[aniketi]

Auto Expo fever has started. Maruti has started ads aggressively and its already in newspapers today.


Average of 23.1 KMPL !!! Kudos to Maruti for that. I guess its going to be only Petrol model. So 23.1 is really great. I guess with Celerio Maruti has one more winner in their hand. Others, watch out

[Saanil]

They have already started bookings without unveiling the car. I am very much interested in the AMT technology. Just hope the looks and interiors are alright.

Is Celerio going to be launched at the Auto Expo?

[audioholic]

Originally Posted by aniketi

Auto Expo fever has started. Maruti has started ads aggressively and its already in newspapers today.


Average of 23.1 KMPL !!! Kudos to Maruti for that. I guess its going to be only Petrol model. So 23.1 is really great. I guess with Celerio Maruti has one more winner in their hand. Others, watch out

Guess I am quite sold onto this car. If its priced closed to a WagonR or Ritz, guess I may replace the wagonR with this one. Being a Maruti even if the AMT develops problems I dont think replacement will be a hassle.

Just got info from someone that it will be priced at around 7L on road for the AMT VXi. TD cars are dispatched today which will take a few days to reach the dealers.

Originally Posted by Saanil

They have already started bookings without unveiling the car. I am very much interested in the AMT technology. Just hope the looks and interiors are alright.

Is Celerio going to be launched at the Auto Expo?

Feb 7th will be the launch 99%. You can get a TD from that day. It seems that enquiries are pouring in and bookings have started from today. 10k fully refundable booking amount.

[raj_5004]

Going by the current pictures of the gear lever and subsequent discussions on how this thing works, I just cannot understand one thing -

If the AMT has a fully automatic 'D' mode as well, then what is the different between this and a fully automatic transmission? Even the AMT has D and manual modes and even an A/T with triptronic (like in Civic, Vento, City, etc.) had D with manual modes.

So, if the AMT can drive as an Automatic in D mode, why is it called a AMT? And why not simply an A/T?

[Saanil]

Originally Posted by audioholic

Just got info from someone that it will be priced at around 7L on road for the AMT VXi. TD cars are dispatched today which will take a few days to reach the dealers.

7L on road is too much I think - This is a Zen Estilo replacement right? I guess this should be in the range of 5L right?

I am still not clear on how the gearbox would work. Everyone is saying different things. I think I should search youtube for proper working for the AMT gearbox.

[audioholic]

Originally Posted by Saanil

7L on road is too much I think - This is a Zen Estilo replacement right? I guess this should be in the range of 5L right?

I am still not clear on how the gearbox would work. Everyone is saying different things. I think I should search Youtube for proper working for the AMT gearbox.

7lakh is like the upper limit. Yet I think it will be priced lesser itself.

Here is the final conclusion on the gearbox part:

1. You get the convenience of an automatic transmission car.
2. The transmission under the hood will be a normal manual transmission but is completely controlled by the AMT module. This applies to the clutch and the gearshift.
3. The driver will drive the car just like an automatic transmission car. Slot it into D and you dont have to do anything else. No button or stuff for clutch.
4. In addition to the automatic mode that is offered in most low end hatchbacks here you get a tiptronic kind of feature where one can change gears manually if he wishes. However, you just have to use the + or - controls and the transmission will do the rest for you.
5. MIleage will be same or more than the manual version since the car will change gears at the right points without lugging or over revving the engine.

What is not yet known is:
1. How fast the gearshifts are.
2. How many ratios on offer. I bet its a five speed but still not sure.

[Rajeevraj]

I read recently an article where the GM of one of the auto companies ( I think it was Ford) mentioned about a tipping point from where the market rapidly shifts toward A/T from Manual transmission. I feel this AMT may cause India to reach that tipping point. After all "India drives home in a Maruti". So if Maruti launches this and extends it to cars across its range with mileage guaranteed and price looking to be competitive, looks like it will soon be "India drives home in an AMT" :-)

[Parm]

Originally Posted by aniketi

Auto Expo fever has started. Maruti has started ads aggressively and its already in newspapers today.


Average of 23.1 KMPL !!! Kudos to Maruti for that. I guess its going to be only Petrol model. So 23.1 is really great. I guess with Celerio Maruti has one more winner in their hand. Others, watch out

A-Star is sold as Celerio in the UAE.

It comes with a AT and is the cheapest Suzuki on sale. Along with Alto its the only two suzukis which are made in India.

[ram_hyundai]

In my opinion we have to slot the lever into D and then for each subsequent changes we have to manual go up or go down for the right gear selection.It is not the triptronic type of thing.And the neutral is provided in case you have to shift from the forward mode to reverse you have to mandatory touch the N position.This is the difference of this box and an AT.

Ram

[sandeepmohan]

I hope this AMT sees success. We're a country that needs more auto boxes than manuals. Every manufacturer has been slow on this in the <20lac segment. The only reservations about auto boxes, so far, have been poor economy. Once a customer experiences the convenience of an automatic, there is no looking back. Manufacturers with auto box cars should have a little road show to demonstrate whatever automatic vehicles they have. Hyundai has an auto box in nearly every car they sell (Yes; they are relic boxes). Nissan has started advertising quite a bit for their CVT equipped cars. This isn't enough. When a customer walks in to a car show room, you give them a demonstration of an automatic vehicle even if their interest is not in the product at all. It is a different thing altogether on what the customer ends up buying. When I took a colleague to try out the VW GT TSI, more than power, it was the ease of driving that impressed him the most. Power was no longer the primary requirement.

To me, Maruti's EZdrive is their way of marketing automatics. We've had automatics for a long time now. No manufacturer has tried well to sell automatics.

