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Our new Maruti Brezza VXi MT: Buying experience and a detailed review

30th April 2024, 16:33 by Utkarsh Chaudhary

The car is tuned for fuel economy. After driving sedately, I could see a fuel efficiency of 25+ km/l on the MID.

BHPian ashis89 recently shared this with other enthusiasts.

Two months ago, RoadRunner went away and in came a new dude to take its place - Maruti Suzuki Brezza VXI MT. Bigger, stronger, better in every possible way than the outgoing car… or is it?

The yellow-eyed boui!

The Good

Simple and reliable NA engine which is E20 compliant
Refined engine with good low-end performance
Good fuel efficiency
Light steering and light clutch make it a breeze to drive in the city
Standard safety features and based on a safe platform

The Bad

Engine doesn’t rev as cleanly as the predecessor
Engine runs out of breath fairly quickly along the rev range
Seats are not comfortable
Headlight throw is average
A super boring design in a sea of swanky cars
Steering doesn’t return to centre post a turn
Limited suspension travel

And the ugly…

Cost cutting in the interiors and exteriors is clearly evident
Uneven fit and finish in many areas
Criminal act of adding rear seat belt reminders without providing any weight sensors

Requirements and purchase decision

The outgoing car, fondly called as RoadRunner, was a WagonR inching towards its 13th year. In the last few years, it had covered fewer kms but had suffered some bruises and felt its age. My father is the primary user and he loved the WagonR. It was compact, had upright seating and easy to drive. With excellent visibility, it was a breeze to pilot around on narrow busy roads. Being an old car, he didn’t flinch when the car got a few bruises. And it was a Maruti. All the features worked without fail and local Maruti dealer Sky Auto took good care of it. Also, the usage was 1000 kms per annum, maybe 2.

Why change something that ain’t broken?

The car felt its age. The windshield had picked up scratches which caused a lot of glare while driving at night. The interiors rattled on bad roads. The paint had picked up scratches as well. The lack of low-end torque on the K10 engine made the city drive frustrating at times. Fixable issues but spending 50k on a 13-year-old car didn’t make sense. Also, the car felt small at times when we were full house.

Should have more space than the WagonR yet not too big for daily use
Should be easy to drive with good visibility all around
Should have a strong AC to beat the humid climate
Should have good driveability with good low end torque
Should have rear camera, parking sensors
Should be a Maruti and should be a manual (father’s clear requirements but more on that later)

Then why not another used car?

It had to be a new car. My father’s first car was a used 2-year-old M800 (back then needed a car immediately without a waiting period) which stayed with us for 11 years. The second car was the used 2-year-old WagonR (saw a good deal and I bought my first car) which stayed with us for another 10+ years. This time I wanted a new car for him. One should experience the feel of a new car at least once in life. This had to be it.

Contenders:

Baleno/Swift: My father was impressed by the Baleno as it was a popular model, spacious and looked good. But I have spent considerable time with this model and I suggested the Swift instead. Same engine, upright seating and better visibility. He agreed.
Dzire: After agreeing on Swift, he said he should get a DZire instead which is a slightly bigger and a sedan. But it is old and from a dying segment. His current office ride is a WagonR or a yellow plate Dzire and too common on our roads. And he also experienced that the new Dzire is not comfortable on longer trips.
Jimny: Some time last year when Maruti announced discounts on the Jimny, I pitched the idea to him on a Sunday afternoon – how about getting a Jimny? He never heard of the model and was curious. So I sent him a few pictures of the Jimny. Minutes later he calls me back and says that the Jimny was a Maruti Bolero. A Bolero SLX was his ride for many years when he was in service. He can’t drive such a car as his personal ride. End of discussion.
Brezza: A few months ago, I drove a Zoomcar Urban Cruiser on a 600 km trip, on good and bad roads. I have also driven the S-Cross petrol for 2000+ kms as well as TDed the Ciaz petrol which has the previous K15 series engine. I knew the engine was perfect for city use and managed to do the job on the highway. And the Brezza felt like a bigger and more comfortable WagonR which addressed all its shortcomings. My father was surprised to know the Brezza was marginally costlier than a Dzire. His thought was that the car was successful in the market, sold/serviced by Maruti, looked good, was reasonably priced and hence, a good choice.
Grand Vitara was another option but it would be big for a small city use. Given the use case of 1-2 people using it within the city on most occasions, GV would be an overkill. Some suggested to check out the Fronx as it was the new SUV on the block but I could never digest its looks. The smaller engine was another factor so we never checked the car in the first place.

