[abhisheksircar]

Originally Posted by Jeevith

Aren't you going to post pics of the work from Reflecton? Your car looked pretty sweet after the work. How's the quartz coat holding up?

I'm still in two minds whether to go in for the detailing directly or have the denting (and painting) repairs done first.

Sorry for the super late reply. Have been keeping busy. So here goes the pics. IMHO, these coats are very thin and is a situation of something is better than nothing. The kind of scratches we end up with, with a bike nicking while trying to squeeze in etc, we need a thick coat of ceramic layer to protect.

If you plan to fix them soon, definitely after the fixes.

Originally Posted by kptraveller

Now that many of you have owned the cars for more than an year, could you please share the cost of ownership for the first year please?

Sorry for the delayed response. Here goes the one year quick recap.



One year passed off in a Jiffy. Nah, no credits on this to the Ciaz. So how has it been with the Ciaz ZXi+ for a year.

Kilometers Driven : 15000 km. Most of it has been within the city other than few drives around Bangalore.

Within the City Limits : Soft suspension is the first thing I smile about. It takes in bad roads very easily although over unscientific humps, it's better to slow down if you are fully loaded. Engine is extremely quite and smooth within 2K RPM.

Highway : Soft suspension is the first thing I frown upon. At high speeds, this car is a tad wobbly on uneven roads and not confidence inspiring on turnings at all. Cruises easily at three digit figures and might require a downshift to 4th for sudden overtakes, else overtakes can be taken at 5th without any issues.

Mileage : 13 km/ltr within the city which is with an always on car from point A to B in Bangalore traffic. I would say, commendable for a car this size. Highway is where it still manages to surprise me with a 20 odd km/ltr mileage.

All this info is out of the MID on the dash.

Service : I have been maintaining a service at every 5K km with engine oil and filter change. 10K kms required cabin air and air filter change.

Service Cost Breakup :

1st Service | ~1000 km | ~1500 INR
2nd Service | ~5000 km | ~1500 INR
3rd Service | ~10000 km | ~2300 INR

Total Cost on Service for a year : ~5500 INR. This could be lesser if I had not insisted on Engine oil and filter change at every service. Ideally it's every 10K kms. I am due for my one year service next weekend. Even if I add that, it's about 7K INR. Fully Synthetic 0W20 Shell Engine oil as an MGA at a very reasonable price of about 400 INR/Ltr has been the main contributor to this low service cost.

Other Expenses :

Wheel Balancing at Michelin store at every 5K kms | ~2500 INR Total.
Yearly Detailing by Reflecton at Ultimate Detailerz | 12K INR
This covers exterior detailing followed by quartz coating, interior, engine bay and boot cleaning along with protective coating for the plastics

What I like about the Ciaz

- Spacious
- Well equipped
- Smooth and comfortable drive
- Fuel Efficiency
- The sound of the engine at extremely high RPMs. Funny but true. The Ciaz at high RPMs forgets that it's meant to be a sober car.

What I don't like about the Ciaz

- The AV in it is extremely buggy. I have compiled a video and just before I think it's ready to be edited, I have a new clip to be added. No response, camera stuck at reverse when in forward gears, sudden reboot, hung and what not. Map is probably detailed in plotting but definitely does not show the best route. They should really consider an alternate player and not replicate this buggy system in all their so called premium cars.
- Slight Squeaks here and there. Very minimal but didn't expect at this segment
- You do not get the feel of German build with the door closing with the thud.

Verdict

Absolutely happy with the buy and have got happy responses from friends who bought it after being recommended the Ciaz. Well packaged and a balanced, 'Jack of all and Master of None' car.

Parting Shots of the Car Approx One Year Later








Not a scratch in the last pic as it looks like. Still don't know what

[advaitlele]

Thanks for the detailed review and well maintained thread...and the Car

Have been reading this thread for last 10 days or so, and have gained enough insights on maintenance, detailing etc. Will follow this when I take delivery of my ZXi on Sunday.

[MSMILES]

That is a great report Abhishek. Maruti surely has one happy customer in you. The Ciaz is a wonderful car and I hope you have many more more happy (s)miles with the Ciaz. The color looks awesome and I would recommend you put it on the highway so you can give us the long drive perspective. I am sure you should not face any issues, but the first hand report surely can be really helpful. Happy Motoring.

