5th May 2013, 15:51
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| BHPian  | My Maruti Dzire @ 40,000 Kms Wanted to post this ownership report from a long time. This is going to be a long one so buckle up. INTRODUCTION We were owning a Maruti 1000 at that time which had clocked nearly 4 Lakh KMS and whose engine had been overhauled twice. The engine again needed a overhaul in 2010 which would have costed around Rs.1 Lakh with suspension. So we decided that it is time to bid adieu to our faithful 1000 and start looking for a new car. Key points in mind 1. Had to be a petrol(since we didn't travel much) 2. Around 7-8 Lakh OTR 3. Easy to Maintain 4. Good service December 2010 Started the hunt for a new car on a sunday(don't exactly remember the date) with my mom, dad and brothers. These are the cars we test drove Hyundai Accent Dad liked the design of the accent a lot. So we were off to Concept Hyundai for a test drive. The Staff there was very courteous and we were assigned a SE in two minutes, she guided us through all the features of the car and explained the booking amount and delivery period of the car. The car was much more plusher than the 1000 and looked like something absolutely new(although the design was old). Dad would have booked the car immediatley had I not pointed the catch(that was the mileage) 12KM/L was not acceptable from a new car of this size as our old 1000 was giving this much mileage. So we decided we needed time to think and left the showroom. Maruti Suzuki SX4 Kiran motors was next to Concept Hyundai, so we decided to go there and see the SX4 and Dzire. My god was this a jump into the future. This car was absolutely loaded to the gills, features that I was hearing for the first time ABS, EBD, Climate control(for a 1000 owner which doesn't even have power steering this sounds like some alien language). This made the Accent and 1000 look like they were from stone age(no offence to accent owners). The 1.6L engine was superb and was quiet powerful. But there was a problem, the home minister did not like the design of the car from the back. Actually mom had her mind set on the dzire from the day it was lauched. So we asked for a TD in Dzire but unfortunately the TD car had gone for servicing so we were promised a TD in 2 days. TATA MANZA My Uncle(mothers brother) had bought a manza aura quadrajet and had suggested this to us. We headed to cargo motors on SG highway and boy was it a horrible experience. We had to wait for quiet a lot of time before someone entertained us, after the SA arrived he took us for a test drive in the Manza safire since we wanted petrol. This is where the problem starts, the car was dirty looked as though it had never been cleaned, the lumbar support levers on both the sides were broken. During the TD we stopped at a signal and dad shifted to neutral and when the signal started he tried to move it into first and it just wouldn't do that no matter how much force you put it looked like the clutch was toast. Somehow dad managed to get the car back to the showroom in 2nd gear and I don't think any more explanation is required as to why we didn't buy the Manza. Nissan Micra I had heard of a Nissan showroom opening nearby. So we head there to see the new Micra, the sales executive there was polite and knowledgeable and explained us the features of the car. On asking for TD he was unable to give one because driver was unavailable and it is company policy that a driver has to be present in the car for long distance drive(since we wanted to drive the car to home to show grandma). But he promised a TD in 2 hours at our house as soon as the driver gets back from lunch. We agreed and head home and boy was he punctual he reached our house in exactly 2 hours. Showed the car to grandma and then took a TD on the highway near our house. The car was smooth and was also loaded with features such as ABS,EBD,etc. He gave us quote and left. DISCUSSIONS We had quiet a lot of discussions to do that day. One thing was for sure that it won't be the accent because it was quiet low on mileage and the CNG meant no boot so out goes the accent nor would it be the manza for obvious reasons. Now it was between the SX4, Dzire and Micra. Since we had not done a TD of the Dzire we decided to wait for some time and the ETIOS was also going to be launched soon. ABOUT A WEEK LATER we head to infinium toyota to enquire about the ETIOS. The SE there had good knowledge about the car but there was no demo or Test Drive car and he informed us that he cannot assure a delivery before November 2011 that is almost a year  I thought dad will immediately reject the offer but i don't know what got into him and he almost wrote a check of booking amount. Had I not stopped him we would have seriously had it.MORE SERIOUS DISCUSSIONS That night we had a serious discussion on which car to finalise. Dad was hellbent on the ETIOS and I was completely against it due to the offset Dashboard. Finally I had to use a cunning trick and told dad's ideas to home ministry and praised the Dzire's interiors even though I had never sat in the car  and since mom was also a Dzire fan that did it out goes the ETIOS. The next day we decided to head to Kiran motors and ask for a TD.Finally DZIRE We reached Kiran Motors in the morning but our SE was on leave that day. So just as we were about to leave we met a friend of ours who introduced us to a Service executive Nirav. From there on every thing was a smooth sail, he immediately arranged for a TD. THE TEST DRIVE We entered the car and immediately liked the dashboard of the car, everything was neatly