[kailashnj]

Today - 18th Sep 2013, I became the proud owner of my "Philos" - White Ertiga ZDI.

Since the day I sold my car the diesel bullet - cruze, I was on a lookout for a new car. My requirements were -

• Fuel Efficiency and ease of maintainence
  I drive nearly 24K kms in a year and hence needed a Diesel car. I had also decided to buy the CNG version of the Ertiga but then due to the highway runs and non availability of CNG at all places dropped the idea.
• Needed a 7 seater with my growing family
  With my growing family of 2 kids, parents and my better half, I needed a car which was bigger. Hence had decided that this time the car has to be a 7 seater.
• Should not be more than 11 Lakhs
  With the economy already in deep Sh** I did not want an extra EMI burden on myself and hence limited the car cost to be at 11 or lower. Also I needed a car that was not so taxing to the pocket on TCO.
• Easily available spare parts
  I did not want to wait long for any critical parts whenever I need them and hence one of the criteria was that the car spare parts should be available readily and off the self easily. There should be no need to go to the dealer to get the parts.
• High Ground Clearance
  In India we have really beautiful roads but they also have lot of potholes which at times are craters. Another aspect is that we have speed breakers which are also car breaker. In my cruze with 4 people on board, it would scrape all the car breakers and that hurted a lot somewhere inside. Hence I had made a mental note that my next car will be with higher ground clearance.
  

With the following list in hand I had started searching for the new car.

My shortlist of cars - Safari Storme, Scorpio, Xylo, Ertiga, Ecosport, Duster and Linea (I know its not a 7 seater)

Scorpio / Xylo
Xylo was a no no right from the start as my better half did not like it at all. She said its a dirty vehicle. I agree that its not that good looking. So this was out of the list right at the start.
Scorpio was not that bad looking and she was okay with the car. I was happy and went for a test ride. Believe it or not, there is no customer service at the dealer ship. I was there with my wife for around 20 mins but no one attended us. Got frustrated and left after giving them my piece of mind.

XUV is a very nice looking vehicle but it was out of budget and hence did not even bother to look at it. Anyways the experience was not that good with the dealership.

Ecosport
Next visit was to the Ford dealership. I must say I was really impressed with the looks of ES and even though I knew that this is a 5 seater, I wanted to ensure that I do take a test drive. Went to the dealer and saw the ES in person. Had lot of mixed feelings. No offence but the vehicle is only a Hatch with raised suspensions and tyre on the boot with beautiful body. I was not at all impressed with the interior space and this was a reject. Also the waiting periods on the car the last nail in the coffin to reject this car. Could not test drive it as there were 8 more customers in line before me for test drive and I did not want to wait that long.

Linea
I always loved the silhouette of this italian beauty. This was one of the primary reasons for me to look at Linea again after owning a Punto for 3 years. I am also big fan of the way these two cars handle. With the 2012 model the suspension was raised to 185mm and thats enough to handle our roads. Also the other features that was very attractive was the discounts that were available on Linea if you buy the 2012 model. I did lot of scouting and with the help of Nitesh, could find a Linea with 1.5 lakhs discounts for the 2012 model. But somehow felt that the discount was not inline as the current model is available for 1 lakh discounts already. With the new Linea hitting the market soon, the current gen can be rechristened as classic aka fiesta way and that will only reduce the market value of this car. Hence sense prevailed and I skipped it.

Also a friend had once said - will you pay additional 4 lakhs for only a boot after driving a punto.

Duster
This was another vehicle that I was really interested in buying. But with my budget constraints I could have only bought the 85 BHP version and I did not like that. Though I was really in love with the car due to its handling and space utilization. By kids were in love with the boot of the car for its space after you remove the parcel tray and they said if I buy this car they will only travel in the boot. Duster was almost a final shortlist but due to non availability of 85 bhp vehicle easily, I had to drop it.

So with that only two cars from my list was left as final contenders.

