Are You Booking A Car? Take A Look At Some Of The Best Base Variant Cars

By Kennedy

Updated: Thursday, March 24, 2016, 12:56 [IST]

Looking to buy the base variant of a car. Here are some of the best base variant in the segment.

All these cars are rated based on price, design appeal, fuel efficiency (ARAI), post sales service, sales numbers and user reviews.

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Also Read: Comparison Of Mahindra KUV100 vs Renault Kwid vs Maruti Swift

Small Cars

Among the small cars are the Maruti Suzuki Alto 800, Hyundai Eon and Renault Kwid, which compete with each other rather closely.

The Renault Kwid scores well, however, the post sales service is still best when it comes to a Maruti or a Hyundai.

Hyundai Eon

Hyundai Eon has the best in performance and the company's commitment to reliability is a plus for the Eon.

Renault Kwid

The Kwid has the best in segment design like the height, width, ground clearance and boot space, however, misses out on minor features like engine immobilizer and power door lock.

Maruti Suzuki Alto 800

Maruti Alto is still the best selling car in India and is loved much by one and all since it has been the first car for many in the country and Maruti's service and value for money and resale value are unbeatable.

Pricing:

Maruti Suzuki Alto 800 STD - Rs. 2.57 lakh
Hyundai Eon D-Lite - Rs. 2.75 lakh
Renault Kwid STD - Rs. 2.62 lakh

*All Prices Ex-Showroom (Delhi)

Overall Small Car Rating

Maruti Suzuki Alto 800 (STD) 7.5/10
Hyundai Eon (D-Lite) 7/10
Renault Kwid (STD) 8/10

Also Read: Comparison Of Renault Kwid 1.0 AMT vs Maruti Alto K10 AMT

Compact Sedan

The cars made it to this list are Maruti Swift Dzire, Honda Amaze and Hyundai Xcent, although we have Tata Zest, Ford Figo Aspire and some of the future launch's like Volkswagen Ameo and Tata Kite Sedan are a great buy too.

Maruti Suzuki Swift Dzire

Maruti Swift Dzire is the best selling compact sedan currently and is our pick in this lot. Maruti has packaged the car really well with best of mileage, pricing, features, post sales service and value for money or resale value.

Honda New Amaze

As for the nearest competitor is Honda Amaze, the new 2016 Amaze is best when it comes to performance, they have the best engine compared to others. Also, the better-looking car among the three.

Hyundai Xcent

The Hyundai Xcent has the best of interiors and ABS and lower priced too, Hyundai will have to revamp this product and offer it with better features, which will make this a winner.

Pricing:

Maruti Suzuki Swift Dzire (LXI) - Rs. 5.23 lakh
Honda Amaze (E MT) - Rs. 5.30 lakh
Hyundai Xcent (Base) Rs. 5.21 lakh

*All Prices Ex-Showroom (Delhi)

Overall Compact Sedan Rating:

Maruti Suzuki Swift Dzire (LXI) 8/10
Honda Amaze (E MT) 7.5/10
Hyundai Xcent (Base) 7/10

Sedan

Among the sedans are the Honda City, Hyundai Fluidic Verna and Volkswagen Vento. Also, to be mentioned are the Skoda Rapid which priced lower compared to the three and Maruti Suzuki Ciaz - which is gaining ground due to its pricing, cabin space, and mileage.

Honda City

The Honda City is a seasoned sedan in India, it's been here for the longest compared to the others so it understands the customers better than the others. The City is lower priced compared to Verna and Vento, scores well on mileage, the base comes with ABS with EBD and music system.

Hyundai Verna

As for Hyundai Fluidic Verna, it gives a good fight to the City in terms of features like electrically adjustable rear view mirrors, power outlets for charging your phones, turn indicators on ORVMs, and dual airbags. It is slightly under powered compared to the City, does not come with music system hence misses out on steering mounted audio controls.

