[ATUL SINGH]

Hi folks,
honeybee came calling and wanted me to post a review of my ownership experience of the Maruti Versa. I've started jotting down all the ups and downs after more than 6yrs and 90000kms of having driven my Versa. One of the problem faced was trying to get a good photogenic angle of the car- and it drove me nuts. Whichever way you look at it the closest thing it resembles is a bread bin, if you leave apart the now defunct Mahindra voyger. But efforts are on and soon i should be able to come up with some thing presentable. The launch of the new Eeco has made this thread some thing of a non starter but maybe the second hand market for Versa may stay considering the uglier stance of the Eeco (thats a purely personal view point). Dont hold your breath since this may take some time. till then some stats for you-
Maruti Versa DX model September 2003 model
colour Starlite silver
Power steering, front power windows, booster assisted brakes.
fuel consumption 10-11 kmpl in delhi traffic with AC. 9-10 kmpl on highway fully loaded with 5 adults, luggage, AC and speeds in excess of 120kmph.
Max speed 148-150 kmph (indicated) in January 2007 between udaipur to chittaurgarh. Best average top speed- 105 km in 50 minutes (between the same set of cities).
Best average on highway 13kmpl (AC and fully loaded)

till then
twiddle doo

Atul

[honeybee]

Hi Atul,

Thanks for posting the review. Do keep writing in about all the different experiences you have had with the Versa. It's a car that you will either like or dislike, so don't worry about getting the right angles. Just click away and post the photos. Do remember to obscure the number plates for safety reasons.

Me and many others here would surely like to know about the figures and the experience beyond figures. On the lines of what's the average amount you pay for its routine servicing? Did you have any major complaints during the six years? Did you notice any shortcomings of the vehicle on specific occasions, or realized that it was better than others on some occasions?

[ATUL SINGH]

some photos in this session

regards
atul

[vasanthn21]

The car looks pretty good for 90K kms.

Can you tell how the engine/gear box and clutch is behaving after so many miles? any repair work on these?

Is there any rattling (I would be surprised if you say no!), but still checking.

[filcord]

Do give us more details of your experience as other posts have suggested. The Versa is unsurpassed as an utilitarian people mover. What is the difference between this and the Eeco?

[honeybee]

Originally Posted by filcord

Do give us more details of your experience as other posts have suggested. The Versa is unsurpassed as an utilitarian people mover. What is the difference between this and the Eeco?

Versa used to come in 5/8 seater variants. Eeco only has 5/7 seater variants. Versa uses the Esteem's 1.3 L engine, while Eeco uses a 1.2 L engine. Versa standard comes without AC, DX with single AC and DX2 with rear AC vents for all rows of seats.

[mpksuhas]

Originally Posted by filcord

Do give us more details of your experience as other posts have suggested. The Versa is unsurpassed as an utilitarian people mover. What is the difference between this and the Eeco?

Well, Eeco is nothing but a new version of Versa I would say. Sure the engine is changed. Versa was using Esteem's engine but eeco has the newer K series engines. Apart from that the roof is bit cut off ( an attempt to decrease the height and improve the handling ??) ie instead of a slightly curved roof of Versa; Eeco has a straight cut roof. Also interiors are not that comfy as in Versa. All together a low cost version of what Versa was. Also, I have heard about Maruthi dealers in Kerala offering added exchange bonus of 10K rs for customers shifting to Eeco from Omni in their true value showroom. So guess post BSIV implementation in whole country may be maruthi wants to keep the 8K car per month sales of Omni to be taken forward by Eeco.