Safari Storme

What a vehicle. I have always been in love with Safari since the time it was first launched and still am. Test drove the vehicle at Concorde in Mumbai and was really impressed with it. The driving manners and the agility with which this SUV pulls is really addictive. I was sold. With booking amount cheque in hand went to book the it. But somehow could not make the payment as the negotiations did not go well. Concorde guys were only giving me a discount of 20K on the 2013 model and they had one 2012 model available but the total discount on the 2012 model was only 35K which I felt was way to less.

Also my better half was not happy with the seats in the last row as we were sure my kids will only want to sit in their private space in the rear. Though I must say, If I ever have extra cash and can afford a second car, I will surely buy this one without fail. I have still not fulfilled my dream and someday surely plan to do it.

Ertiga

This was one car which I did not look at last year when I was in market to buy a car. I ended up buying a CRUZE. The reason I did not even consider Ertiga was because of the high waiting periods then. Again I was sure that there would be high waiting period for it right now. Still I started searching at the dealer ships for the waiting period and other details. Meanwhile one of my friend back at office bought an Ertiga VXI CNG and I was bowled over by the practicality it offered. Started reading reviews on Team-Bhp for Ertiga and was really happy to read about the car. Few ownership reviews were really interesting for Ertiga like the Rajain or Rajshenoy's ownership reviews.

These reviews planted the seed to own the Ertiga. Went to the dealer ship to find out the details and also check the availability. Every dealership gave me different numbers, like 2 weeks, 4 weeks, only during navratri etc. etc.

Contacted my trusted sub dealer who has helped me procure all my cars and was surprised when they told me that the vehicles are available readily and can be delivered within 5 days. This made my decision in favor of Ertiga. Now the dilemma was which version to buy - VDI or ZDI, but the safety features in ZDI ensured I am not trying to save some money by purchasing the VDI though the dealership was hell bent to sell the VDI to me.

[kailashnj]

Previous Maruti Suzuki experience.

I started learning to drive on a Maruti at the age of 9. We had maruti van during those days and I had lot of fun driving it then. Parents were both working and did not take the car to work as dad does not like driving. Hence the car would be at my disposal whole day. Fast forward - Sold our van and moved to Indica, and my own first car was Esteem (used car), then bought the Baleno. This was sold off in 2007 since then I never thougt I will again own a maruti as I did not like any of their cars.

Fast Forward to 2013 and I am now a proud owner of a Maruti Ertiga after 7 years I am back with the Maruti family.

Colour choice
I have always bought my cars as white. Somehow the white colour excites me a lot. This time though everyone in the house was against the white Ertiga as they felt it looked more like a travels car then private car.

I still wanted white. Inquired with dealerships for the available colours and I got the following colours readily available
White
Dusky brown
Silver

Went to the stockyard of the dealer to check all the three colours along with the Team-Bhp checklist. I checked all the three car and still wanted the white. Better half wanted the Dusky Brown. Noted down the chasis numbers of both the cars and checked their manufacturing dates. White ZDI was Aug 2013 and the Dusky brown was June 2013 manufactured. This was enough to sell the white car to my wife. Though she was still not that very happy she agreed reluctantly.

This was on Saturday 14th Sep 2013.

Booking and buying experience with Finance.
After shortlisting my I informed my subdealer about the VIN number and informed them that I am game to book it. They had already done their homework and hence I had all the information that I needed for discounts and other stuff beforehand. On Monday 16th made my first downpayment for booking the car. With this I started to scout for Finance. I have always taken finance from HDFC bank and hence had pre-approved loan from them which could be disbursed within 24 hrs with out any documentation. Hence went ahead with the HDFC Bank for the finance. Now the turning point. My father is against taking loan from Private sector banks. He says there are lot of hidden charges that these banks have and we should only take finance from Nationalized banks. My argument was I will get the loan by tomorrow and probably disbursement within 36 hrs. Still I went with him to his favorite bank - Canara bank.

Was surprised when the bank advances manager quoted that they can also provide me with the finance within 24 hrs if all my documents are clear. I had one set of documents ready for HDFC Bank and hence gave it to the manager at Canara bank. To this he gave me loan application form and asked me to fill it up and get it. Next day (Tuesday) early in the morning I went to the bank with the form duly filled and original document like for the finance purpose. He asked me to open a saving account with the bank and completed the formalities.

