopamine

Well, at this point my shortlist priority-wise is,
1)Swift zxi(for obvious reasons) I think I can stretch the budget easily if I find a clean piece.
2)NHC. I'm not sure how good the ones in this price bracket will be, though people do seem to buying these cheap.
3)Mitsubushi Cedia- Am really tempted by this one, but a little unsure about how easy it'll be to own.Can anyone help me make a informed decison about this? If the cost and hassle in maintaining one is in the bearable region, this will shoot to the top of the list.
4)Palio- Dad likes this one. I'm not so sure.

Cars like the alto,M-800,wagon-r or a new nano are not being considered because Im really used to the punto back home and they feel a lit flimsy and tin foil-ish. Dynamically that weight is important to me, more so than the 'peppiness' of the these rides.


And the devil on my shoulder says ''Go on!!''
I can't afford to listen to him right now.

According to me, I think (being a college-goer myself) the cars that will suit you are (Priority-wise):
1. Maruti Swift Petrol
2. Hyundai i10
3. Hyundai Accent

I think these would aptly fit in the budget. It would be even better if you get some modifications done to make the cars better looking; the way the college-guys like it!

Questions:
1. Do you want to get some modifications done like alloys, ICE, etc.?
2. What are your priorities for the car? (Fun-to-drive, Good looking, or other..)

Do keep us updated.

[drsingh]

http://chandigarhcity.olx.in/esteem-vxi-iid-575895914

http://chandigarhcity.olx.in/esteem-...-iid-575831472

http://chandigarhcity.olx.in/i-want-...-iid-575794210

http://chandigarhcity.olx.in/wagon-r...-iid-575774685

for starters go pay all these cars a visit, youll find out what you want out of a car and look up classifieds from individuals and not dealers.youll have to visit 5-6 cars to find out a good deal. dont get fixed on a particular model if uts not readily available used.find out used cars in your budget.stay away from diesels and petrols with more than 80k on the odo.

[IshaanIan]

Originally Posted by manikjeet

These cars are very cheap to maintain if you find a nice example. And will give you good FE and merc diesels will last you a life time

Don't you think it is a little OT to be trying to sell a 1993 W124 Merc diesel here? These things will need restoration and even when things do go wrong the prices will be only affordable by someone who has the money to buy a new Merc in the first place. Besides you should not be posting with such a vested interest on the forum.

[Dopamine]

Originally Posted by Imran Ahmad Ali

You could see a safari maybe not a 2.2 but the earlier model ? Tatas are depreciation disasters. Yes there are a fair share of unkept, badly maintained vehicles but there are a few good ones too !
Older sedans like the lancer which have brilliant build quality and go on till you want them to.

Interesting option, but I plan to get a gypsy speced out for the raid sometime. This purchase is purely for the tarmac and I don't see much sense in the Safari. Not sure about the lancer but interested in the Cedia.

Originally Posted by Loud

Questions:
1. Do you want to get some modifications done like alloys, ICE, etc.?
2. What are your priorities for the car? (Fun-to-drive, Good looking, or other..)

Do keep us updated.

I will get some new ICE. An exhaust switch is also likely down the line(Unless I end up buying an incredibly practical-ish car ). Not sure about new alloys.
Priorities in no particular order are good looks,driving pleasure, less time spent in garages with repairs and what not and decent safety equipment.

Currently the Swift is leading the race though I'm also considering the 2nd gen city(Yes, I know it's not that fun to drive).
The Cedia is also something I'm interested in but quite unsure about. Ford ikon has been mentioned a few times and I hear it's a hoot drive but again I'm a little unclear about whether I want to go for it.

[KarthikK]

Originally Posted by Dopamine

Hello fellow Tbhpians,
I am a college student looking for a pre-worshipped ride in Chandigarh. The car will be used as a daily-ride within the city with a few highway runs to Himachal. Diesel cars would be preferred but petrol cars are under consideration as well.
Mileage should be under 75K and the car should be under 5 years old. I stay alone away from home so I would prefer trips to the garage to be minimal. Safety features like ABS, Airbags and EBD would be lovely.
Most of the requirements (And the budget ) are somewhat flexible and I would like to go with the best car available.
Haven't shortlisted any cars as yet so I await your inputs.
Thank you.

