Wagon R Lxi : 8000kms review

[shajufx]

Its a clear message from most wagon R owners I know or I heard from: gear shift really sucks bigtime, as time passes one gets used to it and live with it without any options. Also other good features of the vehicle somehow make the owner ignore this issue. I had experienced the gear noise and the uneasy changes right on the day I took a test drive before buying one. But the executive cleverly put it this way "Sir, this is a demo car, lot of people drive it without knowing driving, but your brand new car will be very smooth and best, so ignore the demo car's gear and feel the space, utilities, engine power etc etc....". Oh I was really ignoring the gear after hearing this, but on the first day of new car delivery gear shift started teasing my brains. Luckily after 1500 kms it got bit smoother, but still reverse gets engaged after a thud and sometimes 2 or 3 attempts.

Wagon R is giving comforts that are not to be compromised with any other car of this segment. Therefore I just live with the gear issues as any other proud owner.

[BunnyPunia]

do show the car to the service center guys. the prob, to an extent, has been rectified in our wagon r...

im in mumbai now, shall be gettin how the car is doin from my bro back in delhi

[vennarbank]

Gear shift is an issue. But another issue i face is when driving in 3rd gear, sometimes the gear returns to neutral. Does anyone faced this issue.

[hsejars]

Wagon R was my first ever vehicle (yep, never had a two wheeler)! I have done more than 26000 KM on mine. I find it a great car. I have used and abused it. Done quite a bit of highway driving as well mostly in the last 1.5 years (a few trips from Bangalore to Coorg, almost all Jungle Lodges Resorts in South Karnataka, longest trip was from Bangalore to Vaitheeswaran Koil with a overnight halt in Chennai). Handles quite well at speeds of upto 120KPH. Beyond that I find it a bit uncomfortable (i have done 140 on Bangalore-Chennai highway but difficult to maintain that speed). One thing I have noticed and which is prompting me for a bigger/powerful car is the lack of power. When overtaking I have to switch off the AC (got used to that also now :-) ) esp on the narrow state highways! I guess it will be a problem in all small cars.

So far apart from the routine services (I do one every 6 months or 5000 KM whichever is earlier) never had to visit the workshop (touch wood)! I feel it is still as good as when I had bought it 4 years back.

Rgdg the Gear box, I have occasional problems slotting the gear into first but have got used to it now. I just slot it into neutral and then try slotting it into 1st gear again and it slots fine. Never had any problems with the other gears.

FE is about 12 KPL (with Shell) AC is almost always on (I never switch it off) in the city and about 17 KPL on highways. Once it did give me 19+ but never been able to get that much after that. I calc after every tank fill !

A thoroughly reliable car and I would recommend it to anyone.

[Josh]

I booked a WagonR LXi with Seva, Nagpur. Total was 3.96. We also booked during the 15K discount period. So 10K insurance and 5K worth free accessories was the 15K discount. Had booked a light blue one ( forgot the name ).
But i changed the booking to Duo model. Now the salesman says no discounts on Duo model. I was going to cancel the booking thinking he is conning me, but some phone calls later i found that Maruti is not giving discounts on Duo.
Thought for sometime and changed the booking to Wagon R Lxi Duo for 4.25. Hopefully the car should arrive by monday.
This is meant for giving my dad his 3.5 years of retirement in a good car.

I am very glad on buying the Wagon.

I dont plan any mods or wheel change or any stuff. Will but the normal footmats and steering cover etc. Other than that i dont think i will buy anything now. I dont know also what to buy ( first car of my life ). May i will need to buy the side black strips ( along the length ) or do they come with the car ?

Planning a sunfilm and a MP3 player setup with decent speakers ( dad doesnt need anything high powered ) , after couple of months.

Got SBI loan for 2.75 Lac and 1.5 downpayment in cash. 10K paid already for booking.
SBI EMI is 3333 per lac per month. They have some tie up with Maruti.

Maybe i will drive the car when i go home, till then Dad love ya..

[snaronikar]

I have driven around 31,000 kms in my Wagon R and still the Gear Problem persists.

@Vennarbank: I'am not facing this problem. But your issue is quite serious...May be you need to show to service center guys for recification.

[CrAzY dRiVeR]

Originally Posted by vennarbank

Gear shift is an issue. But another issue i face is when driving in 3rd gear, sometimes the gear returns to neutral. Does anyone faced this issue.

Please get that checked.

WagonR shift is notchy, but it doesnt behave that badly. last had i had such big problem, turned out to be a broken linkage.

[vennarbank]

Originally Posted by CrAzY dRiVeR

Please get that checked.

WagonR shift is notchy, but it doesnt behave that badly. last had i had such big problem, turned out to be a broken linkage.

snaronikar and Crazy Driver. Thanks for your comments. Can i take it on my regular service due by August end or go for it now itself.

[snaronikar]

Yeah. You can take it by Aug end only if this is not too irretating to you presently........If you feel the other way, you can take it now.

[vnabhi]

It's 6 years and 41000 kms since I got my Waggy. The gears were stiff for the first 500 kms, but got smoother later.
As regards rubbery gear shift, I guess I got used to it by now.
Believe me guys, my first two punctures--on successive days, were only after driving 40500 kms. I never changed the wheel so far, and found the jack rod a bit rusted---after all, it was never used.
Credit should go to Bridgestone tyres, the roads in Hyd, and of course to me !!
Overall I am happy with this car. Have driven it for many long trips--even touched 120 kms, but it is not stable above 110. Sitting poistion is not good for long drives, as there is no under-thigh support.

[CBlazer]

Originally Posted by vnabhi

Credit should go to Bridgestone tyres, the roads in Hyd, and of course to me !!

My brother in-law owns a 2003 model Wagon R. It has done about 35000 Km. The tyres need to be replaced. What tyres would Wagon R owners here suggest? He does 80% of his driving in the city. Are tubeless tyres essential? BTW what kind of tyres does the new Wagon R come with?

[snaronikar]

I would sugest go for BS Potenza tyres. Good enough to another 50K kms. I feel Tubeless is not required for city driving. Just keep your typre pressure to the prescribed limits.

[karty_83]

HI,
I came across a review in mouthshut on SPARK by 'bunnypunia' and i guess it must be from your end. How do you compare and rate the two cars overall i.e. WAGON R and the SPARK.

[BunnyPunia]

Originally Posted by karty_83

HI,
I came across a review in mouthshut on SPARK by 'bunnypunia' and i guess it must be from your end. How do you compare and rate the two cars overall i.e. WAGON R and the SPARK.

yep, that would be me

the spark in comparison to the wagon r excels in a lot of areas. One thing that has surprised me that with time, the looks of the spark somehow dont interest me so much ... especially the low end model.
I basically loved the interiors and the drive feel at high speed of the spark. its not that the wagon r isnt good at high speeds, its just that the spark feels so much more better on the highway (the planted feel). The engine too feels quiter in comparison to the wagon r.

[karty_83]

HI bunnypunia, first of all my apologies for posting this in the wrong section. Would like to know about the FE of SPARK in comparison to WAGON R in city drives.