By the time I completed the formalities of opening the Savings ac at the bank, advances manager had all the documentation for finance ready. He asked me to sign the loan agreement and other documents. I was pleasantly surprised at the speed of documentation. Still with little faith, I asked the HDFC people to stop the process for the time being. In the afternoon got a call from Canara Bank to meet as there were few documents still pending. I started cursing myself as I thought I will go in the loop of documents needed and not available.

Reached bank with low spirits and documents that they had asked in hand. Provided it to them and to my surprise he gave me the loan agreement and asked me to get the document stamped (Franking). No processing charges were claimed or any other charges. Since it was already late in the evening, did not get a chance to complete the franking on the agreement. Next day (wednesday) early in the morning got the agreement stamped and left it with the Bank. I left the bank thinking it will take some more time before I will get to know the status. Around 1:30 pm, got a call from the Manager to come and meet him. Again I was cursing that he is calling for few more documents. He wanted the payment receipts for the booking amount that I had paid. Went to the bank and gave them the documents. He made me sit there for about 30 minutes. With heavy face, I waited patiently at the bank. 45 minutes later, I got frustrated and asked the manager why did he make me wait and what other document was pending. To my surprise, he smiled at me and asked me to sign a muster. I asked him what was this for - and to my surprise he handed me a cover with the DD in it. I was like WOW only 24 hrs and I have the DD in my hand. I could not believe it, asked him is this real and he just smiled saying even we are competitive. I still could not believe it and called up DAD. He was also surprised though said let go to the dealership. Called up the dealership and told him I will make the payment today (Wednesday) and asked him how soon can I get the car. Again a new surprise was waiting for me. He said since its day of ganesh visargan, they would be more than happy to give me the delivery today. Reached the showroom at 2:00pm made all the payments and went home. Got my family back to the showroom at 4:30 and by 5:00pm I had taken the delivery of my car the brand new White Ertiga ZDI. WOW what an experience. (Though I am still awaiting my car's number as I am on temp numbers as of now.)

Let the pictures talk - White Ertiga ZDI Feliz edition

[kailashnj]

I have named my car as "Philos" meaning love in greek.

I am really in love with the car and the features that it provides me as listed below.

1. Ground Clearance
   This was on of the features that I was surely looking in my new car and with the GC of 185mm, this car really does not touch any of the speed breakers at all.
2. Versatility of space inside
   I really love the versatility that this car offers. Its a 7 seater, 5 seater, 4 seater with 1 single bed, 3 seater with double bed. Options are really there. You can use it as you need. The space even at the rear seats is comfortable if you adjust the middle row correctly though with the middle row pushed completely the last row is only fit for kids. Anyways my kids are only using the last row. They don't want to come ahead as they feel that its their area and we will not disturb them. In fact for they are even happy to wear seat belts if they get to sit in the last row. Hence the safety has increased for us.
3. Front seat
   Car's front seat is very nice and comfortable. Its a snug fit and love the underthigh support that it gives me. I don't feel any strain while driving the car.
4. MID of the car
   I am in love with the MID. I love the 2 trip meters that its providing along with DTE and instantaneous FE. This really helps in driving insanely. I am still to check the accuracy of the MID and will update once I am sure about the accuracy. Though what I have read in the MID is off by 2 Kms.
5. Feliz Edition
   I bought the Feliz edition purely because I felt the accessories that I got with the Feliz Edition well worth the money that I was charged. My better half agreed to the White colour only after I had planned to get the Feliz edition as the side stickers are per her, makes the car look more premium. Though for me it was the overall package that interested me. I made some changes to the feliz edition and the dealer obliged.
   Feliz edition is something that is like the after market accessories fitting done. Hence the dealer had no issues with the changes that I asked for. The changes that I requested were as follows: Instead of the Silver paint on the grills and fog lamps, kindly match it with the body colour of the car. For the interior styling kit, instead of the wood finish, I requested for the carbon finish. They obliged for both. (will post some interior pics later)
6. Audio System with 6 speakers
   I love the audio system that the car has, specially on the ZDI version. Look and feel of the 2din audio system is really awesome and it lends the dash a premium looks. Another aspect that I liked is that the USB is placed below near the charging point and this ensures that kids do not fiddle around with the USB like in the lower versions where the location is on the 2Din itself.
7. Compartment in the boot
   The small compartment in the boot is really helpful. It really hides lot of stuff away from the prying eyes.

