[shreedharan]

Originally Posted by hagarthenormal

Hello Shreedharan,

Thank you very much for checking and letting me know. My SA was trying to say something similar too. But Maruti seems to be officially selling an underbody engine guard for Baleno, which is also an NA engine.

My very limited, possibly incorrect understanding is that the engine air intake would be through the air filter and hence unaffected by an underbody cover. It is possible though, that the engine's natural heat dissipation is affected, due to the underbody being more enclosed than earlier [an issue that should hold good for any car with an underbody cover, if it is indeed an issue).

P.S: I am in half a mind to write to Maruti HO and ask what they think. I will keep you all posted if I do and they respond.

You're welcome sir. Do keep us posted. If you get a word from Maruti, I'd try to get one fitted as well. Would clear the confusion once in for all.

[PaddleShifter]

Originally Posted by shreedharan

As far as I researched and asked around, underbody engine guard is not advised for CIAZ. Reason: Engine is naturally aspirated. It'll block flow of air. This is what multiple SAs and auto experts told me.

I think someone has confused the “air cooled engine” with “naturally aspirated (non turbo) engine”. Remember people used to add full fairing to air cooled engined motorcycles such as Pulsar, Karizma etc.

A Naturally Aspirated (NA) engine should have no issues due to the presence of an engine guard. Many NA cars have an underbody protection.

BTW, check out this list of supercars with NA engines. Can an engine underbody plate in an ordinary mass market car be a problem compared to these?

https://www.topgear.com/car-news/lis...ated-supercars

[Swapnil4585]

Due to blind trust on my car management skills, my neighbor has left his Ciaz with me since nearly two years. I have to look after the car for a further one and a half year. I drive the car twice every 8-10 days as my office ride, and on highway once in two months. I have service the car from Maruti in a way Maruti services (i.e., no instructions from my side with respect to oil, etc.) So far so good.

However, from past couple weeks I am hearing a squealing sound from around its V belt area. I discounted it by thinking that it might be due to cool + damp climate, long unuse and that it might go away after the car has warmed up. So, I am driving it daily. But the sound isn't going. I am also observing that the steering system and cooling systems have to work harder.

The belt does not have any visible marks of any kind of damage or cracks. So, would it be the pulleys that need replacement or adjustment in tension? Or should everything need to be changed straight away?

[hagarthenormal]

Originally Posted by Swapnil4585

The belt does not have any visible marks of any kind of damage or cracks. So, would it be the pulleys that need replacement or adjustment in tension? Or should everything need to be changed straight away?

I am driving my new Ciaz just once a week, for about 30-40 minutes. Your post makes me think if I am going to end up in the same state as you.

Did you consult a Nexa SA? If yes, what are they suggesting?

[shivmarwaha]

Originally Posted by TJ02

I had the same issue with my Ciaz which is 6 plus years old. My ciaz starting throwing this issue in second year. Arm bush was the culprit and got replaced under warranty. Now I feel the shock absorber is starting to give away. Front left side suspension is making noise over bad roads. I suspect its the shock absorber.

Finally got the car checked during the third service. Issue was with the loose calliper pins. Can’t fathom this happened so early in the life of the car that will remain with us for atleast 8 years

[Venkatesh]

Maruti Suzuki has updated the Ciaz with ESP and Hill Hold Assist functions now offered as standard. It also gets three new dual-tone colours.



Link

[tatafanatic]

Prelude

Post retirement me and my bud Tiny started our own venture, what was experimental work to keep us occupied did work and before we knew we ventured from local to state and were now going pan India. It was during one meeting with a banker who took us aside and kindly remarked “Its fine you guys come up in Hawaiian shirts at times but cycles !! you guys are coming for meetings with board members on cycles !!”, we coming in Tiny’s rickety old first generation soft top Thar didn’t cut much ice either. There was potent requirement for a vehicular makeover and this writeup is about the same.

The preamble

Much of my worklife I have travelled in 4 wheelers but hardly enjoyed the process owing to nature of work, my mind was consumed with worries of different kinds. I do not remember a single instance when something didn’t happen somewhere which needed me to get ready and get going in a dash which made the journey more worrisome than pleasing albeit I must say the surroundings I went to were the most precious and scenic offerings in India. At fag end of my career, I was up and running in administrative work at such pace that the only solace were the little naps in rear seat of my official Ciaz, sometimes my trusted hand would park the car under some shade walk out and let me have the moment for myself before something urgent came calling.

