Re: Maruti Vitara Brezza : Official Review Glad to hear all occupants were safe. Couldn't quite make out from the pics if the air bags deployed. I won't Think they would've as the impact seems to be on top of the bonnet and windshield. Correct me if I'm wrong.
Anyway, finally had some spare time to drop into a MS showroom to check out the Brezza.
Dealership - Khivraj, Mount Road, Chennai
Dealership Experience- I called in the morning to find out if the TD vehicle was available and the answer was yes but can't be sent for a home visit. So I said I'll check into the showroom in next hour. I entered the showroom and was not really attended by anyone, although there were quite a few associates near the front desk. I started checking out the Brezza on display and 5 mins into it and someone came to ask if I was attended to which I replied no. Immediately they were apologetic and atleast 2 associates came rushing. From there on it was a good interaction.
Vehicle (Vitara Brezza) Experience -
Coming to the vehicle here are my 2 cents (I won't flood this post with too many pics as the official T-BHP review is already out and I'm sure I won't be able to match that level of detail with the minimum time I spent with the car):
Interiors/Exteriors: - The exterior looks very proportionate and the design looks very contemporary & simple (in a good way)
- The exterior panel gaps (as already pointed out in the official review) seem to be inconsistent.
- The paint quality is ordinary and some of the parts in engine bay seem to have very crude finish and even under the spare wheel area
- The seating for driver and front seat passenger is very comfortable and the driving position is excellent with great view ahead (larger front glass area) and bonnet edge is visible. The adjustable arm rest makes things even more comfortable.
- The rear seat comfort was a disappointment. Although there was good leg room available, meager under thigh support as well as the extremely uncomfortable headrests (poking into the neck) will probably never allow me to find a comfortable position. MS should have come up with a better headrest orientation/design. The body will be rested against the back rest at approx a 70 deg angle while the head rest is probably at around 80-85 deg angle which makes it very uncomfortable and is always pushing the head forward.
- There is no trunk release from inside the car and it is a press button open on the hatch. The display car had a dead battery and the trunk couldn't be opened. They had to replace the battery to open the trunk. Further, it seems to take some effort and atleast a couple of attempts to close the trunk and the same was noticed on both display and TD cars. However, the space is quite usable due too its wider mouth and low loading lip makes it a breeze to load the luggage.
- The interior plastic quality is just OK and felt hard and brittle. The top glove box locking mechanism was already broken on the display car (small piece of plastic broke near the lock) and it won't close.
- Most of the switch gear, steering wheel seems very old and dated.
Drive Experience:
Before I start talking about my drive experience I want to leave a disclaimer that my observations are based on a mere 2 km distance TD within full Chennai city traffic conditions. So no high speeds or off-road/bad patches. - There is some vibration felt inside the cabin when the engine is cranked up but it will settle down after that.
- The NVH levels are acceptable when idling or low rpms, but the engine noise does creep in once the throttle is pressed harder. Don't expect a hyundai'esque refinement levels. But not really a deal breaker.
- The steering is quite easy to manoeuvre in city traffic, can't say at high speeds though.
- There is hardly any power at low rpms (below 1800-1900). Having said that one can easily amble around in city traffic at 15-30 km/h in 3rd gear as long as the throttle input is limited to a minimum. But if you need to move on. There is nothing available at those low rpms and the gears need to be worked. Once you get past 2000 rpm there is a decent surge of power which will push it with ease.
The breaks have decent bite and have sufficient stopping power but there seems to be some front end nose dive.
- Seemed like a stable car at those low speeds (50 kph tops) I tested it, but I know the stability is more applicable for high speeds.
All in all I was not overwhelmed nor underwhelmed with Brezza but my stance is just neutral. As already indicated in official review, Brezza does't really excel in any department but its a all round package which will tick most boxes and works just fine. With MS badging backing it, Brezza will certainly hit the top 5 on the sales charts.
I sincerely wish MS comes up with a potent Petrol mill to complement Breeze's package and I'll be in for a buy.
Last edited by GTO : 19th April 2016 at 10:30.
Reason: Typo Fixed
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