Hyundai vs Tata Motors booking experience

My Tiago Booking at Tata Motors wasn't going on well, as explained in this post. Because Tata didn't have service centre, was behaving like a government office, lack of clarity and information, not being honest in informing me of ground realities, I started scouting for an alternate car outside of Tata Motors.

My first short list was Hyundai Grand i10 Neos Sportz, but there were couple of issues- it had only 2 start safety rating, was coming almost 8 lakh rupees on road and had less ground clearance compared to Tiago. Maruti models I was not keen, Kia was too expensive, Toyota didn't have anything in my price range, Renault Kwid was too cheap and Triber unsafe. As I was scouting for an alternate model, Hyundai's Venu S+ caught my attention.

Venue S+ was costing 10.3 lakhs on road and had following pros and cons compared to Tiago

Pros:

• Couple of categories above- compact SUV instead of a hatch back
• 25 mm extra ground clearance- good for bad roads near my area
• Few extra features that were not available in Tiago XZ- climate control, DRL, second row adjustable head rest, roof rail, front and rear skid plates, LED tail lamps etc

Cons

- Would cost me 3 lakhs more than Tiago, 2 lakhs more than Neos sports

- Doesn't have rear wiper, only defogger

- Slight compromise on fuel economy, maintenance and insurance cost given that this is a bigger, heavier vehicle

- 81 BHP is a bit less for car of this size and weight. Venue 1.2 S struggles to cross 100 kmph and needs fair bit of time to reach triple digit speeds. I decided I am fine with this, given the cost savings and fuel savings- not looking to race with anyone, so if my car is a bit slower it is OK.

- Unknown safety rating. Venue has 4 star Australian NCAP rating but Hyundai is known to use difference process & quality for Indian and export models, so some cost cutting and safety compromise on Indian Venue is likely, but unable to quantify or verify. Haven't seen any photos or videos of road accident involving venue failing miserably.

- S+ instrument cluster is old styled, not fully digital.

I went to Hyundai showroom and took test drive of IMT. The turbo petrol engine was peppy but I didn't like the IMT (detailed here). Turbo engine is expensive by a lakh or two and would cost even more to maintain as well. So despite some known limitations, I decided to book Venue S+.

I will write about Venue S+ separately. In this post I want to focus on booking experience between Hyundai Udupi (Kanchana Hyundai) and Automatrix Udupi (Tata Motors)

#	Experience	Hyundai	Tata
1	Showroom Visit	Showroom has security guard	No security guard at Udupi Automatrix
		Someone welcomes (usually female staff)	No one to be seen, I have to go inside, find someone
		Refreshments- water, tea/coffee	None
		Printed brochures provided	Not provided
2	Test Drive	Promptly arranged, drove Neos, Venue IMT and Venue S+. S+ they didn’t have, got from Mlore in half day	Very limited options. Tiago XZ+ test drive was provided at my office 2 days later
3	After test drive	Customer is introduced to manager	No such experience
	Sales Response	Quick. Got reply at 5.30 AM, Sunday etc	Slow. Got a response only by EOD
4	Booking process	Advance paid: 2000 Rs only for 10 lakh car, booking entered same day	Paid 1001 on Dec 1st and asked them to book, paid 10000 on Dec 3rd, but booking was recorded on Dec 5th. 4 days lost, much higher booking amount
		Welcome kit given (outdated, but has info on documents needed, accessories etc)	No welcome kit, no email, nothing. Only 1 payment receipt.
5	Waiting period	Was told could be upto 3 months, but after I decided on model, variant and colour, I was told it will be available in 1 month	2 months flat. No alternate options given. No clarity even after 1.5 months. After 1.5 months I am told a Dec 2020 make Tiago XZ is available and I can take it now if interested
6	Services	Available	Not available, wasn’t told about it upfront. I had to find out on my own. They have a weekly camp with Shama Honda
7	Insurance breakdown	Not given yet	Got after multiple follow up.
8	Accessory breakdown	Not given yet	Got after 3rd showroom visit
9	Upsell attempt	Not made	Not made
10	Offers	None for Venue & Creta	15000 consumer discount offered, but I may not get it as it is valid only till Jan 31st. price increase expected in Feb
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What I got from Hyundai after paying 2000 vs all that I got from Tata Motors after paying 11001.

I understand Automatrix Udupi is a new showroom. But it has been 2 months since they opened, so it should have been reasonable time to train the staff and prepare the showroom for a better customer experience. But never got any positive vibe dealing with staff at Automatrix Udupi. They don't honestly share information, they don't respond promptly to queries and give me a feeling like I am dealing with a government office. The experience is much better in Maruti, Renault and Hyundai showrooms I visited. If this is how I get treated before buying, I am left to ponder what will happen after I pay 7.5 lakh rupees? Most likely I will face more surprises, bad experience and indifference. That is the most worrying part for me. No one is giving me any assurance that after purchase my experience will be smooth. Tata Motors Regional sales manager did address many of my concerns, but at times he only gave deplomatic/politically correct answers and not the detailed assurance I wanted (for example, as I was worried where do I go for service, his answer was I should call their toll free number and they will do the needful. But I need details where is their closest service centre or how long I will have to wait if I have to get support from Mangalore)

8200 Rs for a seat cover is where they make money- I see that seat covers are available for 2500-3000 Rs onwards. Without knowing why exactly the seat cover costs that much, I won't spend on it...

At this moment I have two bookings in my name, need to finalize one of the two and decide.