I most likely break my association with four wheelers as under

1.The Gypsy years – fun and frolic, the car had no creature comforts whatsoever, the only solace in name of luxury was a pillow the driver put on his seat in case it was a long run. The car per say was a breeze to drive, on any given surface it never faulted. it got the job done and survived harsh weather conditions, provost mechanics sweared by its reliability and easiness to service. I still see service Gypy’s in pristine conditions so that’s testament of its quality.

2. The Mahindra years – Certain terrain did demand a stronger and tougher vehicle and that’s when the ‘Rakshaaks’ came to play, they were armoured Mahindra Commander series and were bolted to withstand abuse, they were crampy and by nature of our work used to get thoroughly abused, bearings were strong, and it got the job done. I have had many a good, bad, and horrible experiences with this vehicle but that’s not for this forum. Again, the vehicle lacked creature comforts as it was built for a very different purpose, I drove it once when we were in a very tight spot and found it utterly ridiculous.

Years later I saw the Kalyani M4. Albeit I don’t have any firsthand experience of the vehicle it does look one hell of armored carrier built to last.

3. The Tata years – Started with the Sumo (there is an interesting anecdote as to why I choose name Tatafanatic written later), the Sumo was first vehicle which had creature comforts, it was spacious and was again bolted well to suit our requirements. Had amazing times in it and loved it through years. The best part about the vehicle was its roominess. It was also bolted to last and ferried heavy stuff with ease.
As I climbed the ladder of grades from Sumo it went to Safari and that was my first tryst with being driven than driving self, the Safari was again bolted to our suit and it held itself rather well, it was spacious, roomy, had creature comforts, and amazing rear seat comfort and drove well on all surfaces, bonus was its commanding presence. I remember my daughter purposefully missing the school bus just to have me drop her off enroute to office.

4. The Ciaz years – these were last of my working years in uniform based in Bangalore, most of the times thanks to cities horrible traffic I would complete paperwork in rear seat whilst being driven to and fro work, the rear seat comfort was extremely accommodating, all the creature comforts were fantastic. I am not sure if that’s why it lingered long in memory, but I did really have a great time in the Ciaz.

5. The family cars – we started with modest M800, once I became Tatafanatic it’s been the Indigo Marina, Manza, Nexon 1st generation and now the electric Tigor, the electric vehicle suits our requirement as we got solar installation at home which ensures almost free charging, is majorly used for city driving by my wife. My parents who stay a block away moved from Scorpio to Dzire as ingress and egress for septuagenarian’s is easy. My brother stays another block away had been a Ford guy till they shut shop, he now drives a Kia Seltos which I find neither here nor there, for me it’s a full-blown SUV or a proper sedan.

So, coming to decision was rather a simple affair, something from the Tata stable or the Maruti Ciaz. Albeit in earlier times I was close to buying a Isuzu Highlander I thank providence for not doing so as I am majorly a two wheeler guy, cycles are my first love and most obvious choice of commute be it anywhere and any far. I love the Xpluse I got a few months back to its core, contrary to public opinion it’s an excellent machine, well fit to purpose and extremely likeable, I have done over 12k kms in a short period of time and never been disappointed. In going times, I eagerly await the bigger Xpluse to be launched

To put things into real perspective, as I didn’t really enjoy or had time to enjoy a four-wheeler experience so logically, I was looking for a car to be driven in. my only requirement was it needs to have a perfectly comfortable rear seat and a decently reliable engine with no fuss, the tech gobble gobble wasn’t my need.

PS – me and my driver are from same service, we can read maps really well, he is a couple of notches above me so on a road trip to Goa he found an amazing route through the forest which initially we were only one driving through but strangely the cars behind us started to follow and little did we know later they thanked us for finding this route… beat that google lady !!!

