I had booked the Kia Carens earlier but cancelled it later.
BHPian achintatri recently shared this with other enthusiasts.
We are in the 70s again (but the mind is still in the future)
The pandemic has suddenly pushed us to the 70s era when it was very common to ‘book’ a car for that special event. It was a seller’s market back then and for the automobile industry, so is today.
My car purchase experience (I drive automatics only) has nothing to write home about but as a common man (price-sensitive customer), this forum has definitely helped me in some of the other ways to help make the purchase decision. So a big thanks to all my fellow team BHPians.
The journey of decision nodes from drool-worthy cars to more practical ones for me took almost a year since I decided to move from a 5 seater to a bigger 6/7 seater car. From following the launch of the new Isuzu MUX (that eventually did not launch here) to the expected feature list of the new Ertiga/XL6, from the search for a used Ford Endeavour (after their exit from India) to the unrivalled and mighty (even used) Innova Crysta, I quickly realized that a car should be something that adds value to the entire family (and not just the individual purchasing the same). More than a prized possession, it’s a valuable addition in some way or the other.
The difference between Car models has always been the question of flexibility versus the difference between various variants of the same car that talk more about ‘want versus need’. When Heisenberg invented the ‘Hierarchy of needs’ he might not have had CARS in his mind otherwise today’s market looks upside down of that principle.
Overall, the car market has enabled me to define VFM (Quality/Cost) to a level where I could choose the right one for my family.
Multiple bookings and multiple cancellations for the same reason have become the new normal so here goes my stint with the same.
Order of Mental Cancellations: Mercedes GLS 450 (Well it’s a mental cancellation) > Isuzu MUX > Ford Endeavour > Innova Crysta > MG Hector > Mahindra XUV700 > Tata Safari > Ertiga > Jeep Meridian (looks awesome but again mental cancellation).
Order of Physical Cancellations: Ertiga (last version) > Carens > XL6 (from another dealer).
Final Purchase:
April 02, 2022
XL6 Booking Experience: Nothing great, just visited the showroom, paid Rs 11,000 and a docket booklet was handed over to me with a waiting period of 6 weeks. No one had any idea about the features but one thing has confirmed the production of the then model XL6 had stopped. I had booked Carens on Feb 17th. I had booked Alpha AT and later told my SA that they can consider moving it to Alpha Plus AT that I would confirm after the feature list. However, later it was not required as I found that the TPMS and Ventilated seats are not worth that much price.
April 15th
New Ertiga was launched and the speculation for XL6 features started pouring in. In between the same, it was confirmed that the XL6 launch was on April 21. My SA had started sharing some information however I was always on top of things and much better updated than the SA.
April 21st
New Xl6 was launched and I was disappointed with the lack of airbags but I had already made up my mind that I would go with XL6 AT rather than any other variant including Carens (Just because of the lack of clarity on the reliability of the DCT gearbox). It was now that I started chasing the SA.
April 22nd
I was told that my dealership (Nexa Magarpatta) had ordered 3 cars for their showroom and one was Blue XL6 Alpha AT. They also shared the Chassis and Engine numbers with me.
April 23rd
I visited the showroom and told them to at least share the Allotment number so that I can start cancelling the other bookings (One Xl6 and One Carens). The allotment letter was shared the same evening.
April 27th
After that, the wait for the vehicle started. Finally, on April 27th, I got the chance to do the PDI of the vehicle. BTW, April 27th went very interesting. It was as if it was designed for me that way. Here is the list of events on that day:
09:30 am: Saw the car in person for the first time. Had my wife and two of my friends accompany me to make sure PDI is detailed. The car had done 55 km in ODO and I was okay with the same. I also selected some mandatory accessories for the car. I talked to the Showroom manager about the insurance and the quote given to me was Rs 62,000 (1+3) which I rejected outrightly. I was told that I would have to fill out a declaration form to mention that I would be responsible for my own insurance to which I agreed without any issues. I had already received the quotes and went ahead and paid Rs 34,000 for United India Insurance through Policybazaar.
