This is the seventh year that I am using my car, I am going to speak at length on my experience.
Why did I buy this car?
I did a lot of Internet research before buying this car. This was the only car which had power windows all, power steering all and huge space at the rear. It even had a autocop system thrown in - Remember this is yr 2005.
What is good about this car?
The driving experience is magnificent at this price point. This car actually makes you believe that you are travelling at a higher speed than you are.
What is bad about this car?
Low breaking efficiency when compared to other sedans. Be careful here, this car is ok for fun driving, but the moment the speed exceeds 70/75, the breaking efficiency comes down drastically.
High cost of spare parts - expect price of the spare part to be double that of a Maruti. The same goes for any service done in the show rooms, even basic body repair costs double. The last service which my car underwent the cost was 18000 Rs. This time it is 30000 Rs. If you compare this with the costs borne by the Maruti folks, the costs of long term ownership is very very low for Maruti.
Lack of service stations. There are only three authorized places where I can get my car serviced. Each of these places is 30 km from my house and consumes 2 days worth of fuel to get it serviced. This adds to the cost of servicing.
Quality of work in the service stations. Even basic items like car washing is done properly. Just check the space between the door and the front of the car, you can see dirt still there. Roadside car washes seem to be do a better job. I will not even go into the other aspects of the service. They replaced the tail lamp bulb and forgot to put the nut back which holds the back seat - the car was ratting for a while before I figured out what was the problem.
Fuel efficiency - I get about 8-9 in city. I rarely travel outside city, but I manage to get 11-13 km/lt outside city. The car is a fuel guzzler looking at the present breed of high efficiency cars.
Ergonomics - The seating position is very bad. It is not suitable for driving long stretches. You are sure to have back problems because of the low seating position. You will not find a single guy who doesn’t have back problems driving this car.