The car is still a delight to drive. The 1.6L G16B engine remains refined and strong, offering excellent low-end torque and smooth cruising ability.

BHPian Armaan Sait recently shared this with other enthusiasts:

Hello Team-BHP,

I’m excited to finally share something close to my heart: our 2000 Maruti Baleno, finished in the rare Atlantic Blue shade. It’s been a part of our family since new, and even today, it continues to turn heads with its classic charm and preserved condition.

Background:

• Year of manufacture: 2000
• Colour: Aquatic Blue (rare shade, barely seen now)
• Odometer reading: 128,000 km
• Usage: Light and careful usage throughout its life, always parked under shade.
• Ownership: Single-family owned from day one.

This car has been loved, not just used. Even after 24+ years, it retains its originality, soul, and smooth driving dynamics that made the Baleno special back in the day.

Condition & Maintenance:

• Paint: 100% original Aquatic Blue factory paint.
• Interior: Entirely stock — original fabric upholstery, dashboard, switchgear, and trim panels intact and in excellent shape.

• Mechanical: Regularly maintained with genuine parts; still drives like a dream.

• Accessories: Still retains the original Kenwood KRC-485 cassette receiver that came factory-fitted (with manual, invoice, and packaging preserved).

Documents:

• Original Maruti owner’s manual, service booklet.

• Kenwood audio manual and warranty card.

• Original envelopes and documentation from Indus Motors.

• Period newspaper clippings preserved alongside.

Driving Experience:

The Baleno is still a delight to drive. The 1.6L G16B engine remains refined and strong, offering excellent low-end torque and smooth cruising ability. The hydraulic steering feels wonderfully communicative — a rarity today. It’s comfortable on highways, composed around bends, and very easy to drive in the city even after all these years.

Why It’s Special to Me:

In today’s world of modern, tech-laden cars, the Baleno reminds me what true mechanical purity feels like. It’s simple, reliable, soulful — and in this condition, an increasingly rare sight. It’s not just a car; it’s a member of the family.

We’ve taken special care to retain its originality, and the documents, photos, and memories associated with it are just as cherished as the car itself.

Some of the Old Pics taken of the Baleno:

Plans Going Forward:

The goal is simple — keep it running, keep it original, and preserve it as a time capsule for as long as possible. Every drive is special, and every glance at it brings back memories.

Thank you, Team-BHP, for providing a platform where enthusiasts understand the joy of preserving a classic like this.

Check out BHPian comments for more insights and information.

The driver and guide positioned the Maruti Gypsy perfectly and the tiger walks past the vehicle within a couple of feet.

BHPian DSK0909 recently shared this with other enthusiasts:

A 'Maha' trip to tick items from the bucket list

Travelogues is invariably the first page that I go to on Team BHP and have been on some delightful journeys through the words and photos of the authors. This is my first travelogue after having read so many excellent write-ups by members. This road trip is to finally complete 3 items from the bucket list which have been on the list for a long time now.

1. Lonar lake:

This one has been on my wife’s bucket list right from 2018 onwards. Also, my son read about Lonar lake when we visited the Birla Planetarium in Hyderabad sometime in 2021. We had in fact booked the MTDC resort for 1 night in Mar 2024 but could not travel due to some work emergency.

2. Drive on Samruddhi Mahamarg:

This has been on my bucket list since Aug 2022 when we visited Ajanta & Ellora. We travelled on a small portion of the expressway and were amazed at the infra similar to the ORR in Hyderabad. Got to know about the Samruddhi Mahamarg connecting the 2 capitals of MH after some research. Then began the following the updates on completion and official opening and the TBHP travelogues.

3. Tadoba Jungle Safari to watch Tigers in their natural habitat:

This has been on my bucket list since I read ramnath_77’s Tadoba Diaries travelogue in Oct 2022 especially the pic of Matkasur exhibiting the Flehman response behaviour. Since I could not get the tickets for Dec 2022, did some research and went on a road trip to Gir all the way from Pune (That’s a story for another time).

The Plan

Since getting the Safari permits is the most difficult, booked the tickets on 05-Oct. Earlier getting permits for the Core zone safari was the most difficult and that too for the Moharli core that was the first to be booked.

The Ride

Our trusted 2018 Baleno CVT which has completed 43K on the odo. Since the servicing was done at 40K comprehensively, did the basic long journey checks: Air, Fuel, Oils & Wiper fluid top ups.

The Execution

Day 1 - Monday (16-Dec): The Travel

Generally, we leave between 6am and 7am for road trips. But I convinced my wifey to start at 4am considering we have to cross Ahilya Nagar (Ahmed Nager) and Chhatrapati Sambhaji Nagar (Aurangabad). I avoid driving in dark but the other option driving in maddening traffic, we chose to leave early. This turned out to be a great decision since by the time we reached our stay in Tadoba it was 6 pm and it was getting dark.

We drove without any breaks till Ch. Sambhaji Nagar and had a buffet breakfast at Click Hotel. We had breakfast at Click Hotel once before and knew that the food there was fairly good and also there was a buffet breakfast (we love buffet breakfasts). Post our breakfast, got a fuel & air top up at Petrol bunk. And we got on to the much famed “Hindu Hrudaysamrat Balasaheb Thackeray Maharashtra Samruddhi Mahamarg”. After the initial excitement went down after about 50 KMs of hard driving at 115 Kmph speed, settled down to 90 – 100 Kmph.

Having read multiple travelogues / updates on Samruddhi, I knew what to expect – cement road and straight as an arrow road. But I could not comprehend why people would get bored of driving on empty roads at 100 kmph. Boy, I was so wrong – after driving for about an hour that too after a sumptuous breakfast I felt my head nod. All the passengers (Wife and 2 kids) were happily asleep. I immediately stopped on the side, freshened up and made a commitment to myself to take a break every 100 kms or 1 hour whichever comes first. The petrol pumps are nicely spaced at every 100 kms or so.

Regarding the quality of the road as I mentioned I was prepared for the road noise. I was really sceptical of the joints on the roads – there were none on the cement portion. But there were joints on the tarred portion on the bridges that were jolting especially going at a speed.

Tunnel carved in the mountain to make way for Samruddhi

Ahhh - after going on the Samruddhi Mahamarg my need for speed was finally satiated. After exiting Samruddhi at Wardha it’s still approx. 120 kms to Tadoba (Moharli Gate). I had to start using the brakes again but I did not mind it because we were so close to the land of the tigers. As we neared the Tadoba buffer zone, we were able to spot some monkeys and spotted deers. We reached the Wagharanya Resort by around 6 pm. We checked into our rooms and settled down. The room was cramped and small - we don’t like cramped and small rooms having been used to Airbnb. The resort co-owner Mr. Mangesh came by to meet us & the first thing he asks us is ‘Did you see the Tiger?’. I was flabbergasted! We had just arrived and missed a tiger sighting. He said there was a tiger nearby the forest gate and people were able to spot it on the road.

