24000 Kms, 2 years in my SX4

sumitmitra · 8th November 2009, 01:13

After driving my fantastic Fiat Palio for 4 years and 80,000 odd kms., I decided it was time to go in for a new car. The year was 2007 and I had got weary hearing about the impending launch of the Grande Punto.
Based on my experience of the Palio, I had a few criteria defined when looking for a new car
1. Better power - sufficient for comfortably overtaking on highways at 80+ kmph
2. Good ground clearance - I am a long distance driving enthusiast - and I have realised that once you go off the Golden Quadrilateral - the road quality deteriorates rapidly
3. Good service network - based on my experience when I had an unfortunate accident in the middle of nowhere at the Karnataka - Maharashtra border
4. Reasonable maintenance costs - I am not one who will count the pennies, but I definitely would not want to give a carte blanche to my garage
5. Must have ABS
Based on the above, I zeroed in the Maruti SX4 - the car having the best bang for the buck in my opinion. I went in for the ZXi without the Leather option in September 2007.
Since then I have done 24,000 kms over 2 years with countless runs on the Pune - Mumbai expressway and only 1 long distance trip to date from Pune to Goa and back.
The ownership experience in the last 2 years have been absolutely troublefree. The service experience has been smooth. Mileage has been consistently more than 12 kmpl and my long term average (since I bought the car) is 12.5 kmpl with the best mileage I have got to date is 15.1 kmpl. The attached Excel file shows my service and mileage details.
SX4.xls
After the first 3 free services by Maruti, I have got my 4th service done from a mechanic who I have been going to for many years.
I feel that there are some things that Maruti could have done to make my ownership experience even better. These are related to the build quality of the car, which are detailed below.
1. The headlight has got some fine cracks on them. These appear to be a material issue since they are on both the headlights.

24000 Kms, 2 years in my SX4-delhi-gh-047.jpg

24000 Kms, 2 years in my SX4-delhi-gh-048.jpg

2. The rubber beading on the top of the chrome strip above the number plate is not properly fixed and sticks out a bit

24000 Kms, 2 years in my SX4-delhi-gh-043.jpg

24000 Kms, 2 years in my SX4-delhi-gh-044.jpg

3. The beading between the dash and the front windshield sticks out in some places.

24000 Kms, 2 years in my SX4-delhi-gh-049.jpg

I do not expect such issues in a car at this price point.
However, apart from these, I find this a great car to live with. Despite some comments regarding the interiors, I found them to be actually of quite a good quality. There are no rattles or other persisitent problems and I have found the car to be stable at high speeds - I have gone as high as 184 kmph on the expressway.
I am looking forward to a long and satisfying ownership experience with my SX4.

Cheers.

drbabuanand · 8th November 2009, 09:33

hi sumit mitra
nice ownership review.
i agree with most of your points except on the mileage aspect.my avg is 9.5km/l.

The beading between the dash and the front windshield sticks out in some places.
i also have the same problem.i keep pushing it into its place but again it pops out.

Ramsagar · 9th November 2009, 13:53

Hope you are enjoying the ride with baby.
Pls post some interiors & exterior pics as well.

nurni76 · 9th November 2009, 15:37

Hi. Thanks for the update. Really great to know you have had a trouble free experience. I am also a happy owner and have so far not faced any real issues. However, I have the same problem of the windshield rubber coming out of late. I guess i will fix it the next time I take it for service.

You did 184 Kmph. Isn't that too much. Drive safe pal

car-go · 9th November 2009, 16:02

great review buddy, and enjoy safer trips (as opposed to 184kmph on Indian roads, however smooth and straight they may be).
Yes, it is trouble-free as such. For my SX4, I did a thorough PDI (thanks to team-bhp checklist), but then it seems to be with maruti that they "need" to make it somehow nasty. In one of my services, they broke the windshield (though got it replaced free of cost - had to argue on that though till end).
The car itself is quite good. And now the new one came out with no-so-significant changes (little peace of mind since I bought it in Jul this year).

Dippy · 10th November 2009, 10:32

Well written review Sumit. Trouble free and reliable is Maruti's second name but I agree that they do have some issues which can be sorted out. I liked your attention to detail in the pictures. Your FE figures are impressive. Does your SX4 suffer from rattles which are generally faced by Swift owners?

Keep the updates coming in as you drive along.

