Yesterday I got a chance to put my hands on this toy. I would like to share my feelings of it with you. The story goes like this.
Exterior: Have a look around the car and you will remember the matiz with some improvements. I will say improvements as the changes are rather pleasing. I am rather skeptical about the airflow in the engine as there is very less space in the grill. Well all is good from my point of view.
Interior: Step inside it and you are welcomed by a tooooooo dull black interiors. At the first glance I hated it, but as time pass I adjusted my eyes to live with it. Now the inverted banana is there to give you the display lights behind the steering column. The speedo is in the center of the console (The only part with a bright color ;-)). This is a big irritant as your mom’s speedo alarm starts coming after every now and then. The car looks small from outside but it has generous space in the cabin. The driving posture is good enough for long drives. All the switches are placed within easy reach. I will rate the interior more than acceptable (sparing the dash color).
Engine: The engine is a refined and spirited mill. Just tweak the keys and you barely notice the engine sound. Cluch is soft to operate and precise to perform. The pickup of the engine is swift. In no time the car reached 60. Being tiny in size it is a breeze to drive.
AC is on throughout the trip of delhi to gwalior (about 345 km). There is a slight drop in performance as well as in mileage of the car. But stil I will call it a spirited performer.
I am not so sure of the mileage part but I expect it to be about 14 in city with normal driving and about 16 in highways.
Power steering does the job nicely and weighs properly as the car gains speed. If you a kind of a rally driver this car can prove to be a good campanion. I feel the stability of this car is in the league of more heavier cars. You will feel the confidence while you are behind the wheel.
Luggage space in this car is very small. We have to use an extra luggage carrier placed above the car. Also I personally don’t like the small profile tyres. I like cars with atleast 14" tyres.
It is a good car for a four person family, but not for five people.
Overall this is a good car.