I have read most reviews of the Zen Estilo all over the internet these days, have taken a test ride( along ride as well). The new Zen will be competeting with three cars in ths segment namely
Santro(giving the toughest fight)
Wagon R( yes it does compete with one of its own model, dont you see all those boxes in its Ad promotion on TV)
Indica Xeta(its a good car with bad promotion. I hope Ratan Tata reads this review. Come On. guys you are not selling trucks and buses here, its a family car)
I will not talk about the common goodies which is common for Estilo and all its competetors like excellent Ac, Spacious for 4, Smooth driving, responsive steering etc. etc. I’ll mainly compare it with the Santro at appropriate places wherever required.
REVIEW BEGIN
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Though Maruti claims that the engine is the same as Wagon R, they are not correct totally. I know one of the Maruti Sales guy very closely and he says that its not the same engne although the specs are the same. However, the engine is as good as(may be a bit better) the Wagon R. Maruti wants to cash on the Wagon R + Zen brand.
Some cool features
1) Extremely Silent Engine. Absolute delight. Most times you feel as if the engine is switched off. Not only its silent, the vibration is also minimal.
2) Pickup is excellent. Some of the guys out here have critisized the Pickup. But I believe they are the ones who ride cars like Honda City and the likes. Please dont forget the segment we are looking into. For a 1000 CC petrol Car, Estilo rules the roost. Better than Santro any day.
3) There is something called the riding confidence and let me tell you., on a Zen Estilo is very high. You feel totally in control of the car(totally on top:-) . You will not realize it until you take a test ride. May be because of the riding posture. Slightly better than Santro. Anyway, its just a personal feel. Some one may not like it.
4) About Space . Remember its a new Zen. and as far as space is concerned its much much more than the older zen. Much leass than Wagon R, but pretty comparable to the Santro. Santro is a bit more spacious.
5) Looks . RG8 (great) . Girls/Ladies would not like the Wagon R because of its shape and the way maruti has projected the car. But the Estilo is a beauty. its will attract both the sexes. But some guys(those crude ones) may not like it . . Looks are feminine, I would say.
Double colored interiors(beige), good plastics this time(maruti may get an award this time) and overall good interiors in its segment.
6) Ride quality is excellent. Cruises with ease at 100. I could not go more, I was at bangalore.
Some not so cool features/ observations:
1) GEAR BOX . I was waiting to write this. The gear box is shakey. Maruti has not learnt from the Wagon R or is it that Maruti clients are used to the Maruti 800 type of Gear Boxes(now thats called immunity). After a gear shift the gear should stick firm. Santro wins over here.
2) Back Seats are not so comfortable as compared to Santro. The test car I drove didnt have tose eXtra premium leather seat covers. maybe it will improve one we have them.
3) Pricing is still higher than the Santro. Its only a matter of Santro coming out with the next model and Zen Estilo would be in trouble. As of now. the pricing is fine.
REVIEW END /* You guessed right, I am a Software engineer */
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Final Verdict
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Zen Estilo is very very very close to Santro. You may go for any one of them. I am about to buy an Estilo but it is like deciding to marry two equally eligible girls(this is the best example I could think off) . So in the end what you do. GO FOR THE LOOKS. whichever looks good buy it.(i am talking about the car here). The choice is yours.