[AvinashV]

Any news on the "brakes" front?
The most debated topic on the new Swift after the boot. How you finding it on your VDi?

[moralfibre]

Just back from a drive to Goa over the weekend. The car was rock steady on the highways and a delight around corners. Stability is A class and much better than the Palio. Body roll is controlled. The steering feedback is brilliant. But what failed to impress me and on more than one occassion lose confidence, were the brakes. The brakes are suicidal and after about 200 kms there was enough brake fade to give a feeling of failed brakes.

I got my worst FE of 13.1 kmpl from Pune to Goa. Within Goa it returned 15.5 kmpl and a healthy 17.5 kmpl was achieved on my way back. No prices for guessing that I did not cross 110 kmph on my return journey at NH-4 due to a total lack of confidence in the braking department. I really wish Maruti Suzuki does something about the brakes soon.

[AvinashV]

Originally Posted by moralfibre

Just back from a drive to Goa over the weekend. The car was rock steady on the highways and a delight around corners. Stability is A class and much better than the Palio. Body roll is controlled. The steering feedback is brilliant. But what failed to impress me and on more than one occassion lose confidence, were the brakes. The brakes are suicidal and after about 200 kms there was enough brake fade to give a feeling of failed brakes.

I got my worst FE of 13.1 kmpl from Pune to Goa. Within Goa it returned 15.5 kmpl and a healthy 17.5 kmpl was achieved on my way back. No prices for guessing that I did not cross 110 kmph on my return journey at NH-4 due to a total lack of confidence in the braking department. I really wish Maruti Suzuki does something about the brakes soon.

This is really scary stuff. Unbelievable that this is the status on a brand new car. Was so looking forward to my car (whenever it ever gets delivered) but now doing it with considerable trepidation.

[moralfibre]

I have had the car for just about 2 months now. The car will be 2 months old exactly on 09Nov'11. Here's an update on the running of the car:

Likes: Fuel efficiency, handling, ride quality, dynamics, comfort. Flawless ownership experience.

Dislikes: BRAKES!, a light body rattle that has started to emerge.

The car has been driven around cities, highways, urban roads et al. The farthest I went so far was to Goa and that's when I discovered the pathetic nature of the single largest safety component, the brakes. More on that has been detailed in a separate thread here..

The ownership experience has been flawless. There is an odd body rattle or two on the left hand side door but that isn't bothering me as long as the music is turned up. That reminds me of the only accessory fitted in the car is the audio system that I received as a gift from a fellow car enthusiast. It has been fitted perfectly by 4S Audio run by fellow bhpian Bass&Trouble. It is the best budget audio system one could get for USB + iPod connectivity. I love it for the features it offers v/s the price. The sound quality is nice for the price.

HU - Pioneer 5850
Front components: 6" Powerbass
Rear co-axials: 6" Powerbass co-ax

The worst fuel efficiency I got was 13.1 on a blasting drive to Goa in 6 hours (roughly) flat. The best I received was 18.5 while driving to Kolhapur to see a relative.

The car went for its second free service on Saturday 05Nov'11 with 5746 kms on the odometer. I had taken an appointment with Sai Service on Wednesday and as usual landed at the service station at 7:30 am sharp. The service staff at Sai Service was courteous and I handed over my car to my usual Service advisor. Points to be taken care of:

1) Free service
2) Oil + oil filter change
3) Brakes issue
4) Tyre rotation
5) Wheel alignment and balancing.

The car was taken on the service ramp only at 9:00 am and work started. Tyres were taken out for balancing by one guy after marking their current positions to support tyre rotation later. The other mech worked on cleaning the brakes and did brake bleeding. In the meanwhile the wheels were balanced and put back. Oil + oil filter replaced. Sai Service doesn't fill oil using a can. They have three rolls of pipes hanging the centre of their workshop. Each pipe caters to a different oil specification requirement. The setup looks similar to a fire hose setup in your apartment complex.

The job that took the longest was wheel alignment. The other chores were completed in about 40-45 minutes. Due to congested nature of Sai Service workshop in Deccan, Pune, there is always a chaotic scene everywhere. You can see cars parked at millimeter distances from each other. Wheel spin turns done by their drivers. Bumpers are scraping very often. Their alignment machine is at the farthest end and their service bay area is clogged with cars. Eventhough the alignment was done in about 15 minutes, the car took an hour and half to come out of that spot due to "traffic" in the workshop! This was unacceptable and I gave a piece of my mind to the service advisor to get their processes checked. He was apologetic and my car was out of the shop floor in 15 minutes after that.

Took a test drive and the brakes didn't show much improvement other than the brake pedal travel being a little upright unlike before.

Total Service Cost: Rs. 2055.00/-

Breakup:

1. Wheel Balancing for 5 wheels: Rs. 303.35/-
2. Alignment: Rs. 413.64/-
3. Cost of weights: Rs. 93.77/-
4. Engine Oil: Rs. 868.00/-
5. Oil Filter: Rs. 375.96/-

All prices inclusive of taxes. Brake cleaning and bleeding labour was done for free.

[Jaggu]

Why did you do alignment and balancing at 5k kms? And that too at dealership? Was there any vibration issues?