[ATUL SINGH]

Folks,
By the time i got around to writing something i find that my car has already done 95000 kms. The gear box is as it was when new, however the clutch had to be changed at 35000kms and all because of my foolishness. In 2005 or 2006 (my memory fails me as to the exact year) during the rainy season the roads were completely flooded in Faridabad and while coming back from office one evening we were completely stranded with more than a foot of water through which even sumo walahs were afraid of passing. Since i did not have a choice, i switched off the AC, shifted into first, revved up the engine and with partial clutch slip just waded through the water. Almost a 100 odd metres of this and finally we were through. But this took its toll on the clutch and it became very hard and squeaky later on and i had to get it changed finally.
I've never been let down by my car except on 2 occassions when that too when it was actually my fault and everytime never far from civilization. Once the main harness from the battery positive burnt down but not before providing adequate warnings. It was later diagnosed as a quality issue and Maruti exchanged the same as free replacement. This was in 2007 just out of extended 4 year warranty. The second time was yesterday while coming back from office the engine just went kaput. Later diagnosed as no water in the battery. So currently the battery is under charging and if that does'nt work i buy a new one. Anyways, this was installed in Feb'2007, so i think its done its share of hard labour.
As to the body rattles all i would say is that there are definitely some but at par with a 1-2 year old car.
The best part is the free revving engine and low gearing which pulls this vehicle over anything. The ground clearance ensures that i am able to take it off the curb to pass traffic jams. pot holes were never a problem and no fear of scrapping the bottom over speedbrakers. The driver seat is adequate, but i felt lumber support was not adequate and so i went and bought an amron seat back rest. Now even 5 hour continuous drives are easy.
Space is wher there's no competition. i remember when my brother's family was arriving from the states in November 2003, and on arrival he kept on insiting that we would require at least 2 ambassador cars to carry all the luggage. That is since he had not seen my car. we managed to fit in 5 large suitcases (really large), 3 or 4 cabin luggage and 3 adults and a kid into the versa without much effort. Ditto for my sister and brother in law who came back somewhere in 2004 or 2005. My brother in law appreciated the power and pik up of the versa ( and that too when he owns a ford mustang).
Long drives are a pleasure when u have this airplane. My daughter prefers settling down in the middle row and sleeping off. We go for after dinner drives of around 40 kms because its so much fun. Here i would like to tell you that i've not fitted a music system in my car because i luv to sing... and i'm really bad at it. the thing is we get around to everyone singing and playing antakshari and that is much more fun than listening to a Cd or even FM.
I try to get it serviced every 5000 kms but there's been a couple of occassions when this interval has been stretched to 19000-20000kms.
Servicing charges are around Rs.3000-4000 every trip i make to the service station. But this includes oil changes, servicing, brake pads change, shockers, etc. On an average i would say that i spend around 700-800 bucks a month on maintenance when i drive around 2000kms every month.
For those who have got sick of the long narrative here's a snap when we were going to lansdowne (may 2009) and i loaded two mountain bikes on the cycle carrier. I remember driving very carefully at speeds of 50kmph so that the bikes did not fall off.

The other one's from the haridwar trip (2006)

twiddle doo

atul

[honeybee]

Hi Atul,

I am loving the review of the Versa. Please keep sharing the experiences. However as an aside, please do not drive over footpaths or over kerbs. Also in the first photo, there are two bicycles hanging on the rear of the Versa, which is dangerous. Either get a roof carrier fitted and tie the bikes onto it, or keep them inside the Versa.

Thanks again for the review, I shall be checking it regularly.

[vinodv001]

Originally Posted by mpksuhas

Versa was using Esteem's engine but eeco has the newer K series engines.

Its not a K series engine in ECCO. Only scaled down version of the old engine to get excise duty benefits.

[ATUL SINGH]

Folks,
I'm back. I was thinking of all that i've discussed or told in this thread. most of it may seem to be that i'm addicted to the car- and that i surely am. However if i was asked what is the biggest disadvantage about this car i would not hesitate to say-

1. yes you guessed it, body roll. Those who drive low slung cars may not appreciate it but the most importatnt thing when you're driving this vehicle is to know your limits and the car's limits. High speed sharp curves are a strict no no. Even moderate curves at speed needs full attention and also a feel of the road geometry. You need to be attentive to what this car is telling you every moment and once you get the hang of it evry drive is pure fun. Ditto goes for braking while on curves-you cant take this car for granted, it needs attention every moment you drive it.
2. The next disadvantage which reduces my confidence somewhat is the fact that there's no engine compartment between me and the suzuki logo on the front grille. Even though the car may have crumple zones and an alloy bar for strength behind the dash board, but nothing can substitute the motor for safety.
3. Third comes attrocious headlights which i have managed to offset to some degree by using my solution of a mix of high performance bulb and relay system. This car begs to have good headlights which are sorely missed specially during highway runs at night. With my new bulbs i'm able to do 100+kmph in pitch dark. Infact mnaged to touch 140 kmph regularly on NH1 early morning at 3.30-4pm when going to Yamunanagar.

