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Old 21st March 2019, 14:01   #1
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The Ciazzler® | Our Nexa Blue Maruti-Suzuki Ciaz Petrol (Alpha)

Prologue

We live in difficult times in the city of Delhi, where we are forced to part with our much-loved cars at throwaway prices. And then we are faced with the conundrum of buying another. But then, what would we buy?

After driving a diesel 4wd SUV for over 9 years, I'd grown used to some of its features. The ground clearance and go-anywhere ability for one. The torque of the diesel engine that made highway cruising so effortless. Unique features at the price range when it was introduced, were cruise control and tyre pressure monitoring system. So, do I want an SUV with these features again? Or is it going to be a hatchback / sedan? But the biggest questions were, how much would it cost? And would it be new or used?

Well, in the end, we decided to wipe the slate clean, and note down specific criteria that we needed for the car that would replace our Scorpio MHawk 4wd.

Criterion 1: Fuel (and transmission). Diesel-powered vehicles in Delhi can only be used for 10 years as of now, and the government, Supreme Court and NGT somehow hate diesels. Petrols are fine, CNG is better, and electric vehicles are the best. Lately, there has been some extra favour being given to hybrids.

So buying a diesel was out of the question. I like to keep my cars for a reasonably long time, and the prices of diesel vehicles in Delhi are falling faster than a brick dropped from a skyscraper. CNG, not in my wildest dreams - I hate queues just to fill up. Electric vehicles are limited, and don't serve our purpose as a highway tourer. And true hybrids (the Camry being the cheapest of them) are way beyond my budget. So it'll be a petrol.

We debated a while about whether we ought to choose an automatic transmission. But the argument soon went out of the window, because we figured that we have absolutely no need to drive incessantly in crawling traffic, and the clutch pedals of modern sedans are far, far lighter to operate, than that of the Scorpio or Thar. And FE with a manual is better than the conventional automatics available in the cars in our shortlist. End of argument!

Criterion 2: Size and type of vehicle. Well, I'd have loved to buy a 4wd SUV, but there are no options with a petrol engine in this country. If the Suzuki Jimny were on sale, I'd have bought it in a heartbeat. I don't need a 7-seater - the Scorpio had spent most of its life as a 4-seater, especially on highway trips when the third row had been left at home.

But without 4wd, a SUV is, in my opinion, not worth owning - it's just a bigger, taller, more ungainly, fuel-guzzling vehicle. And it has to be a petrol. In any case, the only SUVs that are available with petrol engines are the Hyundai Creta, Jeep Compass, Ford Ecosport (this one is a sub-4-metre vehicle)... which also brings us to the exclusion criterion #3. So a hatchback or a sedan would be our choice, and...

Criterion 3: It will not be a sub-4-metre, sub-1.2L vehicle. Which rules out over half the cars available in the Indian marketplace. So it has to be a sedan. I couldn't shortlist any hatchback which is over 4m long, and has a petrol engine with a displacement over 1.2L. So, it'll be a sedan.

Criterion 4: Cruise control. This much-debated (on Team-BHP) feature is very important for me and my driving style. Some sedans have it, and then some don't. And finally...

Criterion 5: Manufacturer with easy & economic serviceability, widespread network and easy parts availability. Which rules out the Europeans and Americans. And leaves just Maruti-Suzuki, Honda, Toyota and Hyundai in the list.

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Old 22nd March 2019, 12:47   #2
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re: The Ciazzler® | Our Nexa Blue Maruti-Suzuki Ciaz Petrol (Alpha)

The shortlist

We would therefore buy a sedan. And the following 4 vehicles were shortlisted: Toyota Yaris, Honda City, Suzuki Ciaz and Hyundai Verna. There were two more contenders (not sedans) in the shortlist: Suzuki Ertiga and Ford Ecosport.

The Ertiga does not have cruise control, so it was rejected. The Ecosport is sub-4-metre, and space is at a premium here. It was therefore also rejected as a choice.

The Hyundai Verna was rejected on grounds of inadequate headroom in the rear seat. Anyone above 5'3" or 5'4" needs to slouch in the rear seat to avoid rubbing her head on the headliner. Even though I might not spend any time in the rear seat, our daughter would - and she is 5'7". The gap between the front seat and the roof is also surprisingly short, and tall folks need to crouch a fair bit to get in - which, coming from an SUV, is a tad uncomfortable for me. Never mind, I don't even want a test drive in this.

