[smilenow]

Tucson Diesel - 2WD diesel fits the budget of 40L. I recently bought it. It has lovely interiors, a fantastic gearbox, 180PS+ power, great boot space with even better leg space in the 2nd row. Do consider it before taking a final decision.

[CJP]

This thread was featured on the T-BHP Instagram page, very cool. And some of the comments are quite funny too!

In the meantime, I've started scheduling some test drives, let's see how this one ends up, I am intrigued and excited!!

[condor]

Originally Posted by CJP

In the meantime, I've started scheduling some test drives, let's see how this one ends up, I am intrigued and excited!!

So @CJP, how are the TD's coming up ? Guess the SaMaDhAn folks would have helped with at least one of these

[CJP]

Originally Posted by condor

So @CJP, how are the TD's coming up ? Guess the SaMaDhAn folks would have helped with at least one of these

Thanks for asking. The TDs have been coming along nicely. so far have driven the Jeep Compass S, Audi Q3, Mercedes GLA220D and the Citroen C5. All of them are really nice cars.

Our test drives were ALL on Friday afternoons between 2pm and 4pm, on the same route - a mix of village roads, some semi rough - no road type paths, lots of broken monsoon destroyed roads, about 22km one way - so a full drive is about 44km. I drive one way and my son drives while returning. This route is from Kengeri to Manchanabele Dam and back.

The Audi Q3 left an indelible impression amongst the ones that we've driven so far. It felt and behaved like a complete driver's car, very refined, an eager and peppy engine, gearbox and transmission and very good dynamics. A feeling of quiet understated luxury, with minimal glitz or glamour. No ventilated seats or 360 camera - weird!

The Jeep Compass S - ticked all the boxes, felt a bit underwhelming mainly due to the lazy gearbox/transmission, lack of paddle shifters, no drive modes, has terrain modes though and some weird noises from the plastic panels. Our test car had done about 15K km (iirc) it still felt good to drive with the exception of the gear box and transmission. We also had the use of a friend's Compass for a full day, and drove it across the city, from the tight crowded lanes of Kamanahalli, through the chaos of Lingarajapuram and to Kengeri. It was easy to get used to the Jeep - both for my son and I.

The GLA220D - was the most glamourous of all. Really rice interiors, oozing luxury from every pore, but lacked some simple things like ventilated seats or 360 cameras, though the 360 sensors are very sensitive. A large digital instrument panel that stretched all the way to mid co-pilot side making even simple things like using the aircon a bit fiddly. Reading the dials becomes particularly cumbersome as the screen is upright and quite close to the driver, reading the dials with a quick glance from the road means taking your eyes off the road for a second. The seats are a bit too firm, coming from the Innova's plush seats - that felt a bit down market! But it was a diesel that performed like a petrol, eager engine that tempted me to put my foot down. A bit of body roll in tight turns, but a pleasure to drive nonetheless. The Merc comes with 8 year warranty on the engine, gearbox and transmission with along with some clever maintenance packages.

The Citroen C5 - was the biggest of the lot. Lazy diesel that would pick up tremendously after a small lag, big car with big car manners, very pedestrian interiors and overall unimpressive package with the exception of the suspension that felt more plush than a S Class Merc. Magic carpet ride through the worst that Bangalore roads could dish out.

So far the Q3 has been the most impressive, even though it is a petrol, which begs the question, whether the VW Tiguan 4 Motion is the way to go if one is willing to forgive oneself when looking at the logo on the steering wheel for missing an opportunity.

From this set - the toss up is between the Tiguan and the Jeep, purely from a VFM and TCO perspective. And that still leaves the XUV7OO and the Fortuner - both full size SUVs.

What this experience has taught me is how difficult it is find a true and holistic upgrade to the Innova - that does everything that an Innova does AND offers an upgraded experience at realistic budgets.

Lets see how this turns out.

[ampere]

Originally Posted by CJP

From this set - the toss up is between the Tiguan and the Jeep, purely from a VFM and TCO perspective. And that still leaves the XUV7OO and the Fortuner - both full size SUVs.

How about the Tuscon ? I dont see it in the list.

What this experience has taught me is how difficult it is find a true and holistic upgrade to the Innova - that does everything that an Innova does AND offers an upgraded experience at realistic budgets.

Thats why the Hycross was one of the suggestions (the other being Tuscon).

[CJP]

Originally Posted by ampere

How about the Tuscon ? I dont see it in the list.

YES, it is on the list.

Originally Posted by ampere

Thats why the Hycross was one of the suggestions (the other being Tuscon).

The two year waiting period is a definite downer...

[NPV]

Originally Posted by CJP

The two year waiting period is a definite downer...

@CJP - any update on your other TD’s ? Have you made the decision yet ?

[CJP]

YES!!

And in the process of writing out a (hopefully) good update to this thread. Hint : it's black, it's beautiful, curvy and compact!

And thanks for asking NPV

[CJP]

A comprehensive update is ready to post, I just need to add some pics. will do that this weekend and complete the process. Thank you all very much for all your suggestions, feedback and engaging conversations. This is truly the power and strength of the T-BHP community.

See you soon

[CJP]

Folks,

I've added a new post here please hit the link to read about our buying and initial ownership experience.


And thanks very much for being part of this quest. Cheers!!

regards,
CJP

[CJP]

Major Roadtrip

I've posted our first major roadtrip - Bangalore to Mumbai https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/route...ml#post5826379 (Bangalore - Pune - Mumbai : Route updates & Eateries)