The festive season is here and a lot of you might be planning to welcome a new car into your home this year. While you might have zeroed in on what kind of car you want or from which carmaker, the recent surge in new cars has just made the decision-making process all the more complicated. So we figured let's make things a bit easy for you. While we recently shared our top 5 pics on cars in the price bracket of Rs. 5 Lakh to Rs. 10 Lakh, today we decided to go a bit on the premium side i.e. cars between Rs. 10 lakh to Rs. 15 Lakh.
1. Mahindra XUV500
Price - Rs. 12.24 lakh to Rs. 17.33 Lakh (ex-showroom, Delhi)
Early last year Mahindra launched a mid-cycle facelift of the XUV500 that came equipped with a host of cosmetic updates and smart equipment. The exterior profile of SUV now looks more premium with features like new projector headlamps, LED daytime running lights, puddle lights, sunroof, and more. Similarly, the inside of the car also comes with features like touchscreen infotainment system, comfortable sports seats, engine start-stop system and more. We drove the car last year and we have to say, the updated model brings a lot of premiumness to the table. There are also safety features like ABS with EBD as standard across variants and the dual airbags as an option right from the base variant.
Under the hood, the Mahindra XUV500 features the carmaker's tried and tested 2.2-litre mHawk engine that makes a maximum of 140bhp and develops a peak torque of 330Nm. Mahindra also launched the 1.99-litre version of the mHawk engine for the Delhi and NCR markets during the diesel ban, which also churns out 140bhp and develops slightly less torque of 320Nm. The engine comes mated to a 5-speed manual gearbox along with a 6-speed automatic transmission as an option for the mid and higher variants.
2. Toyota Innova Crysta
Price - Rs. 13.72 Lakh to Rs. 20.93 Lakh (ex-showroom, Delhi)
A more powerful and way more premium version of the older model, the new-gen Toyota Innova Crysta has been widely appreciated by both customers and critics alike. Along with several premium features and equipment, the new Innova Crysta also comes with three new powertrains from the company's global line-up along with an automatic transmission. In fact, the automatic variants of the new Innova Crysta account for over 50 per cent of the car's total bookings.
We reviewed the car early this year and found the new Innova Crysta to be a big leap from the older model. Among the new feature offerings, we have new SUV-like exterior styling that includes an imposing front with a large slat grille, projector headlamps and LED daytime running lights. The Innova is longer and wider now, which means the cabin is roomier that has given Toyota a chance to add several creatures comforts.
As mentioned before, the new Innova Crysta comes with two new GD series diesel engines that include a 2.4-litre and the 2.8-litre diesel engines. While the former puts out 147bhp and 343Nm of maximum torque, the 2.8-litre motor promises 171bhp along with a peak torque of 360Nm. Toyota recently also launched a new petrol variant of the Innova that is powered by a 2.7-litre four-cylinder, Dual VVT-i (Variable Valve Timing with Intelligence) engine tuned to produce 164bhp and 245Nm of torque.
3. Hyundai Creta
Price - Rs. 9.21 Lakh to Rs. 14.57 Lakh (ex-showroom, Delhi)
The Hyundai Creta is the quintessential compact crossover-SUV for the Indian market. Its compact nature makes the Creta easy to drive, easy to park and yet manages to give you the feel of an SUV making it an ideal product for this list, which we have spoken about in our review. The Creta comes with a host of premium features projector headlamps, LED DRLs, SUV-style under-body on the outside and a smart cabin with touchscreen infotainment system, steering mounted controls and premium quality seats, which make it an attractive product.
Hyundai has made the Creta available in three engine options - 1.6 Gamma Dual VTVT, 1.6 U2 CRDi VGT, 1.4 U2 CRDi. The engines come mated to a 6-speed manual gearbox as standard and a 6-speed automatic gearbox as an option in both petrol and diesel trims. and there is also an Automatic variant on offer.
4. Honda City
Price - Rs. 8.22 Lakh to Rs. 12.54 Lakh (ex-showroom, Delhi)
The 4th Generation City is built on Honda's latest design language and comes with a host of sporty exterior styling and premium features. Despite being in the Indian car market for over 18 years now, the Honda City still has a strong customer base and is currently the top-selling Honda car in India. Why? Simply because Honda has been regularly updating the City to catch up with the changing trend which has allowed to the car to tackle the completion the market throws at it.
The car comes in both petrol and diesel along with the option of an automatic variant. The car comes in both petrol and diesel engine options - a 1.5-litre i-VTEC petrol motor and a 1.5-litre i-DTEC oil burner. While the petrol engine churns out 117bhp and develops 145Nm of peak torque, the diesel unit makes 98bhp and develops 200Nm of peak torque. We drove the diesel variant last year and here's our take on that.
5. Renault Duster
Price - Rs. 8.53 Lakh to Rs. 13.67 Lakh (ex-showroom, Delhi)
Our top pick for this list is the new Renault Duster facelift. We first saw it at the 2016 Auto Expo and it marks the first major facelift for what was essentially the French carmaker's most popular offering in India until the Kwid came in. Apart from refreshed design, new styling and a host of new exterior and interior features the new Duster also comes with Renault's new AMT (automated manual transmission) system EasyR. We drove the car a few months back and we have to say the AMT version did not disappoint us in any way. Further, the car is loaded with features like a rear-view camera with guidelines, automatic climate control, auto-up/down power windows with anti-pinch; new media navigation and a better-looking centre console. The safety package now comprises of the essentials including ABS, EBD with Brake Assist, dual front airbags, ESP and Hill start assist.
The powertrain options remain unchanged as the new Duster continues to be powered by the same petrol and diesel engines. While the petrol trim comes with the 1.6-litre K4M motor and the diesel models gets the 1.5-litre engine. Both the engines come mated to a 5-speed manual gearbox as standard along with the newly introduced EasyR AMT units as an option. The Duster also comes with an AWD system in the in the top-of-the-line RXZ variant.
