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S. Muralidhar

I AM planning to replace my Ford Ikon 1.3 and am looking for a lower maintenance, fuel-efficient car with spacious and comfortable interiors. I am keen on the new Honda City, but is the Tata Indigo diesel a better buy? Of the three — the new Honda City, the Tata Indigo diesel or the Hyundai Accent CRDi — which one would you recommend for trouble-free running?

Kanupriya

I want to buy a new car in the C-segment. My budget is between Rs 5 lakh and Rs 7.5 lakh. I am trying to choose between the Ford Ikon 1.6/ 1.8, the Tata Indigo, the Opel Corsa, the Hyundai Accent or the new Honda City. I am looking for a car that is suitable for both city driving and long distance travel, it should offer class leading fuel efficiency, have a large boot and have good resale value. It should also offer lower running costs in the long run and the company should offer good quality after-sales service.

On the fuel-efficiency parameter, I do not have a clear idea, since each one is claiming that their car will give a mileage of 10-12 km per litre. I would not mind spending a bit more if I get real value for that kind of money and if the car is not overpriced merely because of the brand.

Murthy Yelleti

The new Honda City and the Hyundai Accent CRDi are both ahead of the Tata Indigo diesel on the engine refinement and fit and finish-quality parameters. But both of them are priced at over Rs 7 lakh (ex-showroom), while the Tata Indigo LX diesel with similar trim level is priced at about Rs 5.2 lakh.

If the price is not a deterrent, the new Honda City could be the option to choose. With its i-DSI engine, the new City continues to be one of the more fuel-efficient petrol-driven cars in the market.

Though the car may not offer the kind of fancy mileage numbers that some of the company's dealers had gone to town about at the time of the launch, the City will still be able to offer about 12 kmpl in city and about 15 kmpl on the highway.

All these three cars are neck and neck when it comes to interior space, boot size and rear seat ride comfort, with the ride in the new City being relatively better than the other two. The same would hold true even if we include the Ford Ikon and the Opel Corsa to the list.

The new Honda City does appear to be priced at a premium, which is definitely for the brand and the technological edge that the car has over others in the category. But given the car's long-term performance, resale value and the payback from better fuel efficiency, it may just be worth it.

Our recommendation will be the new City from amongst the options in petrol-driven cars and the Accent CRDi, if it is a diesel car that you are considering.

The Detroit Diesel engine in this Hyundai car is already Euro III compliant and will not have some of the minor fuel quality issues that have been troubling it, after ultra-low sulphur diesel becomes available in the market (the metros for starters) from next month.

I am planning to buy a bike. I have to commute 50-60 km to my workplace everyday. I am a civil engineer and so I am always on the move between sites. Currently I am using a LML NV scooter. Please suggest a bike that will be comfortable for long city rides. I prefer cruiser style bikes. Are Hero Honda and Yamaha planning to launch any new cruiser bikes? If they are, please let me in on the details and also the approximate date by which they are expected to launch these bikes. I was planning on buying the Yamaha Enticer or the Bajaj Eliminator, but am waiting for the launch of a new bike in this segment.

Hofa

Yamaha Motor India already has a cruiser bike in its stable — the Enticer — and there is no information from the company that suggests that it plans to launch another bike in the same category. Hero Honda, on the other hand, does not have any cruiser-style bikes in its portfolio of two wheelers. There have been rumours that the company may launch one. But apart from a 125cc bike that is expected to be introduced in the market later this year, there is no news of a cruiser from Hero Honda.

The Yamaha Enticer continues to be the only choice in the market for a low priced (about Rs 50,000, ex-showroom) cruiser bike. The Kawasaki Bajaj Eliminator and the Royal Enfield Thunderbird are the two options that you may want to consider in the higher priced (Rs 75,000 plus, ex-showroom) cruiser segment.

While the Bajaj Eliminator is priced higher at about Rs 82,000 and features a less powerful 175cc engine, it will be the more fuel-efficient of the two, with a mileage average of about 40 km per litre (mix of highway and in-city riding).

On the other hand, the Royal Enfield Thunderbird is the more powerful cruiser bike of the two, with a 350cc engine that puts out about 18 bhp (compared to the Eliminator's 15 bhp) and will offer a mileage average of only about 35 kmpl. But it is cheaper than the Bajaj cruiser, with an ex-showroom price of about Rs 76,000. The difference between the two bikes is also the absence of an electric start in the Thunderbird, which is a plus in the Eliminator. A thumb start adds to the cruiser's laid-back style and theme.

The Yamaha Enticer has seen maintenance issues crop up, such as quality of chrome plating, and does suffer from a relatively lower resale value. But that said, it is also relevant that most cruiser bikes will tend to have lower resale value than the comparable resale values of mass-volume bikes in the entry-level.

If you are looking for a cruiser bike in the price range of about Rs 65,000, then you may want to wait for the new smaller-engined Bajaj Eliminator, which is rumoured to be a few months away from launch. According to market grapevine, Bajaj is planning to offer the Pulsar's 150cc DTS-i engine in a lower-priced avatar of the Eliminator.

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