Confused between the Kia Sonet and the Tata Nexon

It has to be an AT because I am pretty lazy to change gears by myself .

BHPian jasjotbains recently shared this with other enthusiasts.

I'm currently the owner of an 8-year old Hyundai i10 which has clocked 52k+ km as on date. The car has been pretty boring - starts on the first attempt, drives smoothly, does the job pretty well without any surprises, still gives 15-16 km/l with 100% AC with mixed city and highway runs. However, I got it when I was a hot blooded youngster fresh out of college and with the competition being MS Swift. Now I am a married person with a kid and suddenly a 0.5-star rated car with a boaty ride doesn't excite me or my better half anymore.

I'm looking for a bigger vehicle (higher ground clearance for village roads plus higher stance against the stupid dipper drivers on the highway) which will probably be a diesel for the sheer torque on tap, which my i10 has found lacking at times. It has to be an AT because I am pretty lazy to change gears by myself (having an i10 AT at home has always made me dislike my own car a little).

My choices are simple - Tata Nexon and Kia Sonet. No Fords, no XUVs (my Activa has bigger boot space) and no Nissans.

Here is a small for and against for each vehicle which I have been able to come up with:

Nexon - Built like a tank, 260 Nm available and ease of service and spares availability. 5 stars? I'm already drooling.

Sonet - The famed 1.6 detuned to 1.5, gizmos, cooled seats (it's Punjab summers) and the torque converter (my other i10 has one too).

Against Nexon - No sunroof (for cooling a hot car) and no 10" system and ventilated seats

Against Sonet - no star rating as such (Seltos anyone?), spares and service may be a hit and a miss, cost of spares

My requirements are few:

• Should be a diesel AT.
• Should be a safe vehicle.
• Ease of availability of spares and service.
• Should be comfortable to drive (longest drives ~ 150 kms after a long day at work)
• Raised stance and projectors.
• Drool worthy music system.
• Being a public sector banker, won't mind sarkari attitude!

I would require your advice/suggestions/real life examples and feedbacks on which beast to tame before we all shift to EVs. Thanks in advance!

Here's what BHPian anb had to say on the matter:

Nexon comes with AMT while Sonet comes with a proper torque converter automatic. So I would prefer a proper TC automatic any day over AMT.

Here's what BHPian Akshay6988 had to say on the matter:

Hi, you should definitely go for Nexon. It fits your requirements clearly - safe car and a diesel automatic. And sunroof is something everyone likes when they get to experience it, no matter how much they are against it before. Driving with sunroof shade open at dawn/dusk and in rains is just different feeling. I can't put a price on that TBH. Nexon is matured product and a successful one, so I assume service won't burn a hole in your pocket.

Here's what BHPian quantobigboot had to say on the matter:

I found the sunroof in the Nexon pretty much a gimmick as it is very small even compared to the competition (XUV and Sonet have much bigger single pane units). But the optional sunroof variants also get cruise control and TPMS over the variant below them if I remember correctly. Whether they are worth the 80k or so premium is upto you.

I would suggest getting the Nexon as it satisfies almost all your needs except a proper TC AT - Safety, Good music system, can be a capable cruiser and take rough patches of road with relative ease. Also seems like you wouldn't mind slow, government office type dealers and service centres.

Here's what BHPian harry10 had to say on the matter:

I was in your shoes just a couple of months back with same 2 car dilemma. We were getting a sweet deal on Nexon and ready delivery too but still I went with Sonet just because of primary reason of Torque Converter vs AMT. I have driven my friends Nexon Diesel AMT few times and it's quite good but not as smooth as a TC. So, if you seek pure driving pleasure, I will suggest getting a Sonet. Nexon will be definitely better built and more safer. Do an extensive TD for both and then make up your mind.

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