[audioholic]

Originally Posted by The Brutailer

Pardon me if I'm wrong but is ESP really required on entry level hatchbacks with 100 odd bhps?

Not that I'm saying it's a bad thing to have (you can never have too much of safety) but does it really warrant it on a low powered car?

On the other hand, 6 airbags will be more useful on such cars.

Not prioritizing between 6 airbags and ESP, but there are some 'fast' drivers in India who want to push cars into all speeds and places without understanding the limits of the cars. Thats why we see so many accidents where the car just went off the road in a curve since the driver did not know what was the speed at which the car could take the curve. Hence, I feel it is indeed to have ESP on this car, especially when Maruti wants to tag it as 'fast'.

I was expecting better from this car, since I felt it could someday replace my Celerio as a fast beater. But pricing this car has turned out to be plain stupidity and over confidence. Imagine if VW came up with a manual GT Tsi, and that can be easily priced a little less than the Alpha Boosterjet. That would make the GT TSI an obvious choice. At the current trim level and configuration, such a premium is not at all justified. Heck, compared to the 1.2L engine, the power gains is just meagre in my opinion. Agree that for the 1.0L engine, this is great. But when you ask customers to pay extra money for it, you should justify it better.

A six speed torque converter at least should have been added, else a six speed manual along with some additional equipment like extra airbags or ESP would have justified the premium. The sixth cog would have helped in efficient highway cruising, and a closer set of ratios which would have ensured lesser gear shifts. At least then it would have been a strong alternative for those who do not want the DSG on the Polo.

Eager for a test drive, just to see how the K10 has been given a new avatar. Not sure if they have the cars ready yet for TD.

[d_himan]

Originally Posted by The Brutailer

Pardon me if I'm wrong but is ESP really required on entry level hatchbacks with 100 odd bhps?

Not that I'm saying it's a bad thing to have (you can never have too much of safety) but does it really warrant it on a low powered car?

On the other hand, 6 airbags will be more useful on such cars.

Sorry, going OT.... but yes, ESC should be completely mandatory. Personally, whenever I went too 'hot' into a corner or encountered a nasty oil spill/puddle mid-corner, ESP fractionally cut out the power, braked the inner wheels and corrected the trajectory. Miraculous, the way it retrieves an over-steer and tries preventing fishtailing.

It's far better to avoid getting into an accident in the first place than to have a crash and hope 6 airbags will save lives. And yes, it might help an Alto K10 even more - it's not about engine BHP, it's about loss of grip. A set of worn out tyres will do the trick.

[The Brutailer]

Please note that ESP does NOT help in cornering in anyway. Helps in skidding and loss of traction.

And..there's a limit to what a car can do to save you. If a person drives like a maniac, ESP can't do much. But 6 airbags might help prevent a fatal accident.

I'd be glad if things like ESP and Airbags become compulsory like it's happening in European countries. But the best safety equipment in your car is driving sensibly.

[d_himan]

Originally Posted by The Brutailer

Please note that ESP does NOT help in cornering in anyway. Helps in skidding and loss of traction.

And..there's a limit to what a car can do to save you. If a person drives like a maniac, ESP can't do much. But 6 airbags might help prevent a fatal accident.

I'd be glad if things like ESP and Airbags become compulsory like it's happening in European countries. But the best safety equipment in your car is driving sensibly.

Loss of traction can happen in cornering. ESP helps there. In fact, please read up - its widely respected for preventing oversteer related loss of control. Of course it prevents fatalities, its classified as an active safety technology.

Obviously, brains are the biggest safety net. But if pushed to a corner, I'll put my money in a car with ESP and 2 airbags rather than no ESP and 6 airbags.

Anyway, completely OT. Mods please delete if irrelevant to the main thread

[Jaggu]

Great car for the enthusiast, but is the 1.4 Lakh price difference is justified? Don't think so. I would have left it at 70-80k more than regular petrol since it is the engine, brakes and few cosmetics that gets the upgrade. But in these days of 17 lakh Vento and City, this sounds reasonable lol

I think MUL has done a half hearted effort and full monty with pricing. Hope they realise and either on of these is sorted in Version 2.0! Something like leather (fake also is fine) interiors plus a 6 or 7 speed auto box at same price point would have made more sense hmmmm...

[vishy76]

Originally Posted by Jaggu

Great car for the enthusiast, but is the 1.4 Lakh price difference is justified? Don't think so. I would have left it at 70-80k more than regular petrol since it is the engine, brakes and few cosmetics that gets the upgrade. But in these days of 17 lakh Vento and City, this sounds reasonable lol

I think MUL has done a half hearted effort and full monty with pricing. Hope they realise and either on of these is sorted in Version 2.0! Something like leather (fake also is fine) interiors plus a 6 or 7 speed auto box at same price point would have made more sense hmmmm...

Completely agree with what you listed. The 1.2 K-series makes sense for the average buyer as compared to this. The Polo in comparision has an advantage as it has a mediocre 3 pot 1.2 MPi which might compel potential buyers to stretch for the GT. Will wait for the official review for a final verdict though.

On a sidenote, I still don't think that Maruti has made enough cosmetic upgrades on the outside atleast. I took this beautiful picture captured by the mods at the auto expo and gave it a few more colour variations

Kindly excuse the glitches. Still a novice when it comes to these things.

A ruby red:


A Shiny green (personal favourite):


A Golden yellow:


The instrument cluster too was changed by me:


Regards,
vishy76

[CarguyNish]

This 1.0 Boosterjet is imported from Japan. Could this be the reason for High Price (1.4 lakhs) compared to Polo GT TSI.

