March K11 or K12 or viva elite

[SureshA]

Hey guys, It is my first car & I’m looking for automatic hatchback. I thought to go for either March K11 (1000 / 1300 cc) or K12 or viva elite. Also my budget will be between 1.5 - 2.0 Mn. What would be the best option ?

[AVANTE]

Go for the viva. It's relatively new compared to the March and has better fuel economy. Also, it looks decent compared to the egg the K12 is. 

[Devinda_Z]

Perhaps even a Suzuki Swift?

However since the Viva was what was suggested perhaps be a little creative and pick up a Daihatsu Mira on which the Perodua is based and shares components with for a slight discount?

Noticed a few Mira Esse's on Ik@m@n for a little less than an equivalent Viva despite being made in Japan 

[Thilinadinith]

Go for viva elite !! i have used viva elite from 2014 and still using it. it never failed me. good fuel consumption. ride is good also

and also since i do fast driving i have seen that quick boost of the pickup is available with viva elite. where ac compressor is getting detach on sudden increase of the rpm which is damn cool where you get more power and shifting gears fastly. ( automatic) and also you can customize the car with stuffs which is looking decent. i remember i have drove more than 1000 km on 3 days continuously (of course i slept on night). and mine is about for 100000km and i did the small small repairs at the correct time. my only most expensive repair was ac which was around 20,000. Thats the maximum cost i have spent and still running like a baby. highly satisfied and highly recommend vehicle if you are looking around that amount cause you need to think about maintenance and fuel economy too.

[ghostwriter]

K11 Vs. Viva

K11 March is quite old and it has a bad reputation for high fuel consumption. Viva is quite newer and is lighter vehicle compared to the march. Both are decently safe vehicles which has ABS and Airbags (there are non ABS. non-airbag variants of the Viva so make sure you buy one with both of those features if you're buying one).

K12 Vs. Viva

Regarding K12, I have not used one but there are plenty of threads in AL discussed extensively on model variants and issues related to the K12. K12 is a lot roomier than the Viva and its also a 4 cylinder engine vehicle compared to the 3 cylinder Viva.

It comes down to what your requirements from buying a car is. If fuel economy is your top priority, Viva Elite is the best buy and you can even sell it easily given its high demand. However, due to the high demand, ODO meter tampering and re-selling is very common with the Viva so beware of that as well. 

If you're buying the Viva make sure you buy the Premium version which is equipped with ABS and Airbags. Viva has a good pick up and the ABS has been useful for me, several time to avoid crashes.

Edited April 25, 2020 by ghostwriter

[tilvin]

If you looking for a Hatchback - check for some good cars on Peugeot 307. I like the triptronic ones which came up with AL4 gearboxes. Very responsive machines...?

[aamarakoon]

21 hours ago, ghostwriter said:

K11 Vs. Viva

K11 March is quite old and it has a bad reputation for high fuel consumption. Viva is quite newer and is lighter vehicle compared to the march. Both are decently safe vehicles which has ABS and Airbags (there are non ABS. non-airbag variants of the Viva so make sure you buy one with both of those features if you're buying one).

K12 Vs. Viva

Regarding K12, I have not used one but there are plenty of threads in AL discussed extensively on model variants and issues related to the K12. K12 is a lot roomier than the Viva and its also a 4 cylinder engine vehicle compared to the 3 cylinder Viva.

It comes down to what your requirements from buying a car is. If fuel economy is your top priority, Viva Elite is the best buy and you can even sell it easily given its high demand. However, due to the high demand, ODO meter tampering and re-selling is very common with the Viva so beware of that as well. 

If you're buying the Viva make sure you buy the Premium version which is equipped with ABS and Airbags. Viva has a good pick up and the ABS has been useful for me, several time to avoid crashes.

Having had both a K11 and a Viva I agree to this.  March has notorious fuel consumption, horrible acceleration and incurable steering rack rattle. Believe me I bought it unregistered and used it for 3 years. So you can expect the condition of those cars now.

Viva is fast and responsive. Fuel economy is better. But beyond that I didn't like it at all. Some may disagree but I always felt the build quality is not good. Doors don't close well (I mean refined) And the engine is noisy too. You can sell it but again there are many out there.

