Swift DDiS Ldi : long term report

[shantyrocks]

so..iv completed 8000 kms in my swift DDiS Ldi.Since a few days i am itchin to pen down my experiances both good and bad with you guys.
1)kms completed : 8000
approx. 5k of these have been covered in city mostly in bumper to bumper traffic situation


2)Approximate fuel economy : 14-15 in city & 20-21 on highway.
This DDiS engine is amazingly fuel efficient.All the figures mentioned above are with A/C switched on.

3)Number of servicings done : two
Service experiance has been okay. I was quite impressed with the way things were carried out in a systematic manner during the first service.But thats about that.During both the services car was not internally cleaned.I had to wait and get it done.
During my second service even the exteriors were not cleaned properly.I was dissapointed with this.

4)Interiors : well...They are indeed cramped for 5 people.But 95% of the times its only " main aur meri tanhai" so it doesnt really matter.
A lot has been said about the front seats being comfy but i have not been able to find one decently comfortable driving position till now.I have to keep changing driving positions during long drives.
maruti has not given rear head rests for Ldi varient which makes it quite uncomfortable for rear passengers. i have not been able to procure after market ones till date
interior plastics have held on quite well till now and fortunately - NO rattles.
Storage space for phone,cd,ciggies,wallet,glares,bottles is good and everything can bbe kept without anything falling out.
Even door pockets are good.

5)A/C : cools almost instantaeously.

6)engine and gearbox : This is the most exciting part of the car.The turbo kick always pushes you back in your seat and is fun.I just love the short throw gearbox.But i find shifting from 4th to 5th a bit difficult.The shift feels rubbery.
sometimes i found it difficult to engage reverse but then i found out that pressing the clutch for a couple of seconds more engages reverse quite smoothly.
Driving in umper to bumper / slow moving traffic is a pain and you always have to shift to 1st as the torque in second gear is just too much.

7) Ride and handling : Iam just not happy with the ride quality.even the smallest of bumps or irregularities can be felt in the cabin.
Handling is what again brings a smile.Its sharp and the car can take corners at good speeds.
The maximum i have driven at is 140kmph on the bbay-pune expressway and the car felt quite stable. But generally iam a sedate driver and drive at 80-100kmph on highways but i do allow myself a occasional rush of blood.

8) Body work : Front passenger side door was dented due to a tavera in traffic.Decided to change the door itself as repainting and repair would have looked a shade different.
Wind shield was ssmashed due to coconut falling on it.
Both the jobs were done at the same time at Navneet motors,Thane and insurance claimed for the same.
The entire amount was 30k and i had to pay around 4.6k.

9)upgrades planned : Though the stock tyres are holding up nicely ( no complaints) i will go in for a tyre upgrade at around 15k.
Also wish to upgrade to stronger bulbs.
Want to fit rear head rests.I hope some accessoeries shop does it for me.

Lastly,after every visit to the service centre i recieved feed back forms by mail to be sent directly to gurgaon.
guys from servce station keep calling and pestering to give them the forms by just signing them and not filling them.In return they give you discount coupon worth 150 bucks valid only on labour charges.
Are other maruti owners experiancing the same too?

[Dippy]

Great report on your DDIS. That national engine does belt out some awesome FE figures from the Swift. Its surprising that you found the handling good because the stock tyres on the LDi are quite skinny I have observed.

Do you have any rattling problems which Swift owners usually complain about?

[king_julian]

Originally Posted by shantyrocks

sometimes i found it difficult to engage reverse but then i found out that pressing the clutch for a couple of seconds more engages reverse quite smoothly.

Lastly,after every visit to the service centre i recieved feed back forms by mail to be sent directly to gurgaon.
guys from servce station keep calling and pestering to give them the forms by just signing them and not filling them.In return they give you discount coupon worth 150 bucks valid only on labour charges.
Are other maruti owners experiancing the same too?

On another thread, Thad had mentioned a good remedy for the reverse gear problem, which I founds works for me - just release the clutch pedal and press it again. Reverse gear should engage smoothly this time.

I agree with the ride on bad roads - it's bumpy, but I prefer the quick dying down of the oscillations rather than bouncing around like in the old Zen. Man, the speedbreaking rumblers were a terror in the Zen

I did see during the first service that the service guy asked me to sign a blank feedback form. But I'll make sure that they will hear from me if something is not right!

[Jaggu]

Goody one more DDIS owner! Do keep updating on a regular basis.

and what only 150 bucks for our feedbacks, thats a cheap dealer. Tell him 1000 bucks

[shantyrocks]

Originally Posted by Dippy

Great report on your DDIS. That national engine does belt out some awesome FE figures from the Swift. Its surprising that you found the handling good because the stock tyres on the LDi are quite skinny I have observed.

Do you have any rattling problems which Swift owners usually complain about?

thanx dippy..
Fortunately no rattles so far.
yup the stock tyres are skinny and do ask for a upgrade but till now i have had no problems with them.

[shantyrocks]

Originally Posted by Jaggu

Goody one more DDIS owner! Do keep updating on a regular basis.

and what only 150 bucks for our feedbacks, thats a cheap dealer. Tell him 1000 bucks

hehe...our feed backs are definitely more than that but its really degrading that some dealers are doing this.