[599gto]

Originally Posted by IshaanIan

Not at all. Automated Manual Transmission is basically an automatic with no significant weight gains because it does not need a torque converter unit it is in charge of your clutch and can shift for you if required.

VWs DSG (Direct Shift Gearbox) is just fancy way of calling it a DCT (Dual-Clutch Transmission) it ultimately offers you a seemingly un-interrupted gear change and flow of torque. The effects of which are more drastically appreciated on diesel motors.
VWs DSG box is infamous around the globe for being an impressive technology whose reliability can be questioned. Atleast in our market, only Ford's DCT seems to have cracked the code and that doesn't even feel as good as the DSG boxes.

AMT only makes do with one clutch thus drastically reducing production costs and complexity. Think of it as a far more reliable DSG with better feel to it (owing to the single clutch), that is bought at no premium to regular automatics and is a lot less complex to repair/maintain.

Can you point out any other DSG gearbox apart from the DQ200 that has caused issues!
I don't think there are any, VW introduced the world to dual clutch transmissions by bringing them to mass market cars, I font see too many companies doing that. I think the company deserves some credit instead of being bombarded by people who actually never had to go through any DSG issues at all!
About VW not doing a recall activity in India like it did everywhere else, I think more than the company's policy, the policies of the GOI should be held responsible! the Government just has no consumer protection policies in place.
About the replacement being expensive, well, when was technology cheap anyways?!?! Moreover IIRC, I have read quite a few instances where VW or Skoda replaced the failed part of the gearbox even though the car was out of warranty.

About the AMT, IMHO this is decent tech, though the shift times are sure to be slower than a conventional torque convertor and it stands no competition to a DSG or any Dual Clutch Transmission for that matter. But the target customer is someone who doesn't want to pay for or doesn't see a need for a DSG or a Dual Clutch Transmission.
Being introduced by Maruti Suzuki in India I think this will inspire more confidence in people to go the A/T way.

About the 'better feel', I still don't understand what do people mean when they say single clutch set ups have a better feel! What feel? Jerks?

I read about how Lamborghini skipped a Dual Clutch Transmission in the Aventador to give drivers a better feel while shifting gears! I think that's completely lame. They could have made the car just that much more faster with a Dual Clutch Transmission!

[zenren]

Originally Posted by audioholic

Just got info from someone that it will be priced at around 7L on road for the AMT VXi.

Originally Posted by Saanil

7L on road is too much I think - This is a Zen Estilo replacement right? I guess this should be in the range of 5L right?

How much is the Wagon R VXi OTR in KA these days?

Even with 18% road tax in KA, 7L OTR would mean ~5.XX ex-showroom for the VXi AMT which sounds too high. AStar VXi AT is costs only 4.74 and Celerio is supposed to be its replacement. I know that Maruti can't afford to sell AMT at the price of MT. There'll definitely be a premium for the AMT box but what is the big deal if the premium is as much or higher than the conventional AT?

Same FE as MT is nice to have but it won't be preferred over the MT unless the premium is reasonable.

BTW, are we not expecting a ZXi for this car?

[volkman10]

Maruti Celerio Official Website , 23.1 km/l mileage! The Celerio will be launched in India on the 5th of February at the 2014 Indian Auto Expo.

The website shows some of the unique features that will be available in the Celerio like EZ Drive, EZ Technology, EZ Style, EZ Space and EZ Gizmos. EZ Drive features the Celerio’s new Automated Manual Transmission which will make driving in city traffic a breeze. EZ Technology talks about the K-Next engine which has a drive-by-wire feature which helps in generating more torque and extracting a good amount of fuel efficiency.

EZ Style talks about the Celerio’s CICO (curve-in curve-out) styling as well as the vehicle’s aerodynamics and looks which give out a good road presence. EZ Space talks about the good amount of space the vehicle offers. The interiors are designed to generate more headroom and leg space for passengers and Maruti calls it XpanDesign. The interiors feature 15 utility spaces to store bottles, mobile phones, etc. as well as a dual-tone colour scheme. The boot offers 235-litres of luggage space. EZ Gizmos tells us about the goodies that the Celerio will come loaded with – stereo with Bluetooth and phone pairing along with steering-mounted audio controls.
Powering the Maruti Celerio is the same 1.0-litre K10 engine which powers the WagonR. 5 variants of the Celerio will be offered – LXi, VXi, ZXi (2 variants with the clutch-less model – LXi and VXi)

source:Motorbeam

[audioholic]

Originally Posted by zenren

How much is the Wagon R VXi OTR in KA these days?

Even with 18% road tax in KA, 7L OTR would mean ~5.XX ex-showroom for the VXi AMT which sounds too high. AStar VXi AT is costs only 4.74 and Celerio is supposed to be its replacement. I know that Maruti can't afford to sell AMT at the price of MT. There'll definitely be a premium for the AMT box but what is the big deal if the premium is as much or higher than the conventional AT?

Same FE as MT is nice to have but it won't be preferred over the MT unless the premium is reasonable.

BTW, are we not expecting a ZXi for this car?

Seven lakh is the max that he could think of. But yes I think it will be priced lower than the Ritz given that it has a smaller engine. It is actually the replacement of the A-Star. Hence we can expect the same price. Also the premium will be lesser than what one has to pay for an automatic.

[zenren]

Originally Posted by volkman10

5 variants of the Celerio will be offered – LXi, VXi, ZXi (2 variants with the clutch-less model – LXi and VXi)

I still don't understand the logic of not providing the automatic option for the top variant. Typically, the person who would buy an automatic in India would be someone who prioritizes convenience and comfort over the cost savings with the MT. Wouldn't a good fraction of such people prefer the fully loaded variant if it is available?