 

[The Don]

I owned a K11 Micra for quite a number of years in the UK before I bought my current car. It was a 1.0 manual and when I bought it it had 88,000 miles. When it was scrapped it had 125,000 and the only reason it was scrapped was due to rust on the rear axel which would cost more than the car to repair. But to this day my friend who had given my car to still regrets scrapping it. 

It was the most reliable car I've ever owned. Went everywhere and apart from the rust problem (and a noisy belt adjuster due to wear) had no issues at all. Everything still worked. Wasn't that comfortable and the 1.0 engine wasn't economical but the 16V DOHC chain driven engine was bullet proof. Never missed a beat. Only ever needed break pads, a battery and periodic oil changes. 

The K12 has nothing on it in terms of being a hard as nails little car. Looks nicer, spacious interior but finicky EPS and lots of plastics in the engine bay  

[HaeylM]

On 3/23/2020 at 2:25 AM, SureshA said:

Hey guys, It is my first car & I’m looking for automatic hatchback. I thought to go for either March K11 (1000 / 1300 cc) or K12 or viva elite. Also my budget will be between 1.5 - 2.0 Mn. What would be the best option ?

Having used a K11 all i can say is that its a good car in terms of fuel efficiency and ease to park but the car is crammed up and small so u can barely fit 5 people in it and any luggage other than shopping items. Gear changes are smooth and maintenance is cheap, plus there is plenty of grey imported parts so parts are also cheap. Just make sure you arent going into a really hacked up one. Mine was 2001/2005 JZ-xxxx

K12 ofc is a great choice, good comfort, great A/C, maintenance is averagely ok and fuel consumption is around 9-13KMPL 

Only problem is the car sits really low so you are going to hit the bottom of the car and hear it screetch very often when you are going over bumps in the road with passengers or cargo in the back. Im talking abt 2003 model btw. not sure if the newer models have the same issue. 

 

[Devinda_Z]

13 hours ago, HaeylM said:

Having used a K11 all i can say is that its a good car in terms of fuel efficiency and ease to park but the car is crammed up and small so u can barely fit 5 people in it and any luggage other than shopping items. Gear changes are smooth and maintenance is cheap, plus there is plenty of grey imported parts so parts are also cheap. Just make sure you arent going into a really hacked up one. Mine was 2001/2005 JZ-xxxx

K12 ofc is a great choice, good comfort, great A/C, maintenance is averagely ok and fuel consumption is around 9-13KMPL 

Only problem is the car sits really low so you are going to hit the bottom of the car and hear it screetch very often when you are going over bumps in the road with passengers or cargo in the back. Im talking abt 2003 model btw. not sure if the newer models have the same issue. 

 

The March/Micra K13's are not nearly as popular as the old ones were for some strange reason. You rarely see them ?‍♂️

[HaeylM]

On 6/22/2020 at 3:46 PM, Devinda_Z said:

The March/Micra K13's are not nearly as popular as the old ones were for some strange reason. You rarely see them ?‍♂️

True. I guess personally for me it was more about the budget, Back when i got the k12 it was around 1.6Mil but the k13 was rare and the market price was close to the price of a passo and fit GE6 so they were more appealing and popular. 

Most of my friends used the swift 1.3 (Jeep model as sri lankans call it), nice car, good fuel efficiency, ample parts and apparently has a very good market value. i think @SureshA myt be able to find good one for close to 2 Mil. 

[Devinda_Z]

17 hours ago, HaeylM said:

True. I guess personally for me it was more about the budget, Back when i got the k12 it was around 1.6Mil but the k13 was rare and the market price was close to the price of a passo and fit GE6 so they were more appealing and popular. 

Most of my friends used the swift 1.3 (Jeep model as sri lankans call it), nice car, good fuel efficiency, ample parts and apparently has a very good market value. i think @SureshA myt be able to find good one for close to 2 Mil. 

@HaeylM the "beetle" Swift was a nice car but the "jeep" model was like bouncy castle ? Doesn't make it a bad car as all, be it an uncomfortable one but hey we can't have it all right