No, todays post is not all about the disadvantages only- the steering is very light and precise giving good feel. The turning radius seems better than an 800 and the gear shift is a joy. The low gearing makes it shoot off the starting block much quicker than most other bigger engined sedans.

Its a vehicle which demands respect and control and personally i consider it an extension of myself whenever i hold the steering wheel. Drive responsibly and this vehicle delivers satisfaction to the hilt.

twiddle doo
atul

PS. Posting a few snaps.
The first one is in gurgaon in front of the titanic building. The second is while on the SH over the aravalli hills from gurgaon to faridabad. The last one has the DLF building/gurgaon in the ORVM. Note the wider view in the curved corner mirror.

Hope my narration does'nt make you go off to sleep

[honeybee]

Hi Atul,

The photos are quite nicely composed, specially the last shot. I didn't know you could get such types of mirrors for the Versa.

About your fear of not having an engine between you and the suzuki logo at the front, in case of a severe impact, the engine block can actually penetrate inside the cabin compartment. So it's not necessarily bad. The beam should hold up to moderate impacts well. I once saw a Versa being towed away, with its nose completely flattened. The cabin was intact. The whole nose area had acted as a sort of crumple zone. And that's about the only Versa I have seen involved in any accident.

[McLaren Rulez]

Originally Posted by honeybee

Also in the first photo, there are two bicycles hanging on the rear of the Versa, which is dangerous. Either get a roof carrier fitted and tie the bikes onto it, or keep them inside the Versa..

From what I see, I believe that he has a bike rack attached. It is safer than putting it inside the car or haphazardly tying it down to a roof carrier.

[ATUL SINGH]

F-I,
You noticed the bike rack. Its a bike rack i purchased along with the two bikes from the firefox showroom in lajpat nagar.

But its not the best attachment since the roads are too uneven giving a sort of additional rolling and yawing motion to the car

atul

[ATUL SINGH]

Folks,
The most recent intercity trip that i did in this car was Jaipur in Dec'09. Come to think of it the vibration from the left sliding door has increased considerably at around 2200 rpm. May get it checked up in my next servicing- not due for another 3 months.\
Yes there are the odd gremlins at work like the bellow of the gear stalk becoming loose and i have to keep fitting it back into position. Since the lower end of the bellow seems to be pasted on the central plastic console i am not touching it. I've found that there's no substitute for factory setting and fitting. The knobs on the rear seats which release and fold the same cracked up and the replacement took its fair time in coming. Meanwhile i managed with a couple of nose pliers which i kept in the tool kit. The AC was serviced the first time in 2009. The window wiper linkage went kaput in 2008 and required maintenance and change of bush/bearing. There's a small nick in the front windshield which i think i got due to high speed driving.

I detest free advertising stickers put up by service stations and make sure that none are put on mine. The only one existing on the rear windshield was there when i purchased the car in Sept'03 and i could'nt take it off without scratching the glass- so it stayed.

The average(fuel consumption) is highly volatile and depends directly on the traffic conditions and driving style. Wrst i got was 8kmpl but that was because i was stuck in traffic for hours. Controlled sedate driving at speeds of 50-60kmph yields 13+kmpl. But with the free revving motor and the smooth power delivery its difficult not to coax the accelerator down towards mother earth. Driving at 60kmph in 5th if you press the accelerator even lightly the power flow is marked and continuous with narry a hitch or miss. The vehicle just surges forward. If you have an open road in front of you, by the time you notice how fast you're going, you're at 90kmph. The vehicle begs to be driven fast and thrives better the faster you go.

Regrads,
atul
Mandatory snap:This time versa is parked in front of the toll booth just after crossing gurgaon on NH8 towards Jaipur.