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I want to buy a diesel SUV with a budget of Rs22-30 lakh. Should I opt for BMW X1? Or, do you have any other suggestion?—Saurabh Chordiya
In a couple of months, the Audi Q3 will be launched. If nothing else, that will give you more choice in the premium entry-level segment. If you can go beyond the badge, the Renault Koleos is a fantastic option; it looks good, drives like a car and has good mileage. It costs around Rs26 lakh. You can also look at the Hyundai Santa Fe, which is also good.

I am planning to buy a car. My budget is up to Rs12 lakh. I am opting for a petrol variant since my usage is very less with an occasional long drive. I am looking for a spacious car that’s reliable, is comfortable in city traffic with good mileage, resale value and good looks. I read about new cars in the DNA Drive which were unveiled at the Auto Expo 2012. Kindly advise.
— Vijay Kumar Mannava
Since you are looking at only petrol models, at the top of our list is the Honda City. It fits all your criteria very well. If you want to wait, however, there will be a couple of launches over the next few months like the Hyundai Elantra.

I want to buy a 150cc engine bike with good fuel efficiency, low maintenance and very good looks. My budget is Rs70,000-75,000. Please help me as I don’t know much about bikes.
—Rahul Gede, Mumbai.
The bike that satisfies all your parameters is the Honda Unicorn. It’s got a very refined engine, great mileage and Honda reliability. If you find the waiting period a bit long, then the Hero Hunk and the CBZ Xtreme should fit the bill too.

In my cars, I see that even when the accelerator is not pressed and the vehicle is going on a downward gradient, the engine still shows a minimum 1,000 rpm which means fuel is still being fed into the engine. Why aren’t the engines designed to cut off fuel 100% when the accelerator is not pressed?
—Amit
Well, if 100% fuel were cut off, the engine would stall in the middle of the road. In some cars, there is cylinder deactivation but even that doesn’t cut off all the fuel. Rather than stressing the internals with erratic fueling, they keep the fuel flow at a minimum level when coasting.

I have difficulty in choosing one among the Bajaj Discover 135, Discover 100 and the new TVS Sport. My budget is between Rs60,000 and Rs75,000. I am looking for good mileage in city and low maintenance. Kindly advise.
—Rohit Supekar
Our suggestion is to wait a little. Bajaj is making huge changes to its line-up and it makes sense to wait for the latest model rather than be stuck with an older one. Honda, too, is going to come out with the 100cc Dream Yuga soon, which will do everything you want.

I am a college student and I wish to buy a bike for around Rs75,000. The bike should have good looks, power and a decent mileage. Please suggest some bikes other than the Impulse.
—Ashwin Bhide
If you want something other than the Impulse, then there are the Hero Hunk and CBZ from the Hero stable, which are both quite reliable and frugal. From Bajaj, there’s the Pulsar 135LS, which is also great on mileage and low on maintenance.

Among the Honda Stunner, Bajaj Pulsar 135, Suzuki Sling Shot, Honda Shine and the Hero Honda Passion Pro, which bike is the best, in terms of looks and mileage?
—Shravan Thorat
Our order of preference: first, the two Hondas; then, Bajaj, followed by Hero and Suzuki. That’s taking into account looks, reliability, frugality and ownership experience. The Honda bikes look good and come with brilliant engines and gearboxes. The Pulsar looks great but the engine loses out a little in terms of refinement. The Hero looks a little dated now, but comes with a buttery smooth engine-gearbox combo. As for the Suzuki, there isn’t a major fault, per se, but the others are just as good if not better.