I got my cele_45rio vxi Auto Gear Shift just 3 days ago. I am somewhat pleased with its performance. Driving it is quite an easy and pleasant experience, I am dissatisfied on the following counts.
a) The car is light weight and hence it lacks adequate traction on slippery slopes.(My old indica diesel would quietly climb up my tiled drive to my house even in the heaviest of rains, without a protest. With the cele_45rio, the squeals of the tires slipping is quite prominent and I need to build adequate momentum before the slope to drive it up). This also raises the question about the overall grip of the car.
b) Maruti are quite reluctant to share technical information. Material provided in the owner’s manual is inadequate for a person is really interested in knowing the car that he owns. Most of the queries written to Maruti during the 5 months between booking and delivery fell on deaf ears. Maruti did not seem to appreciate the fact that a customer may want to know certain details before buying a new product.
I intend to post a more detailed review after using it for a few months.
Update after 2 months.
The odometer is around 1400 km. Service experience was bad - the tires were filled to 45 psi by the silly dealer service.
Experience with the car continues to be good- gives me around 14 kmpl in the city, and over 20 kmpl on the highway.
The manual mode of the AMT is quite good and gives you adequate control over gear changes if you are not happy with the AMT auto mode.
In some ways you need to learn to use this car, unfortunately Maruti does not proactively help - the user has to learn by trial and error.
Update after 4 months.
The odometer @ 2400 km. A funny erratic rattling developed during the last month and fortunately the dealer service centre was able to correct it. The noise emAnasultanted from an AC aluminum pipe which had got displaced. I have no idea this happened - gives the feeling of a flimsy build.
Otherwise I am happy with the car, I have a feeling that I am able to better the avg kmpl by driving judiciously in Manual mode.
Update after 7 months
The odometer @ 3600 km
Car continues trouble free. 2nd free service over. Replaced the fabric seat cover with a smarter looking impervious upholstery.
The AMT is something I have really got used to now. Would recommend it to anyone who does not fancy exercising the left foot and hand frequently.
Do not expect feedback or reply to queries from Maruti.
Update after 13 months.
Car runs fine.
I had a very scary experience of a skid in light drizzle / rain. May have been going at 60kmph.
I lost control due to sudden skid with no provocation. By God’s grace no damage to bystander self or car.
I suspect the skid is because of very high recommended tyre pressure 36 psi for cele_45rio in front.
If you go through this recommendation by bridgestone and compare other cars with similar tyre size and weight, you get the idea that Maruti is recommending very high pressure of 36psi.
https://bridgestone.co.in/TyreInflationPressure.aspx
I would recommend lower tyre pressure to anyone who is interested in safety, although lower pressure will result in higher fuel consumption.
Manufacturers are losing ethics sadly.