Other brands didn’t stand a chance as it had to be a Maruti after all.

So Brezza was finalized. Father wanted me to book the car but I forced him to take a test drive first. And yes, only Brezza was test-driven, rest were struck off on paper.

Variant and color

This was easy to decide. White was dull, red and blue were too loud, khaki was an oddball, black was unavailable in the lower variants. Between grey and silver, the latter was preferred by all of us unanimously.

Among the variants, I chose the VXI as it had all the essential features that we were looking for and then some more. ABS, airbags, ESP, rear head-rests, rear AC vents and an Android Auto-equipped head unit were important. Hill Hold Assist, automatic climate control, power-folding mirror and steering-mounted audio controls were bonus features.

Test Drive Experience

Checked online for the nearby dealers and booked a home TD visit. A week went by and nothing happened. Then reached out to a few contacts in a local dealership, Sky Automobiles and asked to get me a test drive. That did the trick and I got a call from the sales team asking when they can come for TD. Any morning worked for my father and me but they should call in advance and come. So they offered to come the very next day and also confirmed that we were looking for a manual car.

Next day they arrive in a red dual-tone Brezza ZXI+ AT. I wasn’t sure how else could I have been more clear about needing a manual car. Nevertheless, we went for a short drive. Asked the driver and SA to drive while I and my parents got on the rear bench. It was a squeeze but doable. Leg space worked for us and the rear AC vent too. Next, I asked them to get us a manual car only.

Next day, the team got a manual Brezza ZXI+ in the same dual-tone shade. I did a TD for 0.2 km (not a typo) and got my answers. Then I handed over the car to my father and asked him to go on a longish TD with the driver. Meanwhile, me and the SA walked back the 200 meters to discuss about exchange offer and price.

Booking and delivery

The SA from Sky was a very nice guy. Brezza was one of the rare models not running any discounts but he mentioned he would try for the best deal possible since he knew I came from a reference. They also had the car readily available in stock. If I booked today, they could deliver it in 2-3 days.

On the other hand, my father found some contacts at another MS dealer, Jyote Motors. Jyote promised my father to match and better the deal that we already had from Sky. So finally, I paid the token 11k and booked the car on Jan 20 2024, with Jyote - a Splendid Silver Brezza VXI MT. Delivery was promised within Jan and we were in no hurry. I also explained the situation to the Sky team and thanked them for their diligence.

No hurry is fine but I wanted to know a tentative date when the car would be available. We were in February and Jyote only had one thing to say always – disruption at the MS plant and hence, dispatch was delayed and he would confirm in 2 days. Those 2 days never came after a few follow-ups. My father was irked as well. I spoke to a friend who confirmed there are no issues with Brezza dispatch.

I didn’t like this opaque, unethical approach. So on Feb 15 2024, I called up the Sky team and asked if a silver Brezza was still available with them. That piece was already sold but they were ready to place an order immediately and get it dispatched from the factory in the current lot. Promptly paid the booking amount and booked the same variant with Sky. Over the next few days, I was apprised of the status of the car's arrival. The SA came and collected the cheque from home.

On Feb 22 2024, the new car was delivered at my parent’s place after being duly registered, HSRP and basic accessories fitted. All this, within 7 days and everything was done from home. We got some cash discounts, accessories and better exchange price for the RoadRunner. They got a cake for my parents to celebrate the new car. Then they took away the old car on the same day after delivering the new one. Overall, the experience with Sky was very good. Their service team had been maintaining the outgoing WagonR for several years now and we should have stuck with them in the first place.

