Tata Bolt vs Maruti Swift vs Hyundai i20 vs VW Polo vs Fiat Punto vs Nissan Micra

[furious_driver]

Interior Quality is good and at par with i20/Polo and the design is similar to the City. Amaze dashboard wont be here, because Jazz is a global product. I expect it do well, if priced well which Honda has promised. Because, Honda had said during Mobilio's launch that it will be Good VFM and will be priced between Ertiga & Innova. But, here they have said that Jazz will be aggressively priced.

I know the interior quality won't be like Amaze, but just worried that Honda is going to kill a good product with such silly mistakes!

[The bold parts] is conflicting! Let's wait and see. If not priced right, Honda is loosing the big chance and it can seriously eat the part of sales number of i20! Except Amaze, I don't see any product from Honda stable to be priced according to the market and trend!

Let's wait and see. If they priced it right, I am sure we will replace our rusty old SX4 with Jazz!!!

 

[Vignesh_k]

I know the interior quality won't be like Amaze, but just worried that Honda is going to kill a good product with such silly mistakes!

is conflicting! Let's wait and see. If not priced right, Honda is loosing the big chance and it can seriously eat the part of sales number of i20! Except Amaze, I don't see any product from Honda stable to be priced according to the market and trend!

Let's wait and see. If they priced it right, I am sure we will replace our rusty old SX4 with Jazz!!!

Well FD, I am not sure if you have actually experienced the Amaze, the interior quality is not as poor as many think / tell. The design is plain and utilitarian and does not suit a car priced that much. But the plastic and parts quality is definitely better than that in our Dzire and in some Ford cars like Figo. The fact is Hyundai and VW to an extent has set very high standards and every other manufacturer looks to have poor quality when compared to them. I repeat, the problem with Amaze dashboard is more with the design less with the quality.

Again, I feel Brio, Amaze and Mobilio are the actually over-priced cars from Honda. City is mostly priced on par or below Verna which I think was a master-stroke from Honda during launch. Once the introductory prices were increased, City prices looked to go above Verna and that is when 4S Verna came in and now the situation is back to what it was at City launch. You can checked the prices yourself in the respective websites. Again, if you compare City vs Ciaz, City is priced much higher, but it has a bigger engine in both petrol and diesel variants and has a better brand value in the 10+ L market.

I hope and wish Honda does the same with Jazz by pricing it very similar or slightly lower than i20 - that itself along with the excellent FE should help Honda sell 5-6k Jazzs per month. Again, I do not say all these numbers will be stolen from the i20 sales, cars like Polo, Xcent and Amaze will be more affected IMO.

 

[furious_driver]

Well FD, I am not sure if you have actually experienced the Amaze, the interior quality is not as poor as many think / tell. The design is plain and utilitarian and does not suit a car priced that much. But the plastic and parts quality is definitely better than that in our Dzire and in some Ford cars like Figo. The fact is Hyundai and VW to an extent has set very high standards and every other manufacturer looks to have poor quality when compared to them. I repeat, the problem with Amaze dashboard is more with the design less with the quality.

Again, I feel Brio, Amaze and Mobilio are the actually over-priced cars from Honda. City is mostly priced on par or below Verna which I think was a master-stroke from Honda during launch. Once the introductory prices were increased, City prices looked to go above Verna and that is when 4S Verna came in and now the situation is back to what it was at City launch. You can checked the prices yourself in the respective websites. Again, if you compare City vs Ciaz, City is priced much higher, but it has a bigger engine in both petrol and diesel variants and has a better brand value in the 10+ L market.

I hope and wish Honda does the same with Jazz by pricing it very similar or slightly lower than i20 - that itself along with the excellent FE should help Honda sell 5-6k Jazzs per month. Again, I do not say all these numbers will be stolen from the i20 sales, cars like Polo, Xcent and Amaze will be more affected IMO.

I was talking about dashboard quality and yes, I have seen and drove Amaze. One of my friends car which just ran 22k had some rattles and overall dashboard look is also downer for me, especially since I compare them with my Xcent.

It is true that Hyundai/VW set standards a tad high but even so, I don't see why it has to be so bland in Amaze! Just compare it with Zest and you might understand what I am saying.

Finally, how can Jazz eat up sales of Xcent/Amaze? From all I can see, people buy CS mainly for just one reason. The boot and I don't see they switch to Jazz just because it have big boot space. They need a BOOT attached to the car and that's it. I have convinced my friend to go to Grand since he don't need such boot, but in the end he went for Xcent stating this reason "What if I go on some long vacation with my family some day! Can I able to fit all the luggages then!" I suggested him to look at Elite i20, but still he was not budged a bit and booked Xcent! So I don't think Jazz will eat from Xcent/Amaze share, but a little bit(Those informed customers!).

