Need advice for my next car 10-12L range

Hi,

This is my first post on carwale. I drive a 1.6 Ford ikon and I need to upgrade my car pretty soon. The following are my criteria...

- It should be a driver's car, good steering and handling abilities

- Backseat should have very good space

- Good ground clearance to drive through stupid roads in Bangalore and to drive down to Kerala once in six months

- Should have a decent look (no outdated models)

- I can afford to buy one in the range of 10-12 L ex-price (company lease)

Any recco? I had thought about Honda Civic except for the ground clearance issue.. How's the Corolla Altis G2?

Check out the new Skoda Laura.  Looks hot!  The only issue is A.S.S but if you can put up with that then the car is amazing!

I saw that one ;) but I guess the prices for ambiente itself should be around 14L ex-show room.

The petrol should be around 12.5 L ex-showroom!

skoda is good on performance but very high on maintenance. Civic would be an excellent choice. Great looks and even amazing performance. Honda is always known for reliable engines and longetivity. It will outrun the toyota in performance. Have a look here

Just saw Review on AUTO car for New Laura(p) on TV

Well they did praise it a lot specially for Engine & Ride... For Engine was given 10/10...thats amazing...

Certainlty maintainance quite high compaired tp Honda or Toyota.. but I think worth looking at once....

Skoda maintenance is not only costly, from what we hear it is also very dodgy.  I would stay away from the brand - unless the Skoda is going to be the 2nd (and cheaper) car in the garage.

The Civic IMHO is a bit overrated and carries too much of a premium for the 'H' badge - it is a good car, but ground clearance is going to be a problem - no two ways about that.

The Corolla is as good on all fronts except for the less funky interiors (when compared to the Civic) - even though quality levels will be up there with the best.  It has a surprisingly comfortable back seat too - which is one of your requirements.  Its ground clearance is also better.

Have you taken a look at the Optra Magnum?  I'm not a big fan of the car (but I love the engine - its the same unit that came on the Elantra CRDi, with some tweaks), but it does offer a strong proposition in the price bracket you are considering.

I'm not sure if a model of the Hyundai Sonata would come into your budget - these are really good, but underrated (because of the badge, rather than any shortcoming in the car!) vehicles.  You may find the older Embera (not the newer Transform) with a few dealers and should be able to get a really good deal.

hi

you can also have a look at the optra magnum LT. it suits your budget and requirements.

just go for the test drive. defintly you will feel it.

My vote for Optra Magnum LT. The best in the range specified. Total VFM.

In fact I shouldn't be posting at all. Steeroid has hit the bull's eye with his post. But I was overcome with temptation to post just to support his points 100%.

I loved the n-2 generation (the one before embera) for its lovely and regal shape - That model rivalled a Merc in its splendour and look/feel. It lost face through Embera and Transform gradually. Now you cannot pick that car out from a crowd.

Just to clarify, I was commenting on the Hyundai Sonata in the last para in post #9