Maruti Ciaz ZDi+- Not missing a European Car!. Review on Maruti Suzuki Ciaz

After nearly 5-6 months of research I narrowed down on Ciaz ZDi+. My primary choices were

1. Honda City - Petrol

   
   




2. Skoda Rapid - Automatic Diesel

   
   




3. Maruti Ciaz - Diesel(SHVS)

   
   




4. Hyundai Verna

   
   




5. Maruti S-Cross

   
   




6. Fiat Linea

   
   

Let me explain the selection process. These my personal opinions, other's might differ based on your requirements and tastes.

1. Honda City - Very reliable, decent interiors, spacious. But, dealer interactions were a big hurdle. I visited dakshin honda in bangalore, no body spoke to be in the dealership. I was just roaming around, looking for cars. Then comes magnum honda, they were atleast responsive, gave test drive etc. 3 factors worked against honda, 1. Dealer friendliness 2. Petrol was costing 13.7 lakhs 3. FE of around 11-12 KMPL in the city.

   
   




2. Skoda Rapid - Very powerful, very friendly dealer and good driveability. 2 factors are against this. 1. After sales service(parts also). 2. Reliability of the DSG gear box.

   
   




3. Hyundai Verna - Good looking, powerful engine, excellent NVH and excellent hyundai sales & service. But factors which worked against are 1. Expensive diesel high end 2. Limited rear seat comfort. 3. Little claustrophobic in the rear.

   
   




4. =Maruti S- cross(1.3)== - Very good to drive, excellent features, VFM, very friendly relationship managers in Nexa. I was almost sure to book this. But 2 things stopped me. 1. My exchange car was taken by the dealer 2. Little claustrophobic due to black interiors

   
   




5. Maruti Ciaz(SHVS) diesel - Initially I was very hesitant due to the small engine. Had the test drive of the ciaz petrol and Ertiga diesel. I like the car. Many factors contributed for me selecting Ciaz 1. Maruti Reliability 2. Space 3. Proven National Engine 4. Features in the high end 5. Driveability in the city. 6. Decent price 7. Exchange of my existing vehicle 8. New Smart Hybrid technology 9. Maruti Service.etc.

   
   




6. Fiat Linea - Very good build, excellent t-jet petrol engine. Factors against are 1. Service 2. Some reliability cases.

   
   

Sales Experience

a. As SHVS was unveiled on Sept 1st, I couldn't get a test drive but I took a chance with maruti. I booked the SHVS diesel.

b. Dealer was ok take my other state registered vehicle even though price was not very encouraging, I was not patient enough to sell myself.

c. Dedicated sales lead for Ciaz, Waiting period was nearly 30-35 days, but I was provided the update on the vehicle transportation.

d. Hassle free delivery and friendly SA/service people. Explained the features well and co-operated for my Pre delivery checks.

Drive Experience.

I was initially very skeptical about the SHVS, not much reviews over the web also. Vehicle arrived, I was very thrilled and eager to drive it.

City Drive

Started the engine, it was refined, not very noisy. Not refined as verna though. Steering is very light and very easy to drive in the city.

I couldn't feel much lag as SHVS was helping the Engine. SHVS works very well in the signals. The moment, you put the gear in neutral and get your foot off, engine switches off. But still AC & others running. Engine starts automatically when the battery is not able to cater to power requirements in the car.

Gear throw is short but little notchy. Gear change indicator is very useful to understand what the car wants.

Auto AC is very useful and touchscreen entertainment system works flawless for bluetooth. Navigation is little challenging, haven't tried it much. Media options are good, speakers are mediocre, liveable but not great though.

Rear camera is very good and is very helpful. Keyless entry is excellent. Driver door needs effort to close though.

Driving position is excellent, very good ground clearance. Rear space is best in class. Rear A/c vent is useful.

Good alloy wheels and tyres. Soaks all the bumps adding to comfort. Shocks are neither soft nor stiff.

==Highway drive=

For a person moving from Getz petrol to Ciaz diesel, I would say the highway drive was a good leap.

Diesel Engine was very good and gear ratios were very sorted. Since I am still in run in I couldn't go beyond 2200 RPM much. However, went couple of times and could feel the addictive turbo after 2200 RPM. You should feel to enjoy it. Did my turning at 90 KMPH, vehicle was stable, no sense of pull or rolling. Straight line stability is excellent inspite of lesser weight.

Overtaking is a breeze, couldn't go beyond 110kmph due to run in restrictions. Very good cruising abilities at 90-110kmph. Very comfortable, good refinement and no engine noise into the cabin.

With all the above things, you might be curious what is the kitna deti hai(Fuel economy). Sorry guys, since I am still in my 600 kms range, I can say that my average shows 15.2 KMPL. I can provide more accurate around 2000kms+ ODO.

Final Verdict.

If you want a spacious, comfortable, reliable, hassle free, feature rich, driveable cruiser for long drive and city, please try ciaz. it will not disappoint.  You do get the turbo rush after 2200 rpm, which is addictive. In summary, I don't miss any of the european sedans like vento, rapid or linea.

If you are chauffer driven, please try Ciaz petrol and diesel both

If you want an automatic with good power and live with the hassles in service, please try skoda rapid.

If you want a reliable petrol and can live with high initial price and petrol price, please go ahead with Honda city. I was not comfortable with their dealer attitude and not so good feedback from friends.(it's just me!).

If you want a petrol Engine with a blast the try vento TSI(Auto) or Linea t-jet(manual).

Happy Motoring,

Signing off.