Meanwhile, I cancelled the booking with Jyote and the amount was credited 1.5 months later after following up once.

Engine and performance

This variant comes with a K15C 1.5L petrol engine which is E20 compliant. It doesn't have the Smart Hybrid setup. Press the clutch and then, you can crank the engine. When cold, the engine is audible but smooth. When warmed up, the note is barely audible at low revs. I haven't pushed it much yet but the engine wasn't 'loud' at higher rpms.

The engine is tuned for low-end response and that manifests in city drive. Slot into 1st(or even 2nd) and release the clutch, the car moves away smoothly. Just like a diesel, this petrol car can climb mall slopes with little or no accelerator input. Our apartment has a rather steep ramp up from a narrow road which requires a sharp 90-degree turn and climb. This car climbs without any A input and no momentum.

In the city, the short gearing means the car doesn’t ask for downshifts. I could potter around at 20 kmph in the 3rd/4th gear or 40 kmph in 5th gear. Out on the highway, the car is quick until 80-90 kmph before the power starts tapering off. Just like the WagonR, it can do 100 kmph@3000 rpm. Short gearing means the car feels quick in the city traffic. Keep the RPM below 2.5k, the car remains peppy but very silent. For my father, this is an upgrade from the WagonR which was lethargic at times and also bogged down by the AC running at all times.

The clutch is super light. I covered 100+ kms on multiple days in city/highway conditions and never had a reason to complain. The gearshift is acceptable with a hint of resistance at times. That 6th is always missed on the highway.

Engine bay doesn't have any paint

Air intake is at the front

Bonnet has insulation

The underbody guard barely extends 1 feet beyond the radiator

Fuel economy

The engine is tuned for fuel economy and that shows in the performance but also while visiting the fuel bunk. This variant doesn’t come with any hybrid assist. Drive sedately and I could see 25+ kmpl on the MID. After driving for 500 kms (70% city/30% highway, 100% AC with idling time), the MID was showing 17.4 kmpl. T2T numbers were 15.8 kmpl. That's a usable range of 500 kms at least. This could improve as the engine opens up further but for a 1.5L NA petrol, I was expecting much less.

Suspension

It is a soft pliant suspension which is good for the city. Sharp bumps are felt with a jolt but smaller ones are masked well in silence. Out on the highway, the body roll can be felt and so do the vertical movements, due to the soft suspension. I felt less comfortable driving this aggressively than my Seltos.

The rear suspension travel is sub-par. In axle-bender situations, the rear tyre can lift up easily. Our parking is the first one next to the boundary wall while the parking space itself is 3ft above the road. While taking the car out, one has to take a sharp right turn onto the gradual ramp down to the road. The Brezza almost invariably lifts its rear left wheel while taking the turn whereas my Seltos never did so.

The underbody is clean without any protrusions and the ground clearance is better than the Seltos. That said, the small plastic underbody guard is barely of any help.

Steering and brakes

Steering is feather light and good for city use and a boon at parking speeds. But the steering lacks feedback and feels lifeless on the highway. It doesn’t return to centre post a turn and that’s another drawback. I was expecting the car to have a tight turning radius given the smaller footprint but I find it no better than my longer and wider Seltos.

It has the new trending flat-bottom steering

ESP button is available to the right of the steering wheel. Aftermarket fog lamp and headlight leveller buttons are also seen in the pic

Brakes are progressive and provide good feedback. Unlike the Koreans, the ABS is well-calibrated. Tyres are wide 215/60 R16 MRF Wanderer Ecotred. This is probably the only Maruti where the company provides the same size of tyres from the base till the top model. Spare wheel is also of the same make and size, fitted on steel wheels like the other 4 tyres. The MRFs are loud on the highway.

Car comes with a dead pedal which I am used to knowing and find comfortable