The Honda City is a lovely car, very sporty with a rev-happy engine. Our neighbour has a brand new one, and we borrowed it for a short while. It felt nice to floor the throttle and feel oneself pushed into the backrest. But it isn't happy to trundle around at slow speeds, below 1500 rpm. Typical petrol engine characteristic, undoubtedly, and a bit of a bugbear for someone used for years to driving a diesel. It remained in our shortlist for the time being.

The Toyota Yaris is a great car, but for some weird reason Toyota doesn't want to sell it proactively. Our enquiry for a test drive went unanswered for weeks, and on escalating to their helpdesk, I finally got a TD car sent over very grudgingly - that too, a V manual, not a VX that we asked for. Liked the drive, very comfortable, pulls better than the City at lower revs, felt nice and solidly built, but the rear seat headroom (as well as the rather steep price) was a deal-breaker (though not as bad as the Verna).

The Ciazzler® | Our Nexa Blue Maruti-Suzuki Ciaz Petrol (Alpha)-yaris1.jpg

The Ciazzler® | Our Nexa Blue Maruti-Suzuki Ciaz Petrol (Alpha)-yaris2.jpg

About the price... the dealer refused to offer a discount anywhere close to the Rs.100,000 that was being constantly harped about in various fora and auto portals. It was almost as if I should be the grateful one because Toyota is allowing me to own one of their cars! Well, I do drive a Yaris, albeit an older one, on another continent...

The Suzuki Ciaz was a different kind of experience. I'd sent an online query for a TD and got no response for 3 days. So we walked into the MSIL company showroom (attached to their corporate headquarters) which is walking distance from where I live, on a drizzly evening. Spent some time there, and the lady who heads the showroom (they don't sell directly from there) arranged for a Nexa dealer to provide us with a TD car the next day. As promised, the car arrived the next afternoon. 2 days later, another Nexa dealer responded to our online query, and brought over another car.

And we settled for buying the Ciaz... (and that's not because we had more than one TD!). And it'll be in white, just because all the cars I've owned have been white, and the Delhi summer doesn't make passengers happy in a dark-coloured car.

So the big question: what was it I saw in the Ciaz, that made us choose it? Here goes a summary of the pros and cons.

Pros:

- Brand Maruti. Service, repair and maintenance can be availed of at reasonable cost anytime, anywhere. Delhi also has company-operated service centres (Maruti Service Master).
- The Hybrid tag. Given the uncertainties of owning & driving a car in Delhi-NCR with its 10/15-year rules, imminent introduction of BS6, and the possibilities of the return of odd-even days, a Petrol Hybrid makes more sense than just a petrol.
- Class-leading fuel economy. The less fuel one burns per km, the less one pollutes.
- Build quality. The Ciaz is not the rattly tin box that all Marutis are made out to be.
- Easy low-speed driveability. The Ciaz has much better low-rev performance than any of the other contenders we considered.
- Comfortable, both in the front and rear seats. Compared to the headroom in the rear seat of the Verna and Yaris, this one is much better.
- Big 510L boot. Only the Honda City matches it.
- Excellent LED headlamps and foglamps. Brighter than aftermarket high-wattage halogen lamps, with perfect focussing.


Cons:

- No rear foglamp(s). In a zone where fog/smog is a major cause of crashes for at least a quarter of the year, this is a glaring omission.
- No split/folding rear seat. Luggage carrying ability is compromised to an extent.
- Two airbags, and rear middle seat passenger gets lap belt only. A 3-point harness would have been safer, as also more than just the two airbags.
- Low profile tyres for the top-end Alpha version. How much ever low profile tyres may be upmarket in appearance, they are functionally a disaster for the terrible roads some parts of India still has. We were to find out soon at our own cost.
- That speed warning beep. At 80-120 kmph, the beep is supposed to be once every minute, but is low enough in intensity to be drowned out by music. The constant beep-beep-beep after 120 kmph is a major irritant and distraction while performing an overtaking manoeuvre.
- Less-than-excellent air-conditioning. Despite having rear AC vents, the automatic climate control system does not cool too efficiently in the rear in Auto mode. The fan needs to be turned up manually to get sufficient cooling.

