Latest questions answered by experts

Autocar India

•5h

The Kia Seltos 1.5 petrol HTK (O) MT fits your brief best. In daily traffic, the Seltos will be easy to drive thanks to its smooth, naturally aspirated petrol engine and light gearshift and clutch, and the higher seat makes getting in and out easy. It also rides over bad roads and tall speed breakers without worry, which matters on mixed city-highway use. Space is good for four and fine for five for shorter trips, and the boot will take a family’s weekend bags.The HTK (O) MT is a good value for money as it offers quite a few features for the price. Just bear in mind that, on the highway, the engine will require a bit more effort to make easy overtakes. If your trips are often with four adults and lots of luggage, and you value a bigger boot and stronger pull on the highway, look at the Skoda Slavia 1.0 TSI Sportline MT. Its small turbo engine gives more punch. But it is a lower car, so entry is not as easy, and you have to be a bit more careful on rough roads. Compared to the Seltos' naturally aspirated 1.5, you'll also experience some turbo lag at city speeds, and at your budget, you won't get as many features. Overall, for your mix of city and highway and firm budget, the Seltos HTK is the most practical pick.

Kia Seltos

Skoda Slavia

Autocar India

•6h

Given your usage, the Maruti Brezza ZXi AT fits your brief best within Rs 12-14 lakh on-road. Pick it because the cabin is roomy and the seat is set high, so getting in and out is easy, and there is good headroom for your height. Its 6-speed automatic is the smooth, torque converter type (not an AMT or DCT). Coming from your Nissan Magnite’s CVT, this will feel natural and calm in stop-and-go traffic and on slopes. Ride comfort is good over broken roads, and its simple 1.5-litre naturally aspirated petrol engine allows a vehicle of its size to be unstressed, fuel efficient and sufficiently powerful. Do note: The Brezza automatic is tuned for easy driving, not fast pick-up, so it feels relaxed rather than quick, and it hasn't been crash tested by any NCAP agency, though it has all the requisite safety features. The Mahindra XUV 3XO is also a decent option, though it's not quite as spacious as the Brezza, and in your budget, you'll have to settle for a mid-spec automatic model. Most of all, though, it is nowhere near as fuel-efficient. The Maruti Suzuki Fronx, while also good, won't feel like as much of an upgrade from your Magnite as the others, especially in terms of size and space. Overall, for comfort, smooth driving and sensible running costs in your budget, the Brezza ZXi AT is still your best bet.

Maruti Suzuki Brezza

Mahindra XUV 3XO

Maruti Suzuki Fronx

Autocar India

•6h

Since you have a rather long daily commute and don't want to go for a neo-retro machine, an adventure bike makes good sense. Your previously shortlisted - but no longer available - options indicate that you were looking to get something in the 250-300cc space. In that vein, we'd recommend you look at the TVS Apache RTX 300. The RTX is a comfortable, quick and feature-laden machine which will also return decent fuel economy if ridden sensibly. In a similiar vein, you should also look at the KTM 250 Adventure and the base 390 Adventure (350cc) models, depending on your usage and budget. A test ride of these options will help you narrow down which bike is best for you.

Autocar India

•7h

You're on the right track with the Toyota Innova Hycross. The good thing about it is that it offers not just space, but also flexibility. If you choose the bench-seat second row - the 8-seater in Toyota parlance - you get more seats overall, but at a small penalty to ease of access. With the captain seats in the middle row, you can fix a child seat on each and still have a clear walkway to the third row, so the staff can get in and out without disturbing the kids. It rides comfortably over bad roads, feels very smooth and quiet in city traffic, and the hybrid makes stop-and-go driving easy. It’s also easy to live with over the years, which matters when the car will be full most days. On the facelift, there is no firm date or detail in the market right now, but a future update is likely to bring small styling and feature tweaks, not a big change to space or the way it drives, and prices usually go up. Another alternative, if you don't mind an EV, is the BYD eMax 7. Its on-road price could actually work out cheaper than the Innova Hycross with subsidies. It's not quite as spacious, but it comes close; it's well equipped, and it also offers 6- and 7-seat options. It is also even lower on running costs, but then you'll have to tailor your usage to suit an EV. Overall, however, the Innova Hycross appears to be the best bet for you.

Toyota Innova HyCross

BYD eMax 7

Autocar India

•8h

There are a few cars that meet your criteria, like the Tata Punch iCNG, Tiago iCNG, Tigor iCNG and Nissan Magnite CNG. Among these, the Punch and Tiago are good choices with their dual-tank solution that lets you keep a large part of the boot. The Magnite CNG is a dealer-level fitment and does take up almost the entire boot.If it fits your budget, then the Punch iCNG is your best bet. It suits daily city use because the automatic takes the stress out of stop-and-go roads, and CNG keeps fuel costs in check. Since the CNG system is factory-fitted, you keep the full warranty and safety checks, which is safer than adding CNG later.A couple of trade-offs to know: an AMT can feel a bit slow between gear changes, so you may feel a small pause. On CNG, the car is not very quick, so fast highway overtakes need planning.As of today, most other CNG cars from Maruti and Hyundai are manual only. Overall, for your goal of CNG with an automatic, the Punch iCNG AMT is the simplest and most complete answer.

Tata Punch

Tata Tiago

Tata Tigor