Our New Workhorse: Maruti Suzuki S-Cross Zeta Ownership Review


Thread Starter #1
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Let me Introduce our S-CROSS to you. Fortunately or un-fortunately this is a First ownership (a Privilege) of S-Cross on TAI!!

"S-Cross 200 zeta"​

We really did cross shopping to acquire our CROSSOVER.

The car is really an underrated, not an eye candy and I am sure it’s not a Head Turner too. But definitely a VFM product after the recent Price cut. Its good MS learnt the lesson and priced it sensibly!!

Cost to Pocket (Money matters):-
Ex Showroom (Nagpur):- 9,87,519Rs
RTO:- 1,08,627
Insurance (B2B):- 28,000
Extended Warranty:- 17,363
Temp Registration:-1,200
Nexa Card:- 600

Total:- 11,25,946 Rs

Discount we could squeeze:-
Corporate Discount (Pretty Standard):- 10,000
Extended Warranty:- 17,363

Freebies thrown:-
  • Seat Cover:- The quality is good
  • Car cover:- Didn’t open it yet
  • Mud Flaps
  • Mats:- They are very ordinary
  • Teflon coating
  • 3M Anti rust underbody coat

Damage to Pocket and a happy customer:- 10,98,583 Rs

Our Requirements:-
• Mango man’s 1st requisite Budget:- 11lakh stretch to 12 only if is a last resort
• Spacious
• Muted Ride handler(Benchmark was Duster)
• Petrol (max Mileage will be 500-600kms Per month)
• Good GC
• Good ASS
• No AT (Mental blockage—Dad has drove only manual and at 60 he don’t want to try anything new)
• Comfortable five seater


Contenders:-

  1. Petrol Duster
  2. Eco-sport
  3. Breeza(A late entry)

Cross shopping story:-

My dad was free from his daily Job upon retirement in January and we didn’t had any car for him to ferry around Nagpur and visit to our Village in MP.

Part A (The cooking story):- My Dad being a central govt employee was ferrying in Duster(a Diesel one though) for past two years and my Mom was really impressed by the Duster’s subtle ride and comfort and they were eying a Petrol Duster(Base model) had a brief discussion with sales Advisor too and I was totally unaware of it.

My Parents paid visit to us in Bangalore (On our House warming ceremony) and the curtain was raised as they are looking to procure Petrol Duster and it’s in their budget.

*We were looking for Petrol vehicle as our running is low and doesn’t command premium price to be paid for a Diesel one

I agreed to them as we do require a workhorse as dad was keen to spend time in the village. I asked them we can buy Duster but let’s have a look into other offerings too and kept my foot down to have dual Airbag & ABS atleast. So, while returning from whitefield(My New house) to Banshankri I took them to Nexa-Kalyani in JP Nagar, they had Delta model in display. It was Sunday evening and there was no Test drive vehicle available even when we were willing to wait for 30mins, sigh premium experience went for toss.

*Nexa experience I will cover later

I emphasized to my dad it’s a Diesel since he was looking for Petrol one, our running didn’t warrant a Diesel vehicle but we were not paying any premium and its in our price range so why not!! He agreed and upon hearing the FE there was no back away from his side.

*On S-Cross:-It did impressed my dad( the door was opened!) And now to the final decision maker my Mom(Remember she was a fan of Duster already)
Next we move to Renualt showroom to have a look since I made a point Dual Airbag and it was confirmed No dual Airbag in Petrol variant and duster went out of the window.

Part B(Decision Maker):- Dad delightfully broke the news that he has seen S-Cross and it’s an interesting package, My mom was aware that I have thrown a surprise entry of S-cross to the platter but she didn’t paid any heed remember she was already sold to Duster and I have to due diligently explain why Airbags are important now even when we are driving slow & safe but others may not.
She agreed to have a look on S-Cross and yes she was not aware of S-cross and said I have not seen it on the road yet.

*When we were looking to purchase Brio(2013) in bangalore she confirmed that she has seen it on road and Red was the most suited color(yes she was the decision maker for our brio color choice too). This substantiate the point S-Cross is not a looker, we were fine as we need a practical car and not a showoff object.

Next day we visited Nexa again(along with Mom & my wife) same SA and same story no test drive vehicle available sir!! We didn’t waste time and move to the display car, mom sat on the back seat. She was okish as deep down she was also aware out 3 veto vote two are already in for S-Cross. Coming to the fourth one My wife was just happy as we were buying new car. But she was tempted too to exchange our i20 for S-Cross in B’lore, but I couldn’t comprehend.

My mom the decision maker was sold on the Reclining seat, comfortable ingress and egress of S-cross

So, As they left Bangalore Duster was nowhere in contention and title contender was S-Cross. But, I throwed another entry Honda BR-V

Some Pic of our S-cross more I will share later…
 

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Re: Our New workhorse S-Cross 200 Zeta

Congrats for getting S-Cross yeah it is under-rated car especially after price cut. i was thinking what if maruti advertised it as a competitor for i20 & launch it with current price.
 