Last edited by SS-Traveller : 7th April 2019 at 11:45.
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Old 22nd March 2019, 15:01   #3
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re: The Ciazzler® | Our Nexa Blue Maruti-Suzuki Ciaz Petrol (Alpha)

Choosing the Ciaz, and deciding on the variant

The Ciaz is different from all the others in its engine and transmission setup. It's notionally a hybrid, but not a true hybrid. A huge generator-cum-starter-cum-drive motor sits behind the engine block, with an additional lithium-ion battery inside the cabin. That is supposed to help in reducing fuel consumption as well as provide some amount of driving power to the engine. We'd find out soon what it can do. But before that, it is good to know that this is being registered in Delhi as a Petrol Hybrid, which will expectedly not attract the ire of the governments and courts, especially on those odd-even days when AQI levels hit 999 and stay there.

The car is not a great sprinter off the block unlike the Honda City, but it is no slouch either. That's good enough for me. But wait... unlike all the other cars which kept stalling because I wouldn't launch them with a bit of throttle input (diesel driving habits die hard), this car would not. It would pull cleanly in first gear from idling revs. And it would not struggle or strain to pull out from 1000 rpm in 5th gear (speedo indicated 40 kmph). This was a car that sounded like a petrol and drove a bit like a diesel! I was enjoying driving this thing around, and not missing the low-end torque of a diesel at all. The clutch was light, the car cornered well, braked satisfactorily, and though the gearshift when moving to reverse was a bit notchy, I could live very well with it (I drive a Thar too, and comparatively, this shift was butter-smooth - so much better than the Scorpio's shift too).

It's also frugal. On the highway for about 20 km, I managed to eke out over 20 kmpl according to the MID display, keeping the speed between 70-90 kmph and using a light right foot. The ride was stiff but comfortable, both in the front and rear seats. The stiffer ride I'd put down to the 55-profile tyres the Alpha version test car came with, and I'd decided that I'd choose a lower variant to get the 65 profile tyres. All I needed was the cruise control feature, which the second-lowest (Delta) variant had. On the day the Scorpio was sold, I put down an advance for a Ciaz Delta in white. I've always had white cars, so why change now?

1 day later, in a conversation with BHPian JKDS, I was given to understand that the LED headlamps of the Zeta and Alpha versions was much better than the halogens of the Delta version. I decided to do a comparison that evening, though I was already planning to upgrade the OE bulbs. At one of the Nexa dealers, they had a Ciaz Delta, as well as their Alpha TD car. When I landed up there almost at closing time, another customer was having some accessories installed in his car, and he had already upgraded to 90w bulbs. So I also got check out his upgraded setup. But the LEDs were a class apart, far better than the light output and spread of the halogens. I decided to change my booking from Delta to Zeta (I'd still have 65 profile tyres, and no leather seats, which is what I wanted). The date of delivery was set for 28th February, the day our daughter arrives from Australia.

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Old 24th March 2019, 13:52   #4
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re: The Ciazzler® | Our Nexa Blue Maruti-Suzuki Ciaz Petrol (Alpha)

Choosing the variant (continued...)

The Nexa dealer started dragging their feet about firming up the delivery date (28 February) and the PDI (27 February), saying MSIL is not allotting them the chassis number. However, they did have a Zeta version in grey, manufactured in 2018, on which there was a Rs.60,000 discount being offered by MSIL (for 2018 stock). Checking the VIN, it turned out that it was manufactured in August 2018 - a 6-month-old car!

I decided to call up friends in the industry to see if the dispatch of a February 2019-manufactured Ciaz Zeta Petrol could be expedited to the dealer in the next couple of days. Unfortunately though, there were no deliverable Ciaz Zeta in MSIL stockyard - the reason being hail damage that ruined about 25,000 cars in MSIL's stockyard 2weeks ago. They did have a white Ciaz Alpha though. The dealer was disinclined to pick it up from MSIL and deliver it to me by the scheduled date, but he did have a Nexa Blue Ciaz Alpha in his stock, with 50 km on the odo. Wife decided that she (and I) had had enough of white cars, that white cars look like taxis, and that the blue of the Ciaz looks beautiful. Who am I to disagree?