The care taker in the resort informs us that there has been tiger sighting on the road in front of the resort quite often. He suggests people go on the road at night in their cars slowly to sight some wildlife/Tigers. Couple of days later another visitor shows me Whatsapp status of his friend where a tiger was sighted on the same road.

Day 2 - Tuesday (17-Dec): First blood

We woke up late as we had the safari only in the afternoon and had some nice breakfast of poha, chai and boiled eggs. It was a good thing that we did not book the morning safari as we needed that rest after the 700+ kms of drive. There was a plan to visit the butterfly world near Agarzari gate in the morning but that was dropped once we woke up late.

Our first Safari was in the afternoon at Dewada Buffer zone. We were at the gate well before time and got the Gypsy allocated. We were the 3rd Gypsy to enter the gate and after about 500 mts after entering from the gate, both the guide and me feel the left back tyre wobble. I get an ominous feeling and the guide confirms that the tyre is flat. The driver and guide immediately start to replace the tyre with the four of us still sitting in the Gypsy. They managed to replace the tyre with a bald spare tyre within 10 – 15 mins. I keep hoping that no other puncture happens as the guide was just telling us that we should not get down from the vehicle at any time during the safari.

For the next 2.5 hours, the driver and guide take us on a whirlwind on the various pathways marked for tourists. I tell the Guide if we can stop to take some snaps of other wildlife like Gaur and Boars. They stopped briefly but they were focussed on making a sighting – keener than us. We get to know that there was a sighting of a tiger and by the time we reach that place, there must by at least 20+ jeeps waiting. We wait for some time and then the guide takes us to a lake where he expects that tiger could make an appearance.

We were almost at the lake when we get to know that the tiger has been sighted and we rush to that place. We just missed sighting the tiger as it went into the bushes. My heart sank when one of the tourists in another gypsy is beaming from ear to ear and says that the sighting was amazing and the tiger was nearby. It's 5 pm now and just 1 hour to exit the gate and the guide is even more determined to make the sighting. When he gets to know of an alarm calling, he asks the driver to drive fast to that place. The driver quickly rushes at 30Kmph to that place and wait. The gypsys cannot go faster than 30 kmph in the forest as they are monitored using GPS. Considering that the forest pathways are not levelled properly, even driving at 30 kmph throws the passengers in the back seat around.

Finally, we get to see what we were hoping – ‘Choti Madhu’ makes an appearance from behind the trees. The Driver and Guide have positioned the Gypsy in such a correct place that the Tiger walks past the Gypsy within a couple of feet. Let the pictures do the talking now:

The Queen emerges

Marking her territory

The tiger sighting was spectacular - all credit to our guide-driver who got us prime spots for viewing our top celebrity ‘Choti Madhu’ doing the catwalk. Choti Madhu was regal and royal and she held her gaze up high with pride. She carried herself with immense grace & dignity and she was a queen in her own right.

By the time the catwalk is completed, we have to start for the gate. Any delay in exiting the gate after 6 pm, the driver and guide are penalized. We had a fulfilling safari experience inspite of the initial scare of a flat tyre.

Day 3 - Wednesday (18-Dec): Fate and Deadly Destiny

Today is the big day with 2 core safaris scheduled in the prime zones of Tadoba: Moharli Core in the morning and Zari Core in the Afternoon. Morning safari starts at 6:30 am and ends at 10:30 am and the afternoon safari starts at 2 pm. The Zari gate being 60 kms away from the resort; we had planned and packed everything. What we did not plan for is 18-Dec to be one of the coldest days in MH. On top of that riding in an open-top Gypsy in the middle of the jungle; all of us were shivering.

Morning in Moharli Core

All packed up but still feeling the cold

Here, I would like to point out the importance of the Guide in the safari experience. The guide assigned to us for the Moharli Core was one of the most unenthusiastic people who was just going through the motions. Made a 15 min stop for making some entries into the register and then a 30 min stop for a relaxed breakfast. The guide was not at all interested in making a sighting and was just following other Gypsys. When he got to know that there were 2 cubs sighted in a thicket, we joined the queue of 20 other gypsys for a glance at the cubs somewhere deep in the forest. They were so far away they very well might have been an odd leaf.

The cubs in the distance

Overall, a forgettable experience on the Safari that I had the most hopes for. Moharli Core being the flagship gate, it has the greatest number of Gypsys entering the forest. The majority of the safari routes are tarred and it felt like a zoo safari. The underwhelming experience of the Moharli core was exacerbated by the indifferent guide and the extreme cold weather.

Other wildlife sightings: Peacock & Spotted Deer

Our guide informed us that this is the State Bird of Maharashtra: Yellow Footed Green Pigeon

We completed our morning Safari and had lunch back at the resort. Left the resort at 12 noon for the 2 pm safari following the Google Maps for the Zari gate. We switched on the maps started following the maps without any 2nd thought. We were in for a surprise when we reached the Khutwanda gate after about 20 mins and then we realized that we followed the wrong route as this one was going through the jungle. After the Dewada gate, I had come to appreciate even minutes and how a minute difference could mean you lose a potential tiger sighting. Now I drove fast so as to cover up the 40 min delay so as to reach the Zari core by 2:05 pm. The resort care taker had noticed that I took a wrong turn after exiting the resort, and he tried calling my number. But he called my wife’s number and her mobile was kept at the resort itself as mobiles are not allowed in Tadoba safaris. Fate and deadly destiny hit us badly today multiple times.

Anyways we started the safari in Zari Core along with the other 5 gypsys and were excited to catch a glimpse of the big cat in a beautiful back drop. Alas, this safari was a washout with no sightings at all although it felt like we will come face to face with the Tiger at any turn as we were able to spot paw prints of Tiger and Leopard at multiple places. The guide and the driver were very energetic and tried their best to get us a sighting – full points for their efforts. The Zari core is a beautiful jungle and going around it is an experience in itself. We bid adieu to Zari with a mental promise to return sometime in future.

Picturesque Zari

Beautiful Zari

Leopard Pawprints

Sambar Deer

To catch a flying bird

Peacock running away frantically from us

Indian Gaur

Breathtaking sunset at Zari

We ate our dinner glumly and then put up a bonfire since it was extremely cold that night. The bonfire with its heat and warmth cheered us up a little bit. We went to sleep snugly hoping for the best for tomorrow.

Continue reading about DSK0909's road trip and jungle safari experience for BHPian comments, insights and more information.

The Maruti Baleno S-CNG competes with the Tata Altroz iCNG in the Indian market.

According to a media report, Maruti Suzuki is likely to introduce a new top-spec CNG variant of the Baleno. The official announcement could be made in the coming days along with the price.

Currently, the Baleno CNG is available in Delta and Zeta trims. It is said that the hatchback could soon be offered in Alpha MT trim and is likely to be equipped with features like cruise control, auto-dimming IRVM, auto-folding ORVMs, a 9-inch touchscreen infotainment system and a 360-degree camera.

The Baleno CNG is powered by a 1.2-litre, 4-cylinder petrol engine, paired with a 5-speed manual transmission. The engine produces 88 BHP and 113 Nm but, in CNG mode, output is restricted to 76 BHP and 98 Nm. 

The Maruti Baleno S-CNG competes with the Tata Altroz iCNG in the Indian market. 

Source: Carwale

We spent around Rs 33,000 on petrol and the average fuel economy that the car returned was 16.3 kmpl.

BHPian arnab.i@gmail.c recently shared this with other enthusiasts:

Kolkata (West Bengal) to Tanot (Rajasthan) and Indo-Pak border via Kanpur, Agra, Jaipur, Bikaner, Jodhpur, Jaisalmer, Sam and return via Lucknow

By the numbers:

• Team size - 4. 2 daughters (aged 12 and 19), Mrs Wife and Myself.
• Total Drivers travelling - One
• Total human weight - ~270 Kg.
• Luggage weight - ~60kg.
• Vehicle - Maruti Suzuki Baleno (2016 Model - Odometer between 60k-70k)
• Distance from home to Indo-Pak border (stretch) - 2400.2 km
• Total distance covered - 5124 km (up and down)
• Number of Days - 11
• Total Toll Paid - Rs 6230
• Total Fuel Cost - 32896
• Fuel Economy - 16.3 kmpl (min - 14.68 kmpl; max 19.39 kmpl)
• Fuel Used - 326.5 Litres
• Fuel Price Avg - Rs 100.26 (Cheapest in UP ~94 and most expensive in Bihar ~109)
• My driving experience - Novice / Newbee to long drives

Our annual Durga Puja vacation led us to set off on this unplanned journey. My silent plan was to hit the places of the famous Bengali movie ‘Sonar Kella’ by Sir Satyajit Ray.

Well, perhaps there was actually a sketchy plan, but no bookings or targets as such. In this thread I plan to document my travel details for travelers who would want to read, understand and discuss their experiences.

The starting post would be about the summary of the trip and the following threads would be about finer details about the day to day events.

Our Vaahan in the beginning

• Day 0 - Start from Kolkata at 2:30PM (minor incident about a dog hit and car being stalled)
• Day 1 - Car repairs and reach Jaipur at 11PM (leaving 2 car repair halts for 6 hours it took 28 hours to reach Jaipur non-stop including fuel and food hails) - Checked-In Hotel Jaipur View
• Day 2 - Sightseeing in Jaipur (Nahargarh, Jaigarh, Rajasthani Lunch, Amer Fort)
• Day 3 - Rest and Sightseeing in Jaipur (City Palace, Jal Mahal, short birding in Jal Mahal - Pelicans, Jantar Mantar, Royal Gaitor, Elephant Village, Gem cutting demonstrations, Hawa Mahal, Shopping)
• Day 4 - Drive to Jailsalmer (via Kishangarh, Ajmer, Jodhpur and stop near Sam) - Checked in Kohinoor desert Camp - Visit Jaisalmer Fort and Gadisa Lake on the way
• Day 5 - Birding in Desert National Park (Saw 3 critically endangered Great Indian Bustards). 2nd Half with desert activities
• Day 6 - Start early and drive to Indo-Pak Border via Gamnewala, Longewala, Tanot. Then drive back Via Ramgarh and Ramdevra to Jodhpur. Visited Kuldhara while return. Checked-In Durag Niwas GuestHouse in Jodhpur
• Day 7 - Half day sightseeing in Jodhpur (Circuit House, Mehrangarh Fort, Shopping) and start for Bikaner. Reached Bikaner before sunset and Checked-In Hotel Harasar Haveli
• Day 8 - Morning Birding in Jorbeer till 10AM. Visit Junagarh Fort and Rest in the evening
• Day 9 - Drive to Lucknow (950Km - about 15 hours). Minimums stops for food and fuel. Dinner at Barkaas Lucknow. Checked-In our usual Indraprastha Inn
• Day 10 - Car Care - Raj Motors (heavy bill but needed before return as cost and spares are way more easy in Lucknow, more importantly, 1050km return includes bad roads of Bihar)
• Day 11 - Lucknow to Kolkata (1050km - 18 hours including fuel/food breaks) - minimum stops. Discovered some issues in the car.
• Day 12 - At home in Kolkata. Changed temp sensor in Dewars (300Rs spare and 900Rs Labour). Painting the lower front bumper Garnish 4500Rs) – In Lucknow, the estimate for both these repairs was Rs 2000

Start Odometer reading

GPX file for the whole trip, documenting route speed and elevation is attached (File is rather large, in case anyone needs I can share smaller parts too)

Route map

Some findings about road conditions

• Roads in West Bengal have improved drastically from what it was a year back. Diversion work in Bardhaman is almost complete except for 3 pending in Bardhaman Bypass and a couple around Dankuni. Quality of service- roads around diversions is also very good
• Jharkhand roads are good but I feel many of the roads are accident-prone specially before Bihar Border. Some diversion work in Jharkhand and Bihar is ongoing
• Bihar roads are comparatively in the most uncomfortable state with many diversion work in progress (I lost count after 20) and the service road quality beside diversions are not at all good.
• Trucks are just too many around all highways compared to a year back. Truck movements even during the day slows down small cars quite a bit
• Trucks in Purvanchal Expressway, Agra Lucknow Expressway and Amritsar-Jamnagar Expressways have increased multifold. All these expressways' middle lane has several patchworks and repair work is continuing so movement is slower than usual
• Stray dogs crossing roads in frantic movements are something to look out for especially in Bihar and Uttar Pradesh. I saw at least 50 dog corpses and saw one such incident live just in-front of my eyes in Varanasi where a dog was crushed by a truck
• Cattle issues in Rajasthan is common as we all know, there are cows, goats, sheep, buffaloes, stray horses, and camels. We saw a few controlled elephants in Jaipur too.
• Agra-Jaipur highway is the best road surface I found on this entire trip. However, the entry connector Agra-Lucknow expressway isn’t complete so Google Maps has a tendency to drive through a very narrow village road some part of which is through a field. The alternative option is to make Google Maps drive through the ring road. However, the ring road connector is also extremely broken in parts and has truck traffic snarls. So it is difficult to weigh which one is good. I did both and each time I thought the other option would have been better.
• Some State tolls in Rajasthan are still not fast-tagged. The deal with cash. I remember a few during the trip from Jodhpur to Bikaner and one from Sam to Tanot
• There is a free pass from Tanot Mata Mandir (adjacent Dharamshala) to the border. The pass is free but The Indian Army takes meticulous details of all travelers and their vehicles. They verify all paperwork and check in-person presence. Due to all this the queue is slow and prone to queue breakers. Recommended to have time in hand for this. It took us 45 minutes for a 10 feet queue.

I will continue with day-by-day details in the following post with geo-tracker details and some pictures.

Thanks, personally to Rishiraj Das (from Team BHP). He had packed a lot of courage, confidence and advice for me to complete this trip

Day 0 - Start of the journey

We had an early lunch and started from our home in Behala. After filling petrol, air and verifying all papers are valid we reached the school to pick up our daughter. We started from Khidderpore at 14:30 hrs and planned to travel to Aurangabad around midnight.

Early excitement was enough to keep the mood right for a long journey ahead. Bought 4 bottles of Sting (surprisingly it sufficed my whole trip; now I feel tea, water and 3-hour pauses work the same. Perhaps Sting is overrated a bit)

We paid Vidyasagar Setu toll at 12:44 PM and started off. A sudden heavy rain slowed us a bit until Dankuni. Pre and post Dankuni toll there were some diversions due to road works. Bardhaman bypass, Durgapur, Panagarh, Raniganj, Asansol all roads are in good condition and after Burdhaman there are almost no diversions in Bengal.

Vehicle and Driver

First stop for fuel and tea was around 300 km away in post Dhanbad (Jharkhand). Around Dhanbad, there are a couple of spots (one of them is Gobindpur) where the road is single-lane through heavily populated bazaars. I would recommend carefulness here as kids and humans crossing the road is erratic and trucks are often stalled. Overtaking is nearly impossible. But reasonably safe. I had driven earlier through these places during late nights and early mornings. At these odd hours, the places are way less crowded and trucks will block one way or the other.

We were crossing Bagodar (Jharkhand) around 20:30 hours when a stray dog suddenly came in front of our vehicle at around this place (3VC3+JF Ghaghra, Jharkhand). There was a sudden noise and I had to stop. Speed was around 60kmph and I also braked but I think the duration was not enough so the bumper had broken and the radiator/condenser assembly was hanging. The fan was broken and the grill which holds the radiator assembly in place was bent and broken badly. I will share the technicals of the damage and repair in a separate thread, but apparently, it was not conducive to continuing the journey in this state.

Extent of damage to the lower grill breaking the support for the radiator assembly

Bent grill (different angle)

Net effect was a short moment of panic but we had (Indian Oil Pump Balwant fuel Indian oil retail outlet) just opposite us and I walked there to find a tyre shop still open and a bus was repairing a broken tyre. On enquiring and requesting they contacted a mechanic. He came to the rescue in about 45 minutes and inspected the damage. He offered to drive the car to his garage inside the Bagodar town with stops every 5 minutes so that the car will not overheat. I had little option to not agree.

Thankfully we arrived at his garage and he offered reasonable seating to my family and they repaired the car in a couple of hours and got it rolling. He charged us 6500 which I think was a bit too much. But I did not negotiate much considering the time and responsibility he rendered. Our daughters had finished their packed dinners there in the garage. His name was Saddam and his number is 7004629728. I am posting his number with his permission on a public forum and also for the fact that someone might need it someday for any unfortunate events.

So after a couple of hours wasted here, it looked like the trip was intact. Kids’ faces had no more tears and they were worried that we might have had to turn back home. I am happy with god’s grace I could bring some solace to their hearts.

Our plan of stopping in Aurangabad had to be changed as we would reach there around 2:30 AM and it would not be reasonable to stop at such hours with 3 ladies in the car and a nimble weak man who can’t support much. Only option was to keep driving till dawn.

Mrs Wife and I finished our packed dinner shortly before midnight the previous day in the darkness of a closed petrol pump. The rest of the journey until midnight was uneventful. Day 0 ended on the highway with slight fear (I hid inside me) of whether I made the right decision to carry on what seemed like a very long journey ahead.

Route Kolkata to Bagodar (Jharkhand) and Bagodar to Varanasi

Day 1 - Drive nonstop from Jharkhand till Jaipur (Rajasthan)

Shortly after midnight, we crossed Aurangabad. I took a look at Budda Hotel in Aurangabad opposite the road (PCCQ+9P Karahra, Bihar) as we had stopped here on some earlier trip. It was dark and perhaps everyone was sleeping. I realised that everyone else in our car was snoring heavily. Given the conditions and what went a few hours back, I would respect the fact that their body clock needs some cut-off.

Rangeela Rajasthan - this truck popped in and repaired my mood

The only thing that kept me going was the frustrations of innumerable diversions of Bikar highways. I don't remember it was as bad a year back, when we came through here last time. At around 3 AM, while crossing Sasaram there was a sudden broken patch where the car fell down suddenly, perhaps a foot. The patch had a potato-like hill in the middle which was high enough to hit the bottom of the car and there was a very loud thud and I had to stop to see if all was okay. Everyone woke up. It's sometimes very disturbing for people sleeping in the car to wake in such shock, but the kids and wife had been very cooperative and controlled their irritation well. Night driving through bad roads is challenging in the sense that the depth of these broken patches cannot be understood. There are flashing lights from the other lane making visibility a pain. Also, the broken patches are in darkness and quite sudden. I was driving at 60 kmph but still could brake in time for this.

I kept driving, but I was worried that something was wrong. But the risk of any untoward incident gave me enough courage to manage going forward till the first light.

At around 5:15 in the morning, we crossed Varanasi and there was a Jio BP here (7M8X+79R, Thatra, Uttar Pradesh 221313). I stopped here and took the bonnet up to have a look at what happened. To my nasty surprise, the radiator assembly was hanging again. I remember the pothole at Sasaram and replayed the video in my mind. That was perhaps the culprit which broke the under-radiator grill support again, when it was already too weak. I wondered why would Maruti stabilize such an important component on such a weak support system and not have any connected strong joints above the assembly.

At this point, I was really thinking of changing my vacation plan and modifying it for Banaras. I would leave my vehicle in a Maruti workshop somewhere and let them repair it for good when I could take my family to visit places in and around Varanasi. Sounded like a reasonable vacation but not the one I wished for. Everyone in the car was still asleep and I grabbed a cup of black tea (from the flask I was carrying from home). I was not willing to give up yet so went to the petrol pump people and kept requesting them persistently to call for mechanical support. I ran from one person to another when one person called someone and let me speak with him. He turned out to be an electrical guy and was not able to help. I continued my requests when suddenly one of them found another mechanic on the phone. Please remember it was 5:30 AM and I was pleasantly surprised that they were accommodating my case at such early hours. In Kolkata, people’s phones are usually switched off. I can't but respect the alertness and responsibility of these people from small towns who value unknown peoples’ emergency needs and respond to them.

This second guy agreed to come in and I was waiting. After about half an hour he came on his bicycle with some plastic ropes (like the ones used to tie new furniture cartons). He tied the radiator assembly and told me to drive to his garage a kilometer away.

By then it was 6AM and there was enough light around. Everyone in the car woke up and was quite dazed at what happened after midnight. We reached his garage.

The man offered a room to my family to freshen up and informed me he would need 3-4 hours to fix everything. I kept wondering about this humble man. He had a couple of daughters and his wife and they all lived in a roofless shack beside the broken garage. Perhaps the kids would not have a chance to go to school, but they helped their father at work and in the short while prepared tea for us and served us with whatever they had.

He did everything by hand and all alone. This time I saw him gas-weld the broken metal parts under the radiator-assembly. He fixed the broken fan with fevikwik and cement (he taught me his trick to prepare locktight adhesive with cement and fevikwik which is very strong). Then he straightened the grill with a hammer and set everything in 3 hours. [Again: I will share the technicals of the damage and repair in a separate thread. There are too many things about these ‘jugaaroo’ repairs]. I got the radiator assembly and fan tied to the grill with those plastic ropes for safety and additional support.

He assured us of safe travel ahead and what looked like a cancelled plan suddenly shined bright in front of our eyes. It was later than 9 AM and we all were starving. I think hunger kicks in more when we are stressed.

We stopped at Om Dhaba for a quick breakfast and toilet (87PM+55 Chhini, Uttar Pradesh). They served puri sabji (Rs 140 per plate) and chai (20 per cup) for the 4 of us. We finished and started off again in better spirits. I was much relieved that it was daylight and visibility was good. I could see a dog being smashed by a truck right in front of me. It was a painful sight and the sound of it was scary. But I feel that's what their destiny is. Stray dogs on the highway are a menace for everyone (and even for themselves; perhaps for them, vehicles are a menace).

At this point, I had no specific plan for doing anything. I convinced myself that I was at the mercy of the car’s durability and that I could do as much as it supported. The next obvious spot was Kanpur. Being a bigger town and reaching there during daylight, I was a little confident that if anything happened there would be help on the way.

With a few more stopovers, we were crossing Kanpur around 2PM. The problem we faced here was that the entire road through Kanpur was elevated and there was hardly any opportunity for a stopover for lunch.

Finally, there was a narrow break in the highway and we stopped for a quick vegetarian lunch at Sagar Dhaba (F645+GRH, NH 19, Bhautipratappur, Uttar Pradesh 208020). From here on Non-Vegetarian food was not an easy find anymore.

Eating lunch in Kanpur

Unsure even now, I made it a point to keep a watch on the radiator every time I stopped. So far it was intact. The next point we planned to hit was Agra and then decided what to do later. Agra was around 250 km away and looked like a doable drive till evening. We eventually reached Agra around 6PM and stopped for a tea break and was wondering if we can reach Jaipur so that it could be our stop for a couple of days.

This is how a 100kmph looks on ALE

Reaching Agra close to the evening

Agra to Jaipur is again around 250 km and looked to be reached by 22:30 hours. We all discussed it and decided to go for it. It would save us one unnecessary night halt and some money and we could start sightseeing in Jaipur from early next morning. Also, the fact that when we reach Jaipur at night traffic would be less and spare us from negotiating with stiff city traffic of the day or evening.

Avoid the interior Agra road and take the ring road. The connector of Agra from ALE to Jaipur Highway is not complete yet

Starting of Agra to Jaipur via Google Maps was a challenge as Google navigates through a very narrow village road since the Agra ring road connector work is not complete. I wished later I had taken the connector via the opposite director through Ring Road and not this shorter option. But since I did not know the difference it was something I needed to deal with. It was around 6 km through a very narrow village with almost no light. There were tractors coming from the opposite side and occasional villagers or cattle. There were some cars too who wanted to connect to Agra and perhaps Google played the same way with them. Not worrying too much I said to myself that I had to go. So I had to go. Eventually, we were out of this place and the beautiful Rajasthan highway greeted us.

My car pen drive randomizer suddenly started playing "Hotel California" the starting line is 'on a dark desert highway' and we had just entered Rajasthan. It seemed like a divine signal. Perhaps I was not thinking well after a longish drive in the past 30 hours or so

I remember we travelled through Bharatpur (a renowned Birding hotspot) and Keoladeo National Park. Roads kept becoming better and better. The first toll gate of Rajasthan in fact looked like a palace or a fort. The rest of the highway was butter-smooth. It was 2 lanes but no cattle and very few vehicles on the way made travel very easy. At 9 PM we were less than 100 km from our destination and we thought of stopping for a short dinner break. Since I had not stopped after Agra it was something I needed the most. It was 32 hours I was going without any sleep or night halt. One part of me wanted to end this leg of the trip as soon as possible. But dinner was also important and I would give Jaipur some more time to clear the road of traffic. So be it.

Food in Rajasthan is truly ‘king size’. I got the first glimpse of it with the size of their portions here and especially the size of their papads. Every papad was 12 inches in diameter. Food was great with mix-veg, rice dal and salad. Costed us around 800 for the four of us. We restarted after an hour and reached “Jaipur View Hotel” (WRH9+C6 Jaipur, Rajasthan) at 11PM sharp. The phone number on Google wont work but Davvrat’s own number will help here (9314076031)

Jaipur View Hotel is not something you will find in common but the owner manages it himself. It’s basically a homestay with a hotel feeling. They have clean AC rooms, a restaurant (vegetarian of course, but they let you order swiggy or zomato), WiFi. The owner Devvrat is a gem of a person. He organised night parking for the next 3 nights at a government parking lot about 300m from the hotel.

Day 1 ended in peace with me looking forward to a good night’s sleep. But unusually I remember, I was not feeling sleepy at all, perhaps due to excitement or my age-old insomnia had set in.

Route - Varanasi to Kanpur and Kanpur to Jaipur

Continue reading about arnab.i@gmail.c's road trip for BHPian comments, insights and more information.

So, why a 20-year-old BS2 Maruti when the world is moving towards turbocharged / hybrids and EVs with BS7 emission norms?

BHPian DevOnWheels recently shared this with other enthusiasts:

It all started 2 decades back when a 9-year-old me saw a beautiful Emerald green sedan owned by the biggest business house in the town. It was love at first sight. But neither was I old enough to buy my own car, nor was my family wealthy enough to buy a Rs. 8L car back then. We had a humble Ambassador diesel and an LML Vespa at that time.

Fast forward to 2015, I got my driver's license and started driving my family's cars. The garage by then was upgraded (rather downgraded in terms of segment and size) to a 2004 Maruti 800 Std in S. Silver and a 2006 WagonR LXi in M.W. Red. In years to come, the 800 was replaced by a 2009 i10 iRDE in blue and WagonR was exchanged for a Tigor Petrol in 2021.

As soon as I completed my studies and started working in 2015, the urge to get that dream old car started growing rapidly. However, as life would have it, the dream never materialized.

After being a regular follower of Team-BHP for more than a decade, I finally joined the forum in 2020. And soon BHPian Tanveer02 invited me to join a small local enthusiasts’ group CREW37 Assam which back then had merely 20-25 members comprising mostly BHPians of Assam and some other enthusiasts, which aren't on the forum. There would be regular discussions on these oldies and whenever someone spotted an example, they would share photos and the urge to own one would grow stronger and stronger.

It was in May’2023, when an Aquarious Blue Fiesta 1.6S came on sale in Guwahati. I was posted in Kolkata by then, which means the 3rd car can stay here with me while i10 and Tigor will stay in my hometown. Dear friends and BHPians Phukan_Tridiv, Tanveer02 and Mritunjoy went to check the car on my behalf as I was in Kolkata. The condition was totally opposite of what OLX photos represented. So, considering the feedback received from the trio, dropped the plan altogether.

It was in Aug'2023, when a fellow CREW37 Assam member and friend Siddharth Baruah (owned a beautiful 91' 800 at that time) shared these photos of a random black 2004 petrol sedan in our WhatsApp group.

That 9-year-old kid inside jumped in excitement.

The Emerald Green sedan that I fell in love all those years back was this... In a very sad state now

Through all these years, I tracked the car with an intention to buy it and restore it to its former glory. It changed 3 owners, but luckily stays in my hometown till date. When the first owner sold it, I was very much interested to pick this up, but I was a student back then. My aunt's colleague picked it up and started using it for rental purposes. After a couple of weeks, he realized what a huge mistake it was, and it got sold to another guy in our known circle only.

Watching the state the car was maintained from its 2nd owner onwards, made me drop the plan. But the photos shared by Siddharth stuck the right chords in my heart.

We had many discussions regarding this black car along with its history and present ownership, but no one in our group put any serious thought into buying it as it was too old now and getting parts is a nightmare, especially in Assam. I was also in a dilemma of getting another car as both i10 and Tigor were doing well, and my family was strictly against buying a 3rd car.

However, as with any enthusiast, you can’t stay away from automobiles for so long. Since it’s been almost a year since I have shifted to Kolkata with no car at my disposal, it was becoming really hard to control the urge to get a car here. And this time it must be something which sings to my heart. Around Oct’23, another Fiesta 1.6S (a black one this time) came for sale in Kolkata with just 12k on the odo. However, the seller was not interested to show the car and wanted the price to be finalized first. Once I gave a ballpark figure which was a couple of thousands less than what he had advertised for, he would want some advance to book the car first. These things put me off and decided to drop this as well. While discussing this Fiesta with BHPian Chiranjitp and Tanveer02, that black 2004 sedan sprung to my mind. Gave a call to Siddharth and he confirmed that it's still there, and that the owner might sell it.

Lots of parts research, discussions, TBHP threads and magazines later, asked Siddharth if he could get the car checked by his FNG. As expected, he got it checked the very next day along with another blue 2001 Baleno which was for sale as well.

Around the same time, some of our CREW37 Assam members and BHPians Prakritij, Chiranjitp, Hirohito, BhaskarG, Jamini, Ayan and yours truly planned for a trip to the easternmost part of the country i.e. Walong, Kibithu, Kaho in Arunachal. The plan was to start from Dibrugarh on 24th November’23 and since Duliajan (where both the Balenos were) is only 50kms from Dibrugarh, decided to club the Arunachal trip with work and check out the Baleno in person.

Flew from Kolkata to Dibrugarh and straight away went to Duliajan to meet Siddharth. Both of us went to check the cars, took test drives, discussed with both the owners regarding their expected prices and left.

Came back to the hotel and the discussion started between me, Siddharth and Chiranjitp on which car to choose and what should be the maximum price.

There were some suspension works needed in the black car along with some minor nick-nacks and a set of tyres, but the blue car needed a full paint job and the engine felt tired and misfires a lot despite only 65k on the odo. There was some pully sound when the AC was switched on (owner claimed to be an AC compressor pully). Also, because the black one being a small-town PSU car that too one which never left the township, it was really tight even with 98k kms on the odo. Also, in Assam, these small town cars are generally very well cared for and since the black car was daily driven from 2004-19 although very minuscule kms, it was in a fully functional state. Considering all these, we decided to get the black Baleno and finalized a price we would offer to the owner without any scope for negotiation.

Next day went to the owner’s house, negotiated the deal (paid 30k more than we had thought), signed the sale forms and paid a token advance.

Deal was, he would get the paperwork done and once the vehicle is transferred to my name, I’d transfer the balance amount and Siddharth would take delivery.

Once that was done, we completed our Arunachal trip, and I returned back to Kolkata.

Now why a 20-year-old BS2 Maruti when the world is moving towards turbocharged/hybrids and EVs with BS7 emission norms?

Being a late 90s kid, old Japanese cars always had a special place in my heart.

For the Baleno, it was love at first sight, that Emerald Green Baleno that I saw 2 decades back.

These advertisements back then were proper wallpaper material.

The 13 noise reduction technologies, no Indian car emphasized so much on NVH back then.

Once I was back in Kolkata, the plan for the restoration started.

Initial plan was to do a full service, get new tires and then bring the car to my home in Assam (600km from Duliajan).

Once the car is at home we will slowly start with the works depending on what is needed and what parts we can source.

But as expected, patience was getting out of hand and we started searching for parts online without even knowing what was required for the car.

Spoiler

Now, one thing I hated about my car was the absence of a rear spoiler since it's a LXi. After a failed search for an original spoiler, came across an OLX advertisement of a Delhi-based seller who was making a replica spoiler for the Baleno. Contacted the seller and these photos were received.

Since, it looked exactly the same as the OEM VXi spoiler, paid an advance and placed the order.

Wheels

I always loved the 14" 11 spoke alloy of BS3 VXi. But it was nowhere to be found. After a month-long failed search, decided to go for aftermarket alloys in 15". But as luck would have it, while we were deciding on the options of aftermarket multi-spoke alloy, Siddharth shared an Instagram post by a guy from Kerela who was selling a set of those 14" VXi alloys along with tyres. Since I was buying new tyres, finalized a price for the alloys only and got these shipped to Siddharth's place.

Tyres

Initially decided to go for the stock size of 165/80 R13 and with a plan to upgrade later on. However, after seeing the total amount for a set of 4 tyres now and then upgrading later on to upsized wheels and tyres, decided to go for either 14" or 15" now only depending on the set of alloys. After I made the payment for the alloys, immediately placed an order for a set of 4 Continental UC6s in 185/65 R14 to be delivered at Siddharth's place again.

On 29th January, received a call from the seller that the paper is ready and I can take delivery.

Delivery Day: 30/01/2024

Siddharth went to the seller's place, checked the papers and gave a go-ahead to me for the payment transfer.

Once the payment is done, this is the first photo I received from Siddharth. Baleno is mine now.

Siddharth drove straight to his home and after an hour shared these photos which brought tears to my eyes.

His mom did a welcome puja for my Baleno

Check out BHPian comments for more insights and information.

The Baleno Regal Edition comes with complimentary accessory kits worth up to Rs 60,199.

This festive season, Maruti Suzuki has launched a special edition of the Baleno called the Regal Edition. It is available in all four variants: Alpha, Zeta, Delta and Sigma. 

The Baleno Regal Edition comes with complimentary accessory kits worth Rs 45,829 to Rs 60,199, depending on the variant. On the outside, the car gets cosmetic add-ons such as a grille garnish, front underbody spoiler, fog lamp garnish, rear underbody spoiler, back door garnish, body side moulding, and door visors.

Inside, the Regal Edition gets new seat covers, an interior styling kit, window curtains and all-weather mats. The car is also equipped with features such as a 360-degree camera, a head-up display, a 9-inch touchscreen infotainment system, automatic climate control, and more.

The Baleno is powered by a 1.2-litre petrol engine that makes 89 BHP and 113 Nm. It is offered with either a 5-speed manual gearbox or a 5-speed AMT. The Regal Edition is available across automatic and CNG variants as well.

Should I go for this or get the brand new Zeta MT manufactured in 2024

BHPian 07CR recently shared this with other enthusiasts.

Hi all, my dad is looking to get a Baleno and he's getting a discount of around 1L rupees on a 2023 Nov Alpha MT model which gets it very close to the Zeta MT model price of 2024. I had following questions around this purchase-

1. Would a third party PDI be able to catch any issues with this car (worried since would it be apparent if the car has been sitting idle nearly 10 months now)?
2. If its a good deal, does one lakh rupee discount make sense or should it be more?
3. Could this be a demo/display car? Dealership denies it, but I don't understand why such a high selling car is not moved out of dealership for about 10 months now.
4. Should I go for this or get the brand new Zeta MT manufactured in 2024?

Here's what GTO had to say about this matter:

The fresh-stock 2024 Baleno itself has a discount of 40-50k IIRC, so the actual difference is far slimmer. Baleno sales have been sliding due to pressure from the Fronx & other cars. Go meet 2 dealers, tell them you are there to close the deal and pit them against each other for a fresh stock car. I wouldn't risk it with a 10-month old car lying with the dealer.

If not constrained by budget, do check out the Fronx for your Dad. He will definitely like it more. I would any day pick the Fronx over the Baleno.

Here's what BHPian ike had to add:

Usually there are good deals to be had on old stock(I bought one myself last year) however in this particular case the Baleno is a car that was flying off the shelves, why would this one sit for ten months. I remember a colleague wanted a new Baleno last year in Chennai and no dealer had any stock despite being a cash purchase, minimum wait was 3 months. If they have a good explanation for why this wasn't sold then get it.

Meanwhile, here is what BHPian R-Six said:

I wouldn't even touch it with a barge pole. A hot selling car from the Maruti stable, Baleno, sitting in the stockyard close to a year itself is a red flag! I mean, people are ready to buy these on cash or even by paying a premium if the dealer can offer ready delivery. So be very cautious if you plan to go ahead with this due to budget constraints.

But before that, do try to get some valid reasoning from the dealer on why no one picked this up yet.

Some questions that you could ask to get better clarity around the decision making:

1. Is it some unusual color that no one really wants to own or seen driving it?
2. What is the current odo? Pop the hood and see if the condition matches the odo reading.
3. How are the tyres? Do they look worn out?
4. Battery condition
5. Has it gone through repaint?
6. Are they open for a third party PDI? I read on the forum somewhere that dealers are not allowing the third party PDI practice. Hesitation in allowing services should definitely raise eyebrows.

Quite possible that the car has been rejected by multiple prospects after PDI session.

And, you already mentioned that there is a tight budget. Don't end up on the wrong side after picking up a lemon just because they gave you a decent discount. The car might end up spending more time in the service center than in your garage which spoils the ownership experience as well as shoot the overall expense.

 Anyway good luck on your hunt.

Drive Safe,

R-Six

Check out BHPian comments for more insights and information.

The Baleno is a value for money car which gets all the basics right.

BHPian sonmi-451 recently shared this with other enthusiasts.

After completing 15 months and close to 30,000 kms I have sold the Baleno. As I mentioned in this post above, after moving from Vijayawada to Hyderabad I came to know that I would have to pay close to 1.5 lakhs as road tax and chances of getting back road tax paid in Andhra were close to none. I know someone working in the Andhra transport department and he made it clear that it's almost next to impossible to get back road transferring the vehicle registration to different state. he strongly adviced me to sell the vehicle in Andhra. Sold it for 2.8 Lakhs less than the on-road price I paid for it.Another reason for selling is the low seat height causing more discomfort in Hyderabad due to more frequent gear changes required here.

Despite the minor dislikes that are specific to me, like very low seat height, very short front windshield, and relatively more gear changes in CNG mode in a city like Hyderabad, it was an excellent car overall. It was only after I sold the car off that I started working out on a regular basis and I realized the frequent usage of clutch was causing leg pain because I was obese and didn't exercise at all, so the fault was mostly again on my side. With regular exercise now I don't feel the pain much even if I drive a manual car in heavy traffic for a long time.