placed. Dad started the car and all I could hear was silence the NVH levels were superb and the car just glided over the bumps and potholes and the turning radius made it an easy to drive car in the city. THE DECISION The decision was looking obvious since sx4 was going out of budget, the ETIOS delivery period was too long, micra was a hatch and didn't go well with our family needs. So it was rather an easy decision to select the Dzire. BOOKING We decided to go for the ZXI variant. The car was booked on 22nd Jan my dads b'day. We paid a check of Rs. 5000/- only and were given an estimated delivery period in April. The on road price of the car was around 7.15 lakhs. TENSION Then came a huge problem, the tsunami in Japan had caused delays in deliveries of cars from all japanese manufacturer. We got a call from MSIL stating that the car might be delayed and we were free to cancel the booking without any cancellation charge. Dad replied in the negative and stuck to the decision. April was nearing and Dad finally told Nirav that if we are not alloted the car by April 1st then he will cancel the booking and go for a Vento trendline which I was strongly against because of absence of safety features. ALLOTMENT Finally on 1st April we get a call that the car has been alloted to us and it has been dispatched from gurgaon and should arrive by 10th. He asked to start the loan process. The car arrived by 10th and the loan process was completed by 15th April. PDI We were called on 15th to do the PDI and select the additional accessories. We chose the black leather seat cover, steering wheel cover, floor mat, bumper corner protector, anti rust coating and teflon coating all amounting to Rs 20000. The PDI was done and we requested delivery on 16th since it was grandma's b'day but due to stock taking they refused delivery on 16th and 17th being a sunday they were closed. So we were given a date of 18th. We agreed. D-DAY Finally the day that we were waiting for from 4 months arrived. We reached the godown and spotted our silver beauty returning from a wash. It was easy to recognize her as she was the only ZXI being delivered that day. All right now let the pics do the talking. The Interior   The 1.2L K series engine   Dad being explained some things   The black leather covers   The front of the car is what I like   The dials are nice and are easy to read   Dad being explained the ABS and climate control  One thing is for sure my little bro likes the car  The side profile  Leaving the godown after breaking the coconut to the front of our car is our SE Nirav  Last edited by Eddy : 5th May 2013 at 18:29. |
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5th May 2013, 16:35
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| BHPian | re: My Maruti Dzire @ 40,000 Kms 1 WEEK LATER Well one week after purchase and a trip to a resort in the car, we completed 1000 KMs and the car was due for the first service. So booked in Kiran motors service center and we were given a booking for the next day. THE NEXT DAY We(dad and me) reached the service center at 9:30 AM sharp and there was a SA waiting for us. He asked us if anything extra was to be done other than the normal things, we asked him to adjust the clutch. He noted down everything on a form and gave us a customer copy and asked us to wait in the customer lounge till he completed the service. The customer lounge was air conditioned and equipped with a TV and a monitor that showed the status of each car in the service center. It took about 2 hours to complete the service and after that the SE asked us to come for a test drive of the car, we did the test drive and agreed that everything was OK and left the service center with a bill of Rs. 0 2 years and 40000Kms later Well the Ahmedabad traffic had taken its toll on our car with many dents and dings which really got dad irritated. But can't do much about that, other than that the car drives better than when we took delivery. It gets better with every kilometer that passes. Problems faced The only problem we faced was not because of the car but because of our neighbour. Actually he asked for the keys to move the car from front of his gate, since he is used driving diesel cars he didn't know whether the car was on or off and kept over starting it which destroyed the battery. We fitted a new exide battery and she was cranking again. She was back to life  PROS 1. VFM proposition 2. spacious boot 3. 5th wheel is alloy 4. Climate control 5. it is a Maruti suzuki 6. good mileage 7. short turning radius 8. Well laid out dash CONS 1. Rear legroom space 2. Factory fitted headlights 3. would have preferred 15" alloys 4. low fuel lamp present in the console but deactivated(WHY!?) 6. No USB port in stock audio system 7. No MID only basic trip meters EXTERIORS Well other people call the design strange but the design of the car is what made us buy it. Call me crazy but I like the way the rear of the car looks. I like the clear lens tail lamps and the chrome garnish. The front is quiet similar to the swift the only change being the presence of a different radiator grill which is also chrome garnished in this case. If the grill was same there was no way of differentiating this from the swift unless you move towards the back. INTERIORS Well this was one of the main reasons for choosing the car. The interiors are not what you can call high quality but it is well laid out and every thing is well within the reach of the driver. The steering with the mounted audio controls is nice but takes time getting used to the placement of the horn. The seats are well cushioned, comfortable