Questions & Answers – Round 4 (General)

Round 4 of Q & A has various questions from different segments including a bike advice query!!

I would like to buy a small car/sedan.
Requirements are as follows : -

• Budget within 5,00,000
• Good decent mileage
• Very low maintenance
• Preferably Diesel engined

I had shortlisted Swift, i20, Indigo Manza and Estilo. But I would very much like to know any other car that would suit my need - Subhankar

Subhankar, looking at your needs, I would suggest you get the Maruti Swift. It will just about fit in your budget (LDi) and will give you excellent mileage. However if you can stretch your budget the Indigo Manza is a very good car to buy. It has alot of space and uses the same diesel engine as the Swift with slightly more power. BTW, you should checkout the Grande Punto too. Very good car but undervalued by people.

We are not getting proper wide view of lighting on night driving for new Laura Ambient. Can you advice how to adjust lighting alignment to view better – Jagadish

Jagadish, you can adjust the throw of the light using the head lamp lever feature in your car. However, if you are still unsatisfied, go to the dealer and make him adjust the bulb for you as per your requirements.

Would you tell me which car is better in long size like Honda City, or something else – Vikas

The Honda City is an excellent car but the Fiat Linea is my pick in the long (C+) segment. However you can checkout various other alternatives like the Verna, SX4 and the Fiesta which all have their merits/demerits.

Which is a good car between Maruti A-Star and Fiat Palio 1.1 Petrol. I want to install LPG kit also after buying the car – Kuljit

The A-Star is a better car than the Palio. The A-Star has better performance along with more features and good after sales service. If you want to put a LPG Kit, it would be better to get a Santro or Wagon R which comes with factory fitted LPG kits.

Initially i planned to take hatch back car which will cost around 5 to 6 lakhs but i came to know to about Ford Ikon diesel which of around my budget. Now I am in a dilemma whether to take it or not? Please let me know the positive and negatives of Ikon. I also want to know how it will be after 50,000 km run – Satya

Satya, the Ford Ikon is a very good car, however it is dated. Ford tried to re-ignite sales with the launch of the diesel version, which is doing decent numbers. The Ikon excels in fuel efficiency, handling and rear seat comfort. But the car is outdated, the dashboard design is passe and the brakes are nothing to write home about. After 50,000kms you can expect to pay slightly more for service then what you would do for a hatchback costing similar money.

Will it be wise to purchase Rodeo in comparison to Activa – Malaya

Mahindra powerscooters are a very good attempt by Mahindra to rename Kinetic vehicles to venture into the 2 wheeler spectrum. Sadly however the scooters are not better than Honda’s. The Activa is a better bet.

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