Maruti enjoys a lot of goodwill in India, and the real testimonial to that is that name ’Zen’... As famous as Maruti itself, the Zen has sold in numbers bettered by only the Alto and the 800.
The Zen was selling in very good number till the Swift came along… The Swift became the natural succesor to this racy little hatch. Still, the Zen, though discontinued, sells a few numbers. That is the goodwill that the car enjoys.
Now, Maruti is counting on the same, and the old generation MR wagon, will be launched in India as the new Zen. Built on the same platform as the Alto and the WagonR, the car promises better look than others in the segment, and will take the HYundia santro head on… The monobox and tall- boy design resembles that of the Matiz, not at all a bad thing, as Matiz was considered as one of the best looking cars around.
The engine options are also looking good. The Zen’s 1L G10B is not likely to make it to the new car. The most likely choice is the 1061cc f10D, shared from the wagonR. This produces a good 64bhp, although many will miss the responsiveness of the all- aluminium motor the Zen had. the wagonR duo engine will also likely make it into the new Zen. But the luggage space will be seriously compromised for the tank...
The engine that will decide the fate of the new Zen will be the 1.3 multijet diesel sourced from FIAT. It fits into the Zens engine bay, the car will have a combination of power and mileage unlike any other. The 1.3 multijet is expected to deliver near to 20 kpl. (gives 22kpl for Swift in Europe)... and produces 70bhp, with loads of torque too... When it is launched, which is of course at a later stage....
Cons: Its an old model (looks good though)
Launch is likely to be within a week… So… Zen is here again to set the sales charts on fire…
If you want a more agile and peppy, but can compromise a bit of comfort and space than the wagonR, the new zen is for you... Looks like Santro is going to have a tough time...
Some more pics are available on my blog... http://www.turbocharged.wordpress.com...
(Pics : bsmotoring)