Maruti may start assembling this 1.0L Turbo Petrol Engine once they come with an idea of powering multiple cars with this engine. Once this happens, the difference might reduce to 40-60k from current 140k.

If VW launches Polo TSI Manual, Maruti will definitely reduce the prices.

[shibujp]

Originally Posted by tjacob

First review from NDTV is up.

The reviewer mentions a very strong midrange. If this is the case the in gear acceleration should be strong. Those would be some interesting figures to look out for once the road tests come in.

[YC.BALENO.CHD]

Originally Posted by CarguyNish

This 1.0 Boosterjet is imported from Japan. Could this be the reason for High Price (1.4 lakhs) compared to Polo GT TSI.

Maruti may start assembling this 1.0L Turbo Petrol Engine once they come with an idea of powering multiple cars with this engine. Once this happens, the difference might reduce to 40-60k from current 140k.

If VW launches Polo TSI Manual, Maruti will definitely reduce the prices.

Is it not the Baleno Boosterjet is exported from here?

[CarguyNish]

Originally Posted by YC.BALENO.CHD

Is it not the Baleno Boosterjet is exported from here?

Gaadiwaadi from their review mention that this engine is imported.

The all-new Boosterjet turbo-petrol motor is imported from Japan and is a derived version of the original 110 PS Boosterjet engine which was disregarded due to the unavailability of 91 octane grade petrol in India.

Source

[chncar]

Originally Posted by CarguyNish

This 1.0 Boosterjet is imported from Japan. Could this be the reason for High Price (1.4 lakhs) compared to Polo GT TSI.

Maruti may start assembling this 1.0L Turbo Petrol Engine once they come with an idea of powering multiple cars with this engine. Once this happens, the difference might reduce to 40-60k from current 140k.

If VW launches Polo TSI Manual, Maruti will definitely reduce the prices.

Lots of engines are imported, including the very common 1.4 diesel used by Toyota. There is no excuse for this exorbitant overpricing.

[Ferrariwell]

Highly over priced in my opinion. I expected it cost this much fully registered and taxed with an MH 01 plate. That being said it does look smashing in the picture posted by shibujp especially in blue. I have driven the polo TSI & abarth punto although Im a relatively new driver just wanted to share my experiences. The polo TSI in a short gist is a perfect city car for a bit of fun on the weekends its all the car you'll ever need especially if you're a youngster it has a dual nature just like it's customer base a lot of new drivers buy the gt tsi and it's also bought by thoroughbred enthusiast. Brilliant car nonetheless. The abarth punto feels like a through and through sports car it's feels crazily fast as compared to the polo TSI but it trades practicality for speed there are absolutely no cubby holes hence no where to put a decently sized phone. Also a friend who has bought an abarth punto from the recently inaugurated Fiat Mumbai dealership has had multiple issues with his car including an abs/obd issues on the day of delivery itself all fixed by Fiat under warranty though. If you want a VW with maruti quality ASS my suggestion would be to either opt for extended warranty or best of all never send the car to a VW dealer once the warranty is done (that's when they suddenly find faults with your car). The baleno RS won't have many takers in my opinion especially with these two around at this price. One of the reasons this car is fast us because of its kerb weight which is low because of its build quality Im sure many people in the right frame of mind would hesitate to push this car as they would always have it at the back of their head that if something were to go wrong it would be one way ticket to the hospital or worse. Even if it were cheaper I can not imagine buying this car especially after reading/seeing the horror stories affiliated to people who had mishaps or accidents in the normal version of this car. A company that chooses chrome plating and crappy stickers instead of good build quality and safety is not a company I would like to be affiliated with.*

In short this car doesn't have the build quality of either the VW or Fiat nor does it have the timeless looks or the convenience of an AT+ a cylinder less and costs almost the same( I'm sure nobody would buy this car just because it costs 40k less than a tsi that's peanuts in terms of emi as pointed out by someone) . Why would anyone buy it ? Just my 2 cents.

[Karthik Chandra]

Originally Posted by Ferrariwell

Why would anyone buy it ?

Just because its a Maruti, nothing else.

Peace of mind is important in car ownership.

With the Baleno RS, Fun-To-Drive quotient comes with Peace of mind.

[swiftnfurious]

Originally Posted by CarguyNish

...Maruti may start assembling this 1.0L Turbo Petrol Engine once they come with an idea of powering multiple cars with this engine. Once this happens, the difference might reduce to 40-60k from current 140k....

Well, I love the optimism from some of you on price reduction, but it'll not happen unless this is super flop. Even lesser chance since the normal Baleno is a big hit. Maruti's long term plan should be to locally manufacture the Boosterjet & also try to launch it in other similar products, buy they wouldn't bother with a price reduction.

We had the 1.3L G13B petrol engine in Swift initially (which was not eligible for tax benefit), but there was zero reduction in prices after the K12 was launched. That's an extra profit to their kitty.

If Baleno RS fails, they probably will fine tune their production and offer some discounts for the existing inventory, but I doubt a price correction as such.

I am quite surprised at this price. A 1.0L engine priced way above the 1.3L MJD for which Maruti has to give royalty. Since this is developed in Japan, MS India has to give royalty to Suzuki Japan too, but I think this is quite a premium they are charging.

[vb-saan]

Originally Posted by The Brutailer

Pardon me if I'm wrong but is ESP really required on entry level hatchbacks with 100 odd bhps?

On the other hand, 6 airbags will be more useful on such cars.

Definitely yes! Unfortunately when safety become a premium option, this is something which knocked off first from the 'India-spec' feature-list. For this price, a full safety package would've been ideal.