THE PROCESS

The house of Tata’s – Must say even in a tiny city like mine the Tata’s experience is very different to what it was decades ago, the staff is more knowledgeable and courteous, and they do not skim on test rides. I loved the Safari, loved the Harrier more so as it was bit smaller in dimensions to the safari so parking in tight spots, I guessed would be easier. I am truly amazed how far Tata motors have come in way of design and quality, the cars look appealing, interiors are modern with simple tech for even a dud like me to grasp, the drivers position commanding and rear seat comfort exquisite. Loved the ride, for a vehicle of their dimensions they handled easy albeit the truck like feeling remains initially and in places cost cutting comes out evident, I was keen to go ahead with the Harrier (Green color is soothing) but decided to hold till I checked the Ciaz

The Nexa experience – Horror tales come from regular Maruti showrooms maybe more so as we look at Maruti in same lines of SBI and Post Office, something generic, however the Nexa experience was rather amazing.

The new Ciaz has more creature comforts in terms of cruise control etc, the leather seats of the top end Alpha variant were excellent, the automatic transmission felt more at home than it felt in the Tata cars, the manual S MT (sports version) came in maroon which instantly gathered my attention but was rather disappointed to know the same could be discontinued any time owing to dwindling sales. The tech was not rocket science and display etc easy and not confusing. It didn’t drive as spirited as I expected but again, I was looking for something to be driven in and not self-drive much of times
The build quality of the Ciaz is nowhere close to Tata’s, they feel like a tank, but I was Ok with that, the SHVS tech I was told would be frugal as well. Coming from commanding position of the Tata twins sitting in the Ciaz is quite opposite of the feeling but again it is the rear seat that I was more concerned about and on that front it was excellent. It had better legroom, better kneeroom better under thigh support, the rear AC vents were good option, the rear window blind also did its job well and per say I loved it, sadly the Ciaz is not available in maroon!! Wonder why it isn’t considering the XL6 is and looks amazing in it too!! Now what really closed the deal was it gobbled my cycle in entirety all I had to do was push down front seat and stretch it as ahead as possible. Even in the Tata cars that did not work and putting cycle in was a task (this was not the criteria for purchase but when it happened, I felt happy)

I closed the deal on Alpha ‘Prime Celestial Blue’ as ‘Opulent Red’ which is Maruti’s version of Maroon is a joke!! Sadly, was told there would be 6 weeks waiting for the automatic version but in reality, I got the car in 10 working days as some gentleman had not honoured his commitment on purchase.
No other options were considered but I did find the Honda City to be a worthy contender, there are many amongst my friends who drive and swear on it in entirety, but truth be told I am comfortable with the tried and tested, it’s always the Colgate toothpaste immaterial my dentist keeps telling me to go for Sensodyne!!

PS – I did test ride the VW Virtus, which is an excellent handler, but as I said Colgate toothpaste for life.

Now coming to the Ciaz

*The Goods*

Space – During recent family trip to Goa, till we emptied the boot my folks had no idea I had packed my decathlon folding cycle which was easily gobbled in the boot amongst other luggage easily.

Decent Engine, Ride and Handling – The 4speed AMT mated to 1.5Ltrs engine is breeze for city driving and the occasional highway
My driver comes from uniform services, he gave a good 18 years driving those army trucks which he really had to push to perform, he keeps saying the Ciaz reminds of those trucks even when pushed hard it lazily moves ahead, I imagine the tunning is done for fuel economy but as we do not do three-digit numbers fitment to purpose is fine. For a car of its proportions, it steers quite comfortably in the hills where I reside, we have bought a cabin in the woods which I regularly visit it over the weekends self-driving and uphill or narrow roads or even broken ones are done sans any drama, yes, the ground clearance is a bit low but I haven’t really seen any tall sedans barring the Tata Zest. It steers well too, haven’t experienced moments where tackling narrow by lanes were an issue.

Rear Seat comfort, its well documented across reviews, i have a funny tale to put matters in perspective, my sister in law came from US, i was assigned to pick her from Chandigarh airport. It was a day after a rather long cycling run with buds so in no time i dozed off through the entire journey. on entering home i told my wife "I slept with your sister for last three hours", my sister in law quipped to my wife "If that's how he sleeps then i do pitty u a lot" Bottom line the rear seat is indeed heaven.

