Sedans used to be the most coveted body style among Indian car buyers, but that’s no longer the case. SUVs have completely dominated consumer mindshare over the past decade, leaving sedans to a small corner of the mass market. One of the primary reasons behind this is the substantial ground clearance advantage that SUVs have over sedans, offering crucial peace of mind when driving on India’s notoriously pockmarked roads or over mountainous speed breakers.
Still, there are a fair number of sedans on sale that come with a decent ground clearance. To that end, here’s a ranking of every mass-market sedan in India based on their ground clearances, listed in ascending order.
9. Maruti Suzuki Dzire
Ground clearance: 163mm
The Maruti Suzuki Dzire has always topped the compact sedan sales charts, and in its latest-gen avatar, it’s a much more desirable package too. While the Dzire’s 163mm ground clearance makes it the lowest-slung sedan on this list, it should be adequate for most road conditions aside from larger speed breakers, which may require a bit of extra care to prevent bottom scrapes.
Our review of the new Dzire also found that it has a pliant and comfortable ride, and the compact sedan’s 1.2-litre 3-cylinder petrol engine is quite peppy as well. Prices for the Dzire start at Rs 6.84 lakh and climb up to Rs 10.19 lakh.
| Maruti Suzuki Dzire powertrain specs | |
|---|---|
| Engine | 1.2-litre, 3 cyl, petrol / 1.2-litre, 3 cyl, petrol-CNG |
| Power (hp) | 82 / 70 |
| Torque (Nm) | 112 / 102 |
| Gearbox | 5-speed MT, 5-speed AMT / 5-speed MT |
8. Hyundai Verna
Ground clearance: 165mm (estimated)
The Hyundai Verna has been a mainstay in the mid-size sedan segment for years, and its current-gen form carries the legacy forward with feature-packed interiors, radical styling, and the highest power output here (160hp) from its 1.5-litre 4-cylinder turbo-petrol engine. When it comes to ground clearance, though, the Verna’s 165mm figure falls among the lower rungs of this list.
As with the Dzire, though, the Verna should be able to handle a fair bit of road undulations without any fear of bottoming out. Its ride is also much more absorbent at low speeds than prior generation models, as we pointed out in our Verna review. The Verna price range starts at Rs 11.07 lakh and extends to Rs 17.58 lakh.
| Hyundai Verna powertrain specs | |
|---|---|
| Engine | 1.5-litre, 4 cyls, petrol / 1.5-litre, 4 cyls, turbo-petrol |
| Power (hp) | 115 / 160 |
| Torque (Nm) | 144 / 253 |
| Gearbox | 6-speed MT, CVT / 6-speed MT, 7-speed DCT |
7. Honda City
Ground clearance: 165mm
Yet another long-running contender in the mid-size sedan space, the Honda City used to rule the roost in terms of sales, but it’s fallen behind in recent years due to stiffer competition from European and Korean rivals. Still, the current iteration of the City is comfortable, sharply-styled, and stands toe-to-toe with the Verna as far as ground clearance goes. The City gets Honda’s ever-so-reliable 1.5-litre 4-cylinder VTEC petrol engine, as well as a 1.5-litre petrol-hybrid powertrain.
In our City vs Verna CVT comparison, the Honda sedan also proved to be more compliant in its ride quality and nicer to drive. Pricing for the City starts at Rs 12.38 lakh and top off at Rs 16.73 lakh.
| Honda City powertrain specs | |
|---|---|
| Engine | 1.5-litre, 4 cyls, petrol / 1.5-litre, 4 cyls, petrol-hybrid |
| Power (hp) | 121 / 126 |
| Torque (Nm) | 145 / 253 |
| Gearbox | 6-speed MT, CVT / eCVT |
6. Hyundai Aura
Ground clearance: 165mm (estimated)
Hyundai’s other sedan offering - the Aura - is a competent, if not underrated option in the compact segment. The Aura is well-equipped in terms of features, offers 1.2-litre 3-cylinder petrol and CNG powertrains, and its 165mm ground clearance puts it squarely in the middle of this list.
Our Aura review noted that the compact sedan’s ride quality is fairly comfortable, albeit not as absorbent as some rivals. The Aura is priced from Rs 6.54 lakh to Rs 9.11 lakh.
| Hyundai Aura powertrain specs | |
|---|---|
| Engine | 1.2-litre, 3 cyls, petrol / 1.2-litre, 3 cyls, petrol-CNG |
| Power (hp) | 83 / 69 |
| Torque (Nm) | 114 / 95 |
| Gearbox | 5-speed MT, 5-speed AMT / 5-speed MT |
5. Tata Tigor
Ground clearance: 170mm (165mm for CNG)
First launched in 2017, the Tigor is the oldest sedan in this list. Tata has updated the Tigor over the years with design tweaks and feature additions, and even introduced an EV counterpart of the compact sedan in 2019. Notably, the Tigor is the first to attain the 170mm ground clearance mark here for its 1.2-litre 3-cylinder petrol variants, but the CNG variants sit slightly lower off the ground at 165mm.
