[Sankar]

Originally Posted by strips007

I am not sure but anti-roll bar is not visible, generally companies don't put this on economy cars?

Its a torsionbeam/twistbeam rear suspension setup and in this type of rear suspension setup the beam that is connecting the trailing arms at both sides acts as an anti-roll bar.




My uncle owns an Etios Petrol and even though it feels made to a cost, it doesn't feel cheap. We had some heavy downpour here in the last couple of weeks and the water seeping in problem was not there, the doors (door frame to be exact) do have gaskets. It is a standard practice to have gaskets on the door or on the frame. Personally i like it to be on the door.

[amalji]

Originally Posted by Buffetfan

This is the Etios Curve ?

Yes, it's the Etios Diesel Torque Curve.

Originally Posted by Buffetfan

I somehow expected that the torque curve should be flatter for a diesel. This is a pretty peaky curve for a Toyota. For comparison - see the torque curve of Innova though the "truckish sound" I guess comes free with the lugging ability. The right one is the Diesel Innova. As flat as the Panchgani tabletop! In fact the usable power band is very wide even with a lower 4400 rpm rev limiter.

We cannot compare the torque curve of a 68ps engine with one of a 102ps engine. 68 PS can be achieved by 2 ways. Have a lag at lower rpm, and then peak at mid. Or peak early, and give away early. The size of the turbo and the FGT/VGT decides this, I guess.

I'm glad Toyota went for what the segment demands. The Etios Diesel torque curve will offer

• Very good driveability in the city traffic
• Lose out on high rpm fun while on the highways ( But, at the same time, if highway driving means to you cruising on 100 to 120 kmph on top gear, then this engine will surely offer you fun as it's in its peak power band @100 kmph on 5th thanks to the tall gearing. )

[Buffetfan]

Originally Posted by amalji

Yes, it's the Etios Diesel Torque Curve.



We cannot compare the torque curve of a 68ps engine with one of a 102ps engine. 68 PS can be achieved by 2 ways. Have a lag at lower rpm, and then peak at mid. Or peak early, and give away early. The size of the turbo and the FGT/VGT decides this, I guess.

I

Why cant we compare two engines with different power outputs. So long as the design is similar, the torque curve shape would be similar even if the actual numbers are way different.

[amalji]

Originally Posted by Buffetfan

Why cant we compare two engines with different power outputs. So long as the design is similar, the torque curve shape would be similar even if the actual numbers are way different.

Not necessarily. How fast the torque falls depends primarily on intake and exhaust flow restriction. With a smaller turbo and FGT, the intake flow is restricted sooner and hence the torque should fall off sooner as well. Similarly, the smaller turbo also allows allows the torque to build up fast in lower rpms ( That's why Etios is very 'driveable', but fail to do well in high rpms ).

[suman]

Hey Vidyut, excellent job on your first official Team bhp review .

So they still haven't given a driver seat height adjuster & electric ORVM adjustment? I would have thought they would have heard a earful by now & added these on!

[powertrain]

Originally Posted by Durango Dude

@Vid: Engine sounds agricultural.

D Dude, have you driven the car?? How does it feel? Thereason I'm asking is because I am considering the Etios D as an alternative to my Dzire D booking.

[Vid6639]

Originally Posted by powertrain

D Dude, have you driven the car?? How does it feel? Thereason I'm asking is because I am considering the Etios D as an alternative to my Dzire D booking.

powertrain, I think Durango dude was referring to Innova engine being agricultural. The Etios diesel is nowhere near agricultural like the Innova.

[Buffetfan]

Originally Posted by amalji

Not necessarily. How fast the torque falls depends primarily on intake and exhaust flow restriction. With a smaller turbo and FGT, the intake flow is restricted sooner and hence the torque should fall off sooner as well. Similarly, the smaller turbo also allows allows the torque to build up fast in lower rpms ( That's why Etios is very 'driveable', but fail to do well in high rpms ).

Originally Posted by Buffetfan

Why cant we compare two engines with different power outputs. So long as the design is similar, the torque curve shape would be similar even if the actual numbers are way different.

Please note that I had suggested if the design is similar the torque output will be similar. Are you suggesting that Inlet / Exhaust / Turbo are not part of the engine design.

Also looking at the Innova turbo, the boost builds up earlier than Etios (1400 rpm versus 1800) and lasts longer (3400 rpm versus 2400).

Lighter versus heavier turbo's are relative to the amount of exhaust gas available to push them. Different in a Innova 2.5 litre engine versus the 1.4 litre that Etios has.

[AutoIndian]

Has anyone been able to take a test drive of the Etios D-4D? What are the initial impressions? I would like to know about the waiting time being quoted. I have an inkling that it would be very low compared to others in same segment as the Etios D ad is being aired on TV & radio with increasing frquency. Also the print media is not left out.

[5kmiles]

I have Manza Aura+ and driven it at 140 for extended duration.

Originally Posted by aaggoswami

1) Excellent review! Thought of reading it forever, really nice with a lot of details.

....The most capable performer seems to be dzire which does not feel strained above 130 kmph, a speed where Manza would say to driver " relax ".

[mohan41]

I test drove Etios Diesel today evening. This was a pure city drive, much of it in bumper-to-bumper traffic. Dealer was Ravindu Toyota, Victoria Road (Old Airport road) Bangalore.

Car is very spacious, a well known fact now. I had first thought the driver seat may be too low for me (I am 5 ft 11inch tall), but it was correctly set for me. I did not even have to push the driver seat all the way back, something that I do in my Getz. Even after pushing back fully, the space was good in the rear seat. Rear seat could have been set a little higher (an inch or two) for my height.

