In the sub-4 metre segment, a sedan—cheaper by around Rs 2 lakh—is definitely better value for money over an SUV. But which body style should one prefer in the midsize car segment, where sedans and SUVs are priced similarly?
To find this, we drove a sedan and an SUV from the same carmaker: the Slavia and the Kushaq. Both are Skoda cars, and both get similar engines and have the same gearbox.
Design
Slavia: It looks a lot like the more expensive Octavia. Vertical slats on the front grille give it a ‘tall’ appearance and horizontal design lines on both sides make it look longer than its 4,541-mm length.
Kushaq: At 4,225 mm, the Kushaq looks smaller than the Slavia. It’s slightly taller (1,612 mm tall, compared to the Slavia’s 1,507-mm height), and has better ground clearance (188 mm, laden, compared to the Slavia’s 179 mm).
While design is subjective, the Slavia appears to have a better road presence.
Cabin
Both the cars have similar wheelbase (2,651 mm), and therefore similar cabin space. The Slavia’s digital cockpit looks more advanced than the Kushaq’s digital-plus-analogue meter.
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Fuel efficiency
Both the cars get similar engines: 1.0-litre and 1.5-litre. Both are turbocharged and both petrol.
Slavia: The claimed fuel efficiency of the 1.0-litre engine is 19.47 km/litre (manual) and 18.07 km/litre (automatic). That of the 1.5-litre engine is 18.72 km/litre (manual) and 18.41 km/litre (automatic).
Kushaq: The claimed fuel efficiency of the 1.0-litre engine is 19.2 km/litre (manual) and 17.2 km/litre (automatic). That of the 1.5-litre engine is 17.95 km/litre (manual) and 17.7 km/litre (automatic).
The Slavia is marginally lighter (10-15 kg) and appears to have a more aerodynamic body, and that’s why its fuel efficiency is better than the Kushaq. But the Kushaq has a bigger fuel tank (50 litres) than the Slavia (45 litres).
Price
Most variants of the Kushaq are priced marginally more (Rs 30,000 at least) than similar variants of the Slavia. But the Kushaq comes in 16 variants (eight automatic, eight manual), while the Slavia has eight variants (three automatic, five manual). The Kushaq also comes in a special Monte Carlo edition.
Overall, the Kushaq is priced Rs 11.59 lakh to Rs 19.09 lakh. The Slavia is priced from Rs 11.29 lakh to Rs 18.4 lakh (ex-showroom).
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Sedans versus SUVs
Space: The Slavia offers more ‘usable space’ than the Kushaq (while the Kushaq may have more cabin volume, most of it is ‘over the top’, i.e. headroom). The Slavia’s boot space of 521 litres is far more than that of the Kushaq (385 litres), and it is more ‘usable’ because most of it is horizontal, not vertical.
Ground clearance: At 179 mm, the Slavia’s ground clearance is lower than that of the Kushaq (188 mm), but it’s good enough to ride over tall speed breakers and occasional off the road drive (like while overtaking on narrow roads where the verge may be tall).
Ride quality: Unlike the Kushaq in which you will experience minor body-roll (because it is taller), the Slavia rides ‘hugging the road’, and therefore feels more grounded.
