Mumbai

Anil

•6w

I am planning to upgrade from my current Suzuki Baleno top-spec Alpha variant. I am looking for higher ground clearance, ventilated seats, a 360-degree camera, and a smoother transmission (unlike my current AMT). I am considering the Duster, Seltos, Victoris, and Creta. My annual driving is mostly in the city and under 10,000 km. Kindly suggest the best option.

Autocar India

•6w

You are looking for higher ground clearance, smoother automatic, cooled seats and a more premium experience, and the Seltos delivers on all of these. The IVT gearbox is very smooth in city traffic, a clear step up from your current AMT, and the naturally aspirated petrol is refined and easy to drive for your low, city-heavy running. Being a newer generation car, it also feels more premium inside and out, offers better space and has a well-sorted ride that suits both city and occasional highway use.

The Duster is a strong alternative if you prioritise driving feel. The turbo petrol with DCT is more engaging, but in daily city use it will not feel as smooth as the Seltos IVT, and fuel efficiency will also be lower. The Grand Vitara is efficient and easy to drive, but it does not feel as premium and the engine and gearbox combination is not as strong or responsive as the Seltos. It is also not as spacious. The Creta shares a similar powertrain, but being the older car, it does not feel as fresh or as premium inside, is slightly less spacious and costs similar money, which makes the Seltos the better pick.

Explore cars mentioned

Renault

Duster

from ₹12.43 Lakh

Kia

Seltos

from ₹13.02 Lakh

Hyundai

Creta

from ₹12.92 Lakh

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More questions on similar cars

Kishore

•6d

Hi experts, I own a Baleno RS and am looking to upgrade to an SUV. My daily usage is around 20km, and I take a highway trip once every three months. On average, I drive around 8,000km a year. I recently tested the Duster and enjoyed the drive, but the rear-seat space was not up to the mark. I am also thinking of checking out the Sierra. With the current trend of rising petrol prices, I am confused about whether shifting to an EV is worthwhile or if a petrol vehicle would still be ideal for my usage.

Autocar India

•2d

Pick the Tata Sierra petrol. Your daily 20 km and rare highway runs do not justify the extra price and charging fuss of an electric car, and you already flagged rear space as a concern. The Sierra feels roomier and comfier in the back than the Renault Duster you tried.You enjoyed the Duster’s drive, and rightly so, as it feels more eager and easier to throw around. But for quarterly highway trips and family comfort, the Sierra’s wider cabin and more relaxed ride suit your upgrade better. With 8,000 km a year, the fuel savings from an EV will take a long time to catch up; unless you have easy home charging and plan to keep it for many years, petrol is the simpler, lower‑risk choice.One trade-off is that the Sierra will cost more and won’t feel as engaging to drive as the Duster. If you mostly drive with just one passenger and love that driving feel, the Duster still tempts, but for space and ease, the Sierra wins.

Tata Sierra

Renault Duster

Arka

•4d

I am looking forward to buying a car, for which my budget is 12 lakhs. I do not drive, and my daily commute is around 90 kms, of which 70% within the city. I can stretch my budget till 14 lakhs if I get the value for my money in terms of rear seat comfort and mileage. I want to buy a petrol car with a manual transmission. What would be my choice of car if I want to avoid entry-level models?

Autocar India

•7h

Consider the Hyundai Venue HX5+ with the 1.2 petrol manual. It fits comfortably in your budget, has a spacious and comfortable back seat and gets features like rear AC vents and a rear window sunshade. If you'd like, and even a roomier rear seat, the Kia Syros is a great choice, but it only comes with the turbo petrol, which will be slightly less fuel efficient.Stretching your budget to Rs 14 lakh gets you options from the midsize SUV segment. Among these, the Kia Seltos and the Honda Elevate 1.5 petrol manuals are strong choices. The will be roomier than the Venue, with more comfortable rear seats, and will be relatively fuel efficient in the city. However, your budget will get you the lower-end trims, which may lack some features. Alternatively, you could consider the Honda City.Overall, for your budget, the Venue is a great fit.

Nishant Priyadarshi

I want to buy a car, and my budget is 22 lakhs on road. I personally prefer a sedan, but I am open to buying an SUV as well. I need something which is powerful, fun to drive and is feature-loaded (ADAS, 360 camera, ventilated seats etc). I have shortlisted the following: Verna, Seltos, Slavia and Virtus. Which one should I go for? I am planning to buy it in the next 3-4 months.