[rdhan]

Your Thread and the Official Review were the ones I relied upon to help me make up my mind to buy the Ciaz Zxi. & I did Thank You!!

[abhisheksircar]

Originally Posted by MSMILES

I would recommend you put it on the highway so you can give us the long drive perspective. I am sure you should not face any issues, but the first hand report surely can be really helpful. Happy Motoring.

Thanks I actually did take it out in the highway few times.

1. It's a smooth cruiser. Munches miles.
2. Petrol Mileage at 20+ surprised me.
3. Not very confidence inspiring on turnings. Suspension is too soft.
4. Takes in relatively bad roads quite nice.
5. Over Takes are not an issue unless you need that sudden move which requires you to downshift for sure.
6. I would think twice before relying on the map for long drives. It will make you reach the destination but might not be the most preferable one.

Originally Posted by rdhan

Your Thread and the Official Review were the ones I relied upon to help me make up my mind to buy the Ciaz Zxi. & I did Thank You!!

Hearty Congratulations ! Wishing you many happy miles ahead.

[SDee]

Abhishek bhai, Any idea which touch up paint spray to buy for my Dignity Brown Ciaz ??? Need to do some touch ups but am confused on where to buy the EXACT color spray from.

[ptaneja]

@Sdee - man I can see your question pasted on all the threads related to Ciaz !!

Jokes apart, as I mentioned in my thread, maybe talk to nearest MASS..
Or else, if you want to get it done via a professional - refer to this thread >

http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/delhi-...d-gurgaon.html

[abhisheksircar]

Originally Posted by SDee

Abhishek bhai, Any idea which touch up paint spray to buy for my Dignity Brown Ciaz ??? Need to do some touch ups but am confused on where to buy the EXACT color spray from.

I am sorry, not aware of one. Moreover I had a not so good experience with touch up paints. It fades off badly ending up with no other option than to get the panel painted again.

[abhisheksircar]

So the free services are done and it's now time for the paid ones.

I have had no major issues to be reported and hence the service was quite smooth. Oil change with Oil filter change was the only so called major thing which also was not required at 16K kms but I have been changing the oil every 5K.

Oh yes, the other major thing was a software update for my AV which I asked for. I do not see any visual change but I hope this update has resolved the zillion other issues I was facing with the system. I lost all my saved locations with this update but then I fortunately didn't have many. What I got out of this update was me exploring the system more. I honestly was not very happy with the AV and hence never explored it much. This time, the time went for a toss as well, so I went to system. I saw an equalizer for the first time and boy what a miss it was. with Bass at +4, Treble at +2 and preset at 'Rock' this system sounds much better now. What I also liked was changing the voice to English (UK) from English (Indian) which has changed the voice from an Indian teacher to a teacher in UK.

The other thing which I did was to change the armrest to the same fake wood insets which is all over the car anyway. This gives a good presence as per me and yes, I feel this should have been part of the package itself. So that adds up to three MGA accessories from stock. The illuminated door Sill Guard, Racing Pedals Set, which I don't know for what reason misses the clutch, and now the fake wood arm rest insets. I guess I am done and will keep the rest stock.

The total cost of the service was around 8K which included around 4K worth of the accessory. Service cost included Oil Change, Oil Filter, Greasing, 42 Point Check, Blower Cleaning (Was needed), Pollution Check and Cleaning.

After more than a year, I am still happy with the Ciaz as much as I was happy with my Swift.

[sandeshs]

a very detailed ownership review - helped me go ahead and book my vxi+ in April.. thanks to the Baleno which never came even after 4 months of booking!

Here's my take on the ciaz, having done 3100 km over the month & half that i've owned it for:

Pros
1. definitely the most spacious out there in this segment - can comfortably seat 5 and hold loads of luggage
2. One of the most fuel efficient petrol engines in the segment - I did 2100 km with the boot loaded to the hilt, with 5 on board and with the AC always on at full capacity (40+ temperatures outside throughout the journey) and still managed a decent 16 kmpl (the 3M film for the windshield and the llumar ones for the rest, definitely helped!)
3. The most value for money offering in this segment
4. quite good looking (I know it's subjective, but still...)
5. Low cost of spares and after sales. I hate to say that I had to replace the front bumper after I knocked straight onto a small concrete block lying outside my parking space. Thankfully it just cost 7k to replace it with a shiny new one - including painting and labour costs!

