Thursday, December 15, 2011

i20 vs Figo petrols

i20 vs Figo petrols

I am sorry for posting a new thread but after loads of search, I still felt need to create a separate thread. Mods please merge/delete this thread if this new thread is unnecessary.

A friend of mine needs a petrol car for 4-5 lac budget. He just needs a better car than his 7 year old Maruti 800. The car should also be comfortable for four persons of average height 5'8''. That's all he needs. The following cars were ruled out-

1. Swift and Brio - several months long wait.
2. Micra - Thin network.
3. Punto and Vista - no Fiat/Tata.
4. i10 and Ritz - just didn't like them.
5. Fabia - no Skoda!
6. Polo 1.2 and Liva - deeply disappointed with TD. They are worse to drive than his 800.

That left us with Figo and i20. i20 is 1 lac more expensive than Figo model-wise. He might pay extra for i20 due to the sheer luxurious feeling and space i20 provides in comparison to Figo but we are concerned about the following things in i20-

1. Steering problem - seems to be present in 2011 models as well.
2. Maintenance cost - I read that Hyundai's maintenance cost is rising and that i20 is too expensive to maintain. How does it compare with Figo's maintenance cost?
3. Weak AC - During TD of Etios at two different dealers earlier this summer, I found AC in both cars to be deeply disappointing and yet I find no complaints about the same here. And plenty of people complain about i20's AC. We could not test its AC as it is winters these days.
4. Poor engine - during TD, I found i20's performance to be poor even with AC off. The car also vibrates a lot when put under stress at low RPM which is really annoying to me but my friend found performance and vibrations to be fine so I will not consider it as a big negative point.
5. Poor mileage - I read that i20 can return single digit mileage at peak traffic with full on AC. Though mileage is not a concern but 9kpl is not a mileage my friend is going to be happy with.
6. Unrealistic steering feel - I find it impossible to drive i20 without feeling nervous due to its too light steering. My friend however can adapt to its light steering so it is not a minus point.

I have a 3 months old Figo petrol which my friend likes a lot. He dislikes three things in it-
1. Figo's rear space is cramped. i20 was quite spacious for him.
2. Sitting in Figo feels gives feeling of a basic car. It is the biggest reason why he is considering about i20 which feels truly gorgeous.
3. i20 looks better than Figo.

Question-
Is i20 worth spending 1 lac extra over Figo? Is there another car which is available within one week and is better than i20 and Figo for my friend?

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