 

[Vignesh_k]

I was talking about dashboard quality and yes, I have seen and drove Amaze. One of my friends car which just ran 22k had some rattles and overall dashboard look is also downer for me, especially since I compare them with my Xcent.

I drove an Amaze that had completed ~18k and had absolutely no rattles - probably it was maintained well. But I can assure that the car I drove was driven by different drivers in multiple long drives. But I agree, dashboard design (looks) is definitely a downer for anyone who spends that much money on the Amaze. It was adequate for Brio, but not for anything above it.

It is true that Hyundai/VW set standards a tad high but even so, I don't see why it has to be so bland in Amaze! Just compare it with Zest and you might understand what I am saying.

I never said Amaze dashboard is NOT bland. It is very much bland and I don't even have to compare with the beautiful Xcent or stylish Zest. Even my age old Dzire has better looking dashboard - but the plastic quality, Amaze is better than my Dzire and falls behind that of the Xcent. This was my point always.

Finally, how can Jazz eat up sales of Xcent/Amaze? From all I can see, people buy CS mainly for just one reason. The boot and I don't see they switch to Jazz just because it have big boot space. They need a BOOT attached to the car and that's it. I have convinced my friend to go to Grand since he don't need such boot, but in the end he went for Xcent stating this reason "What if I go on some long vacation with my family some day! Can I able to fit all the luggages then!" I suggested him to look at Elite i20, but still he was not budged a bit and booked Xcent! So I don't think Jazz will eat from Xcent/Amaze share, but a little bit(Those informed customers!).

Even before I come to how Jazz will eat up a Compact Sedan's sale, one important reason for Xcent's low sales is i20. Especially in the Tier 1 cities. See, Xcent sells lesser than Grand i10 and i20, what is the reason?? Practicality and similar levels of equipment and quality. Now, why I said Jazz might eat up a bit of Xcent and Amaze is because all will fall in similar price-range and there will be cross-shopping. Since the boot of Jazz is only slightly less (~50 L) than the Xcent / Amaze and practical and informed customers might move to Jazz. Also since Jazz has folding seats which the CSs don't get.

Cross-shopping and cannibalization is common and will repeat with Jazz also. That is all my friend.

 

[furious_driver]

Even before I come to how Jazz will eat up a Compact Sedan's sale, one important reason for Xcent's low sales is i20. Especially in the Tier 1 cities. See, Xcent sells lesser than Grand i10 and i20, what is the reason?? Practicality and similar levels of equipment and quality. Now, why I said Jazz might eat up a bit of Xcent and Amaze is because all will fall in similar price-range and there will be cross-shopping. Since the boot of Jazz is only slightly less (~50 L) than the Xcent / Amaze and practical and informed customers might move to Jazz. Also since Jazz has folding seats which the CSs don't get.

Cross-shopping and cannibalization is common and will repeat with Jazz also. That is all my friend.

Xcent was never number cruncher for Hyundai. They just released it to fill the void. Grand and i20 is saving grace for Hyundai! Anyways all we can do is, wait and watch.

 

[SiriSiri888]

With so many advertising and marketing yet fiat is struggling to sell punto evo/Avventura!! Gosh fiat is crumbling the "GM" way in India

 

[Tornado]

I voted for Punto
Reasons :combo of VFM, India specific GC, superb handling,superb suspension, precise steering, cheaper ASS. Built quality
Only drawbacks are poor resale value but it gets compensated due to discounts offered at the time of purchase. Steering is bit hard at parking speeds.

 

[Vignesh_k]

Xcent was never number cruncher for Hyundai. They just released it to fill the void. Grand and i20 is saving grace for Hyundai! Anyways all we can do is, wait and watch.

I totally agree that Xcent was never a number cruncher. However, it was always intended to be one, it did not succeed. We have to accept the fact that NO company (especially an aggressive player like Hyundai) will launch a product just to fill voids - they will have a clear plan and expect every car to be success and help them increase the market share. Does it go as per plans or not, is a different matter altogether

If you notice, Hyundai tried its best to differentiate the Xcent from Grand i10 by loading Xcent with ACC + chrome grill + wider and bigger tires. These are clear attempts to make it appear more premium than the hatchback sibling. If Hyundai looked at Xcent as just a gap-filler, why would they invest in it by differentiating from Grand i10?? Hope you get my point

 

[furious_driver]

I totally agree that Xcent was never a number cruncher. However, it was always intended to be one, it did not succeed. We have to accept the fact that NO company (especially an aggressive player like Hyundai) will launch a product just to fill voids - they will have a clear plan and expect every car to be success and help them increase the market share. Does it go as per plans or not, is a different matter altogether

If you notice, Hyundai tried its best to differentiate the Xcent from Grand i10 by loading Xcent with ACC + chrome grill + wider and bigger tires. These are clear attempts to make it appear more premium than the hatchback sibling. If Hyundai looked at Xcent as just a gap-filler, why would they invest in it by differentiating from Grand i10?? Hope you get my point

I get it. Hyundai intended to make it a success, but soon they would have realized it is not! You know why? Because their diesel engine is a joke! Just see how Dzire/Amaze performs at their diesel avatar. And to my surprise, almost 50%(even greate!) of Grand I see on road is of Petrol!! No surprise. They did their best to differentiate siblings, but in the end engine was a big letdown in otherwise good car. And they forgot to understand, to survive in India they need to give better diesel option and Swift sibling is example of this.