So, on 27 February, we, accompanied by BHPian JKDS, went to perform the PDI on the Nexa Blue Ciaz Petrol Alpha with manual transmission. The car was manufactured on 4th February 2019. The running tyres are Apollo Alnac 4G 195/55R16 from 0419 (3 of them) and 0219. The spare is an MRF ZVRL 185/65R15 from 3918 on a steel rim. My misgivings about low profile tyres were shelved for the time being, as were my reservations about driving a dark-coloured car. We were going to have a Red-and-Blue couple of cars at home!

The Ciazzler® | Our Nexa Blue Maruti-Suzuki Ciaz Petrol (Alpha)-img_20190227_14434825501.jpg

An hour later, we'd put down our money, and were promised delivery the next evening. When it came to making the final payment,apart from the difference in cost, we were surpisingly forced to pay an additional Rs.10,000 - because MSIL was offering a Rs.10,000 discount on all versions of the Ciaz, except the Alpha! This left a bad taste in the mouth straightaway, but it was too late to do anything about it.

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Old 1st April 2019, 10:50   #5
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re: The Ciazzler® | Our Nexa Blue Maruti-Suzuki Ciaz Petrol (Alpha)

Delivery

28th February went by in a blur - there were many preparations to be done for a double home-coming. Our daughter was coming home for her holiday today, as was the Ciazzler®.

There was the issue of spring cleaning the house before the daughter arrived, and stocking up the larder with her favourite foods. Then there was the issue of making out the insurance policy for the car, including the transfer of the 50% NCB from the Hawk-on-Fours® to this car. In the end, we picked up a 3-year comprehensive policy including third party, zero-dep, Return to Invoice, driver & passenger insurance, towing cover, fire, riot, floods, the whole works - for Rs.54,xxx from our insurer (UIIC) and sent the policy to the dealer for registering the car.

The Air India flight from Melbourne was on time. We picked up our daughter in TRO®, came home to drop off the luggage, quickly hopped into an Uber, and reached the showroom by 7:45 pm - past closing time for them. The folks there, on special request, allowed us to take delivery so late in the evening, mainly because JKDS knew the General Manager very well.

The Ciazzler® | Our Nexa Blue Maruti-Suzuki Ciaz Petrol (Alpha)-img_20190228_2023514670101.jpg

The car was already prepared - which meant removing all the plastic covers from the seats and sunshades, and no ribbons on the bonnet! The ceremony for handing over the car had to be gone through - cutting the cake, a bouquet of flowers, very desirable box of Ferrero Rocher chocolates (they'd come in very handy during our upcoming roadtrip in the next 3 days), and a coupon for 7 litres of petrol. And we were off to the designated petrol pump to fill up, and then to celebrate at our favourite Mughlai restaurant.

The Ciazzler® | Our Nexa Blue Maruti-Suzuki Ciaz Petrol (Alpha)-img_20190228_202214633010101.jpg

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Old 1st April 2019, 17:16   #6
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re: The Ciazzler® | Our Nexa Blue Maruti-Suzuki Ciaz Petrol (Alpha)

Features, ride and comfort

This is a slightly longer car than the Scorpio (4490 mm vs. 4430 mm length), and a lot more spacious than our erstwhile Swift. For the first 100 km in the city, and the next few hundred km on the highway, I drove carefully, getting a hang of the low ride, stiff suspension, lack of body roll on turns and nose dive under braking (as opposed to the H-4®), and the sheer pleasure of a silent cabin (as compared to the Swift).

The LED headlights are such a pleasure to drive with at night - not as bluish as H-4®'s Minda LED bulbs, and with better brightness, focus and throw. The self-levelling feature of the headlights (only in the Alpha version - Zeta downwards have an adjustment knob) made things more effortless, since the tail of the car does dip significantly when 2-3 passengers get in the rear seat. Turn on the LED fog lamps, and there is additional illumination on the front corners (almost similar to cornering lamps, except these aren't connected to the steering). These fogs are far brighter and better focussed than the fog lamps of the Scorpio or the Swift. For our overnight drive to Kolkata that we left for on 3rd March, the headlight illumination was the main pleasure point. It was completely worth the extra money.

