[porsche_guy]

Lovely review Nikhil! The ISIS (1S15) Zen is really popular in the Mumbai car circles and rightfully so that you have taken such great care of the beauty!

Can't wait to check it out once I pay a visit to Mumbai. Need a long ride for sure!

Cheers!

[deep1cisco]

This post made me feel so nostalgic! This car was literally my childhood dream! I can vividly remember ogling at the newspaper photos of the Zen before its launch in '93. Before this car came out, I would only read about cars abroad. Nothing else on sale in India during the 90s could be termed desirable Sadly, I never got to drive one, but I would absolutely love to drive one someday. Currently I drive a tuned Golf GTI which makes around 280hp. But I owe my hot-hatch craze to that red Zen I saw for the first time outside my school Maruti ruined the Zen brand by using it for the Estilo :P This car was really ahead of its time.

Wishing you years of fun behind the wheels!

[gautam109]

Wow. What an excellent find! Glad you & your folks decided to go for it. And a great chronicle as well.

My first car had a carburetor too - the Maruti-1000. Loved the surge of power as the revs climbed. Have fond memories of the classic Zen too - very zippy and desirable car, especially for it's time. Remember a road-trip in a friend's lemon-yellow zen in 2001. Zooming over broken / cobble-stoned roads - the faster you went, the smoother the ride got.

[BeemerBug_06]

Originally Posted by ash22

Best wishes mate.
This car reminds me of our ’97 model Zen Lxi Maroon color. We maintained it in top-notch condition and we sold it in 2014.

Very nice Zen there ash22! Looks like a well loved beauty ! I believe this shade was called Ruby Red and came in 1997 after body-coloured bumpers became an option !

Originally Posted by McLaren Rulez

I must say, this thread is such a happy thread. That's what these 90s cars do to our hearts

Totally McLaren !! You said it ! Every time I sit in one of these cars, there's a smile on my face by default. Just the fact that they are so mechanical and pure creates a certain connect with you

[BeemerBug_06]

Originally Posted by advenk999

Hey bud!
Thanks for the lovely review mate! You really brought in that nostalgia, and for a second, I thought this was my car!!
Wishing you zillions of happy miles with her and do keep posting updates!
The next time I'm in Bombay, you got to take me on a drive in this beauty!
Cheers!
Aditya

Thanks Aditya ! Glad to see yet another JellyBean Fan boy here! Sure thing , do let me know when you're in Bombay!

Originally Posted by porsche_guy

Lovely review Nikhil! The ISIS (1S15) Zen is really popular in the Mumbai car circles and rightfully so that you have taken such great care of the beauty!

Can't wait to check it out once I pay a visit to Mumbai. Need a long ride for sure!

Cheers!

Thanks buddy ! Please come to Bombay soon, we shall go for a long drive in good old 1513 .

Originally Posted by deep1cisco

This post made me feel so nostalgic! This car was literally my childhood dream! I can vividly remember ogling at the newspaper photos of the Zen before its launch in '93. Before this car came out, I would only read about cars abroad. Nothing else on sale in India during the 90s could be termed desirable Sadly, I never got to drive one, but I would absolutely love to drive one someday. Currently I drive a tuned Golf GTI which makes around 280hp. But I owe my hot-hatch craze to that red Zen I saw for the first time outside my school Maruti ruined the Zen brand by using it for the Estilo :P This car was really ahead of its time.

Wishing you years of fun behind the wheels!

Wow ! I'm glad I could bring back some good times for you Also, you own the King of all Hot Hatches! Some pics of your Golf GTi would be lovely ! Hahahah, looks like a lot of us owe our craze of hot-hatches to the Zen .

Originally Posted by gautam109

Wow. What an excellent find! Glad you & your folks decided to go for it. And a great chronicle as well.
My first car had a carburetor too - the Maruti-1000. Loved the surge of power as the revs climbed. Have fond memories of the classic Zen too - very zippy and desirable car, especially for it's time. Remember a road-trip in a friend's lemon-yellow zen in 2001. Zooming over broken / cobble-stoned roads - the faster you went, the smoother the ride got.

Thanks Gautam ! Indeed, although the car and engine are both old now, age is no real barrier. The car zips through traffic on Bombay roads even now and give it a smooth road and it will do wonders !