and supportive. The rear center armrest is a nice touch, would have liked cup holders at the rear but oh well. CLIMATE CONTROL At that time it was the only car in the segment to have climate control. It took us some time getting used to it since it just switched to fresh air mode without any warning letting foul smell in  . We found a way out to stop that, we press the re circulation button twice immediately after pressing the AUTO button to switch from full auto to auto mode and it stops switching modes after that.THE DRIVE The suspension is setup to the softer side. Now this might make the car slightly unstable at high speeds but the ride in the city is just SUPERB. It glides over bumps and potholes with ease and doesn't let harshness enter the cabin. THE HEADLIGHTS The headlights were useless and had to find some solution to it asap. So decided to install new bulbs by doing a cut out. Installed powerful 135/90 bulbs on the car without voiding warrany as no wires were cut. IN COMPARISON TO THE NEW DZIRE Well the new Dzire is totally different it is smaller yet larger. It has reduced in size but the interior space has increased, the dashboard is absolutely superb and of high quality in the new dzire. The engine too has been modified by adding VVT and bumping the power output to 87 BHP and torque to 114NM. But the boot has become quiet small in comparison to our car. DRIVING PATTERN AND MILEAGE The car is driven 60% in city and 40 % on highway. It is returning the following mileage City - 14.9 KM/L Highway - 17KM/L Conclusion Well in the end would like to say that the Dzire(first gen) is absolute value for money with decent power output and luggage space.The boot is big enough to carry luggage for a month long holiday with the family. I have traveled the whole of south in this car from Gujarat to Maharashtra to Goa to Tamil Nadu to Kerala to Karnataka and back. Believe me she didn't show any signs of getting tired and kept on gobbling the miles as they came. The car is a good upgrade for people who have not changed their cars from a long time and for people who want to move from hatches to sedans. Last edited by rockporiom : 5th May 2013 at 17:28. |
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5th May 2013, 18:07
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| Team-BHP Support   Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Delhi
Posts: 9,386
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6th May 2013, 17:14
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| Senior - BHPian  | Re: My Maruti Dzire @ 40,000 Kms While looks (the rear mainly) are not it's high point, the Dzire seems to be a very practical car given the huge following it commands. Thanks for the detailed review. Quote:
BTW, you used the previous car for 4lakh kms and then for the next car you want it to be a petrol "since you don't travel much". So, what kind of running qualifies as "much" for you guys ?  Guess you also have a Suzuki Kizashi... | |
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6th May 2013, 19:53
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| Senior - BHPian  | Re: My Maruti Dzire @ 40,000 Kms Second that comment. 40k kms in 2 years is also not a mean feat  , worthy of a diesel IMO, but then its your personal choice. Nice round up of your purchase experience and some background. The full Dzire is surely one of the most desirable cars from the brain than the heart (coz of its rear looks) but then you can surely not go wrong with it. It has sold many thousand copies and in the CS form selling even more, but then I guess one can still buy this car as the Tour but not sure if they will register it as a private car any more since it is redefined for the taxi segment. Well congrats and many thousand sorry lakhs of happy motoring! |
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7th May 2013, 10:02
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| BHPian | Re: My Maruti Dzire @ 40,000 Kms Quote:
http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/test-d...ash-beast.html Boy do i miss that car(the 1000). I cried when we had to let it go because we were emotionally attached to it since it was the car that was with our family in high's and lo's. It was the main reason for my interest in cars since I used to go with dad to the garage when the engine work used to be done, that was the most fabulous time of my life. It was bought when I was born so its age is equal to my age. Would like to mention one more thing that the brakes of the 1000 failed the exact same day that we were getting delivery of the dzire which made me think do cars have feelings Quote:
Last edited by rockporiom : 7th May 2013 at 10:28. | ||
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7th May 2013, 10:56
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| BHPian | Re: My Maruti Dzire @ 40,000 Kms Quote:
Well looks like you are also a die hard Maruti Suzuki fan. we have also owned only Maruti suzuki's till date since the company's launch. The cars we owned are: 1)Maruti 1000(sold) 2)Maruti Suzuki zen(sold) 3)Maruti suzuki swift dzire(1st gen)(still owned) 4)Suzuki Kizashi(still owned) Truly it is a way of life | |
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9th August 2013, 18:22
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| BHPian | Re: My Maruti Dzire @ 40,000 Kms Quote:
1)Maruti 1000(sold) 2)Maruti Suzuki zen(sold) 3)Maruti suzuki swift dzire zxi(1st gen)(sold) 4)Suzuki Kizashi(still owned) 5)Maruti suzuki swift dzire zdi(2nd gen)(just bought) | |
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