The Zen was famous for its smart looks, peppy engine and delightful cornering.. The make over covers most of it, with a distinct look. The looks of the estilo are not as attractive compared to the old zen, but surely different. The convinience factor is well taken care of. I used to love the old zen except for the stoop down entry and tough exit for a decently tall Indian.. :-). The other thing the old zen lacked according to me was raw power for highway drive.
The Estilo comes with a tall boy design that makes an easy entry and exit and good head and leg room inside. The 1.1L engine that is slightly tweaked for a peppy drive than its ancestor - Wagor R gives it a spicy twist.
The air con does a good job even in the burning summers, with out killing on the engine or fuel.. The leg room is good for drivers and rear row. Maruti has done a good job in distribution of space for leg room and boot. the boot is as good as a Wagon R. The beige interiors for the Vxi are classy and the aircon swiches are easy to use.
The Vxi comes with fog lamps and electric mirrors, rear defogger all are well thought, very useful for city driving.. The rear stop light also helps in poor visibility conditions.
The tyres are quite wider than the old counterpart and have good traction even in the rains. The steering response is real good while cornering and avoiding unexpected portholes, with out compensating on the car stability !!
Another feature is the all door central locking and power windows that comes standard, for a small car.. The brakes are really good compared to the competitor brands.. (you bet.. I tried !!)
Over all looks are good and is a value for money, the service and no maintenance being the best part of this car. The front lamps and engine hood could have been shaped a bit better to give the car a smarter look..
As far as fuel economy is concerned, in beating summer and city traffic, it gives 12 kmpl and on highway I got a wow mileage of 17.6 kmpl !! (twice)
I moved from an alto 1.1 to a zen estilo.. and I am loving it !! If you are looking for a smart, no maintenence and powerful first car, this is the one !