This is my first review here in mouthshut. After reading hundreds of reviews I am happy that I too am contributing. Please feel free to comment. We started with looking at used cars but dropped the idea as we wanted the freshness of a new car.
Alto - Let’s Go
As soon as we decided that we will take a new car our choice
automatically fell on the Alto. Somehow we could not muster the courage
to talk about other bigger, better cars. The Alto is a fine car, nimble
and extremely city friendly. Good mileage and dead-cheap maintenance.
But once we sat inside an alto in the showroom we immediately rejected
it. The space inside is very less and will not suit us. Still it is a
good contender for a first car, just remember the space and the fact
that since the AC is extremely powerful(+) the pickup drops
dramatically(-). Just that we wanted space and so we moved ahead.
Indica
We had a look at Indica diesel since one of our friends too had it and
was quite happy with it, but I did not want a diesel with my running of
below 1000 km per month. Indica Xeta(petrol) was also ruled out due to
poor dealer/service, but personally I feel that for 3.3 L the Xeta is
a very good car and people should try it out before deciding.
For comparison on WagonR, Santro see below
Estilo - Way to Go
I had been closely following the estilo - right from its launch and
heard that it had WagonR’s engine(Good), WagonR’s gearbox(bad) and
Alto+ WagonR platform(good). Its engine was slightly refined for
better fuel efficiency. The owner’s report was also good. I checked the
car and found that the space was a bit less compared to WagonR but with
our family of 4(which will become 3 in the long run) it did not worry
us. But those with 5 need to check the back seats for space(Better do
a test driver with your entire family). So we decided to go for it. It
was newer compared to Santro and comes fully loaded for the price. We
took the Vxi version. See a complete list of what is extra in Vxi
compared to Lxi below in a separate section
Estilo Looks - Caution:Subjective Area
It depends on people. To me Estilo looks excellent from rear,
rear-3-quarters, front-3-quarter and side. From the front it was just
good. My wife also liked it a lot, slightly more than Santro but
extremely happy compared to WagonR.
Estilo Space
It depends on your needs. The front 2 seats are very spacey. You can
easily step in to the car, the seats are wide enough to comfortably
hold medium to slightly built people. If you are generous with your
food you better find it out in Test drive. The rear as I said holds 2
comfortably. If you need to fit in 3 then it has to be 3 medium built
person or 2 heavy with 1 kid or some combination like this. The car
looks cute from outside but is quite spacey from inside. The boot space
is generous and larger than Santro, might be a little less compared to
WagonR petrol.
Estilo A/C
It comes with AC and heater. The AC is just remarkable. It cools within
seconds and does not eat into the car’s power. All in all a perfect AC
and the best in its class.
Estilo Interiors
The interiors are of completely beige color in Vxi and this helps to
brighter the car. It also gives a high end look to the car. The
plastics are of a decent quality too. The instrument cluster looks
trendy with the Orange/Yellow combination. There are 2 digital trip
meters and a digital odometer. There is a tachometer too which is
missing in Santro. The centre silver console also adds to the beauty.
The steering wheel is 3 spoke and of Beige as well.
Comfort/Luxury
Estilo scores big time here. The top end comes with all 4 power windows
(driver’s auto roll down). It has Power Steering for effortless
manovouring. It comes with OVRMs which means the side mirrors can be
adjusted internally(electrically). There is Central locking with
keyless entry/lock.
Troubles
We were waiting for issues with the Gear Box. There were horror stories
about the gear box being very rubbery and long. We did not find any
such trouble in our car except that reverse gear is a bit hard to
engage and the gear brushes the co-passengers leg sometimes
Estilo - Mileage
Our car seems to give 12+ km/litre with AC on 70% but I will check it
properly with tank full to tank full method and then confirm. It should
increase after a couple of services and settle around 15-16 km/litre.
Estilo Lxi Vs Vxi
Defogger in Rear
Body Side Moulding
Wheel Caps - Full
Black out Film
Front Fog Lamps
Body coloured side door handles
Body coloured Outside door mirrors
Tachometer
Lights Off and Key Reminder Chime
Accessory Socket
Power Windows Rear
Remote Keyless entry
Electrical OVRMs
Vanity Mirror
Full Beige Interiors
Wider Tyre
Silver Centre console Finish
Pratham Motors - Bangalore
We booked our Champagne Beige Estilo Vxi on 13th of September in
Pratham Motors and the car was delivered the very next day complete
with registration and number plate. They were very professional and
friendly. One Mr. Hemanth Kumar handled our case(on a strong
recommendation from another friend in our apartment). He helped us and
took great care to answer all our queries. I am extremely happy with
them.
Compared to WagonR Vxi
After considering discounts Estilo is cheaper by 5000
Looks trendy compared to the boxy WagonR(subjective)
Monoform design can cut through the air, whereas WagonR’s design blocks the air
Engine and Gear box slightly refined compared to WagonR
Interiors are excellent in Estilo
Body colored mirrors, door handle
Antenna(ariel) for better FM reception
Lesser headroom compared to WagonR
Rear Power windows(WagonR has only front)
Key-less entry(not present in WagonR)
OVRMs electric(not sure about WagonR)
4 Speaker provision built in(only 2 in WagonR)
Slightly better fuel economy in Estilo
Compared to Santro Xo(top end model)
Airbags are offered in Estilo(not in Santro)
Keyless entry(missing in Santro)
iCats Engine Immobilizer security in Estilo
Maruti has more/better service centres and widely spread too
Interiors of Estilo too good compared to Santro
Santro’s Gear Box is one of the best whereas in Estilo it is just ok
Santro is strongly built whereas Estilo is like WagonR or Alto
Estilo comes with Antenna(aerial)
Estilo Mileage is definitely higher by 2 or 3 km/litre
Estilo is newer design, and might have longer life whereas Santro might be re-modelled or phased out.
The complete review with photos can be read at https://simonkayar.tabulas.com/content/pages/@39673/