 

[Vignesh_k]

I get it. Hyundai intended to make it a success, but soon they would have realized it is not! You know why? Because their diesel engine is a joke! Just see how Dzire/Amaze performs at their diesel avatar. And to my surprise, almost 50%(even greate!) of Grand I see on road is of Petrol!! No surprise. They did their best to differentiate siblings, but in the end engine was a big letdown in otherwise good car. And they forgot to understand, to survive in India they need to give better diesel option and Swift sibling is example of this.

That I agree FD. 75% of the Grand i10s I have seen is petrol and the reason definitely is the 3 cylinder 1.1 L engine. Why would anyone go for a small engine when Honda and Maruti offers better and more accomplished engines with good power and FE. That is also one reason why Xcent does not sell much - most of compact sedan owners look for diesel model. I heard a rumor that Xcent will soon get the 1.4 L engne from i20. Not sure when to expect that though.

 

[furious_driver]

That I agree FD. 75% of the Grand i10s I have seen is petrol and the reason definitely is the 3 cylinder 1.1 L engine. Why would anyone go for a small engine when Honda and Maruti offers better and more accomplished engines with good power and FE. That is also one reason why Xcent does not sell much - most of compact sedan owners look for diesel model. I heard a rumor that Xcent will soon get the 1.4 L engne from i20. Not sure when to expect that though.

I wouldn't hope for it! But, if that's true, then Xcent might get a chance to set the charts on fire!

 

[krishnavamshi24]

I Voted for Honda Jazz, its the best of both worlds space inside and space outside and great fuel efficiency. I Certainly feel that Jazz this time around if priced right will set the charts on fire.

Bolt had a chance to play a good role in this mix but once they priced it at the range they did they killed the product and no amount of discounts will bring back the lost customers. I20 Elite well it sure sells a lot and is practical for most families (4 max 5 person is a squeeze). All said and done its going to Swift that most of the buyers will choose no matter what competition throws unless say Jazz is priced at Swift levels.

 

[eigenvalue]

My vote is for TATA Bolt. A true world class product but masked by a illusionary local brand value. TATA is definitely improving in their line up of products from the zest release and the bolt is the second one. Still one cannot change the accepted brand image over night. My take would be to release the sports version of bolt ASAP and make a detuned engine as an option.

But to pit against the competitor going strong for ten years (read swift) you need to have a true niggle free product + respectable brand image + qualified service backup. If any one can pull those 3 variables to the right tune we have a swift beater for sure.

 

[furious_driver]

My vote is for TATA Bolt. A true world class product but masked by a illusionary local brand value. TATA is definitely improving in their line up of products from the zest release and the bolt is the second one. Still one cannot change the accepted brand image over night. My take would be to release the sports version of bolt ASAP and make a detuned engine as an option.

But to pit against the competitor going strong for ten years (read swift) you need to have a true niggle free product + respectable brand image + qualified service backup. If any one can pull those 3 variables to the right tune we have a swift beater for sure.

Although Bolt is an excellent product, it looses out in couple of areas. Pricing, Typical-Vista like rear design.

Why would TATA price Bolt much closer to Zest? I have seen people choose Zest, because the difference is very less!

And why on earth would TATA slap ugly Vista rear design onto otherwise good looking car?

If those 2 would have been taken care of by TATA, then it would have been a hit!

 

[eigenvalue]

Although Bolt is an excellent product, it looses out in couple of areas.Typical-Vista like rear design.And why on earth would TATA slap ugly Vista rear design onto otherwise good looking car?

Yup got a valid point. May be the manufacturing team wanted to save some bucks by not designing separate line for sheet metal stampings who knows? But still those curves and the matt black alloys looks smoking hot in red colour for me and am waiting for the sports version (120bhp + fiat c501 gearbox)

Why would TATA price Bolt much closer to Zest? I have seen people choose Zest, because the difference is very less!

Yes atleast they should have a price difference between the hatch and sedan almost in the 50-70k range. But still a value for money proposition the bolt and zest are.
Nevertheless this can be taken care if sports version is released.