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Dude,

Is the nexa card you mentioned, same as the maruti membership card? Or are there any additional privileges attached to it? Also, could you share a bit more details about this S-Cross price cut?
 
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Thread Starter #4
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Congrats for getting S-Cross yeah it is under-rated car especially after price cut. i was thinking what if maruti advertised it as a competitor for i20 & launch it with current price.
Hey Thanks!!! Comparing/competing S-Cross with i-20 would be unfair as what I believe S-Cross competition is i-30 which is not launched in India yet.

Dude,

Is the nexa card you mentioned, same as the maruti membership card? Or are there any additional privileges attached to it? Also, could you share a bit more details about this S-Cross price cut?
I am not sure about Maruti membership card but I would guess it should be same. It has points system which can be redeemed to buy accessories or during service

S-cross was undergone Price cut in January. please find information here:-
Maruti slashes S-Cross price by over Rs 2 lakh | Latest News & Updates at Daily News & Analysis

The S-cross Price cut was also reported on our Forum.

http://www.theautomotiveindia.com/forums/indian-auto-sector/17489-maruti-suzuki-s-cross-now-sale-rs-8-34-lakh-32.html
 
Thread Starter #8
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Congrats on your car. Please upload the seat cover pics.
Thanks!! Sure I will do, I have more Pics to be uploaded. Positively by tomorrow I will complete the experience of 1200+kms ride.

Sadly I am back to b'lore and could stay only 5days with the newly acquired beast.

But i will mention the Seat cover quality is acceptable and mine is all black.

How is the driving experience? Also put some light on ride quality.
The 1.3 VGT engine has a very less or minimal turbo lag and pickup is linear unlike the FGT one. Just to test the Riding confidence I did took it 130KMPh(Not advisable) and it was not a confidence aspiring. I would blame the pathetic JK tyre for it, even after it carries 205MM thread. Surely recommend change of Tyres!![frustration]

Just for Driver Confidence I would rate my Brio>S-Cross>i20. All riding on stock tyres.

Ride quality I would say it was comfortable one having 16inch wheels I don't need to slow down at all sizes of potholes. My Mom did slept nicely on our visit to village trip.


Congratulations @brio lover on your new car purchase. What made you to opt for S-Cross apart from rest two contenders Eco sport & Brezza.
Thank You!! We needed a spacious 5 seater this sole point ruled out Ecosport(Me being a 6 footer). Breeza was a logical choice/option but booking now and getting in say 3months was not our option. But Do try S-Cross vis a vis Breeza, you won't be asking the same question again, they are poles apart.

I will cover in detail in my Concluded ownership review.
 
Thread Starter #9
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I will conclude the Review part here...

My Parents went back from B’lore with S-Cross in mind and awaited BR-V launch as it was supposed to be unleashed in the same window.

Market Offerings:-

Ford Ecosport:-
Pros:-
Petrol Engine an offerings
Quality top notch
Definitely a looker
Ride & Handling
Recent Price cut made it VFM

Cons:-
Cramped Rear bench
ASS was in question(Apprehension because of unknown territory)
Vehicle has long clutch throw not to our taste

Breeza(The New blockbuster from MS):-
Pros:-
EBD in offering
Good looks
Feature packed
Pseudo SUV stance
New in market
National engine carrier
Dual color looks cool

Cons:-
Quality is keeping budget in mind
Long waiting period
Seats were smaller to my size

BR-V
Pros:- I-Vtec an offer
Flexi seating option(6 or 7)
GC is 210mm
Boot space with 3rd row folded
Spacious

Cons:-
Had to extend our budget to get VMT
Delivery will have its waiting period

*we didn’t give much thought to BR-V after the Prices were revealed, it wasn’t in our budget for the variant which would interest us

S-Cross:-
Pros:-
Feature packed
All 4 disc brakes
Best quality offerings by MS(Again perceived)
1.3 National engine
ASS

Cons:-
No Petrol options
Not as stylish compare to other players

With all these in our mind we decided upon S-Cross once decided the variant & Color conundrum started. We reviewed Delta version in B’lore but in Nagpur even Zeta was in our Budget

Zeta had below Features on top of Delta:-

Turn lamp on ORVM (Gives an edge to avoid Mishap)
Front Fog lamp
Rear Camera
Rear Wiper, washer & Demister
Touch screen
Fold able ORVM (Def Convenient)
Auto AC
Rear Arm Rest
Driver seat Height Adjuster (Convenient)
Cruise Control
Reclining rear seat (its +++)
Gimmicky Push Start-Stop button

With additional 90k+, we agreed to consider Zeta. Color we switched from Brown(maintenance seeker) to Grey and then Finally Silver(thinking small scratches won’t be seen)

So, it was decided S-Cross 200 Zeta in Silver will be our next car. We gave 100k as booking amount on 12th May and delivery was promised in one week but we were not available so delivery was fixed on 20th of May.

