I thought i’d already written a review of the maruti zen, and it was a shock to see I hadn’t - so here goes.
i have been using a maruti zen lx mpfi for just over a year now, and have clocked around 21000km. (yup, power user). this is my second car (the first was a lovely ’69 fiat - but that’s the topic of another review), and I bought it first-hand from the dealers.
i have found the zen to be the best car in india, and it beats everything off a lot of the cars i’ve driven in the usa. sure, it’s small - it’s a compact car after all. you get about 60bhp out of a 993cc engine, and that’s saying a lot!
135kmph consistently for about 20 minutes is the top speed i’ve hit on this vehicle (mind you, doing this to my own car was a major leap of faith for me). on average, I cruise at 90-100kmph on highways, and 50-60kmph on city roads (when possible, that is;)). I use overdrive (5th gear) most of the time when I cross 40kmph, which may not always be the best thing in city driving, but still...
now that credentials have been established, let me go on with what I like about this marvel...
comfort: excellent suspension (i’ve heard horror stories, but nothing’s happened yet), extremely roomy interiors (i’m 5’11’’ and with the front seats pushed a little back, i’m floating around), very well-placed controls (all stuff, navigation, lights, stereo, a/c, parking brake within lazy reach), smooth engine (yes, idling is a little noisy, but cruising is zero engine noise [that’s the name: ZEN = zero engine noise]), powerful a/c (cools the cabin in 2-3 minutes flat at full blast, which can then be scaled down to speed 1).
power: 60bhp of raw power waiting to be unleashed through the all-aluminum 993cc engine; when you downshift from 5th to 4th and to 3rd (speed steps: 90, 60) just for the heck of it (you don’t really need that sort of engine speed control) and the engine sounds like a jet taking off - hey, that’s roaring; at 120kmph, you release the throttle just for a second, and hit it again, you feel the acceleration pulling you back in the seat.
maintenance: zero, absolutely zero. I haven’t had to change any single part of the vehicle (it doesn’t matter that it’s still under warranty). maruti service stations are dotted all round the country - like the local garage kid who can repair your yezdi or roadking - and any issues can almost always be sorted out quick.
safety: side impact beams, collapsible steering column, 8-inch power-assisted booster brakes (i have a 2-yr old son who likes to spend most of his driving time on the front seats, and invariably drops off to sleep within 10 or 15 minutes of starting any journey - he wakes up only when we stop.)
mileage: 15-16kmpl in city driving (in vintage bangalore of 2002, that’s quite a lot!), 19-22kmpl highway (avg.speed: 90-110kmph)
general: the feel of a very well-made automobile, superb steering (even on my non-power-steering model), the confidence that comes with a reliable car.
of course, there are a couple of things that I really wish I could improve...
the low undercarriage (my brother calls this a lowly car!) - it’s taken a lot of crap, and probably will take more.
the speakers I have installed (they screw up bass a lot, so high volumes are a no-no) - I guess this is my problem, since this stereo is not a standard factory-fitted accessory.
there you are - me, my zen. the zen. the best indian car on any roads. period.
imho.
<update:07dec2004>
ok... here goes... i’ve now done a total of around 56, 800km on the car, in just over 3 years of ownership... mostly my own driving, though my brother’s used it for a few thousand kilometers, and the service station, of course...
as it stands now, I still haven’t replaced any major parts of the car yet (apart from the windshield wipers), and the car is almost as good as new. there’s still no untoward engine noise or other NVH, but the car does feel used... as it should be?
practically the only problem i’ve faced in all these thousands of kilometers is that of the car shifting sideways at high-speed turns over rough roads (i once measured how much the shift was, and found that it was around 6-8 inches over a rumbler, wheel turned around 25degrees to the right at a speed of 80kmph)... apparently this is a standard issue with the zen, and has something to do with its stability... but I do not feel this is such a big deal anyway, long as sideways clearance is maintained within reasonable bounds.
speed update: i’ve driven to the maximum speed possible on my zen - 165kmph against the 160kmph on the speedo (yep - this is true speed, measured with a GPS unit), and that was an unforgettable experience! the AC was at speed 1, I was the only deadweight in the car. so now that i’ve driven to (almost) the maximum extent possible on the great indian quadrangle, I think i’ll go retire.
as it stands today, i’m planning to upgrade the zen to a used accent 2000, primarily due to the extra space it professes... shall keep ms posted on what happens.
enjoy!
</update>