Zen is a simple car. It’s got a 1000cc engine, 200cc more than M800, while the size is almost the same as 800’s. I guess it is slightly heavier than 800.
What is good?
It is problem-free. It will run for years and years without actually costing anything on maintenance. Other than oil change and tire care. I really mean nothing, unless you do something that bad to your car. It doesn’t change much as it gets older. If you use it properly, you can almost keep it in the same shape for many years. It is very very easy to drive. Even in crowded city traffic, you won’t really find any difficulty in handling it. To add to the ease, gear shift is ultra smooth. (At least for my car). As you get familiar with car (doesn’t take much time), you’ll almost forget about the ease aspect of driving for good reasons.One reason why it is so handy is that the engine is pretty powerful for the size and weight of the car. As a result, it picks up well, which is important in city driving. Mileage is neat. Though not the highest. The one I used was giving around 15KMPL. (800 and alto has more) Ride is somewhat comfortable, on decent roads. (Not as good as Indica, Much better than 800/alto). Looks is fine, though not great. The new design looks even better.
What isn’t good.
The edges of the tire get torn off. Don’t think this issue is there with all the cars, but ours had, some other owners of Zen had complained of the same. This isn’t a serious matter though; it only cuts the tire life slightly, only slightly, shorter. On higher speeds, say beyond 90KMPH, the car isn’t all that steady. This isn’t exactly a problem with the car you can say; the problem is that it is really small. If you do plenty of highway driving, you may find this a real concern, as you may not be able to do much 100+’s feeling that safe. On bad roads, Zen can be very frustrating. It is simply not made to be driven on bad roads, so to see that you don’t spoil your car, you may be forced to cut the speed considerably. If the bumpy road stretches really long, your overall driving time is going to shoot up. Simple math, I must say. It slowly start looking old fashioned for its design, when compared to the Swifts and Getz’
Summary
Zen is the best choice if :
Your aren’t planning to change your car for some good term. You don’t want to bother much about your car, use it day after day, and somewhat forget it otherwise. (Wash it once in a while!) You do plenty of city/town driving. And fewer highways driving. You are bit bothered about mileage, price and maintenance cost (all are very affordable with Zen).