Ever since cars have been rolling out in India like doughnuts off an assembly, the consumer is not only spoilt for choice but also getting what he wants and that is because most of the car manufacturers today claim that they have been 'listening' to the consumer, to 'understand' their needs and then apply it to their cars and eventually produce them. The flip side of this is that there a huge amount of cars, in fact more than our infrastructure can handle.
Also Read: 3 Most Fuel Efficient Sedans Between Rs. 8 - 12 Lakhs
This has led to people spending hours on hours in traffic jams which have led to a change in preference of the way people want to drive and the emergence of the automatic transmissions. Auto-boxes are no more a novelty, but a necessity to ease the way people drive and car manufacturers in India are trying their level best to bring it in segments that are volumes sellers. We look at some of these cars which have the facility of an automatic transmission and are light on your pocket.
1. New Maruti Suzuki Alto K10
We've already driven this car and without a doubt it will be one of the cheapest cars out there which will boast of an automatic transmission. This one gets the same transmission as the Celerio and it is called the AMT or automated-manual transmission. The new Alto K10 will be the very first in its segment to offer the AMT and this will certainly see Maruti Suzuki grab not only eyeballs but also sales figures.
Also Read: New Maruti Suzuki Alto K10 AMT Review
Thanks to the AMT, the new Alto is now 75 kgs lighter and this translates into less drag and better fuel efficiency figures. The Alto K10 with AMT boasts of 24Km/l which is 15% more than the one with the manual gearbox. The car is scheduled to be launched in November and will be priced somewhere close to Rs. 3 -3.5 lakh.
The Celerio was the first car in the country to receive the AMT unit and it was essentially Maruti's way of saying that 'look, we've got new technology which is affordable not only to the customers but also to the company' The same gearbox which goes into the new Alto K10 was first showcased on the Celerio.
The Celerio with the same 1.0-litre K10 engine from the Wagon R gets a fair amount of power all 67bhp of it. Pair that to the AMT, whose shifts aren't as precise as the traditional auto-boxes, and you get a car ready for the road to tackle traffic conditions. With fuel efficiency figures standing at 23.1Km/l and the car priced at Rs. 4.49 lakh, the Celerio is yet another car from the Maruti Suzuki stable for the masses.
There was a lot of buzz surrounding this car actually because there were talks of Maruti Suzuki discontinuing the car considering that AMT's like the Celerio and the new Alto K10 were to be sold. But well, there is no official word from the company yet and we have to include this one too. The Ritz in the automatic avtaar is available in the VXi variant and is the recipient of the 1.2-litre petrol engine and gets goodies like power windows, power steering, AC, ABS with EBD and tilt steering as standard.
The engine punches out 85bhp and is mated to a 4-speed automatic gearbox which delivers good performance in urban conditions. Considering that there are a bunch of options with better gearboxes in the country currently, the Ritz is somewhat a dinosaur but well it comes priced at Rs 5.76 lakh (ex-showroom, Delhi) and cannot be ignored as a competitor.
Hyundai clearly had a plan when they thought of bringing out the Grand i10 and that was to give the people a car which will be absolutely on the mark when it comes to space, features and driveability. The Grand i10 actually ticked all the marks but the people at Hyundai wanted to go a step further and give it an automatic transmission.
The Grand i10 comes with a 4-speed automatic gearbox which when compared to the likes of the Maruti's and Honda's in India isn't great but the fact remains that it comes with a ton of features and that's what makes it a great deal to buy. It goes like a breeze in stop-go traffic conditions and the fluidic design makes it even more appealing. The Grand i10 with the automatic costs Rs. 5.92 lakh (ex-showroom, Delhi) which is very economical as far as automatics go.
4. Honda Brio
Yes, there is a Honda in there to fight it out too. The Brio is a very loveable car by way of looks, the way it drives and if it comes with an automatic gearbox, even better. The Brio's iVTEC unit generates 87bhp and that is a big number for the size of the car. There is enough power at your disposal and though there are some who would prefer a manual transmission to make use of all this power, there are those who choose convenience.
The Brio comes with a 5-speed automatic gearbox which it shares with the Honda City. The CVT keeps the Brio in the power range and the smooth shifts keep on coming your way. Honda claims that the Brio is capable of returning 16.5 km/l which is acceptable for a small car with that much power. The Honda Brio AT comes priced at Rs. 6.05 lakh which is good value-for-money proposition.
5. Nissan Micra
Nissan is not taking the competition lying down, and with the new face of the Micra, it also decided to equip the car with an automatic gearbox. This is the same CVT that also went into the Sunny and the Renault Scala. The Micra CVT is powered by a 1.2-litre, 75bhp, 3-cylinder petrol engine, same as the one found on the manual Micra and Renault Pulse models. Nissan claims this one is every bit fuel efficient and packed with features.
The Micra CVT gets features like keyless entry and start, internally adjustable electric ORVMs with fold function, driver seat height adjustment, single zone automatic climate control, Bluetooth telephony and steering mounted controls, which makes it one of the better equipped automatic hatchbacks in the segment. It is also equipped with an anti-lock braking system (ABS) and two airbags in the front. Nissan has priced the Micra at Rs. 6.39 lakh (ex-showroom, Delhi) which makes it a very decent proposition at that price.
6. Tata Zest
Tata Motors must have thought long and hard for this one and it was a move that could bring them back into the top 3 car manufacturers in India. The Zest is the first diesel car in its segment to receive the automatic gearbox. Yes, Tata too has gone the Maruti Suzuki way and has fitted an F-Tronic AMT in the Zest.
Also Read: Tata Zest Review
The driver can depend completely on the AMT to shift all the time, or shift sequentially when in the manual mode. The three hydraulic actuators, that are controlled by hydraulic electro valves, make the gearbox work exactly like a driver would operate a manual transmission; they open and close the clutch, engage and disengage the gears and manage the gearbox, mapping the transmission mode (automatic or sequential) to the system.
The 89bhp churning tried and tested 1.3-litre multiJet engine which is mated to the AMT and every bit of power is used in the utmost way. Fuel efficiency figure stands at 23Km/l and the car is priced at Rs. 7.3 lakh (ex-showroom, Delhi). The only thing that you don't get for opting an automatic transmission in the Zest is safety features like ABS and airbags. So for the price you put on the automatic you do compromise on safety.
Note: In all likelihood, Tata will also offer AMT on its upcoming hatchback - Bolt.