In our Tigor review, we found that its ride quality was excellent overall, but road undulations can give rise to some vertical movement. The Tigor price range starts at Rs 6 lakh and tops off at Rs 9.55 lakh.
| Tata Tigor powertrain specs | |
|---|---|
| Engine | 1.2-litre, 3 cyls, petrol / 1.2-litre, 3 cyls, petrol-CNG |
| Power (hp) | 86 / 74.5 |
| Torque (Nm) | 113 / 96.5 |
| Gearbox | 5-speed AMT, 5-speed MT |
4. Tata Tigor EV
Ground clearance: 172mm
The Tata Tigor EV stands out as the only all-electric sedan currently available in the mass market. It sports a 21.5kWh battery, single-motor powertrain, and at 172mm, a higher ground clearance than its ICE counterpart. EV batteries are packaged underneath the vehicle’s floor, so the slight increase in ride height should reduce the chances of the Tigor EV scraping its underbody on a speed breaker.
As we pointed out in our Tigor EV review, the electric sedan’s suspension is set up firmer than the ICE version to deal with the extra weight of the battery pack. This makes the Tigor EV a bit more confident while cornering, but road shocks are absorbed less pliantly. In terms of pricing, the Tigor EV starts at Rs 12.49 lakh and climbs up to Rs 13.75 lakh.
| Tata Tigor EV powertrain specs | |
|---|---|
| Battery and motor | 21.5kWh, single motor |
| Power (hp) | 75 |
| Torque (Nm) | 170 |
| Gearbox | 1-speed AT |
3. Honda Amaze
Ground clearance: 172mm
The Honda Amaze is the Dzire’s strongest rival, and received a generational update late last year. It not only has a stronger 89hp, 1.2-litre 4-cylinder petrol engine than the Dzire, but the Amaze’s ground clearance is also 9mm higher than that of the Maruti compact sedan.
However, our Amaze vs Dzire comparison found that the Honda’s suspension doesn’t do as well with sharper potholes, and at highway speeds, there’s a fair bit of vertical movement too. The Amaze is priced from Rs 8.10 lakh, going all the way up to Rs 11.28 lakh.
| Honda Amaze powertrain specs | |
|---|---|
| Engine | 1.2-litre, 4 cyls, petrol |
| Power (hp) | 90 |
| Torque (Nm) | 110 |
| Gearbox | 5-speed MT, CVT |
2. Volkswagen Virtus
Ground clearance: 179mm
Launched in 2022 as part of Volkswagen’s India 2.0 product strategy, the Virtus has found favour with swathes of Indian buyers - enough to make it the bestselling mid-size sedan over the past year. It isn’t difficult to see why, as the Virtus offers powerful turbo-petrol engines, well-built interiors, lots of creature comforts, and crucially, a 179mm segment-best ground clearance. For perspective, the Virtus’ ride height is only 11mm off that of the Kia Seltos - a proper mid-size SUV.
Our Virtus long-term reviews have raved about the sedan’s ability to clear virtually anything the road threw at it, and while the suspension tuning lies on the stiffer side, its high-speed stability is among the best in the mass market. The Virtus is priced at Rs 11.56 lakh, climbing up to Rs 19.40 lakh.
| Volkswagen Virtus powertrain specs | |
|---|---|
| Engine | 1.0-litre, 3 cyls, turbo-petrol / 1.5-litre, 4 cyls, turbo-petrol |
| Power (hp) | 115 / 150 |
| Torque (Nm) | 178 / 250 |
| Gearbox | 6-speed MT, 6-speed AT / 6-speed MT, 7-speed DCT |
1. Skoda Slavia
Ground clearance: 179mm
The Skoda Slavia is the Virtus’ platform sibling, and offers the same powertrains (except a 1.5-litre petrol-manual), driving characteristics, and ground clearance as the Volkswagen sedan. However, the Slavia snags the all-important price advantage over the Virtus, as the Skoda sedan starts at Rs 10.49 lakh - over 1 lakh cheaper - and tops off at Rs 18.39 lakh.
| Skoda Slavia powertrain specs | |
|---|---|
| Engine | 1.0-litre, 3 cyls, turbo-petrol / 1.5-litre, 4 cyls, turbo-petrol |
| Power (hp) | 115 / 150 |
| Torque (Nm) | 178 / 250 |
| Gearbox | 6-speed MT, 6-speed AT / 7-speed DCT |
All prices ex-showroom, India.
Also see:
Most affordable cars, SUVs with DCT gearboxes
Here are India's most affordable hybrid cars, SUVs