Frugal – even with my drivers initial heavy foot driving it turned 18kmpl to 20kmpl on highway runs, in city premises we touched 13kmpl, with sedate driving which we did on way to Goa we crossed 22kmpl but that could be once a blue moon scenario (all are with AC tank to tank calculations)

Decently Loaded– my daughter says Apple car play is preloaded and I got to use, driver says the Cruise control is blessing, wife says keyless entry is amazing tech as she has habit of misplacing keys, brother says “wow you got rear reading lamps” (he’s a lawyer so I assume he does a lot of reading to and fro work), father says that’s Auto AC is way better then one in his Dezire, I say “Thanks guys”

PS – BTW the Decathlon folding cycle is at best a leisure item, its not for regulars and long-distance cyclists.

**The ‘Hyped’ Not goods**

Soft suspension, yes I might say that’s partly true, while driving to Goa there were moments when fully loaded car with soft suspensions means some rough surface moments get transgressed to all passengers, however as I said its not a deal breaker, I assume every sedan has softer suspension set up v/s a SUV by design.

Not so updated tech,

Reminds me of a funny incident – Dilly and Dally were SAS drivers and communications guy’s whose job was to pick us from a remote location where we’d disappeared for weeklong exercise. This was in middle of cold and unforgiving British winter, in no time we started I assume Dilly lost his way and yelled “Dally you (expletive), where is the right turn, we’d to make? Dally said “lemme check sarge but “The Bell” is right round the next corner”. Point is tech is as meaningful as the user desires, Dally had best of map reading tech at his disposal that night!
Ciaz has what I need and that’s that

Expensive Servicing – That is how the economy works, rationalization is fine, but costs have over years logically risen and so have remunerations and emoluments.

Typical Maruti rattling sounds – Yes if one cares to fault finding but I have felt the cabin to be peaceful and very good on NVH levels

Average Performance – subjective to what performance is expected than what it means, for me comfort matters and in that area the Ciaz shines. It does not feel lost at high speeds as well and can crunch miles sans drama.

***The Only Not Good***

Built and Safety – In 2022, there were 1,55,622 deaths due to road accidents were registered in India and 59.7 per cent of fatalities occurred due to over-speeding. That demands the car to be solidly built like the Tata ones which can withstand damage, in that matter and that matter alone Ciaz seems lacking, we don’t do triple digits, we avoid night runs but that doesn’t mean Maruti can get away with such build quality mainly as I see many Ciaz taxi’s which do ply in nights and are driven fast.

+Two Interesting Anecdotes and some photos+

Dimapur and Driving
I was posted in Dimapur and soon realised that I had not really set my hands on a four-wheeler, two wheelers were my forte, so one day as I shared this predicament with my superior his eyes suddenly lit up, he invited me to dinner at his place saying he had a perfect solution to my problem.

As I found out his sister-in-law a freshly minted doctor had come over to enjoy much needed holidays and was driving him and his wife nuts with continual rants on boredom, she knew how to drive, he believed keeping her occupied teaching me would shift the receiving end of her rants from them to me.

This does sound cliché but the moment I saw her I said to myself “to hell with driving I am marrying this girl’, it’s been 28 years of togetherness since.

PS – my wife still complaints that I was a poor student who had to be reminded many times it is the road that needs attention and not the tutors face!!!

Mizoram the birthplace of ‘Tatafanatic”
Those days we were issued standard Gypsy’s to ferry around however one day a Tata Sumo was made available as the Gypsy had gone for servicing,
on a rainy day we were driving to base when something hit us from behind, it hit us so hard that the vehicle swirled twice before coming to a screeching halt, quickly following ambush protocol we awaited action but nothing, we waited for some more time but nothing, cautiously we got to the vehicle for inspection and it occurred that a huge animal had bashed us from behind, the impact was so hard that the entire back part was mauled, had it been the Gypsy none of us would have lived to tell the tale, but we didn’t recollect passing a wild heard so after a bit of search all we found was a lone Mithun (Bison) chewing grass lazily in the bushes, did he hit us, maybe he did maybe he was their version of a Maroon Beret who said “Chaalo aaj kuch toofani karate hain” !!But that day I became a Tatafanatic.

Do I recommend the Ciaz – most definitely yes if chauffer driven.

[Aakash118]

Nice to read your good experience with Ciaz which I feel is a capable but underrated car. The space and VFM it offers is unmatched in this price range.

[JoshMachine]

Originally Posted by tatafanatic

Post retirement me and my bud Tiny started our own venture, what was experimental work to keep us occupied did work and before we knew we ventured from local to state and were now going pan India.
---
There was potent requirement for a vehicular makeover and this writeup is about the same.
---
Do I recommend the Ciaz – most definitely yes if chauffer driven

Congrats on the Ciaz , glad to finally see you bring the curtain down on the car purchase once and for all! For the identified reasons, the Ciaz is surely one of the best cars out there.

