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Mani

14w

I am 53 years old and 6 feet 2 inches tall. I have just learned to drive and am still not very confident. I want to buy my first car for a family of four. My budget is Rs 7 to 9 lakh. I will drive around 40 km per day in the city and around 1,400 km on the highway every three months. Please suggest which car would be good for me.

Autocar India team

Autocar India

Verified
14w
The Maruti Suzuki Swift or Baleno will suit you well. The Swift is easy to drive, efficient and spacious enough for four with good highway ability.
The Baleno offers more space, a larger boot and a smoother, more powerful four-cylinder 1.2-litre engine. In your budget, you can get the ZXi variant of the Swift, which has a slightly better feature set than the similarly priced Zeta variant of the Maruti Suzuki Baleno.
Maruti Suzuki Baleno

Maruti Suzuki Baleno

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Latest questions people are discussing

GA

Gautam

1d

Hi. I'm a first time car buyer. Want to buy a spacious and comfortable car within 11 lakhs. I don't have much of a driving experience so the car should be easy to drive and maintain. Much of the car use would be within the city and my monthly run of around 200kms. I'm considering both manual as well as automatic options. I would like to know your suggestions.

Autocar India team

Autocar India

Verified
1d

We would suggest you consider the Hyundai i20 IVT. The gearbox is smooth, the cabin is spacious, and within your budget, you can get the Sportz (O) variant. It is compact, easy to drive and park in the city, and also offers a reasonably large boot.If you want something slightly larger, you can consider the Maruti Suzuki Baleno. It is more spacious inside, more comfortable for a larger family and also has a bigger boot. The AMT gearbox is not as smooth as the CVT in the i20, but it is well-tuned and will also be more efficient.

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VehicleMaruti Suzuki Baleno
MG

M Goutham Krishna

1d

My office is located 10km from my house, with mixed city and highway driving. I am planning to buy a car which is automatic and fuel-efficient. Budget around ₹10 lakh. Could you please suggest a car that will be relevant for up to 15 years?

Autocar India team

Autocar India

Verified
1h

We would suggest you go for the Maruti Suzuki Fronx Delta+ AMT. The Fronx has a fuel-efficient 1.2-litre engine mated to an AMT gearbox that is well-tuned and smooth enough for daily driving. It is also fairly spacious, offers a large boot and a comfortable ride, which makes it an ideal companion for everyday city commutes and occasional highway drives.If you want something smaller and easier to manoeuvre, you can consider the Maruti Suzuki Swift AMT. It is a more compact car, which makes it even easier to drive and park in the city. However, the new Swift now comes with a 1.2-litre three-cylinder engine, which feels a bit less powerful compared to the Fronx’s four-cylinder engine. Because of this, the AMT gearbox also works better with the Fronx engine than it does with the Swift.Within your budget, you can also consider the Hyundai i20 IVT/CVT in the Magna variant. The CVT gearbox is very smooth, which elevates the overall driving experience and makes the car extremely easy to drive in traffic. The interiors of the i20 also feel quite premium. The only downside is that you will have to trade a bit of fuel efficiency for that smoothness, which is something to keep in mind since efficiency is an important factor for you.

VehicleMaruti Suzuki Fronx
VehicleMaruti Suzuki Swift
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Posted on: 6 Dec 2025