I may have answer to your questions because I own a Zest AMT & a Celerio AMT. Celerio is for my wife but I also drive it frequently (have driven it more than 1000 kms till date). Zest, being my primary vehicle has been driven for over 73k kms in my over 2 yrs of ownership (all by me). There is definitely a difference between the two vehicle but AMT is AMT and the typical characteristics it has are irrespective of the engine type. Below are my observations:
a) Celerio hunts for gears more frequently because of a smaller engine while Zest cruises in 3rd in mild to medium traffic
b) Both the cars are equally annoying in b2b traffic. However, after driving AMT for over 2 years, I am now used to it
c) Filling gaps is relatively easier (not faster but comfortable) with Zest because of the tremendous torque that it offers.
d) Don't expect anything from Zest or Celerio if you drive pedal to metal. Both with annoy you (Zest being a little better here)
e) The creep function available in celerio is actually good as it helps avoid the binary acceleration that you get in zest
Manual mode in AMT is equally good in both the cars, it gives you best of both the worlds. If you are a sedate driver, then only go for AMT otherwise you will not feel satisfied.
a) Celerio hunts for gears more frequently because of a smaller engine while Zest cruises in 3rd in mild to medium traffic
b) Both the cars are equally annoying in b2b traffic. However, after driving AMT for over 2 years, I am now used to it
c) Filling gaps is relatively easier (not faster but comfortable) with Zest because of the tremendous torque that it offers.
d) Don't expect anything from Zest or Celerio if you drive pedal to metal. Both with annoy you (Zest being a little better here)
e) The creep function available in celerio is actually good as it helps avoid the binary acceleration that you get in zest
Manual mode in AMT is equally good in both the cars, it gives you best of both the worlds. If you are a sedate driver, then only go for AMT otherwise you will not feel satisfied.
On the contrary, I really liked the Vento TDI DSG. A perfect car for our needs. In future there is a speculation that GT TDI is coming with a DSG transmission. As I already own a VW product I know the maintenance costs and the cost to replace a DSG gearbox will be a bomb, at around 4.5 lakhs. I have also enquired the cost for replacing an AMT module post warranty and it is costing 1.30 lakh for the celerio. The service manager in Maruti Dealership assured me that the Diesel AMT module including the gearbox replacement won't cost you more than 2.00 lakh rupees and he also said that the replacement would be required only in case of an accident if AMT module gets salvaged or may be during a long term ownership, say about 10 years. And on the positive note MSIL is in talks with Magnetti Marelli for setting up an AMT gearbox manufacturing unit in India, so the prices may come down and parts such as actuators or the necessary wear and tear items could be replaced instead of replacing the whole AMT module. So after knowing these prices I am more inclined towards the Dzire Diesel AMT or Swift Diesel AMT. So I am ready to drive sedately for the convenience of an AMT automatic.
The biggest selling point for these cars is, they are Diesel + Automatic that are affordable and can be maintained without breaking a bank. So you are saying that sedate driving would be helpful in a Diesel AMT. And what about the Jerks at crawling speeds (not during gear shifts) ? I hope Diesel AMT won't jerk. And does that creep function available in Dzire AMT ? Does it slowly move ahead in B2B traffic ? Any idea on this ?
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