[BeemerBug_06]

Here is a recent picture I took of 1513 at the garage while it was receiving a service and was having the jammed Second Throttle Valve of the Carburetor being opened !



Spot the W123 parked alongside ! Back in the early 90s, a Zen and a W123 often made up the garage of a rich Bombay family


Some more pics of the car after a DIY Clean up, wash, and polish !









Day at the beach !

[dhrishikesh]

(Mr. Period Correct) Wagle Saaheb,
You have got stunner in your hand & I wish you will keep it forever with you.

Here are few pics of #The1513 from my end !
Seeing your Zen always reminds me of my uncle's Zen VXI (MH12AF7953).
Still can't forgot that 2001-02 (?) Diwali's 1st day morning when me & my brother went to JM Road's Sai Service for getting car along with uncle & car being drove to Dadar very next day on newly inaugurated Expressway !
Regards,
(d)Hrishikesh

[deep1cisco]

Originally Posted by BeemerBug_06

Wow ! I'm glad I could bring back some good times for you Also, you own the King of all Hot Hatches! Some pics of your Golf GTi would be lovely ! Hahahah, looks like a lot of us owe our craze of hot-hatches to the Zen .

Here are some pics:








You see, red is my fav color

Feel free to follow my build thread here:
https://www.golfmk6.com/forums/showthread.php?t=83645

Looking forward to where you go with the Zen

[ashwinprakas]

Originally Posted by BeemerBug_06

AND SHE'S HOME!!

Congratulations!

I myself am a proud owner of a 2005 LX Model, last type produced. A decade stands the difference between both our ages as well as our car's ages, though in opposite directions, which (enviously) favors you on both ends.

The differences with the car's being;

• MPFI
• The R134a AC.
• Odo that goes up to 9,99,999.
• 12 Inch Wheels.
• And the obvious face-lift.

As pointed out in this thread, the low end performance of the car(my car) is outright pathetic but once the rev's start climbing its on a whole another level, which is quite the opposite when it comes to the other Zen(Debatable) in the family i.e the F10D Zen Estilo.

Finding spares locally is a task on its own, thankfully Bodomo has come to my rescue several times not to mention the support of fellow TBhpians who also encourage me to work on my own car which is rewarding especially on a Zen as the electricals are simpler and the layout isn't as daunting as on modern offerings.

Ignoring the minor set backs of owning an older car, I would say that this is one of (if not the only) 'must-own' cars in India and if so in non-PS form. The way she handles and the feedback you get from her is priceless, so much that it even gets guys like me who're not predominantly car enthusiasts excited to drive one.

On one occasion a colleague of mine who was also a professional driver in his earlier days drove my Zen for barely a couple of minutes and got himself one within the week.





Mine's the one with the 'AK' registration and Mesh Grill(Couldn't source stock replacement).

PS:- No one stole the LHS mirror , the older Zens never came with one! Since I have bought the car largely due to its originality, I do not intend to put one.

I would suggest you rethink this as this is one of those cars that pushes the driver to do more every time he/she gets behind then wheel and you would really not want to be blind sighted when stuck in a tight spot.

Trust me on this, I've taken my Zen to really tight spots where without both ORVM's I would really not have made it out with the Zen in one piece.

Plus the ideology of optional ORVM's went out the window once the world moved on to multi-lane roads where riding without ORVM's on both sides is plain risky, though yet to understand India's draconian stand in this as I still see new cars on the road with only one ORVM.

[BeemerBug_06]

Originally Posted by deep1cisco

Sorry for the blown up pic! :( I cannot seem to find a way to edit my post. Not very active on this forum

No worries ! I enjoyed looking at the pics of your Golf GTi ! Man ! what a stunner , she had me drooling

Originally Posted by ashwinprakas

Congratulations!

I myself am a proud owner of a 2005 LX Model, last type produced. A decade stands the difference between both our ages as well as our car's ages, though in opposite directions, which (enviously) favors you on both ends.

Ignoring the minor set backs of owning an older car, I would say that this is one of (if not the only) 'must-own' cars in India and if so in non-PS form. The way she handles and the feedback you get from her is priceless, so much that it even gets guys like me who're not predominantly car enthusiasts excited to drive one.