The HMSL is a small irritant. On dark roads, the glow can be seen in the IRVM, and one's eyes are drawn to that. Have got used to it now, so it has stopped mattering. The auto-dimming IRVM is good, but not great - it does send glare to the driver's eyes from a truck's high beam at close quarters. Otherwise, the greenish filter seems to work well for distant high beams.

What's missing is high intensity rear fog lamp(s). Living in a zone where fog is frequently dense in the winters and drivers mostly crazy, I am eternally terrified of being rear-ended by madmen who drive at 80 kmph in fog with <50-metre visibility. Right now, though, I am not installing any extra electrical fittings in the car. The only additions have been door visors, a set of Nexa foot mats (with retaining buttons that prevent the driver's side mat from sliding under the pedals), and a TPMS system with external sensors, which later turned out to be a life saver for us on our trip.

Ingress and egress is comfortable, with doors that open wide, and the seats are not too low (though the Swift had a more comfortable entry and exit). Once settled in, the driver's seat can be adjusted reasonably well, with good lateral and spine support. Though I would have liked the steering wheel to have been reach-adjustable, it is not difficult to find a comfortable and correct driving position. The seats don't tire one out on a long drive, and with the seat height being adjustable, there is ample thigh support for my purposes. The leather-wrapped steering feels nice to hold, though I'd have much preferred having a pair of thumb rests there. As is usual for all cars with steering mounted control buttons, the horn button needs to be pushed by removing one hand from the steering wheel - but then I hardly use the horn. The phone & mic buttons are at an awkward angle, but the audio and cruise control buttons are right where they should be.

The rear seats are not split, which does compromise the flexibility of luggage space (indeed, we had a lot of luggage to carry to Kolkata, to attend a wedding!), but the boot itself is spacious, and I am not complaining. Our daughter had been very impressed with the leg space in the rear, while the wife has been equally happy with the space and comfort of the front left seat. Over the last 5000 km, the seat leather has held up well, and does not pick up dirt marks that I was so afraid of.

The AC is good but not excellent. It does cool well, but takes time to do the job. On searing 40-degree C afternoons, a dark car and a less-than-excellent AC are not the best combo. The rear seat blower doesn't do a good job of cooling well in Auto mode, and the fan needs to be turned up manually. The compressor is a 120cc scroll type unit from Calsonic Kansei Motherson, which reduces load on the engine and makes for better fuel efficiency, but does not make for a great cooling experience. I'll have to live with it.

The Ciazzler® | Our Nexa Blue Maruti-Suzuki Ciaz Petrol (Alpha)-ac.jpg

Last edited by CrAzY dRiVeR : 7th April 2019 at 11:42. Reason: Thanks for sharing. Minor typo corrected.
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Old 1st April 2019, 21:05   #7
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Driving, performance & fuel economy

This is certainly a smooth car to drive, right off from standstill. The engine, with the ISG motor assisting it, pulls cleanly from dead stop at idle in first gear, without any accelerator input. Heck, every time I switched over from the H-4® after a long session to the Swift, I'd manage to stall that 1.3L engine occasionally. This one pulls like a diesel, without the noise and vibrations.

The gearshift is smooth enough, similar to my Swift experience, though engaging the reverse gear sometimes feels notchy, which is not to say that it is really as bad as the Thar's shift! The clutch is delightfully light, and the brakes work well and progressively. The engine does a fine job of pulling the car at low revs, and the graphics on the MID let the driver know how much torque the engine is putting out (on full throttle at low revs, it can even be 100% of the torque), while another graphic shows when the electric motor is assisting with extra torque (and also the times when it is charging the Li-ion battery). The battery charges when the engine is on overrun and above 1500 rpm (though it continues to charge till the revs drop to about 1300 rpm). When the battery runs down to 2 green bars (out of 5), it stops providing torque assistance to the wheels, and at certain times it also disables the auto start-stop feature until the charge builds up again.

Given the torque assist from the electric motor, this car is really quick to build up speed from low revs and high gear. From 40 kmph in 5th gear (1000 rpm), it revs up to cruise speeds very quickly and smoothly with full throttle, making it unnecessary to 'swap the cogs' while overtaking. In these situations, where the Li-ion battery runs down, I'd let the car climb up to 110 kmph or so, then let the engine be on overrun till it settles down to its cruise speed of 100 kmph, determined by the cruise control. That puts some charge back into the battery, for the next overtaking manoeuvre.