8th November 2009, 01:13	#1
sumitmitra Newbie Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: Pune Posts: 8 Thanked: 0 Times	24000 Kms, 2 years in my SX4 After driving my fantastic Fiat Palio for 4 years and 80,000 odd kms., I decided it was time to go in for a new car. The year was 2007 and I had got weary hearing about the impending launch of the Grande Punto. Based on my experience of the Palio, I had a few criteria defined when looking for a new car 1. Better power - sufficient for comfortably overtaking on highways at 80+ kmph 2. Good ground clearance - I am a long distance driving enthusiast - and I have realised that once you go off the Golden Quadrilateral - the road quality deteriorates rapidly 3. Good service network - based on my experience when I had an unfortunate accident in the middle of nowhere at the Karnataka - Maharashtra border 4. Reasonable maintenance costs - I am not one who will count the pennies, but I definitely would not want to give a carte blanche to my garage 5. Must have ABS Based on the above, I zeroed in the Maruti SX4 - the car having the best bang for the buck in my opinion. I went in for the ZXi without the Leather option in September 2007. Since then I have done 24,000 kms over 2 years with countless runs on the Pune - Mumbai expressway and only 1 long distance trip to date from Pune to Goa and back. The ownership experience in the last 2 years have been absolutely troublefree. The service experience has been smooth. Mileage has been consistently more than 12 kmpl and my long term average (since I bought the car) is 12.5 kmpl with the best mileage I have got to date is 15.1 kmpl. The attached Excel file shows my service and mileage details. SX4.xls After the first 3 free services by Maruti, I have got my 4th service done from a mechanic who I have been going to for many years. I feel that there are some things that Maruti could have done to make my ownership experience even better. These are related to the build quality of the car, which are detailed below. 1. The headlight has got some fine cracks on them. These appear to be a material issue since they are on both the headlights. 2. The rubber beading on the top of the chrome strip above the number plate is not properly fixed and sticks out a bit 3. The beading between the dash and the front windshield sticks out in some places. I do not expect such issues in a car at this price point. However, apart from these, I find this a great car to live with. Despite some comments regarding the interiors, I found them to be actually of quite a good quality. There are no rattles or other persisitent problems and I have found the car to be stable at high speeds - I have gone as high as 184 kmph on the expressway. I am looking forward to a long and satisfying ownership experience with my SX4. Cheers.
	() Thanks

8th November 2009, 09:33	#2
drbabuanand BHPian Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: trichy Posts: 60 Thanked: 8 Times	hi sumit mitra nice ownership review. i agree with most of your points except on the mileage aspect.my avg is 9.5km/l. The beading between the dash and the front windshield sticks out in some places. i also have the same problem.i keep pushing it into its place but again it pops out.
	() Thanks

9th November 2009, 13:53	#3
Ramsagar Senior - BHPian Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: BLR_Nellore(AP) Posts: 1,396 Thanked: 252 Times View My Garage	Hope you are enjoying the ride with baby. Pls post some interiors & exterior pics as well.
	() Thanks

9th November 2009, 15:37	#4
nurni76 BHPian Join Date: Jul 2008 Location: BLR/SEATTLE Posts: 907 Thanked: 360 Times View My Garage	Hi. Thanks for the update. Really great to know you have had a trouble free experience. I am also a happy owner and have so far not faced any real issues. However, I have the same problem of the windshield rubber coming out of late. I guess i will fix it the next time I take it for service. You did 184 Kmph. Isn't that too much. Drive safe pal
	() Thanks

9th November 2009, 16:02	#5
car-go BHPian Join Date: Aug 2009 Location: Kolkata Posts: 152 Thanked: 208 Times	great review buddy, and enjoy safer trips (as opposed to 184kmph on Indian roads, however smooth and straight they may be). Yes, it is trouble-free as such. For my SX4, I did a thorough PDI (thanks to team-bhp checklist), but then it seems to be with maruti that they "need" to make it somehow nasty. In one of my services, they broke the windshield (though got it replaced free of cost - had to argue on that though till end). The car itself is quite good. And now the new one came out with no-so-significant changes (little peace of mind since I bought it in Jul this year).
	() Thanks

10th November 2009, 10:32	#6
Dippy Senior - BHPian Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: Mumbai, India Posts: 7,558 Thanked: 2,462 Times	Well written review Sumit. Trouble free and reliable is Maruti's second name but I agree that they do have some issues which can be sorted out. I liked your attention to detail in the pictures. Your FE figures are impressive. Does your SX4 suffer from rattles which are generally faced by Swift owners? Keep the updates coming in as you drive along.
	() Thanks