Thanks Ashwin! Nice Zen you've got there. Your Zen's version is often called the 'Tiger Shape Zen' for reasons I still do not know ! Anyway, it is the last actual Zen ! I do not regard the Estilo as a Zen
Ah yes ! Maybe I should re-think putting the LHS mirror for the car, but if I put one, I'd like to have an original shape one only, similar to the RHS one !



Since it's Diwali time, here is 1513 wishing you a very Happy Diwali !

[aveemashfaq]

Differences between Maruti 800 and Zen

• Maruti 800 came with an 800cc 3 cylinder engine vs Zen with 4 cylinder. 800 has cast iron cylinder block whereas Zen has Aluminium. The NVH and revv limit of Zen is way superior to 800.
• 800 was ultimate engineering in cost cutting. It came with 7x6 box headlights that you find on old pickups, the combination switch(headlight and wiper switch) is from heavy vehicles too, dashboard is single piece unlike zen which has multiple pieces, 800 has doorpads made of cardboard with body colour showing up whereas Zen had proper fully covered doorpads, maruti 800 had an excuse for floor mats whereas Zen has proper roof and floor liners, Zen has bigger and better shaped seats supporting long drives, maruti 800 had no power brakes, leaf spring suspension whereas Zen had coil springs.....
• All in all, maruti 800 was budget car with a lot of cost savings built on a multi-purpose platform (actually, there is a pickup version of 800 in Australia) whereas Zen was truly premium.

BTW, I have a Youtube video on how to unjam carburetor. I made it way back when I was a noob. All maruti cars share the same carburetor with different size jets and a few parts here and there. But basically swappable.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gCgS5UcutIk

I envy you. I love a Zen. It was my childhood hero car. But my father owns a Maruti 800 which he bought new in 1995. So, rocking the car today. BTW, who said old cars are crap. I use my 800 even today to cover 300 kms on state highways in a day with two passengers on road trips.

[BeemerBug_06]

Originally Posted by aveemashfaq

I envy you. I love a Zen. It was my childhood hero car. But my father owns a Maruti 800 which he bought new in 1995. So, rocking the car today. BTW, who said old cars are crap. I use my 800 even today to cover 300 kms on state highways in a day with two passengers on road trips.

Thanks for your comments ! Also, that was a brilliant video explaining how to do a DIY fix of a carb, it was certainly very informative and helpful for me, wishing you luck with your YouTube channel and happy miles with your 800

[deep1cisco]

Originally Posted by BeemerBug_06

No worries ! I enjoyed looking at the pics of your Golf GTi ! Man ! what a stunner , she had me drooling

Glad you liked it! Happy Diwali everyone

[kashif_baig]

Originally Posted by HariRE350

Hey Buddy!

This was just what I was looking for. We have the MH410 series 1995 canary yellow Zen even today. My mum drove it to her work place which was 3kms from our home. After 1,00,000 kms the ODO just starts from 0 We are currently at 1.30L kms or so. It still runs like a swiss watch. After my mums retirement, the car has been left unattended and it pains me to see her like this.

I had my heart set on a yellow Zen when I was in College but it was beyond my affordable range then. Later on, one of my work colleagues used to drive a modified Zen of the same color but he had gone a tad overboard in his zeal with the aftermarket stuff that he put on her.

I would love to restore my Dad's old M800 (2004 model) some day to it's old glory.

[Aditya_Bhp]

Of all the cars I have owned, my Zen remains the one with most memories of the childhood. Of course its not as old as yours. Its a 2002 Zen Di, with a 1.5L Naturally aspirated diesel. It was a slouch, unrefined, and noisy, definitely not the choice of an enthusiast. But then the only other diesel was Indica, and the initial versions were terrible. But then this car did 70000kms in 4.5 years, which those days was a lot! Also, diesel was cheaper than Pepsi those days and also the car returned a fuel efficiency of 18kmpl on average.

We had bought it for 4.5Lakhs in 2002 and in 2007, we sold it for 2.75Lakhs, which we considered as an excellent price. The car continues to run even now in the interior rural parts as per Vahan.

I also remember the infamous 'boost button', the boost was more evident on the diesel than the petrol. The top speed was around 110kmph I guess, the car literally started to vibrate once it reaches 100kmph. But no doubt, it was an excellent car, very reliable.