Dislikes

1. My biggest grouse - All Beige interiors
   All beige interiors is such a pain. Specially the carpets and the door pads. On day one it was raining outside and when we sat in the car everyone soiled the carpets with the dirt. I will do something about the all beige interiors soon.
2. No Automatic Climate control
   This is one of the biggest grouse that I have. Come on Maruti this should have been there in a car which is costing over 10 lakh rupees.
3. Last row should have been split - 50:50
   I know its been told many times, but I am stating that again. With split last row the utility of the vehicle would have improved.
4. Reverse sensors
   Reverse sensors should have been part of the factory accessories as that would have ensured that the unit is not added on the dashboard as an after market but interegrated with in the dashboard.
5. Gaps in the body panels
   The rear hatch and the body has lot of gap. My car is parked in open in my building and with the gap between the rear hatch door and the body, lot of fallen leaves and twigs are getting accumulated. Also lot of insects like the big blach ants have started making it as their second home and I am really worried about this. Will get complete body cover soon, but don't know how it will help in keeping these out of the car.
6. Stock Alloy Wheel Design
   I did not like the stock alloy design and hence bought the ZDI version with steel wheels. Alloy design on the swift is better than the Ertiga and if that would have been lot more better.
7. ORVM adjuster
   The ORVM adjuster is really very tacky and lack solid feel. It feels like its will not last.
8. Noise insulation
   I feel that the noise insulation is not that very good in the car and lot of Tyre noise and engine noise enters the cabin. There should have been better insulation provided for this kind of vehicle.
9. Middle row operation
   I don't know whether its my car or all Ertiga have really hard sliding mechanism for the middle seat. I will ask the service centre to check when I take the car for first service.

Since I am still awaiting my car's registration information I have not been able to drive the car as much as I would have loved to and currently my car's ODO is at 80kms only. When I took the delivery, ODO read 42kms.

My overall experience with the dealer was pleasant and they were really helpful by providing me the delivery of the car within 3 days. Though there are certain things that I feel the dealer could have improved a lot. For example - I got only 2 litres of fuel from them while taking the delivery. I told him that generally it should be either 5 or 10 litres, but he said that as per the company rule they only provide 2 litres, but again I am not sure if they really provided me with the 2 litres that they claimed as the car started to sputter while I went to the bunk to fill diesel.

Another grouse at the dealership was with the seat cover for the middle row. They did not fit the middle low seat's cover correctly (the lever for seat movement was under the cover). I kept on telling the accessories guy to pull fit the seat covers correctly and he kept pushing back saying this is how the seat covers are done on Ertiga. I escalated to the manager too but got the same reply. This really pissed me off and I threatened them that I will not pay for the Seat covers and the accessories guy reluctantly fit the cover correctly.

I am yet to check the fuel efficiency and hence cannot comment anything on that aspect.

Future Plans:
1) Upgrade Tires to 205/60 R15 Bridgestone MY 02 (Also have an option of getting the CONTI CPC2)
2) RD box - dual channel
3) Floor Lamination
4) Lamination on the door pads to ensure the beige is safe
5) Alloys
6) K&N filter OEM replacement

Though this is not the exact sequence of mods - but the Tyre upgrade is surely planned for the weekend.

By the way I got the Feliz Edition as a freebies.
Some more pictures. By the way I just love the Seat belt holder for the middle row. It really helps, I have highlighted it in one of the picture.

[Eddy]

Thread moved from the Assembly Line. Thanks for sharing.

[manasmadaan]

Let me be the first one to congratulate you on your new buy. May you have a long and happy journey ahead White certainly suits the Ertiga.
Why did you sell your Cruze so early? Any problems in the car?