Reading through your preamble took me back to a similar story that we have had in our close family circles, so bit of deja vu there for me.

If I got it right and if 'Tiny' is really the 6'4'' bud that you are talking about, then I can now relate to all the SF stories that you have been writing up till date. And if he is really THE 'Tiny' who has published his life memoir recently in the form of a book from his Chinar + RR days, then salute to you guys
Would love to read more of your anecdotal experiences, if you can spare some time to pen them for SF fans like me.

[drive1987]

Decent Engine, Ride and Handling – The 4speed AMT mated to 1.5Ltrs engine is breeze for city driving and the occasional highway

I think the Ciaz's engine is mated to a 4 speed TC (Torque Converter unit) and not an AMT.

[shancz]

Originally Posted by tatafanatic

But that day I became a Tatafanatic.

As always, a pleasure to read your posts and your anecdotes are hilarious and exceptional

- Spot on with the Ciaz, second every observation. I still haven't come across a SUV which matches the rear seat comfort of a sedan. Nothing beats a sedan's "bootspace", its called so for a reason.
- The "'Hyped' not goods" were bullseye.
- The Ciaz looks smashing especially in that colour which IMO is the best and I am a silver person.
- Was a hilarious privilege to know the birth of "Tatafanatic" and quite rightly so. So you experienced the build quality and safety of Tata decades before GNCAP was around and that too involving a "rear impact" which no NCAP tests for even today.
- Your driving lesson has to be the most interesting I have ever come across till date.


PS : The google lady is nuts, she is well informed but not well travelled.

[tatafanatic]

Originally Posted by drive1987

I think the Ciaz's engine is mated to a 4 speed TC (Torque Converter unit) and not an AMT.

I stand corrected

Originally Posted by JoshMachine

Congrats on the Ciaz , glad to finally see you bring the curtain down on the car purchase once and for all! For the identified reasons, the Ciaz is surely one of the best cars out there.

Reading through your preamble took me back to a similar story that we have had in our close family circles, so bit of deja vu there for me.

If I got it right and if 'Tiny' is really the 6'4'' bud that you are talking about, then I can now relate to all the SF stories that you have been writing up till date. And if he is really THE 'Tiny' who has published his life memoir recently in the form of a book from his Chinar + RR days, then salute to you guys
Would love to read more of your anecdotal experiences, if you can spare some time to pen them for SF fans like me.

General Dhillons life is worth being chronicled in a book, our bud Tiny's (though of matching proportions) is worth a comic strip at the best

It would be of value if likes of Gen Dhillon become part of this forum, that coterie is thorough 'Bullet' men

[Paul-007]

Hi BHPians,
With my Ciaz 2018(facelift) AT, I am getting a city mileage of 9 to 9.5 kmpl. I am driving mainly in Bangalore bumper-to-bumper traffic. Since I purchased the Car recently (pre-used), not sure about the actual mileage. I think this mileage is kinda less as compared to what I have read. The car is fully serviced and of good quality with odo under 40k. Also, I am yet to take the car on highways. Can someone suggest what's probably wrong?
Thanks!

[overtaker]

It is more or less correct given the nature of torque converter AT. TCs are generally less fuel inefficient in crawling traffic. They can give good efficiency only in highway speeds, where the lockup clutch engages. And I too own a 4 months old Ciaz Alpha AT. And that's the mileage I too get.

Originally Posted by Paul-007

Hi BHPians,
With my Ciaz 2018(facelift) AT, I am getting a city mileage of 9 to 9.5 kmpl. I am driving mainly in Bangalore bumper-to-bumper traffic. Since I purchased the Car recently (pre-used), not sure about the actual mileage. I think this mileage is kinda less as compared to what I have read. The car is fully serviced and of good quality with odo under 40k. Also, I am yet to take the car on highways. Can someone suggest what's probably wrong?
Thanks!

[overtaker]

Dear BHPians, My Ciaz Alpha AT has been giving a strange stinking smell when it is running in blower mode without AC on. And it goes away, once AC switched on and compressor kicks in. What could be the possible reason?