12000kms 3 free services complete, about eight long drives - an update
Please read the initial review section and then read this. It will give you an idea of my experience with this car.
My long drives till date
Gopalswamy Hills - 550kms
Ooty - 610kms
MM Hills & Tallakkad - 570kms
Talkere - 550kms
Masinagudi - 575kms
BR Hills & BharaChukki - 430kms
Nanjangud - 350kms
GaganChukki - 220kms
Service Bill cost
-----------------------
1 service : approx Rs 850
2 service: approx Rs 450 (that too because of wheel balancing and alignment) else it was less than 100
3 service: approx Rs 2K again because I got the wheel Balancing and alignment done along with oil change etc.
Service satisfaction was good.
I would definitely recommend a WagonR Duo, I have not faced any problems till date.
The car is very stable on highway, much more stable than what you might feel by its tall boy looks. Obviously tall boy and high speed grip don't go hand in hand, but it doesn't stop you from reaching speeds of 110kmph in this car. Do not compare high speed handling to a alto or a swift or even a m800.
The gears feel softer now, or have I got used to the gears, either way it doesn't matter, the gear is not creating much of a problem to me now.
The car returns 13kmpl on highway on LPG, on petrol it returns 16 to 17, considering bumpy roads and A/C on on dusty roads. It good but not great. I don't know city mileage, never calculated.
and my suggestion is don't buy wagonr if the driver is short, the heel and toe position of the acc, brake and clutch pedals) wont suit short prople (less than 5'3"), their legs will strain in long journeys.
The power steering is really good, at low speeds it assists more in other words, the steering is very loose) and it tightens up as the speed increases. This is good as far as safety is concerned.
thats it for now, will write more as and when I remember. Hope it heps all the potential buyers
Initial Review
I bought my first car WagonR Duo. This is the first car I have driven in my life, I learnt driving in a driving school on a maruti 800. Pardon me if I say anything incorrect, since I can write based on my drving in wagonR and maruti 800 only.
I chose this 'Duo' after a lot calculations that I did myself, I could do a max down payment of 1, 50, 000 wanted a car that is comfortable, cheaper maintenance and cheaper running cost considering I might do 1000 kms more or less in a month. If I was to do a full down payment and buy a car, I surely would have gone for a diesel car, but if you are going to take a loan of above 2.5 lakhs, then you really need to calculate the 'Total Cost of ownership per month' which is EMI + Fuel Cost + Maintenance + Insurance. I can give the calculation spread sheet on request, but without going much deeper into the calculation and considering depreciation, resale value etc.. here are my conclusions
In a scenario, where you are earning, 20, 000 per month on hand and not yet married, and
Making a down payment of 1, 50, 000
and taking a loan of approx 2, 82, 000 or more @ 12 %
and want a car that seat minimum 4 people of 5'9" comfortably
and want a car in which you do 70% city driving and 30% highway driving
You should go for a Diesel car (I am referring to Indica v2 turbo) only if you are sure to cover 1500+ kms per month (Diesel Car = Expensive EMI + Lower fuel cost + Slightly higher maintenance + Expensive insurance + greater depreciation + lesser resale value)
You should go for a Petrol Car (I am closely referring to Wagon R petrol) if you are going to always drive less than 800 - 1000 kms per month. (Petrol Car = Lesser EMI + Higher fuel cost + Lower maintenance + Average insurance + less depreciation + greater resale value)
You should go for a Duo if you are going to cover between 1000 to 1500 kms per month, mostly in city and less on highway since WagonR Duo has a 22.5 ltr lpg tank only. (Duo = More EMI than Petrol + much Lower fuel cost than petrol + Slightly higher maintenance the petrol but less than diesel + Expensive insurance compared to petrol + slightly more depreciation than petrol + resale value same as petrol)
After learning to drive in a maruti 800 and then driving this car, I felt that it is much much easier to drive than the 800, the steering feels silk smooth (I know 800 doesn't have power steering) and engine responds very well. I have done 275 kms in two days, I felt everything except the gear shifting feels great (wagonR's bad gear shifting has been written about all over the internet, so I knew it very well before buying).
The engines surely feels more peppy and responsive in petrol mode than lpg mode, but since I wont rev up my hard earned 4 lakh red beauty, lpg has enough to get off the mark decently, although not with A/C on and 4 passengers.
The steering height is perfect for my height 5'8" and can rest my hands on the door while still keeping a hand on steering, so hand doesnt get tired so fast, I have also pushed back the driver seat a bit and put it on a little lean back position, so I feel very comfortable inside now.
The visibility from inside the car is good, especially while taking the reverse and tight turns because of the large sized windows.
Overall I am in love with my car and will surely recommend a wagonR to others (Just hope it doesn't give many problems in future, although I ave read rare cases of engine knocking, gear slipping etc.)
6000 KMS Update*
The car has not had any problem after 6000 kms, so there is nothing much to write. Second Service Bill was Rs. 400 approx That too because I told them to do wheel balancing, if not it would be much less. Oil change is after 10K kms.
I had a lot of doubts about buying WagonR before because I feared that its high speed stability would be very bad. But after going on long trips and touching 120 Kmph speed, I fell the car is surprisingly stable, well, dont compare it with an indica or any bigger cars, but It dint turn out as bad as I thought it could be. Trust me it is good on the Highways too.
Braking power of the car on full load, I feel could have been better because you can actually feel the difference in braking power when 2 people are sitting against 5. But dont worry, its acceptable for a small car.
WagonR can climb the ghats sections well even with 5 people mid age people. I had been to Ooty, MM Hills, Gopalswamy Hills... no problems anywhere, even when it was wet.
My cars second and reverse gear feels a little softer I think (Or probably I got used to it :) dont know) after second service. WagonR gears are a bit hard, but it takes little time to get used to, but its much better that those of alto or 800.
That's it for now... will write if there's something significant
