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16 years & 1,30,000 km with my Swift Dzire: 8 likes & 5 dislikes

17th April 2024, 14:42 by Ananth Iyer

Due to the NGT verdict, it was not possible to keep the car more than 15 years, and I was quite disheartened by it. This car has been a fundamental part of my childhood.

BHPian bansal.sushant recently shared this with other enthusiasts.

Most people write their ownership reviews at the start of their ownership journey, I am writing this when my long ownership journey is about to come to an end.

This review may not be helpful to many, since I doubt people will now be looking forward to own this vehicle, but I am sure it will be helpful to a minority; either by getting some insights or be reliving their nostalgia with the vehicle in question.

Likes:

Absolute reliability - Had never failed me in 16 years and has never not come alive within one ignition.
Boot space - We got CNG fitted in 2011, and it still had enough boot space to carry the luggage! Comparable (or even more than some) C2 sedans of current generation.
Cheap maintenance - Parts aren't expensive and widely available. Even the ASS service does not break your bank.
VFM - I can't believe that a full size (non sub 4m) sedan was bought for ~ 6L back in 2008, what does that fetch you now?
Lovely engine - While it's quite old in the tooth, I still find the engine peppy enough!
Seating position - The seating position is quite high up for a sedan, and you feel confident.
Great GC - While it is okay on paper, I have never scraped the car in it's 16 years of ownership; can't say the same about the other cars we've owned (Esteem, City)
Nimble & great handling - It is not a small car; but feels very nimble and has great handling.

Dislikes:

Rear looks - It feels a little awkward, not bad looking, but not gorgeous either.
Basic MID - Just the odometer and tripmeter. No info about fuel consumption, DTE, etc.
Not made for high speeds - While it's quite peppy in the city and can touch 3 digit speeds, once it crosses 100kmph, the NVH level goes out the window and it doesn't feel very very stable, definitely not as good as Honda City.
Brakes - While it does the job, nothing to write home about.
Weak AC - While it isn't bad, gets the job done; but not as good as that of others.

Where it all began

My dad was using the 1996 Maruti Esteem for work and my mom was using a M800 for household chores. All was well and we were happy with our garage. While in pristine condition, the Esteem was starting to show its age in 2008, more psychologically than actually. And then, Esteem's AC went off. We tried to get it repaired but no avail. At the end, we were suggested to replace the entire AC system and that had a steep cost (30k+), something we didn't want to spend on a 12 year old car.

With some repairs here and there, the AC started working but it wasn't effective if multiple people were on board, so this started the search for an upgrade. It wasn't urgently required since dad mostly travelled alone and AC was working okay for that. This new car search was going in the background. The requirements for this car were basic. It should do whatever our Esteem did, equally if not better in terms of performance, space, reliability and fuel economy.

It was the time when a revolution was taking place and each year's model was significantly more modern than that of last year (as opposed to a 4 year cycle now), so keeping that in mind, of course there were a few basic expected upgrades: Power steering, better AC, better music system.

Alternatives Considered:

I don't remember why (I was just 12 then), but we only went to Maruti dealership, so only Maruti cars were considered.

Maruti Swift - This was by then abundant on the roads, but still gave the feeling of relatively a new car (3 years old, but that time new model launches weren't often). We really liked the car, it was a great mix of sportiness, comfort and easy on the pocket. It was selling like hot cakes and we had heard only positive things about the Swift, so that was quite assuring.
Maruti Wagon R - This was less sportier than the Swift, but had years of reliability to back for it. It was what you call the safest option, does not pull anyone's but does not offend anyone either. Rarely people will love it, but no one will dislike it.

Actually, that is all. Swift was slightly higher on the priority list and we were just about to book it. Everyone was happy with the decision. The only thing that was lacking was proper sedan level boot space. My dad needed it for work purposes, but could have managed most of the times with that of the Swift, and rest of the times with the backseat.

I was a kid (12) so my source of car information was Google Images. :P I used to keep searching for various car models and wallpaper worthy images. I had recently learnt paint (and basic photoshop) so used to keep changing colours on above found images. During one such search, I came across an image of an awkward looking Swift with a boot. The image was very small and un-detailed. I didn't know if it was real or fake. While we were at the dealership a few days later, and were about to book the Swift. I mentioned this to my father, that they may launch Swift with a boot. He was quite surprised and asked the SA, who had no clue about it (idk if he was pretending). My dad took an instantaneous decision to hold the booking for now and wait for a bit, on a hunch. Weeks passed by, and it was forgotten.

Then the rumours started coming about some new Maruti car being launched, maybe Swift with a boot. And then came the renders. Eventually they started the prebooking. We called the dealership and booked the Dzire without having an exact idea of how the car looks and drives (since it was not unveiled by then). There was already months of waitlist! Everything was done on the phone, even the variant and colour selection!
Soon the car was unveiled and coming on the roads and we were quite happy with it.