And here are the cons:

1. Soft suspensions are a boon in the city but give you no confidence at highway speeds - I had 15" alloys (not sure if the 16" alloys that come with Zxi+ make any difference)
2. Cornering good but not something you'd look forward to
3. The big A pillar leads to a huge blind spot - takes getting used to - given my seating position with a height of 5 6" - I almost missed noticing the two wheeler hurtling towards me while turning right
4. The light, high tensile steel might help get a better power to weight ratio but feels rather tinny.. maybe slightly better than the etios -
5. The engine does have a roar - the cabin isn't noisy but you'd still feel the grunt - especially if you're a little heavy on the right foot - sadly you don't get that power accompanying such a grunt! On the highway, you'll have to shift a couple of gears down while overtaking those slow moving trucks.. but cruising at 110 - 120 kmph isn't a problem..

In all, a good family car!

[createrkid]

Originally Posted by sandeshs

a very detailed ownership review - helped me go ahead and book my vxi+ in April.. thanks to the Baleno which never came even after 4 months of booking!

How'd you get the alloys on the vxi+ variant? I thought they only come on the zxi and zxi+? Did you swap them at the time of buying? If so, how much did you pay?

[sandeshs]

Originally Posted by createrkid

How'd you get the alloys on the vxi+ variant? I thought they only come on the zxi and zxi+? Did you swap them at the time of buying?

Yes that's right, I swapped the stock 15" steel ones with the 15" 185/55 R15 alloys that come with zxi+

If so, how much did you pay?

It cost me 29k for set of 5 alloys.. I was initially thinking of 195/55 R16 16" ones but the entire set including the new 195 tyres would cost around 64k. Maruti would buy back the original R15 steel ones - but at a pittance, since there are not many models using 15" ones.. Also I was not sure how those alloys would sit on the soft suspension and / or impact the efficiency. Did read a thread here and decided to stick with the 15" alloys.

[sandeshs]

Yes - I swapped the stock R15 steel 185/55 with R15 185/55 R15 alloys.. It cost me around 29k. I was also considering R16 195/55 - but that would have cost a whopping 64k, since change in tyre profiles meant I would've had to buy new tyres as well. Also, the price offered maruti to buy back the stock steel ones was very low since they had very few models using 15" tyres.

[docmoya2007]

Great thread there..Sorry for being so late to the party..I love this car ever since it was launched. But as everybody mentioned, the small capacity of the engine is the only weak point for me. And I find the 11 lakhs plus INR for top petrol variant a little on the higher side. I bought the Ford Fiesta Classic 1.6 SXi in 2011 in Delhi for 7.5 lakhs INR. And the engine specifications are 1596 cc, 101 bhp, 146 Nm of torque. Though we don't use all the powers at our disposal, it is still good to know. My question is: is it worth the money? Because I am very interested in getting this as my next car. But will a 1.6 L to a 1.4 L an upgrade? Price wise 7.5 lakhs INR to 11 lakhs INR is definitely an upgrade. And by the way I too am very particular about my vehicle's registration numbers. No doubling of digits, digit 4 should be there. All should add up to 20.

[Jeevith]

Originally Posted by docmoya2007

Great thread there......as everybody mentioned, the small capacity of the engine is the only weak point for me. And I find the 11 lakhs plus INR for top petrol variant a little on the higher side.....My question is: is it worth the money?

Not sure about the ZXI+, but the ZXI IMHO is certainly worth every penny. Reason being, the ZXI+ is approx 50K more for the infotainment system, leather seats & steering, and 1 inch bigger alloys. Abhishek can weigh in here in case I've missed anything.

That aside, the ZXI comes up to approx 11 lakhs in Bangalore. The alternatives in the market (read Vento, Verna, City) aren't likely to give you the same bang for your buck in terms of all the bells and whistles on offer in the Ciaz. Some may argue that Vento and the Verna give you better quality fit and finish, but the Vento would only be marginally better and the Verna's better quality is not worth missing out the features on offer in the Ciaz.

With regard to the small capacity; well your not wrong about it being a weak point. That said, the weakness is mainly felt on the highways i.e. between 3000-5000 rpm (again IMHO). Lower end torque is still pretty decent, you get a decent spurt of acceleration (more than sufficient for Bangalore traffic or rather any traffic for that matter). It's only the top end torque that's a bit of a bother, i.e. the CIAZ might take a little longer to get from say 70 km/h to 120 km/hr than you Fiesta would.

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