10:30 am: Came back home to pick up Cheque books for payments (RTGS) and couldn’t find one of them out of the two banks I planned to use.
11:00 am: Reached one of the banks and did a partial payment.
12:00 pm: Reached the bank opposite (the second bank) and explained to them the situation and they issued another cheque book. Thus the remaining RTGS was done as well. Meanwhile, my existing car got picked up by the RTO goons (there was no sign of ‘No Parking’ and you ‘must not’ park in a ‘No Parking Zone’ here in Pune and I always follow the same) just outside the bank. Considering the situation I was in, I had to do an ‘On the Spot’ negotiation and release the car.
12:30 am: Got a call again from SA that the ‘One Pager’ policy document by United India might not work and there needs to be a minimum of 3 pages in the policy document. So I went ahead and called Policybazaar to cancel the policy. Policybazaar told me that I would need to submit the proof of another policy for them to raise a cancellation request. I went ahead and bought an Acko policy (Rs 24,000, 10k less than the United one) and submitted the same to both Policybazaar and my SA. SA finally accepted the same.
I also went ahead and cancelled the bookings for XL6 (with another dealer) and Carens.
By this time it was already 5:00 pm.
So April 27th experience was a mixed one with a loss of some money to RTO goons and some cancellation charges to Policybazaar (Rs 118). BTW, the cancellation request is still open with United and I have been told that it will be resolved by May 7, 2022, after deducting some ‘pro rata’ charges. I am keeping my fingers crossed considering I cancelled the same within 24 hours of purchasing.
Lesson Learned:
Keep all the payments ready beforehand in one place
Finalize the insurance well in advance after doing all the research
Delivery Day (April 28th):
We reached at around 1:50 pm, formalities took another 1 hour. The number plate was fixed in front of me. My tyre pressure was 51 that I got reduced to 32 at the Petrol Pump (which makes a great amount of difference in ride quality).
Total OTR with TCS, insurance, Extended Warranty and Accessories: ₹ 16,31,124.00
Accessories (all MGA):
- Door Rain Visor – They have chrome lining and the overall material is good
- Side Moulding in Chrome
- Rear Spoiler (Makes it Alpha to Alpha Plus)
- NEXA illuminated door sills – I would recommend the same
- Mats – High quality PVC/Rubber Mats
- Side Door protector
Initial Impression:
- Space – The family loves the space and that was the main purpose as well.
- Ease of driving in the City (Haven’t taken her to the highway yet) – The hybrid system works like a charm and is very silent.
- NVH – Better than my Swift Dzire, I am ok with the same.
- Music System – Much better than my Swift Dzire, I am satisfied with the quality.
- Paddle shifters – Looks like most of the time I will use ‘D’ mode only and use paddle shifters (Minus one) to drop a gear for overtakes, it works well without any delay.
- 360 Camera – Clarity is not bad and it is very helpful as it shows all sides of the car depending upon the settings. Whenever you press the camera button, it switches the side so very useful in tight spaces.
- Seats – They were anyways comfortable
- AC – Works like a charm
- Steering – Very Light and weighs up properly, tilt and telescopic is a welcome move. No complaints here.
- Mileage – I will share after a few hundred km.
It rained heavily (or should I say heavenly) today so the Car already got the blessings of the almighty.
Overall I feel that by saving around Rs 5 Lakh (as compared to the Carens Diesel automatic, Carens DCT was not on my list after 6 AT was announced for XL6) and saving almost Rs 12L (as compared to Innova Crysta or the drool-worthy Safari), I justified my purchase decision to create a VFM purchase for my family.
A big shout out to VAISHALI BHUSHAN KAPSIKAR from Nexa Magarpatta who diligently took care of all the necessary formalities and that too with a good level of professionalism. Also, no offences to any car owners in this beautiful forum, please.
Next Entry: Ownership Experience and some travelogues.
Keyword: 2022 Maruti Suzuki XL6: Booking, Delivery & 1st Impressions