The car was allocated to us on 17th and I asked them to share VIN no and it was May-16th vehicle, thanks to our valuable forum on decoding VINs.

Let’s put the spotlight to our new workhorse

Ground Clearance at 185mm was sufficient for our usage


-16 Alloy wheel is also an added advantage as we no longer to think about small potholes
-Tyres are broad 205 mm thread
-A better Alloy it do deserved
-5th tyre is a steel one
-Wheel cladding for all four wheels



-ABC Pedals are well spaced
-There is a dead pedal too


Infotainment system has 4 quadrants
  • Media Player
  • Bluetooth telephony
  • Navigation
  • Car play system to cast your phone

-It has mute button on both screen and on steering
-Touch sensor are quite good
-speech recognition is efficient and picks Indian accents
-ACC buttons are nicely placed
-AC is effective but rear vent would have been a added advantage



Drive & Co-driver hand rest
-its not gimmicky and quite effective and has could be stretched for support
-It houses USB & Aux(sorry no phoo)
-No intrusion to Hand brake





-Boot is 375 liters a less compare to its size but no complain whatsoever from our side



-Rear seat has good thigh support & has reclining feature
-Hand rest also at comfortable height



Glove size is small & is an illuminated one


Gear box is slick and there are two bottle holders near handbrake, we used one to keep the car perfume



-Driver seat is height adjustable and has a good range. I prefers to sit low down & father wants to be seated up to have view of bonnet, it did served as well
-seats are well cushioned



-Steering wheel is not to my taste and my Brio one is better in feel
-Notice no thumb contour
-Left side there is a control for ICE
-Down to that for Bluetooth telephony
-Right side is Cruise control
-Cruise control is a good feature and its very convenient to use



MID shows
-Instant FE
-Range
-Avg FE
-Avg speed
-Has two trip meters



Engine - The heart of the car is our National engine as you all know.To start with the engine sounds refined at start , a bit of clatter is audible. This do seep in the cabin, especially if the music system is off. In second and third gears, with even 5 people on board, you don’t feel that the engine is under powered.

Gears - have a nice feel of the lever, they slot well- except on reverse. Second third and fourth gears are in city driving.
Frequent shifts of gears will be needed for overtaking and maneuvers, in City I didn't stall the engine even once.

The clutch is light and easy to use, and I was most impressed by its short throw otherwise it would have been a pain. This was also the point to chose S-Cross even when its diesel

Brakes- The brakes are very good and 4 disc brakes do inspire confidence

Suspension- The bumps are well soaked in at higher speeds and lesser in slower speeds. It handles well in broken roads as well as when encountering pot holes.

NVH- The engine noise is audible at idling speeds and at higher RPMs. But if your music system is on the noise is non existent.

ICE- All controls are well laid out and work as expected, the screen and settings are un- cluttered too and the fonts are easy to read. Camera works well on reversing

F.E:- Although its quite early but after 1200+km ride and AC on always(its summer) the MID is showing 19.2kmpl[clap]

That's all for now. I hope you enjoyed reading and feel free to suggest if any
 
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The heart of the car is our National engine as you all know.
Would you please explain the term? I am not car specialist but learning.
Second third and fourth gears are in city driving.
Please explain this phrase in detail.
The clutch is light and easy to use, and I was most impressed by its short throw otherwise it would have been a pain. This was also the point to chose S-Cross even when its diesel
This is very nice. It causes less fatigue on driver.
5th tyre is a steel one
What would happen if you have to change tyre in a trip? When I purchased my car the dealer offered all tyres would be swaped by alloy wheels on payment of some extra money.
 
Thread Starter #13
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Apologies!! here are the Pics not sure what went wrong earlier[surprise]. I was traveling last few days so, couldn't update. Apologies once again!
 

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Thread Starter #14
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Would you please explain the term? I am not car specialist but learning.

Please explain this phrase in detail.

This is very nice. It causes less fatigue on driver.

What would happen if you have to change tyre in a trip? When I purchased my car the dealer offered all tyres would be swaped by alloy wheels on payment of some extra money.
I phrase as a National engine as Maruti uses Fiat 1.3 Diesel engine which is being used by Fiat, Tata & chevrolet too and MS parts are sold off the shelf too.

Talking about 3rd & 4th Gear it has enough pull/torque to make a quick overtakes

Coming to 5th Tyre as Non-Alloy one, there should not be a speed limit when 5th tyre is used as all are 16inches

Hi,
Congratulations on your new Maruti Suzuki S-Cross. Wishes to clock many more miles without issues.
Thanks AmbyL[:)]

you should upload the images again. they are not visible.
@AllHYC- I have uploaded the missing pics!!
 

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