Autocar India

•11h

Considering the features you've listed, namely ADAS, a 360-degree camera and ventilated seats, the shortlist effectively narrows down to the Hyundai Verna and Kia Seltos.In fact, the car that would normally be recommended to an enthusiast is the Volkswagen Virtus 1.5 TSI DSG. It remains one of the most rewarding cars to drive in this segment, and there are attractive discounts available at the moment as a facelift is expected in the near future. However, it misses out on some of the features that are clearly important to you.Between the Verna and Seltos, the nod goes to the Seltos. It is the newer product, feels more premium inside, offers greater practicality and has a more spacious cabin. It also benefits from the same excellent 1.5-litre turbo-petrol and dual-clutch automatic combination as the Verna, so you are not sacrificing performance. Over the long term, it is also likely to hold its value better.

Hyundai Verna

Kia Seltos

Volkswagen Virtus

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Popular discussions right now

•4d

I am confused between buying Skoda Kylaq and Kia Seltos. Please suggest.

Autocar India

•4d

Buy the Kia Seltos. It is simply easier to live with for most buyers, thanks to a much wider service network and many more variant and powertrain choices, including good automatics across a wider price range. For daily city runs with the odd highway trip, the Seltos will feel like the more complete package and it has a more spacious and premium cabin. The Skoda Kylaq will suit you only if you really enjoy driving. It feels tighter and more confidence inspiring on the move, and the steering has more feel. If you plan long, frequent road trips and care more about how it drives than gadgets, that’s where the Kylaq shines. The flip side is fewer dealers and fewer variant choices.

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Vaibhav Vats

•6d

I own a Hyundai Venue Turbo Petrol, which is driven around 4,000 km per year and is occasionally used by my parents. I have been considering to upgrade it, as I am tired of spending money on maintenance. The car has been problematic since its second year of ownership. I am currently considering the Kia Syros HTK (EX) manual and HTK+ (DCT). However, some automobile enthusiasts have advised me against buying a DCT if I am looking for a hassle-free ownership experience, especially since the car will mostly be driven in Delhi’s office-hour traffic and the overall running is quite low. Could you please suggest whether I should opt for the DCT, stick with a manual, or consider a diesel automatic instead? Alternatively, if there are better options within a budget of Rs. 15 lakh, I would be open to considering them. I can also wait if there are any promising new launches expected this year within my budget. I am not interested in an EV at the moment. Thanks in advance.

Autocar India

•5d

Given your low annual running and predominantly city use in Delhi, a diesel does not make sense. Modern diesels are happiest when regularly driven on longer runs, and with just 4,000km a year, the higher purchase cost and potential emission system issues are difficult to justify.As for DCTs, they have become far more reliable than early examples, but if the priority is a smooth, stress-free ownership experience in heavy urban traffic, a torque-converter automatic is still the safer bet. It is generally smoother at low speeds and better suited to constant stop-start driving.Rather than moving to a Syros DCT, it would be worth considering the Skoda Kylaq automatic or the Mahindra XUV 3XO automatic. Both use torque-converter gearboxes and offer a more relaxed driving experience in city conditions. The Kylaq feels particularly polished to drive, while the 3XO counters with a richer feature list and a more spacious cabin.If you like the Syros, the manual remains a sensible choice given your limited annual usage, but if an automatic is preferred, a torque-converter-equipped rival would be a better fit than a DCT.

Sachin kumar gupta

As we all know, the Mahindra XUV 7XO AX5 diesel still has a long waiting period. In that case, how does the Tata Safari Adventure X Plus Automatic Diesel compare to it? Since it is available for quicker delivery, would it be a good alternative to the XUV 7XO AX5 Diesel?

Autocar India

•3d

The Tata Safari Adventure X Plus Automatic Diesel is a good alternative if the waiting period for the XUV 7XO is proving too long.The Safari's biggest strengths are its comfortable ride, spacious cabin and excellent second-row seating. It is a very capable long-distance cruiser and feels premium. The diesel automatic powertrain is well suited to highway use and delivers relaxed performance for family touring.That said, the XUV 7XO still has the edge as an overall package. Its diesel engine feels stronger and more refined, the automatic gearbox is better calibrated, and it offers a more modern feature set in comparable variants. It is also the more engaging SUV to drive.If immediate delivery is important, the Safari is not a compromise that will leave you disappointed. In fact, buyers who prioritize rear-seat comfort and long-distance travel may even prefer it to the Mahindra car.

Tata Safari

Mahindra XUV 7XO

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