I had a 97 model Zen, and then in 2004 bought a Zen lxi which I replaced with Manza Aura ABS Qjet last month.
Bought it from Concorde Dairy circle for an OTR of around 786000rs. I have so far covered 3365 km on it and the experience has been surprisingly wonderful, considering that I was advised not to go for a Tata car by friends and family.
*FE
*I have driven to Chennai twice.
On the first trip there were 2 of us, me and my wife, and the FE for the whole trip was 21.7km/l by full tank to full tank method(the average shown on the display was 23.8 km/l). max speed 80 km/h
ON the second trip, there were 5 of us. We went to chennai and from there went to Mahaballipuram, back to Chennai through the famous evening traffic and then back to Bangalore. This time the Manza returned a FE of 18.5km/l. This may be due to the fact that we were stuck in traffic jams in Chennai and and on were idling the car with ac on for around 20 minutes a couple of times. Max speed 130 km/h(this was after the run in period)
I am yet to get the FE for city driving. Will soon update.
*Driving experience
*I was expecting a slow and sluggish drive, especially as I have been driving a Zen, and had mentally prepared for the slow drives. But, I found that I didn’t have to change my style of driving as Manza was able to deliver as good if not better than my Zen. Getting ahead of the traffic was quite easy.
Problem area
Parking is a bit of a pain. Should get used to it soon.
The two side mirrors and the rear view mirror show rear objects in different magnification. What I mean is that the side view mirrors show the rear traffic much further than the rear view mirror, which shows the actual distance. This may take some time getting used to. In my Zen both the side mirrors and the center mirrors show the true distance.
The high beam actually flashes inside the range of the low beam and the tata guys have not been able to fix it. They suggested I upgrade the bulb. The low beam is very powerful even for highway drives.
I am fully satisfied with its performance. In city I rarely rev the engine over 1500 rpm and use the turbo rarely(only to get ahead of the traffic).
The AC is a chiller. I have 3M CR 70 sunfilm for my windshield and 3M SP35 for the doors and the rear. CR 70 is more effective than the SP35. Should have gone in for RE35 for the sides and rear. CR 70 also reduces the glare at night while not affecting the visibility.
Music System
I was very happy that Manza’s stereo had USB support. I have all my music on USB drives.
Used the system and I was very much disappointed with the output. It sounded very bad. I had increased the bass and the treble, still I could not hear any bass. Then one fine day I adjusted the mid range(lowered it) and the quality of the sound increased dramatically.(Deep bass and no distortions from the speakers.)
I am now one happy person with Manza’s stereo. USB, good bass, steering mounted audio controls and Bluetooth.
City FE
Yesterday, (mar 31st), I tanked up my car and found the fe to be 13.7(full tank to full tank). The average on the display was 15.3. This includes around one hour of Idling with AC on and pure Bangalore traffic. AC on and off - 50% of time.
I also got the RC for my car, now a smart card around 55 days from the date of purchase.
5000 km update
Manza has crossed 5000 km mark in a little less than 3 months, thanks to three trips to Chennai. It is due for the second service.
For the last trip to Chennai, I got 20.1 kmpl with AC. Top speed touched was 150 kmph - just to see what it could do. It could have gone faster, but it was a bit shaky at those speeds. For most part of the drive I was doing 80 to 100 kmph. I prefer a steady 90 kmph for this car and it is butter smooth at these speeds.
City milage still remains around the 14 kmpl mark. Hope this will improve. The average shown in the display is always 1.5 to 2 km more.
11500 km update.
It is hardly 6 months since I got this car and it has competed the 3rd free service last saturday. The car is in excellent condition. Went for 2 long trips one to Tirunelveli and another to Kanyakumari. This apart from the 4 trips to Chennai. Milage is good and the car is comfortable for long drives.
Had one issue with the AC air intake valve - the motor gear was slipping making a’tuk tuk’ sound. Got the whole air intake assembly replaced free of charge.
On the last trip we visited the beaches and waterfalls near kanyakumari and we had to drive through really bad roads for around 150 kms. Still no rattles.
Still very happy and satisfied with Manza.