Whether it be the Swift, or the Honda City I drove, they've always been really lazy in building up speed when the revs are below 1800 rpm - and here we have a system that makes for so much more relaxed highway cruising than any other small-to-medium petrol engine I've driven. The Thar can match this performance, being able to pull out quickly from even 800 rpm in 5th, but the Ciaz is so much more of a pleasure to drive!

The car corners on rails, with a very neutral poise even at 90-100 kmph - the Swift tended to understeer a bit at such speeds, and I wouldn't have dared to even try those speeds with the Scorpio. The steering remains nicely weighted (not too heavy, nor too light) around corners and curves, and does not exhibit any significant torque steer under heavy acceleration or braking.

The fuel economy varies widely, depending on traffic, driving pattern and weather conditions. The worst, in congested Delhi and Kolkata traffic with the AC working hard, is 13.6 kmpl (tankful to tankful - the MID showed 14.3 kmpl). The best had been 20.7 kmpl, again tankful to tankful, while the MID showed 20.6 kmpl - this was between Muzaffarpur and the first rest stop on the ALE, and the speed varied between 70-90 kmph (cruise control rarely engaged). At a steady 105 kmph (GPS indicated 100 kmph) on cruise control from Lucknow to Delhi, the FE was 18.7 kmpl.

The Ciazzler® | Our Nexa Blue Maruti-Suzuki Ciaz Petrol (Alpha)-img_20190304_15563133201.jpg

The Ciazzler® | Our Nexa Blue Maruti-Suzuki Ciaz Petrol (Alpha)-20.6kmpl.jpg

When running on cruise control, the Li-ion battery does not get a chance to charge, since the engine doesn't run with zero accelerator input. So, when pulling out after slowing down from cruise control mode, the additional torque from the motor is often missing.

The Ciazzler® | Our Nexa Blue Maruti-Suzuki Ciaz Petrol (Alpha)-img_20190314_1449006740101.jpg

In the mountains (we took the car up from Chalsa to a point called Rocky Island, near Samsing, a distance of about 20 km, just to see how it behaved), the Li-ion battery does not get a chance to charge up on uphill runs, so one needs to use lower gears as in any conventional petrol engine, and drive on higher revs. Above 1600-1800 rpm, the car pulls well, and 2nd gear is required for most of the sharper slopes we tackled.

Coming out of a high-ground-clearance SUV, for me the sedan of course has a terrible approach angle and breakover angle (not something that sedan owners even think of). The ground clearance is 170 mm, but in the process of tackling a humongous speed breaker on the SH7 in WB, I managed to cause bumper chin damage (mercifully not very visible), along with a scrape of the underbody...

The Ciazzler® | Our Nexa Blue Maruti-Suzuki Ciaz Petrol (Alpha)-bumper.jpg

The Ciazzler® | Our Nexa Blue Maruti-Suzuki Ciaz Petrol (Alpha)-underbody.jpg

Last edited by CrAzY dRiVeR : 7th April 2019 at 11:44. Reason: Thanks for sharing. Minor typo corrected.
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Old 5th April 2019, 23:24   #8
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re: The Ciazzler® | Our Nexa Blue Maruti-Suzuki Ciaz Petrol (Alpha)

Tyres

Now, as I had mentioned earlier, I've always hated low profile tyres. And this car came shod with 55-profile tyres on 6J-16 alloys. The Apollo Alnac 4G's are nice and grippy, dry tarmac performance is good, and there is very little road noise at speeds upto 120 kmph (indeed, I've avoided going above that speed due to the constant nagging beep that the car makes once 120 kmph is breached). They're stable on high-speed turns and curves, don't squeal, and seem to be wearing well over the last 5000 km.

But a pothole on the NH19 at 70 kmph in JH near the JH-WB border made sure that my hatred for low profile tyres was well proved.

The Ciazzler® | Our Nexa Blue Maruti-Suzuki Ciaz Petrol (Alpha)-tyre-x.jpg

The tyre deflated quickly, the TPMS alerted me equally quickly, and I was parked and out of the car before the tyre lost all its pressure - 15 minutes later, we were on our way again.

