Which small sedan should I buy?
As small cars are a blessing in traffic, many auto companies are offering a wide range of small sedans at the price of large hatchbacks… and they have been hugely successful. Hatchbacks and small saloons thus account for 90 per cent of car purchases. Small saloons appeal to small families, who aspire to a vehicle bigger and more prestigious than a hatchback. Not only families, even the taxi trade that has gone into them in a big way. Today there are about nine models that are below four metres in length. These constantly refreshed new models are fighting furiously for market command with new features and better prices.
The Maruti Suzuki Swift Dzire was the first to pioneer this trend and its instant success propelled Datsun, Ford, Honda, Hyundai, Mahindras, Tata Motors and Toyota to quickly follow suit. Maruti and Tata actually have also offered more stylish variants like the Baleno and Tigor that are midway between hatchback and small saloon and so a bit more stylish and expensive.
The top selling small saloon is a very stylish Maruti DZire. Note that they have dropped the Swift name but not the Swift DNA. The new DZire with its tried and tested 1200cc petrol and 1248cc diesel engines has been fitted with a huge array of improvements, with the result that there are 14 variants from affordable to quite expensive. It is also a bit bigger and a lot more stylish.
Its main rival is the Hyundai Xcent that is now presented with much improved styling. Its 1200cc petrol and diesel engines do the job but are not too exciting to drive. The interior is luxurious and is offered with a fistful of goodies in 13 variations.
Tata Motor’s new Tigor is a great looking small saloon that too comes loaded with many good features. The 1200cc petrol and 1100cc diesel engines propel 10 variants adequately but are not too exciting. There is also no AMT automatic.
Toyota’s legendary reliability and economy have kept the Etios in the fray but they have just dumped the rather boring styling to make it quite good-looking. The 1500cc Petrol and 1350cc diesel engines however make them good performers.
Honda’s Amaze carries Honda’s DNA of being a very driver-friendly small saloon. It is spacious with a good sized boot and powered by peppy 1200cc petrol and 1500cc diesel engines. The new styling is also a big improvement on the outgoing model.
Ford offers the Figo Aspire that is surprisingly spacious though it looks small. Nine variants are powered by peppy 1200cc petrol and 1500cc diesel engines. The strong suspension is also great for bad or twisty roads. Good but not too great looking with rather dated interiors.
Mahindra & Mahindra have recently introduced a number of vehicles like the KUV100 but it is hard to decide if they are small SUVs, small UVs or small saloons. Powered by 3-cylinder 1200cc petrol and diesel engines they are spacious and practical though a bit odd looking.
Datsun has been a late entry and a stretched version of their Go+ has been adapted into a very spacious and affordable little car. The redi-GO has a small 3-cylinder 800cc petrol engine that is a little rough and does not compare too well with rivals. It is the cheapest to buy and does the job but without any touch of class.
The author is the region’s most celebrated automobile columnist.