[AvinashV]

Originally Posted by moralfibre

Price:
Upgrades:

Bridgestone Turanza ER60 185/70/R14

The car came shod with 165/80/R14 MRF ZV2K tyres. Absolutely pathetic tyres for the size of the car. Our family Zen was upgraded to 165/60/R13 tyres when we had it for good road holding.

The availability of performance tyres in the market today is scarce. Making the ISI mark mandatory for all tyres has made it very difficult to find good performance tyres. The Swift was going to be my highway ride as well. The current conditions of roads made me go for comfort oriented tyres with a higher side profile. So I chose the Bridgestone Turanza ER60's for the car. I somehow didn't want to go as wide as 195 hence stuck to 185/70/R14.

Moralfibre, how much did the tyres cost with the exchange & from where did you get it done?
Would like to do the same

[swiftnfurious]

Originally Posted by moralfibre

But what failed to impress me and on more than one occassion lose confidence, were the brakes. The brakes are suicidal and after about 200 kms there was enough brake fade to give a feeling of failed brakes. I really wish Maruti Suzuki does something about the brakes soon.

Have you informed the SE of the brake issues? Did he acknowledge that there are more complaints. I hope you call up the regional service guys and inform them also and Maruti does something ASAP!

[moralfibre]

Originally Posted by Jaggu

Why did you do alignment and balancing at 5k kms? And that too at dealership? Was there any vibration issues?

Honestly, I do not get alignment and balancing done at ASC's. I always do it at local tyre shops to save on the costs. And at 5k only tyre rotation is required I guess. This was done just because the service book says so. Didn't bother too much. There was no oil change required at 5k kms either but I did it as an over enthusiastic car guy.

Originally Posted by AvinashV

Moralfibre, how much did the tyres cost with the exchange & from where did you get it done?
Would like to do the same

The tyres cost me Rs. 10,000/- after immediate exchange after car delivery.

Originally Posted by swiftnfurious

Have you informed the SE of the brake issues? Did he acknowledge that there are more complaints. I hope you call up the regional service guys and inform them also and Maruti does something ASAP!

He did not acknowledge it as a universal issue. There are not too many new Swifts around as yet and perhaps none at his service center that have done high mileage. How do I get in touch with the regional service guys?

[swiftnfurious]

Originally Posted by moralfibre

How do I get in touch with the regional service guys?

Go to Maruti suzuki india website and there is a drop down or so which gives the details of the regional offices & the contact numbers. Call up your regional office and ask them to connect to the "service" team. They also have a sales wing to take care of issues regarding the sales of vehicles.

Adding link : http://www.marutisuzuki.com/contact-us.aspx

[GTO]

Originally Posted by moralfibre

How do I get in touch with the regional service guys?

Originally Posted by moralfibre

Dislikes: BRAKES!, a light body rattle that has started to emerge.

The car has been driven around cities, highways, urban roads et al. The farthest I went so far was to Goa and that's when I discovered the pathetic nature of the single largest safety component, the brakes. More on that has been detailed in a separate thread here..

Dear Moral,

The Maruti Management has taken note of your complaints and wishes to contact you, to work toward a resolution. If that is okay with you, please drop me a PM. They are requesting your contact information (which, of course, I cannot provide without your explicit permission).

Thanks

[moralfibre]

Originally Posted by GTO

Dear Moral,

The Maruti Management has taken note of your complaints and wishes to contact you, to work toward a resolution. If that is okay with you, please drop me a PM. They are requesting your contact information (which, of course, I cannot provide without your explicit permission).

Thanks

Hey Rush, that is a great gesture from Maruti.

PM'ing you my contact details right away. Thanks a bunch.

[bala80]

This is exactly what differentiates maruti from the rest, great gesture.

Hope all your issues are resolved to your satisfaction moralfibre. good luck to you, keep us posted on the progress.

[MutantX]

@moralfibre - I have also received my swift Vxi this week. Driven 100 kms since thursday. Find that the brakes are just adequate. Should probably try to hit the highway to test the effectiveness of the brakes. Please do keep us posted once maurti rectifies your issue.

[MCR]

Originally Posted by GTO

Dear Moral,

The Maruti Management has taken note of your complaints and wishes to contact you, to work toward a resolution. If that is okay with you, please drop me a PM. They are requesting your contact information (which, of course, I cannot provide without your explicit permission).

Thanks

Excellent Gesture by Maruti Suzuki. Kudos to them. Goes to show the strength of Team BHP as well.

However, once the resolution is found, it should be applied across all the L/V variants of the new Swift.

[diesel_power]

Hi, my Swift has completed 1500 kms just today. Back from a drive to Malegaon and back. I had earlier found that the breaks are quite adequate in my VDi. I had no issues till a month (had no long drives). Today while returning I had to break very hard to avoid collision. I was around 100 feet away from the car in front of me while he braked hard to slow down for the series of speed humps. I jumped on the breaks and they just won’t respond as expected . I used to drive a Santro previously, which had a good breaking power. Compared to it, I seriously find that the brakes on the new Swift are really pathetic. Was just saved from collision by suddenly changing the lane (a very risky thing to do on highway).
The handling was very good (would be much better with the wider tyres), the cooling was strictly ok (sufficient but not chiller as expected). The car is very comfortable over rough roads. There’s a humming sound in the cabin while driving over, not so smooth roads. The car returned around 19 kmpl with full time AC .
Moralfibre, please keep us posted about the responses from Maruti. This is serious issue.

Thanks
Diesel Power.