The Ciazzler® | Our Nexa Blue Maruti-Suzuki Ciaz Petrol (Alpha)-tyre-spare.jpg

At Kolkata, the 16" wheel rim was not available, despite all efforts. D-BHPian Leoshashi was kind enough to send me the part number, but to no avail - it would take 8 working days to get the part.

The Ciazzler® | Our Nexa Blue Maruti-Suzuki Ciaz Petrol (Alpha)-tyre-part-no.jpg

So, thanks to BHPian dip27in and with the help of Indo-Radial Club at Bhawanipur, I had the rim MIG-welded and the tyre patched, to be used as a spare, and continued the rest of our trip on the spare (thanks to specialist advice from D-BHPian Nikhilb2008, and BHPian & tyre technologist Blooming Flower).

The Ciazzler® | Our Nexa Blue Maruti-Suzuki Ciaz Petrol (Alpha)-tyre-rim-repair.jpg

The Ciazzler® | Our Nexa Blue Maruti-Suzuki Ciaz Petrol (Alpha)-tyre-rim-repair1.jpg

I am now considering a switch to 195/60R16 tyres, which have a 3.3% greater diameter while retaining the same width. Nikhilb2008 & Blooming Flower, or anyone else who's done such a switch, please advise.

Last edited by SS-Traveller : 6th April 2019 at 23:03.
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Old 6th April 2019, 22:12   #9
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re: The Ciazzler® | Our Nexa Blue Maruti-Suzuki Ciaz Petrol (Alpha)

1st and 2nd service

The first service is scheduled after 1000 km, but since we drove from Delhi to Kolkata when the car had hardly run 100 km, I had no choice but to have the first service done in Kolkata, at 1700 km. This was done at Bhandari Automobiles, with a thorough suspension check also done because of the pothole incident. No further damage was found (apart from the damage to the one tyre), and the service was uneventful. Special thanks go to BHPian DJR, who organised the service at short notice, since his brother is the GM of the workshop.

The Ciazzler® | Our Nexa Blue Maruti-Suzuki Ciaz Petrol (Alpha)-service1.jpg

After returning to Delhi, the 2nd service (5000 km) was almost immediately due. I booked my service at the Okhla workshop of Maruti Service Master (MSM).

The Ciazzler® | Our Nexa Blue Maruti-Suzuki Ciaz Petrol (Alpha)-msm.jpg

Apart from routine service, I wanted the engine oil changed - but to my surprise, the folks there refused to change it! After some argument, and apparently with "special permission" from MSIL, they deigned to change the engine oil & filter, but there was a delay because the Ecstar Idemitsu Nexa 0W-16 grade recommended oil was not in stock with MSM Okhla. They procured supplies after a delay of over 2 hours, and did the change - and I found that I had to pay an additional Rs.684.40 (Rs.580 + 18% GST) for the oil change, because "Maruti does not include an oil change in the 2nd free service, so you pay for the labour charge too"! Oh - I was also warned that they will do another oil change at the 10,000 km free service, but they won't charge labour for 'that' oil change!

Sure, I paid up - I prefer clean oils in my engine, even if it means being overcharged on some pretext. But then, at delivery, I discovered that MSM Okhla had gifted me with a few scratches on the left rear wheel arch.

The Ciazzler® | Our Nexa Blue Maruti-Suzuki Ciaz Petrol (Alpha)-msm-scratch.jpg

They did own up to the damage, and I was promised a touch-up repair whenever I can give them the car for 2 days, but I am a bit worried about the quality of the paint match. Will report back here once the job is done, next week.

The Ciazzler® | Our Nexa Blue Maruti-Suzuki Ciaz Petrol (Alpha)-msm-bill.jpg

Last edited by CrAzY dRiVeR : 7th April 2019 at 12:40. Reason: As requested
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Old 7th April 2019, 11:54   #10
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re: The Ciazzler® | Our Nexa Blue Maruti-Suzuki Ciaz Petrol (Alpha)

Thread moved out from the Assembly Line. Thanks for sharing!
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Old 7th April 2019, 18:07   #11
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re: The Ciazzler® | Our Nexa Blue Maruti-Suzuki Ciaz Petrol (Alpha)

Nice write up SSda. I have fallen in love with the colour of your Ciaz. Sad to know about your tyre and rim and really perturbed to know about the scratches, courtesy MASS.