Volkswagen Vento

Volkswagen Vento is good looking with its premium designing and will be well liked by the executive class. It includes rear parking sensors, height-adjustable driver seat, lumbar support, rear fog lamps, and comes with radio and speakers. The Vento misses out on the music system, ABS with EBD, mileage, and is under powered comparatively to the pricing it commands.

Pricing:

Honda City (E Petrol) - Rs. 7.96 lakh
Hyundai Fluidic Verna (Base) - Rs. 7.86 lakh
VW Vento (Trendline Petrol) - Rs. 7.85 lakh

*All Prices Ex-Showroom (Delhi)

Overall Sedan Rating:

Honda City (E Petrol) 8/10
Hyundai Fluidic Verna (Base) 7.5/10
VW Vento (Trendline Petrol) 7/10

Sub-Compact SUV

This is the most exciting segment right now in India, every manufacturer wants to have a pie out of this segment. We are picking top three popular models - Maruti Suzuki Vitara Brezza, Ford EcoSport and Mahindra TUV300. Here we compare only the diesel variant as Brezza is launched in diesel variant only.

Maruti Suzuki Vitara Brezza

The Maruti Vitara Brezza is designed aesthetically and priced well, has airbags for the driver and you can get passenger airbags as an option. The good instrument cluster features like, distance to empty, average fuel efficiency indicator, CD/DVD/Radio player along with USB, Aux-in and Bluetooth connectivity. The Brezza is underpowered, however, it is rich in features and good mileage.

Ford EcoSport

Ford EcoSport known as the driver's delight, scores well in terms of drivability and it well powered compared to other two and lower in pricing too. On the flip side, which is negligible, it misses out on airbags and some features which the Brezza scores well.

Mahindra TUV300

Mahindra's TUV300 has its charm and followers of Mahindra will vouch for it, it has a 7-seater option which the Brezza and EcoSport miss out. It is well powered and performs like any Mahindra vehicle perform in all conditions. The TUV300 though falls back on features like music system, airbags, heavier compared to the other two.

Pricing:

Maruti Vitara Brezza LDi - Rs. 6.99 lakh
Ford EcoSport (Ambiente) - Rs. 7.29 lakh
Mahindra TUV300 (T4) - Rs. 7.11 lakh

*All Prices Ex-Showroom (Delhi)

Overall Sub-Compact SUV Rating:

Maruti Vitara Brezza 8/10
Ford EcoSport 8/10
Mahindra TUV300 7.5/10

Compact SUV

This segment too grabs all the attention in the industry and well priced for an SUV. Renault Duster, Hyundai Creta and Mahindra Scorpio have been rated here. Special mention goes to Nissan Terrano and Maruti Suzuki S-Cross, they are a good buy, however, they don't seem to stand in the competition.

Renault Duster

The Renault Duster was first to break into the compact SUV segment and ran away with a whole lot of success, however, newer entrants made sure they gave good competition to the Duster. The Duster scores big on price, performance, overall cabin space, good boot space, and drivability. However, it does miss out on features like music system, and some small interior features.

Hyundai Creta

As for the Hyundai Creta, is most powerful among the lot, and packs a punch with its features like ABS, and comfort features like the music system and arm rest for the front row. The Creta misses out on the pricing and the post sales spares and cabin space when compared to the other two, however, it is comfortable enough for the performance it comes with.

Mahindra Scorpio

Mahindra Scorpio is well priced, has 9-seater and good mileage and Mahindra's reliability. The Scorpio, however, suffers in safety features and interior features, it does not come with airbags or ABS and it also does not come with any music/radio features.

Pricing:

Renault Duster RXE - Rs. 8.47 lakh
Hyundai Creta (Base) - Rs. 9.15 lakh
Mahindra Scorpio S2 (2.5 M2DI) - Rs. 9.33 lakh

*All Prices Ex-Showroom (Delhi)

Overall Compact SUV Rating: