This road-test review was uploaded on the 3rd February 2012. The new Maruti DZire price starts at Rs 4.79 lakh and was launched on the 1st February 2012. 

Introduction

When a particular model sells over 3.3 lakh units of a sedan in a market , it ought to be a very good product. And if the same company decides to get a new model , an update of the existing One , then expectations , naturally , are very high. The original DZire was launched on 26th March 2008 and simply put , was the Swift hatchback with an added boot and a wee bit of extra rear passenger space. A Maruti sedan with a diesel engine at a competitive pricing meant sure shot success for the sedan. i , Bunny Punia , own one and can understand why this car has always had a waiting period extending into several months. So , is the new Dzire better in every single aspect and more importantly , can it live up to the expectations and side-line the rivals? To find out , we took both the diesel and petrol (in AT avatar) for a spin in and around Delhi. 

Design:

The biggest change in the new Dzire is the shortening of the boot. It’s a known fact that the Indian government gives tax benefits to cars which are less than 4 metres in length (the Indigo CS being the perfect example) and hence to get the new Dzire’s price less than the older one , Maruti engineers got down to the exercise of , well , making the overall length less.  And this is where the new version is getting a lot of criticism. We at Gaadi.com however feel that this was expected and the end effort done by the engineers is praise worthy. It might not be the prettiest looking sedan in the segment , but that said , from various angles , it does look sporty. 

The front end is all-new , like the new Swift , though at the same time , the radiator grille and bumper are slightly different from its hatchback sibling. Dimension wise , the new Dzire is 165mm shorter but 5mm wider and 25mm taller than the older sedan. Look at it from the side-on angle and you see where the length has gone off from – it is obvious , the small boot! Look closely and you also notice that the rear door is longer than that of the Swift’s – this has been done so that the rear windows are able to roll down completely for an airy feel inside. From the rear three quarters , the new Dzire does look odd but not to the extent of calling it ugly. See the back end of the car standing 20 feet away and you actually find it good enough with the horizontally running chrome strip adding to the ‘premium’ feel. The rear tail lamps seem to have taken cues from the Kizashi premium sedan. 

The new Dzire continues to sell in three trim levels each of petrol and diesel (and a AT version in VXi trim). The lower LDi / LXi / VXi / VDi versions wear thin 165/80 tyres on 14-inch steel wheels while the higher ZDi / ZXi models wear wider 185/65 tyres on 15-inch alloy wheels. The new Dzire is sold in seven colour options with two being new – pacific blue and glistering grey. 

Interiors:

The new Swift has a lovely cabin design. However , the all-black treatment isn’t to everyone’s liking and thankfully , the new Dzire has a different color them on the inside. Step in and you immediately feel the sense of space which is due to the usage of light color for the bottom half of the fascia. The faux wood strip on the front doors as well as below the side air-con vents up front looks premium. The moment you sit in to the driver’s seat , the soft padding is evident. The driver’s seat is a nice place to be and ergonomically , the Dzire is one of the better cars around. I especially liked the silver inserts in the steering wheel and around the central air-con vents. Once it’s gets dark , the orange-red background lightning for the speedometer console looks fab! 

The overall quality of interiors is pretty good considering the price the car sells for. The top end model comes as loaded as the Swift hatchback – steering wheel controls , automatic climate control , good sounding audio system and those lovely cup-holders in the front of the side vents. This feature will come in very handy during the North Indian summers! 

Another place where the new Dzire scores over the older one is the space for back-seat passengers as well as the comfort factor. You immediately notice the softer seats which is a boon for chauffer driven tired souls or the elderly in the house. The new Dzire also has a longer wheelbase which liberates more leg and knee room. Further , the back-rest is inclined more and the rear of the front seat scooped. All these changes add up to more space at the back. Finally , even with a 6-foot driver up front , there is decent space at the rear for normal sized adults. However , that said , the new Dzire simply cannot match up to the likes of the Toyota Etios , Tata Manza and Mahindra Verito in this department. Infact , similarly priced hatchbacks like the Honda Jazz and Hyundai i20 also Beat the new Dzire as far as passenger space is concerned. 

Another limitation of the new Dzire is the boot space , which has reduced by 30% to just 316 litres. In contrast , the Indigo CS and the Jazz have 20% more boot space. The boot is best for a couple of medium sized suit cases for a weekend trip. 

Engine

FIAT’s much acclaimed 1.3-litre Multi-jet engine is used by various companies in the world and India too. However , it is Maruti who have made the best use of this fantastic unit. Recently , the two companies also reached an agreement wherein Fiat will now supply 1 lakh of these engines on an annual basis and this is good news for diesel buyers. Coming back to the Dzire , I drove the diesel version first as I own a diesel Dzire back home too (old Dzire) and the differences were immediately apparent. For starters , the NVH (noise , vibration , harshness) levels are well under control and the engine feels very smooth. Within the first few minutes , you also discover that Maruti has tuned the engine and recalibrated the turbo-charger for lower turbo-lag. It is present , however , is less pronounced as compared to the older Dzire. The trade-off is the fact that the punch of torque isn’t as much as the older model , instead , the power delivery is linear. 

In traffic , the new diesel Dzire is a much better companion at low engine speeds , however , it can still not match up to the fantastic Mahindra Verito , Nissan Sunny or the Toyota Etios in this regard. That said , once on the boil , the engine comes into its own and the car is a hoot to drive fast. The icing on the cake comes in the form of improved fuel economy , which according to ARAI now stands at 23.4kmpl!

The petrol engine is the same used on the earlier Dzire though with changes , now produces a couple of Bhp extra. The intake gets variable valve technology and Maruti has tuned the engine for efficiency. This is evident by the fact that as per ARAI , the new petrol Dzire runs 19.1km to a litre. Drive the petrol version and you are impressed by it smooth and rev-happy nature. It continues to be a gem of a motor and Maruti is now offering the petrol engine with a choice of a 4-speed automatic transmission. Infact the petrol AT Dzire is now the cheapest automatic sedan in the country. While some may run the Dzire AT down for being ‘just’ a 4-speed one , the fact is that it works just fine in City traffic. It is geared tall for fuel economy but goes about doing its duty in an able manner. Drive the car with a light right foot and the system up-shifts quickly to 4th. Stomp the accelerator hard and it down-shifts quickly for extra performance. You don’t get the same punch as from the manual version no doubt but on the good side , the system has an overdrive lock (to prevent it from shifting into 4th) as well as selectable 1st , 2nd and 3rd cogs. 

Suspension 

The old Dzire was known for a plaint ride. It absorbed bad roads pretty easily though was not a car meant for spirited driving around corners which had the rear end loosing grip. The new one scores heavily over the older version in many ways. Based on the new Swift platform , the driving feel has improved massively. The car has a longer wheelbase and wider track – two essential things for stability. You get a feel of a well planted car , one which feels matured to drive , with the feeling of being from a higher segment. A massive improvement has been the ride quality which is now up there with the best in the class. The suspension , as compared to the Swift , feel softer which is a good thing as the new Dzire will be more of a family car. It rides very nicely over bad roads and undulations. Further , drive the car hard and it holds ground very well without losing composure. 

Steering effort is minimal and like other Maruti products , this one too is of the EPS variety (electronic power steering) as well which it is light (though not feather light in this case) at low speeds and becomes devoid of any assist at high speeds for better feedback. 

Verdict:

An upgrade which looks better , is more spacious and comfortable , has engines which are more efficient and most importantly is a modern version with a cheaper price tag is bound to be a success and the new Dzire is exactly that. The new Dzire range now starts Rs 25 , 000 less than the older one too and this is where its only shortcoming of having a small boot gets waived off in my opinion. 

The new Dzire does all that the old did and dint do. Looks for example were a weak point earlier but now , the new one looks sporty and modern. The old one had a tight rear seat but the new one improves on this along with a better designed fascia. The old one had an efficient diesel unit , the new has a VERY efficient one! The new automatic version adds to the ease of driving for those who hate city jams! 

Priced from Rs 4.79 lakh to Rs 7.09 lakh (ex-Delhi) , with the new Dzire , Maruti is once again set to create record sales runs each month with its dealers more than willingly cashing-in on the success. That said , if you want proper sedan type boot space and a spacious chauffer driven entry level sedan , look elsewhere. 

 For 30 pictures of new Dzire , see our FACEBOOK PAGE

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