To summarize the ownership experience: The Baleno is a value-for-money car that gets all the basic rights. There are no major flaws with the car.

• It has a fantastic engine
• Great gearbox
• Good suspension tuned toward comfort
• Mileage is excellent as wel
• Space inside is more than what you get in any sub 4 meter "SUV"
• The features list is good and the Zeta variant seems most value-for-money variant especially the 6 airbags make the difference when it comes to safety concerns

Anyone who can look beyond the SUV craze should consider this car.

Check out BHPian comments for more insights and information.

I couldn't find much flaws in any of them during the period of time I drove them. So the ownership would depend on the amount to be spent.

BHPian BoneCollector recently shared this with other enthusiasts.

Maruti Suzuki India Limited has multiple models on sale in India and boasts of a healthy market share. It also offers 3 different types of automatic transmissions in India viz eCVT in Grand Vitara Strong Hybrid and Invicto, a 6 speed Torque Converter in Grand Vitara Smart Hybrid, Ertiga, XL6, Fronx, and Brezza, a 4 speed Torque Converter in the Jimny and Ciaz, and AMT in a host of cars from its Arena and Nexa portfolios. It used to offer a CVT in Baleno but that's long gone.

I had a chance of driving all the 3 different transmissions offered by Maruti this June and that too in quick succession. I'll pen down how it felt driving them.

1. eCVT of Grand Vitara Alpha+ Strong Hybrid -

This is a 1 and half year old car owned by my sister in law. I drove it on city roads and highways, even during peak NCR summer.

The car is super silent when in EV mode. Seriously speaking, I never felt the engine turning on with audible sound or vibration. When the car is moving, I couldn't make out if it was running on EV or engine. One hears the engine sound only if you press the accelerator hard enough. Now coming to the gearing part, the lever needs to be shifted after pressing the button. It easily slots into the respective gears. There is a sequence suggested by Maruti as per the image attached here. I feel that everyone should read the owner's manual to understand the operating systems of the car. I also drove it in B mode, where little bit of braking takes place when you lift your foot off the accelerator pedal. It is mainly to be used while driving downhill so as to get assist from engine braking. The D or Drive mode does what you expect it to do. If you accelerate suddenly, the car does make noise but speed builds up quickly after a very short pause. It's like seeing the lightening before hearing the thunder wherein the noise the car makes is the lightening and the speed it builds is thunder. But overall, a very beautiful transmission to drive around. It misses the manual mode or the pedal shifters and their presence would have been an icing on the cake.

2. 6 speed AT in Ertiga -

We had gone to Goa for the Golden Jubilee anniversary of my parents. Since we were 6 adults, 2 kids (7 & 10 years old) and an infant, we needed a bigger car with a bench seat. Innova Crysta and Hycross were available only with captain seats in middle row. So we had to settle for an Ertiga VXi 6 speed AT. It was a tight fit will all the luggage from Dabolim airport to our hotel. But after that, it was an easy task. On many occasions, I was the one sitting in the last row over quite some distances.

Now coming to the drive, I drove it, in and around north Goa. I also drove it to Panjim once. The engine is not powerful and that can be felt. Since this was a rental car, the speed was limited to 80kmph and it did not cross it even when tried. The gearshifts are seamless. What I liked most were the paddle shifters. For overtakes and on the few ghat sections encountered, the paddle shifters were used and it was good to have them. Once the gears were downshifted or upshifted using them, the car would stay in that gear for some time and then again move to D mode. With full load, one feels that the car is struggling to climb upslope as it does make noise but if you negate that, the car does eventually climb. There was no single place wherein it failed us. The car returned a decent mileage of around 10kmpl with full load in city and about 15+ kmpl on the highway. The start-stop system is tuned very aggressively, so much so that the car would switch off even when dead slow. We mostly used it with the system switched off.

3. AMT in Baleno Alpha -

This was my first time driving an AMT under normal conditions. The car belongs to my sister in law's brother. I was amazed at the way the car drove. It is an year old car, well maintained.

When you move from a true automatic to an AMT, the gearshifts change and it was evident with me actually looking at the gear lever and making sure how to go about it. The car started without any issues. The automatic mode drives like an automatic and there was literally no head nodding that everyone speaks about. The gear changes are seamless and I could barely notice anything. What I liked the most was that when I was in 5th gear and I wanted to overtake another vehicle, I pressed the accelerator pedal and the car dropped down to 3rd gear and overtook without any drama. This was the only point when I noticed head nod. This was not the case in Ertiga, it would make noise but overtake slowly.Then I started driving it in manual mode and it was also great. But the car performs very well in automatic mode so if I pick up an AMT, I'll prefer driving in automatic mode only.

Now comes the major question of selecting a car based on these 3 transmissions, my preference would be a car with 6 speed Torque Converter. But I couldn't find much flaws in any of them during the period of time I drove them. So the ownership would depend on the amount to be spent.

These are just my personal views on them and would like people to share their views on these 3 transmissions offered by Maruti.

Check out BHPian comments for more insights and information.

My speakers can very well play until 25khz, however, infotainment is restricting anything beyond 10k.

BHPian lucksin recently shared this with other enthusiasts.

I have been struggling for a few days now trying to tune my DSP to get a relevant better sound and it all failed miserably. My initial steps were to cut and boost the bands to see what works and what does not.

I was shooting in the dark thinking at least something would work however everything failed. The best I could do was time aligned and able to get somewhat of a front stage, yet no centre stage.

I ordered an RTA mic to understand what I am dealing with and below are the EQ curves that I am dealing with:

If you check the Front, there is a boost at 40hz, then it rolls down till 100, where there is another boost at 200hz then it gradually rolls down till 1.5khz, there is another boost at 5khz mark.

Compared to the rear which has no boost until 100hz and then gradually increases until 10k.

Also, My speakers can very well play until 25khz, however, infotainment is restricting anything beyond 10k. however, it doesn't matter much but still. The above samples were taken with a flat DSP setting with pass-through. Also, there is a difference of 10db of sound level between the front and rear. The rear is lower.

It is for FYI for everyone trying to upgrade speakers on stock infotainment.

Here's what BHPian Rehaan had to say on the matter:

Interesting data lucksin, thanks for sharing.

Re-uploading the charts with X and Y axis labels shown would really be helpful....

Absolutely hate this cost-cutting trend!! Happens not only in budget hatchbacks, but even 20+ lakh SUVs.

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