From Maruti Esteem to Swift Dzire -> from one G13B to another seemed like a natural upgrade!

P.S. We had neither taken a test drive of the Dzire, nor the Swift! It just felt right.

Alternatives Not Considered:

Maruti SX4 - I don't know of the exact reason why it was not considered, maybe because it was a few lakhs more expensive than the Dzire, without offering much.
Honda City - In retrospect, I wonder why was it not considered.

Delivery:

After months of waiting, we finally got the delivery date! 27th May 2008! VXI variant and Metallic Beige Colour.

The delivery was uneventful, however something happened after that. We went straight to the Mandir, got the basic Pooja done and then went to the Petrol Pump to get a tankful. Somehow this station was quite cramped and the agent kept asking us to move the car left and right and left and right, got quite confusing and frustrating. Once the tank was filled and we were trying to exit, heard a "bump"! Apparently the car had hit the fuel pump slit (the bottom marble area on which the pump is there). It left a huge dent on the right side area below the doors. That huge dent is still there, it was never repaired!

Fortunately, that has been the only major dent on the car in the last 16 years!

Overall Experience:

One word: Satisfactory.

The Dzire has a lot of likes and dislikes (mentioned above), but it was the best decision taken at that point of time. It was serving my dad perfectly for 6 years! And then it was passed to me when I turned 18. It has dawn many hats with the role of a family car, a highway cruiser, a daily errand car, a college car in hands of a teenager (18 & 19), and now a beater car; and it has dawn them all quite well.

If someone asks me to back to that time and retake this decision, I would take the same decision eyes closed.

In 2011, the Dzire was CNGified and the same was attached to RC, at that time it had completed some 40k kms. From then to 2014, the running was quite high. I think it reached 80k kms by 2014 (6 years); and now in 2024 it has reached 130k kms (50k kms in next 10 years!).

From 2014 to 2022 the car's running kept decreasing gradually, mostly due to changing times and newer cars in the garage. Due to the NGT verdict, it was not possible to keep the car more than 15 years, and I was quite disheartened by it. This car has been a fundamental part of my childhood.

As it turns out, in 2022, I had to move to Hyderabad for a new job. I decided to bring Dzire from Delhi to Hyderabad. at that time, the car was 14 years old.

I got the NOC for it from Delhi, paid the road tax in Hyderabad (still more than 2x the amount I paid for the new car in 2008), and got it registered here! I also was able to get the RC renewed till 2028. This entire journey of DL -> TS took 3 months and costed me ~60k, but it was well worth it, cause this allowed me to retain my lovely Dzire in a new city. It was back to being a daily driver from a household beater (4th car of garage)! And I must say it has taken up that role very well. I couldn't have imagined living in a new city without my baby Dzire.

I have often driven my friend's car, and whenever I drive any 1.2L NA, be it the i20, Altroz, or Sonet, I feel like my 16 year old Dzire has a similar acceleration, and maybe even better driving dynamics! I obviously can't compare basis features or with ant higher capacity engine. But, this fact really shocks me! Have engines not changed in the last few years? My 2010 Honda City also drives same as a 2023 Honda City/Creta.

As it completes 16 years, I am soon looking to upgrade to something more powerful, safer and more modern, but Dzire will always stay in my heart - as the car I 'desired' when I was 12, to the car I started driving on, and to my companion for 10 years.

They really don't make cars like this anymore!

Other Noteworthy Points:

We did not avail any extended warranty or service package, partially because that it didn't exist back then, but in retrospect, never felt like we needed it. The car is RELIABLE.
Swift Dzire came with the G13B 1.3L Petrol engine, same as Swift and Maruti Esteem till 2010. In 2010, the engine was updated to the K series 1.2L Petrol engine for better emissions.
We picked VXI, which was the most popular variant then. I have rarely seen any ZXI, but that is the variant to get if buying used. It comes with Airbags, ABS, ACC, Alloy Wheels and Steering mounted controls!
The car was fairly equipped for its age, but feels a little barebones, yet sufficient even now. I have added a Bluetooth transmitter to connect to my phone, and it works fine. The speakers are decent for everyday use.
While the car is >4m, the backseat is just sufficient. Not something to write home about, but no one will complain. The boot is huge!
The same car was released as Dzire Tour for the cabbies and we still we plenty on the road, so service and part is not an issue at all. Any car that is liked by cabbies is sure to be reliable, fuel efficient, and spacious.
Engine performance is decent in the city, it is peppy, but just average on the highway. Overtakes are slow, and the engine gets sluggish post 100kmph.

Adding some pictures below.

Looking fresh and hot even after 16 years