[shantyrocks]

Great review dippy..!

sx4 owners have commented regarding the lack of power at lower RPMs .
What do you feel about this one.?

[GTO]

Great review Dippy! Thanks for sharing. Since you are an owner of the OHC AT, and a keen follower of automatic cars, this review has invaluable perspective.

Originally Posted by Dippy

At a first glance there is not much of a difference in looks if seen from the naked eye.

Not a bad thing. The SX4 is a pretty decent looker. I see one in white around my area. With nice after-market alloys, the car looks substantial.

The SX4 now comes with 16" 10 spoke alloys and 205 profile tyres.

I am a little concerned of what 16 inch wheels will do to the SX4's ride. It is stiff to start with!

Fire up the engine and you notice the difference right from the word go. The new unit is much more refined than the earlier one. Slot the shifter into D3 and the car slowly surges forward.

The shifts are smooth and you dont feel the jerks as the car goes through the gears. Kickdown is fun and the AT drops a gear and shoots you forward. The earlier SX4 used to sound pretty rough at high speeds ( other SX4 owners on the forum can give their opinion on this) but this is way better. This VVT loves to be revved and sounds much sweeter.

Marked step forward. The previous SX4 engine was rather unrefined & buzzy. A better engine + a competent automatic gearbox (seems to be from your review) make it suited to urban buyers. The SX4's new position not only offers a differentiator over the Dzire, but takes it to an even more premium pricepoint. The only other petrol AT sedan is the Honda City, but its priced much higher. Look forward to gauging the markets response.

[Vid6639]

Originally Posted by GTO

I am a little concerned of what 16 inch wheels will do to the SX4's ride. It is stiff to start with!

The SX4 always came with 205/60 tyres on 16" alloys. They have only changed the alloy pattern this time. The size remains same.

The VXi has 195/65-15 tyres on steel wheels.

[Dippy]

Originally Posted by vid6639

The SX4 always came with 205/60 tyres on 16" alloys. They have only changed the alloy pattern this time. The size remains same.

The VXi has 195/65-15 tyres on steel wheels.

Yep I was only referring to the new alloy design only. 205s have always been standard on the Zxi since day one.

[sgiitk]

One other point - does the AT box have a torque converter lockup?

[Dippy]

Originally Posted by sgiitk

One other point - does the AT box have a torque converter lockup?

You mean a shift lock? Yes it does.

[CrAzY dRiVeR]

Originally Posted by sgiitk

One other point - does the AT box have a torque converter lockup?

Originally Posted by Dippy

You mean a shift lock? Yes it does.

Can someone explain?

Is this to hold a gear without shifting? (For eg: while overtaking?)

[Dippy]

Originally Posted by CrAzY dRiVeR

Can someone explain?

Is this to hold a gear without shifting? (For eg: while overtaking?)

A shift lock is a button generally found next to the gear lever in AT cars. When shift lock is activated, it prevents shifting of the gear lever when it is in the Parking position. The SX4 does have a shift lock button. Infact even the OHC has a shift lock but that feature was not given on the car sold in our market. It is however mentioned in the owner's manual though.

[mkc15]

Originally Posted by CrAzY dRiVeR

Can someone explain?

Is this to hold a gear without shifting? (For eg: while overtaking?)

Torque converter in some AT cars (non-DSG ones) come with an add-on feature called "lock-up clutch", which when engaged, can provide mechanical coupling between input and output shafts. An AT box without this will have fluid coupling all the time, which inherently results in power losses and lower FE.
'Lock-up' clutch is engaged when the car is cruizing as a constant speed and the tranny does not need to shift gears. This helps get better FE.
I'm not sure which AT cars come with 'lock-up' clutch. I do hope that Civic AT has it!

[Mpower]

Originally Posted by sgiitk

One other point - does the AT box have a torque converter lockup?

Sgitk, most modern ATs today come with TC lockup feature. I am 99% sure this one does too.

shift lock is different

[vnabhi]

Originally Posted by GTO

.