The test drive car had 284km on the odo. Turned on the engine, no rocking motion, no vibrations anywhere (clutch, gear lever, steering). I had the AC switched on throughout the drive and turned off the music system. There was a very audible diesel clatter even while idling and the engine was quite noisy throughout the drive, noise increasing with engine RPM.

The engine pulled very comfortably in first gear on releasing the clutch. However I did not find the pulling in 2nd gear as good as mentioned in the official test drive. At one road junction, I had come to near halt for taking a turn, tried to move forward in 2nd gear and the engine stalled. I could not exceed 40kmph during the drive, due to traffic, but that is exactly the conditions in which I wanted to test. I could go only upto 3rd gear and found the pickup was ok (not bad, not great) in these gears.

Steering was much lighter than the hydraulic PS in my Getz, comfortable for city driving.

Felt the clutch was harder compared to the Etios petrol in which I had sat briefly before starting the test drive. The clutch pedal movement was short (compared to Getz) and same in both Etios P and D. The gear shift of the diesel was not as smooth as the Etios P, however the shift throw was as short as in the Etios P.

I check for external noise insulation (other than engine noise) when the car was stopped on the road side with traffic in full flow on the road, engine turned off and all windows rolled up. I was listening for how much the honking sound from vehicles and other noise comes inside. I found it acceptable (similar to my Getz). I cannot say about tyre noise as I did not reach high speeds.

Dealer experience: Very good. The sales guy who interacted with me was very professional and courteous. I did not have to wait more than 10 minutes from the time he had asked me to come to the showroom. There was no unnecessary talk, answered all my questions to the point and at the end he got me to fill a feedback form about the test drive. I asked him about the missing rubber beading on the door. He showed me the beading on the door frame and said that is sufficient. He also claimed that the sheet metal thickness is slightly more in the Etios D compared to the Petrol version. I am not an expert to verify this claim.

After the test drive I am left undecided. One of the important requirements for me is ease of city driving. The hard clutch makes me feel uncomfortable about driving this car in the city traffic. I drive 15km each way between home and office in very bad traffic. The sales guy said one should expect a slightly hard clutch in a diesel. My question to the experts is whether one can expect the clutch hardness to reduce after some running of the car?

Deliver waiting time mentioned by the sales guy is 2 months for models with ABS/Airbags. He said that for the base variant waiting time is less than a month.

[Vid6639]

Originally Posted by mohan41

The engine pulled very comfortably in first gear on releasing the clutch. However I did not find the pulling in 2nd gear as good as mentioned in the official test drive. At one road junction, I had come to near halt for taking a turn, tried to move forward in 2nd gear and the engine stalled. I could not exceed 40kmph during the drive, due to traffic, but that is exactly the conditions in which I wanted to test. I could go only upto 3rd gear and found the pickup was ok (not bad, not great) in these gears.

Felt the clutch was harder compared to the Etios petrol in which I had sat briefly before starting the test drive. The clutch pedal movement was short (compared to Getz) and same in both Etios P and D. The gear shift of the diesel was not as smooth as the Etios P, however the shift throw was as short as in the Etios P.

Mohan since you have a petrol car and I'm not sure you have driven diesel cars before. All diesel cars will stall in second gear if you try and accelerate from near standstill. They will definitely stall if you press the accelerator. A diesel car pulls effortlessly with no accelerator pressed on it's own torque. Driving style needs to change for getting used to this.

Secondly, the diesel engine needs a beefed up clutch to cope with additional torque. Due to this diesel clutch is a little heavier than the Petrol. However the Etios Diesel has one of the lightest clutch in the segment. Since you drive a Getz P I can understand why you felt the Etios clutch heavy as that old 1.3 Getz has one of the lightest clutch around.

Also clutch will get heavier and not earlier with use.

[mohan41]

Originally Posted by Vid6639

Mohan since you have a petrol car and I'm not sure you have driven diesel cars before. All diesel cars will stall in second gear if you try and accelerate from near standstill. They will definitely stall if you press the accelerator. A diesel car pulls effortlessly with no accelerator pressed on it's own torque. Driving style needs to change for getting used to this.

Thanks Vidyut. The only diesel car I have driven is a Figo, but that was on a highway. Good to know that pulling in 2nd gear is possible without stalling, good for city driving.

Secondly, the diesel engine needs a beefed up clutch to cope with additional torque. Due to this diesel clutch is a little heavier than the Petrol. However the Etios Diesel has one of the lightest clutch in the segment. Since you drive a Getz P I can understand why you felt the Etios clutch heavy as that old 1.3 Getz has one of the lightest clutch around.

Also clutch will get heavier and not earlier with use.

Ok, I have to get used to the slightly harder clutch. I think thats okay as I may not have to shift gears that much, if I adjust my driving style.

[Vid6639]

Originally Posted by mohan41

Ok, I have to get used to the slightly harder clutch. I think thats okay as I may not have to shift gears that much, if I adjust my driving style.

That's exactly what happened with me. Initially when I changed from my Lancer and Alto to my first diesel, the Figo I got a bit unhappy as more gear changes and heavier clutch. A few weeks later and I was loving it. In traffic no need for accelerator and clutch. Just leave all pedals and you can comfortably potter in 2nd in city thanks to the torque.

[mohan41]

Wish the cars had a "power clutch" (similar to power steering)

Why none of the reviews in all magazines/websites provide the timings for 0-100 and in gear speed timings? Not expecting to see great numbers for 0-100 but in gear figures for 3rd gear (20-80) and 4th gear (40-100) could be interesting for comparison with the other cars.