How Does The Suzuki Splash Compare With Its Competitors?

I’ve updated my Suzuki Splash car comparison charts which put the Splash side-by-side with small MPVs like the Modus, Jazz and Agila. I’ve added live lists of real time market prices so you can now compare prices and cars.

The Splash is virtually the same as the Agila but for small style detail to the front and back and different engine options. The big difference is the Splash has ESP (Electronic Stability Programme).

The difference between the Splash and Renault Modus is the Modus is 5-star Euro NCAP rated without ESP as standard across the range. The Splash is 4-star with ESP. You’ll have to double check that as things can change in the car industry.

The dilemma is ESP aids crash prevention whilst an NCAP rating is concerned with crash protection.

Renault say you first perceive a hazard in order to prevent it – before you need protection. Luckily all the cars in this class have good all-round visibility.

Other cars in this class include the Fusion and Meriva. You might consider a Roomster or SX4 as interesting alternatives.

You can compare them all at Small MPV Comparison Charts.

Regards
Ralph

The first question car buyers should ask themselves

Shopping for cars on the internet is convenient, fun and private. Also, reading car reviews and comparisons is a good way of doing your research.

However, it’s easy to get carried away thinking about things like bargains, style and prestige. It’s easy to overlook more important aspects of buying a car.

Part of the problem is people are isolated when they are sat at a computer. They don’t have the social aspect to challenge their thinking. In other words they are not being asked to prove their ideas as true or useful by questions from family, friends and salespeople. They like that privacy.

We act on our ideas and it’s easy to make mistakes. Car buying mistakes are hugely expensive.

So there is a need for a car buyer to ask themselves some simple questions. These questions are so simple they can seem silly. Your response might be that you knew them but that’s the benefit of hindsight. Test yourself and list 10 questions you should ask yourself before buying a car.

Here’s the first question, ‘what’s your present cars?’ It sounds like a stupid question but it’s an important one and one every salesperson will ask you.

When a car salesperson asks you ‘what have you got at the moment?’ your answer gives them a huge amount of information even if your answer is, ‘a Fiesta.’ They then pump you with more questions or more subtly guess wrong. ‘5-door?’ ‘No, 3-door.’ ‘What’s that a 1.2?’ ‘Do you know I’m not sure?’

‘What is your present car?’ is an important question because the answer represents your current situation. It partly determines what – if anything – you can do. It is the basis for improvement. With these ideas you can start to plan your actions.

Just saying, ‘I’ve got a Fiesta,’ isn’t good enough. You need to write all the details down in a table so you can make comparisons.

When a car salesperson asks about the number of doors a buyers present car has, some buyers have to think hard about it. Most buyers don’t know the size of the engine in their car and almost all can’t name the trim level.

Almost all car buyers couldn’t tell you the facts and figures regarding their present cars performance, economy, emissions and safety. Yet they have strongly held opinions about these topics.

So it is important if you’re going to DIY research a car online to know:

1. about cars, and
2. about yourself.

Here’s how you simply describe your own car to yourself.

1. Simply go to carbuyersinfo and find your type of car.
2. Highlight  the data table, right-click your mouse to copy and right-click again to paste it into a word document.
3. Then edit the detail to exactly match your present car.
4. Save this word doc, it will prove very useful later on.

You end up with your edited version of this:

Data Date	March 2009
Manufactured from	2008
Make	Ford
Model	Fiesta
Body/Seats	3 or 5-door
Trim Options	Studio, Style, Style+, Titanium, Zetec, Econetic
Engine Options	1.25, 1.4, 1.6, petrol, 1.4, 1.6 diesel
Transmission Options
Driven Wheels	Front
Price Range	£8,500 – £13,400
Dimensions
Length (m)	3.95
Width incl door mirrors (m)	1.72 excl
Height (m)	1.48
Load space (l) all seats up	295
Load (l) all seats down
Fuel tank (l)
EuroNCAP
Adult	n/a
Child	n/a
Pedestrian	n/a
Engine/Transmission
Engine	1.25
Displacement/Cylinders
Power output	60
Transmission	Manual/5
Performance
Top speed (mph)	94
Acceleration (0-62mph)	16.5
Fuel Consumption
Fuel type	Petrol
Urban (mpg(l/100km))	38.7
Extra urbanmpg(l/100km)	65.7
Combined (mpg(l/100km))	52.3
CO2 emissions g/km	128
£ of 12,000 miles
Noise level dB(A) (moving)
Car Insurance Group	1

 Armed with this simple information you have a good idea about your present situation, the beginning of ideas about what you want, what it means to you and what you need to do.

Here’s an easy way to remember this. Salespeople call it SPIN:

S = Situation
P = Problem – a thwarted goal – an objective not immediately available
I = Implication – suggestions
N = Need

Happy Hunting
Regards
Ralph
carbuyersinfo Car Comparisons Differences & Similarities Revealed

How Does The MINI Clubman Compare With Its Competitors

The Mini Clubman is a small estate car which is fun to drive but comparatively expensive to buy. Over on carbuyersinfo you can see how it compares with its rivals. Here’s a summary.

For about the same money as a Mini Clubman you can buy a Ford Focus, Peugeot 308 or VW Golf  Estate which are bigger, 5-doors and roomier. 

For over £1,000.00 less you could buy the Hyundai Focus equivelant – the i30 Wagon or a Kia Cee’d SW, although the i30 is only 4-star Euro NCAP rated. The Cee’d is 5.

For the price of a mid-range Mini Clubmanyou could buy a huge Ford Mondeo Estate, Mazda6 Estate or VW Passat.  A Skoda Octavia estate has an entry price £1,000.00 lower than the Mini Clubman.

Comparing apples with apples, you could buy a 5-door Peugeot 207 or Renault Clio estate for between £2,500 to £3,000 less and have more space with equal dynamics and style.

The entry price of a Skoda Fabia estate is £5,000.00 less than the Clubman. In other words the Clubman costs 50% more than a Fabia estate.

It’s very difficult to justify the Mini Clubman in terms of price or space.

The Mini Clubman is a nice handy size and easy to park but so are the less expensive 207, Clio and Fabia.

The Clubman is stylish but so are all of the above cars. You might say the Mini Clubman has a certain image but all the above are very highly regarded and some have bags of street cred’.

Certainly every one of the above cars is more spacious than the Clubman and space/versatility is what an estate car promises.

That only leaves driveability but the Clubman is up against some of the best cars on the road when it comes to driving.

So I don’t get the Mini Clubman, maybe you can comment.

Regards
Ralph
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