Eco Car Comparisons

[Valentine]

Looking to buy an eco car like the models with 1.2L or 1.3L engines & would appreciate thoughts & advice from those that have them. Pros cons etc. The ones I have looked at are Mitsubishi Mirage, Nissan Almera & March, Suzuki Swift, Honda Brio Advance, Honda Jazz Hybrid. In Phuket Mirage seems to have the best promotions deals in terms of "freebies" & specs like push button start, touch screen DVD with Bluetooth. Neither of the Hondas has DVD or push button start but these are not deal breakers.They all claim about 20km/l fuel economy.

Nissan Almera has a good boot size & comfortable to drive. The Nissan website shows a special offer of 15,000 Baht petrol voucher but the dealer in Phuket claims it is only for Bangkok.

Mitsubishi are supposed to have sedan eco car coming out this month & Toyota should also have an eco Yaris next month. Jazz Hybrid is about 50 to 60,000 Baht more than the top model 1.5L Jazz so would have to do quite a lot of mileage before the fuel savings take effect but then again with all these eco cars there is also much lower harmful emissions which is a good thing in itself.

Some of them only have 3 cylinders & not sure if this is a disadvantage. I hope to test drive the Mirage & Swift on Monday. Jazz Hybrid was a nice drive & Brio Advance not too bad.

[culicine]

Drive them all - see what you like and look at the freebies/free insurance available. I got the suzuki swift and am pretty happy with it. The pros - very well constructed - nice interior and exterior; engine on par with the 4 cyl brio engine. It's quite a good performer even with the cvt. It's very quiet even at 100 km/h as the engine is only doing 1800 rpm or so. 140 km/h is no problem; haven't driven it faster than that, but it's capable of higher speeds. The brakes are very good (better than my honda civic, which don't bite hard enough for my liking). The steering is also very precise. Nice handling and comfortable ride.

cons: The advertise FC is not 20 km/l on a combined cycle. In reality I get about 14-15 km/l (on e20) around nonthaburi. 20 km/l is achievable on the highway. having said that, this result is the same for all the other eco cars. I don't get much wind noise but find the insulation isn't as good as my civic (which can be expected). The price is also more than the other eco cars, and I had to pay for insurance too (22K). Despite that, I still bought it because I felt the quality level was higher than in the other cars, justifying the higher price. Cost wasn't really a deciding factor for me.

[IMHO]

For a fair comparison, you need to first split them up by body style IMHO.. Did you want a hatch or sedan?

Here's how I'd rate them:

Hatchbacks:

1. Suzuki Swift - simply the most product substance in the category. Only ecocar hatch that's upper-B sized. Could be heavily challenged by the eco-Yaris when it surfaces. Long waiting lists can be a deal-breaker though, as can be only 40 dealerships nationwide.

2. Mitsu Mirage - most economical in the segment (22KM/L), most features for your Baht, and short delivery queues. Highest selling model in the segment by a large factor.

3. Nissan March - oldest in the segment now, but hard to fault it's drivetrain and road manners. Minor change earlier this year didn't do enough to freshen it up though IMHO.

4. Honda Brio - falls short on product substance, but comes from TH's favorite car brand.

Sedans:

1. Nissan Almera - Only ecocar sedan that's upper-B sized. Generous interior space, hard to fault drivetrain as per March. Road manners not as good as the March, but offers a more compliant ride, and improved NVH.

2. Honda Amaze - interior still a let down, but in sedan form it's much quieter, feels slightly better balanced on the move, and just feels like you're getting more for your Baht compared to the Brio.

Both in this group will be challenged by the Mistu Attrage when it surfaces.

[IMHO]

Mitsu Attrage pricing has now been revealed, with a special 10,000 Baht discount to the first 9,000 bookings received prior to launch in July.

http://www.mitsubishi-motors.co.th/en/News-Content/65/MitsubishiannouncesATTRAGEPriceandIntroductoryCampaignforlaunchperiod

Edited June 10, 2013 by IMHO

[mjj]

I bought the Suzuki predominantly because it looks better inside and out than the others. TBH I wasn't expecting much but now I really like the car. I even sold my pick up as i wasnt using it anymore.

After about 7 or 8 months of having it the only niggling problem I've had is an intermittent vibration noise on the passenger side where the air vent is. Nothing mechanical, just interior dash noise. The guys at Suzuki say they will fix it, but when I go in the noise stops!! 555

There is a thread on here about the Swift, use the search option.

Mine is a manual one and driving around Samui I'm getting about 14-15km/l as well. The engine loves to be revved and I've indicated 170 without any stability issues - well, apart from the wife in the passenger seat. :-)

[Valentine]

Saw the new Mitsubishi Attrage yesterday. A very nice car with good leg room in the back seat, a big boot, comfortable driver's seat plus all the bells & whistles such as touch screen DVD with Bluetooth, audio controls on the steering wheel, rear camera. I paid a deposit & got a 10,000 Baht discount as part of the first 9,000 who ordered. Also won a gasoline voucher for 2,500 & in the running for an iPhone 5 or other prizes.

[piston broke]

For a fair comparison, you need to first split them up by body style IMHO.. Did you want a hatch or sedan?

Here's how I'd rate them:

Hatchbacks:

1. Suzuki Swift - simply the most product substance in the category. Only ecocar hatch that's upper-B sized. Could be heavily challenged by the eco-Yaris when it surfaces. Long waiting lists can be a deal-breaker though, as can be only 40 dealerships nationwide.

2. Mitsu Mirage - most economical in the segment (22KM/L), most features for your Baht, and short delivery queues. Highest selling model in the segment by a large factor.

3. Nissan March - oldest in the segment now, but hard to fault it's drivetrain and road manners. Minor change earlier this year didn't do enough to freshen it up though IMHO.

4. Honda Brio - falls short on product substance, but comes from TH's favorite car brand.

Sedans:

1. Nissan Almera - Only ecocar sedan that's upper-B sized. Generous interior space, hard to fault drivetrain as per March. Road manners not as good as the March, but offers a more compliant ride, and improved NVH.

2. Honda Amaze - interior still a let down, but in sedan form it's much quieter, feels slightly better balanced on the move, and just feels like you're getting more for your Baht compared to the Brio.

Both in this group will be challenged by the Mistu Attrage when it surfaces.

i think you've hit the nail on the head...at the end of the day, the cars are very similar..ultimately down to the purchaser's personal preference.