The SX4's new position not only offers a differentiator over the Dzire, but takes it to an even more premium pricepoint. The only other petrol AT sedan is the Honda City, but its priced much higher.

Doesn't the Verna petrol have an AT version? Or is that limited only to the CRDI Verna?

[vvrchandra]

Originally Posted by vnabhi

Doesn't the Verna petrol have an AT version? Or is that limited only to the CRDI Verna?

No. Verna does not have an AT version in petrol. It is only available in diesel variant.

[B103]

I got a chance to test drive i20 AT and SX4 AT in ORR Bangalore. Both are different cars with their own strenghts. I thought a comparison is warranted since prices difference between the cars is not very high. Below are some of the points which I noticed during the test drives.

i20 AT:
1) Loaded with features. Even many sedans are not loaded like this.
2) Pickup is quite good. With 3 passengers of 75 kg+ weight and AC on, I didn't find the performance as exceptional though
3) Though AT gear box is not CVT, I didn't feel the gear shifts. Good
4) Breakes -- I really loved them. With disc breaks for front and rear, it inspired lot of confidence
5) There are AC ducts for the rear passengers too. Great in hot Indian summer
6) If two tall passengers are sitting in the rear seat, then driver's view via rear view mirror is obstructed
7) Ground clearance is tad low at 165 mm. ORR in Bangalore has a couple of speed breakers and the card did not scratch any. However, I suspect it will on roads with unscientifc speed breakers
8) Steering is very light. Even lighter than my Getz
9) Boot space looked the same as that of the Getz
10) Accelerator pedal was a bit tighter when compared to my Getz. This might be a problem specific to the test car which Hyundai offered me
12) A/C is good but nothing to rave about
13) No arm rest for the rear seat. I don't think there was one for the drive too though I am not sure about the driver seat

SX4 AT:
1) Very spacious. I took TD of SX4 immediately after driving i20 AT and found SX4 much more spacious than i20
2) Acceleration is good and much better when compared to i20. Though not a CVT, I didn't feel those gear shifts
3) Boot is massive
4) A/C cooled the cabin within seconds. In fact, we switched off the A/C half way through the test drive because we felt it is cold inside the cabin
5) I floored the accelerator pedal and felt that pick up is very good. Much better than the i20
6) Driver seat can be height adjusted albeit in a crude way by pressing a lever. It is not electically adjustable as I have seen in foreign cars. Still something is better than nothing and this feature improves visibility. Some people gets more confidence when they can see the front edges of the car
7) Engine was a bit noisy when revved
8) No rear A/C duct for rear pasengers
8) No arm rest for the driver seat
10) Breaks were good. I felt i20's were better


There is little difference in prices of SX4 AT and i20 AT with sunroof. Mileage too is close to 10 KMPL for both the cars. In my personal opinion, SX4 AT is a better buy because of the space, power and the resale value. What do you say ?

[CrAzY dRiVeR]

Originally Posted by B103

i20 AT:
1) Loaded with features. Even many sedans are not loaded like this.
2) Pickup is quite good. With 3 passengers of 75 kg+ weight and AC on, I didn't find the performance as exceptional though
3) Though AT gear box is not CVT, I didn't feel the gear shifts. Good
SX4 AT:
2) Acceleration is good and much better when compared to i20. Though not a CVT, I didn't feel those gear shifts
5) I floored the accelerator pedal and felt that pick up is very good. Much better than the i20

i20 being 100ps, and SX4 having just 4 ps more than i20 (and heavier as well), i guess Suzuki has finally got its AT box right!

Now, if only they could launch an AT version of Swift, for the next refresh!

[B103]

You can view a nice video about the new SX4 here. I guess probably posted from Maruti itself.

YouTube - Suzuki New Sx4 VVT details

As he mentions, the automatic gear is the same as used by Suzuki even in other premium models everywhere in the world. Looks to me then that Suzuki has only 4 speed automatics and not 5 speeds in it's disposal.