I was in a similar position as you when I was just out of college and started working in 2008. I was left with fewer options back then and the funny thing about the used car market was a 4 year old Accent and a 2-4 year old WagonR / Santro costed almost the same - 3L and thereabouts. Since I used to travel frequently as a hobby, I preferred a sedan over the hatchback, plus it offered me more power, comfort, space and snob value over the other options that were available back then. Where a used sedan will bite more if obviously in the maintenance department.

Hence my suggestions would be : If looking for a cheap to run/maintain car which will deliver good FE:

- Alto/A*
- WagonR (if you don't mind the looks)
- Santro

With proper searching, you can even get hold of a nice Getz (earlier 1.3 GLS came with ABS) and first/second gen Swift ZXi which came with ABS/Airbags. Getz owners might be able to guide better on servicing/parts availability and cost after it was discontinued.

If you are ready to spend some more cash on fuel and maintenance in return for more power, premium features, safety, comfort and space, go for a sedan at almost the same value but with a lot more bang for the buck! Some options I can think of:

- Hyundai Accent 1.5/1.6 petrol or 1.5 CRDi
- Maruti Baleno
- Hyundai Elantra (petrol variant might be a gas guzzler though)
- Honda City first gen or second gen ZX series.
- Stray cases of SX4 1.6 petrol available around 3L
- Fiesta first gen 1.6 petrol are sometimes available around 2.5-3L

If you're looking for enthusiast options, you can even stretch for a Cedia sports whose resale value seems to have dipped recently and should be available for around 3L, just hard to find though.

Good luck with your decision!

[suhaas307]

My personal suggestion would be to stay away from heavily used Hondas, Hyundais, Fiats and Fords. The OHC may be tempting, but it will empty your bank balance in so far as regular servicing is concerned. Ditto the Palio and Ikon 1.6. But these cars are at least fun to drive. The Hyundais just aren't!

I'd say, stick to Marutis. A low mileage (40k-60k) petrol Swift should be available for 2-2.5 lakhs. Get a Gypsy if you don't mind the hard ride. You should be able to find a few A-Stars that will fit the bill perfectly.

Do consider a new Tata Nano, it's not as bad as you think

[Gansan]

If I were you, with a budget of 2 lacs, I will buy a new nano and be done with it. A new car is a new car.

[drmohitg]

I sold off my 2005 Honda city with odo @ 65000 kms for 2L in Delhi few months back. The car was in real good condition with not a single issue. So look out for something similar. There are plenty of the same age group Honda's in Delhi ( the dolphin shape one). Also you can keep a check on Delhi used car market as rates are very cheap here.

[manikjeet]

Originally Posted by IshaanIan

Don't you think it is a little OT to be trying to sell a 1993 W124 Merc diesel here? These things will need restoration and even when things do go wrong the prices will be only affordable by someone who has the money to buy a new Merc in the first place. Besides you should not be posting with such a vested interest on the forum.

I am a Owner Of w124 so it would be nice for someone to join our w124 club. And Please I dont have any Interest in selling a Merc. I was just suggesting and clearing a myth that maintaining a Merc is expensive.

And please Don't blame someone before knowing someone's interest.

No hard feelings and I would have personally loved a W124 in my college days

[MARCUS_520i]

Originally Posted by Altocumulus

I have a personal bias towards an Esteem. I got my 2007 Vxi for 1.4L with 60k on the odo, five new tyres...

I agree with Altocumulus. Look around for one of the last manufactured Esteems. Although they won't come with airbags and stuff, but as someone who drove his mom's esteem to college, I can assure you, it is one heck of a reliable car.

You won't have to shell out more than a lakh and fifty for a good piece, following which you can spend part of the remaining cash you have on brand new tyres, get the car serviced tip-top, fill her up with a tankful and viola! the rest of the money can be saved for immediate future maintenance and tid-bits!

Plus, this is a wee bit but the car is still a hit with the ladies. So, you know what to do

[narayan]

Originally Posted by suhaas307

My personal suggestion would be to stay away from heavily used Hondas, Hyundais, Fiats and Fords. The OHC may be tempting, but it will empty your bank balance in so far as regular servicing is concerned. Ditto the Palio and Ikon 1.6. But these cars are at least fun to drive. The Hyundais just aren't!

Did you have any experience in your circle where the OHC turned out to burn a hole in regular servicing ? I have never come across anyone report the OHC as being expensive on ones pocket. I myself owned one till about 97000kms and it was dirt cheap to maintain. FTD yes it was but absolutely no comparisons with an Ikon or Palio as far as servicing costs is concerned