We are planning to buy either the Kia Syros or the Kia Sonet in diesel automatic form. We are confused about whether they have been discontinued or not, and which variant would be the best one.

autocar.india

•1d

At Rs 8-10 lakh, there are no hybrid cars available in India. The only options in this price range are mild hybrids, which offer a small efficiency boost but do not provide the fuel savings or electric-only driving of a proper strong hybrid system. If you are specifically looking for a hybrid with a sunroof, you will need to increase your budget to around Rs 20 lakh or more, where cars like the Maruti Suzuki Victoris Hybrid, Grand Vitara Hybrid and Toyota Urban Cruiser Hyryder Hybrid become available. These are proper strong hybrids and are among the most efficient cars in India today.If your budget is fixed at Rs 8-10 lakh, the best approach is to focus on a good mild hybrid car with a sunroof, such as the Maruti Suzuki Fronx or Brezza. If space is not the highest priority, get the Fronx, as it is better value for money, giving you more features for your money. The Brezza, however, has more interior space, more powerful engines and a 5-star Bharat NCAP crash test rating, so it could be the better choice.But then your other requirement - a sunroof - will not be met by either of these, as Maruti only offers this feature in higher variants. So if that is of the highest priority, check out a petrol car like the Hyundai i20, Tata Punch or Kia Sonet. Overall, our recommendation is to go for one of the mild-hybrid Maruti models and forego the sunroof. It's the better decision in the long run.

Maruti Suzuki Victoris

Maruti Suzuki Grand Vitara

Toyota Urban Cruiser Hyryder

Maruti Suzuki Fronx

Maruti Suzuki Brezza

Hyundai i20

Tata Punch

Kia Sonet

autocar.india

•3d

The Kia Syros ER HTX 51kWh is the better fit for your requirements. With an 80km daily commute, an electric car makes perfect sense, and the Syros' 51kWh battery is more than capable of comfortably covering your daily usage while delivering a smooth, refined and comfortable driving experience. It also offers a spacious cabin, premium interiors and should feel more modern and sophisticated to live with over the long term.The Maruti Suzuki e Vitara Zeta 61kWh is also a strong option. Its larger battery gives it an advantage on range and provides more flexibility for longer highway trips. Maruti's extensive service network is another plus if long term ownership is a priority. However, unless you frequently undertake long distance journeys, the additional range isn't something you'll use every day.

Kia Syros

Maruti Suzuki e Vitara

autocar.india

•29m

For a budget under Rs 3 lakh and a requirement for an automatic gearbox for city commuting, the Maruti Suzuki Celerio AGS is actually a sensible choice. The AGS (Automated Manual Transmission) is simple and reliable, but if the actuators go wrong, they can be expensive to replace; however, this is for any automated manual transmission car. Given Maruti Suzuki’s service network, parts availability will not be a problem. The Celerio is also compact and easy to drive in traffic, which is exactly what you want for city use.That said, at 10+ years old, the condition of the individual car becomes far more important than the model itself. The AGS system is generally reliable, but like any mechanical component, it can develop issues if the car has not been well maintained. Make sure you get a thorough inspection done, check the service history and look for any signs of gearbox hesitation or rough shifting.If you are open to alternatives, the Hyundai Grand i10 Automatic (torque converter) is worth considering. It is smoother than the AGS and also reliable, though again you must check the condition of the actual car. It would be wise to buy from a reputed seller, as there could be some limited warranty available too.