The Ciaz seems to have filled up the Scorpio shoes pretty well.

The recommended oil change for my Dzire Diesel is 10,000 kms, like you, I too prefer the 5000 kms route. Yes, I too was charged the labour cost of oil change during the 5000 kms service. I guess it is fair, as the software does not have the oil change line item in the 5000 kms service. Every time my car goes for the 5000 kms service, there is a delay in invoicing as they have to incorporate the additional cost of the oil change labour.

Last edited by ALTIMAed : 7th April 2019 at 18:11. Reason: add content
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Old 7th April 2019, 20:04   #12
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re: The Ciazzler® | Our Nexa Blue Maruti-Suzuki Ciaz Petrol (Alpha)

Congrats on your new ride.
Wish you 1000's of happy miles. An ownership experience with a Maruti can never go wrong!

Beautifully crafted and detailed ownership review.

Surely, future Sizzler buyers will get benefited from this review! Errr Cizzler (Ciaz)

A pic of your car, i clicked during your visit to Kolkata!

The Ciazzler® | Our Nexa Blue Maruti-Suzuki Ciaz Petrol (Alpha)-img_0287.jpg
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Old 8th April 2019, 08:40   #13
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Quote:
Originally Posted by SS-Traveller View Post
The engine, with the ISG motor assisting it, pulls cleanly from dead stop at idle in first gear, without any accelerator input.
Here's a dashcam video where the car negotiates an unusually steep basement ramp in a mall in Kolkata. The climb up was simply effortless.

Quote:
Originally Posted by ALTIMAed View Post
Nice write up SSda. I have fallen in love with the colour of your Ciaz. Sad to know about your tyre and rim and really perturbed to know about the scratches, courtesy MASS.

The Ciaz seems to have filled up the Scorpio shoes pretty well.
Thank you. Ciaz filling the Scorpio's shoes would be impossible, but it has a unique character of its own. And congratulations to you too, for your new wheels!
Quote:
Originally Posted by ALTIMAed View Post
The recommended oil change for my Dzire Diesel is 10,000 kms, like you, I too prefer the 5000 kms route. Yes, I too was charged the labour cost of oil change during the 5000 kms service. I guess it is fair, as the software does not have the oil change line item in the 5000 kms service. Every time my car goes for the 5000 kms service, there is a delay in invoicing as they have to incorporate the additional cost of the oil change labour.
Hmm... So that's pretty much company policy.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Samba View Post
Congrats on your new ride.
Wish you 1000's of happy miles. An ownership experience with a Maruti can never go wrong!

Beautifully crafted and detailed ownership review.

Surely, future Sizzler buyers will get benefited from this review! Errr Cizzler (Ciaz)

A pic of your car, i clicked during your visit to Kolkata!
Thank you Samba. Lovely pic, that. Yes, the Ciazzler really sizzles in the Delhi afternoons, given the dark colour.

Last edited by SS-Traveller : 8th April 2019 at 08:48.
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Old 8th April 2019, 09:08   #14
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Re: The Ciazzler® | Our Nexa Blue Maruti-Suzuki Ciaz Petrol (Alpha)

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Originally Posted by SS-Traveller View Post
Coming out of a high-ground-clearance SUV, for me the sedan of course has a terrible approach angle and breakover angle ]
I feel terrible for NCR guys, SUV's which have at least a good 5/10 year life left in them have to be traded for this...? I can drive one on good roads in NCR, but touring, hell no, never.

I really don't know, whether I should congratulate you on this car purchase, it sure was a head over heart purchase.
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Old 8th April 2019, 09:49   #15
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...SUV's...have to be traded for this...? I can drive one on good roads in NCR, but touring, hell no, never.
That's not very appreciative of the power of sedans! I just completed a 4700-km trip with the car...
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Originally Posted by Sheel View Post
I really don't know, whether I should congratulate you on this car purchase, it sure was a head over heart purchase.
Head over heart? Not really. The head actually told me to buy an e-rickshaw and an Alto K10 together, one for the city commute and the other for the mountains... And I could have a small public transport business running on the side too, with the e-rickshaw! Never mind my head, the government wants us Delhi-NCR folks to actually switch to e-vehicles (and charge them from streetlight poles, supposedly).

Ignore the rant.
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