[kailashnj]

Thanks Manasmadaan. The only reason I sold my cruze was that we needed a seven seater and I felt the cruze was congested inside.

Another mod planned - flippy key for the car.

[nurni76]

Hi great review. Loved the overall coverage and your attention to detail. You will love the experience of driving the ertiga on highways. Congrats.

[kailashnj]

Thanks for your comments nurni76. Will try to keep this thread alive with updates regularly. I am sure this will be a mile muncher

[rajshenoy]

Congratulations. Its a great choice. I am enjoying every moment with my car.

I thought the feliz edition came with silver grill and fog lamps. But yours looks White. Infact white is looking great on your car. Keep us updated on the driving experience

[kailashnj]

Originally Posted by rajshenoy

Congratulations. Its a great choice. I am enjoying every moment with my car.

I thought the feliz edition came with silver grill and fog lamps. But yours looks White. Infact white is looking great on your car. Keep us updated on the driving experience

You are right about the Feliz edition being silver for the grill, fog lamps and the ORVMs. But the Feliz edition is not company fitted and hence that is something that the dealer would install as an after market fittment.

The mirrors are already body paint colour and hence to again paint them in Silver would have been additional day and work load for the dealer. SO when I requested them to use body colour for grill and fog lamps they agreed really fast.

[kailashnj]

Hi Guys,

I had a question for all of you here. How many days does it take for the car to get registered and for us to get the numbers. Its almost 7 days now and I have still not got my car's registration number and due to which I am unable to use it. Contacted dealer and he is saying that it will be done by 30th of the month. I am really surprised at this answer as that mean's the car will be without registration for 12 days. Strange.

Can someone kindly tell me how many day's does it take.

Regards,
Kailash

[a4anurag]

Originally Posted by kailashnj

Hi Guys,

I had a question for all of you here. How many days does it take for the car to get registered and for us to get the numbers. Its almost 7 days now and I have still not got my car's registration number and due to which I am unable to use it. Contacted dealer and he is saying that it will be done by 30th of the month.

Have you asked for any special number or the RTO you visit is to busy?!

In certain states and cities the delivery is not done without a permanent number on the vehicle (Like Mumbai, Bangalore) but in some places 30 days from sale date is given to customer to get a permanent number, till then using the vehicle on T/R is allowed. Here in Hyderabad the time period is 30 days from sale.

Anurag.

[puchoo]

Many congratulations , a nicely written and exhaustive review. I love how the car looks in the first picture !!

[kailashnj]

Originally Posted by a4anurag

Have you asked for any special number or the RTO you visit is to busy?!

In certain states and cities the delivery is not done without a permanent number on the vehicle (Like Mumbai, Bangalore) but in some places 30 days from sale date is given to customer to get a permanent number, till then using the vehicle on T/R is allowed. Here in Hyderabad the time period is 30 days from sale.

Anurag.

I have not asked for any special number and I did get the car delivered without number in Mumbai. I am still not sure why the delay.

Originally Posted by puchoo

Many congratulations , a nicely written and exhaustive review. I love how the car looks in the first picture !!

Thanks a lot.

[Rajain]

Hi Kailashnj

Congratulations on the new set of wheels. I appreciate you going through my thread and the fact that it could have helped you in your decision making. I compliment you for the review. It is very detailed and balanced.

I have now spent 13 months with it and in fact just 2 days ago returned from another long trip. This one though was only till Pune/Shirdi but I spent a few days travelling locally and clocked nearly 3K within 6 days. In some places I drove through huge craters (25 kms before Shirdi on the Ahmednagar Shirdi road) and at other places I drove through 2 feet of water.

I have not heard the famed Maruti rattles - save the driver seat. The vehicle has so far been trouble free and more important niggle free. Reliability, cost of ownership, availability of spares, flexibility and of course economy were my prime factors for choosing this one. I did not want to spend more than 2 days per year at a workshop and I can say so far its holding up to the choice.

Wishing you thousands of safe miles.

Cheers