[Diesel lover]

Discussion to get a new car at home started exactly 28 years and 10 months after my father finally said that its time to bid goodbye to our beloved first car, Isuzu Gemini Diesel 1817 cc, 1983 model, a direct import from Japan which was bought under the physically handicapped quota. My father has a stiff left leg (he cannot bend his knee) and it has been like this for the past 41 years. It was a custom car made specially keeping in mind his need and came in factory fitted with a hand controlled clutch system attached directly to the foot well clutch with lots of space on the left side of the clutch. The steering wheel was moved towards the right hand side keeping in mind the Indian driving rules. The wiper orientation was also corrected to adjust the Indian driver seating position (unlike the Renault Logan which came in with wrong orientation of the wipers and finally when Mahindra relaunched it naming the Verito, did they correct it.) The indicator and wiper stalks, engine hood opening lever (Ford and Renault Logan) were also correctly placed (unlike most Ford, Skoda and VW cars). I fail to understand that a car manufacturer (Isuzu) who had his factory outside India, made a custom car especially for Indian conditions with all the fitments at the correct place and the car makers who have their facilities set up in India don’t care to make a car that correctly suits Indian driving style leave aside custom made cars for the physically handicapped. Even Aamir Khan highlighted the plight of the physically handicapped in his show Satyamev Jayate.

Some pictures of Isuzu Gemini 1983 Diesel which has been an integral part of my childhood and has made me and my father proud of being its owner:

The Baby (that's me in the year '84) and The Machine







Photoshop!





1817 cc naturally aspirated 110 BHP diesel engine (untouched till date):

Some pictures of the prefitted hand clutch system:







With my neighborhood uncle whom I used to fondly call "Parrot uncle." Check out the parrot on my right shoulder:


Having decided that its time to get a new car, lot of hot discussions started but alas there were not many cars to choose from. This was because my father cannot drive a manual car so an automatic was the only option as all car dealers we talked to said that they cannot ask the manufacturer to build a custom car (a Japanese manufacturer had no problem with it) and if we got any modifications done from outside, it will void the warranty. Even a couple of emails to SIAM to ask car manufacturers to make a special car or a cheaper diesel automatic than the current Verna were of no use. They never responded! Don’t know if they were the right persons to get in touch with regarding the query raised.

This resulted in a hunt to check which all cars came in with AT transmission. We zeroed on Honda City (the bestseller), Hyundai’s i10 (heard a lot about its low FE of 5 to 8 kmpl by owners), i20 (steering problems, inefficient air-conditioning) and Ford Fiesta 6S DSG (new comer, not sure if it is reliable). Owning a diesel car for such a long time and then moving on to petrol at this point of time when it’s touching INR 70 per litre, it was a hard decision as all cars mentioned above gulped petrol.

Honda City Automatic (Test Drive Vehicle):

We did an extensive test drive of 20 kms and found 3 points which made us go against this bestseller.

1. Ineffective air conditioning: The blower button on speed 2, I was literally baked in the backseat.

2. The backseat is inclined to around 110-120 degrees which makes sitting upright a pain. My Figo’s backseat is at an approx angle of 95 degrees which makes it perfect for upright sitting position which minimizes back pain.

3. After my father drove the car, he complained that his left leg had slept. This clearly meant that on even more long drives this problem will be more prominent.

So, it was goodbye time to the Honda City.

Hyundai i10 Automatic (Non Test Drive Vehicle):

Our next stop was Hyundai’s dealership where we test drove the fresh vehicle as there was no automatic transmission test drive vehicle.
My father loved the car’s compact dimensions (I didn’t as it felt too small as compared to our Isuzu), chilling air conditioning (I did too) and its short turning radius which is a boon in city traffic conditions. After the test drive we booked the Asta model as it carried the more important safety package (ABS and airbags) and ignored the fuel efficiency as we didn’t. The freebies that we got with it were corporate discount of INR 30,000 and free insurance. Also clubbed in was an offer from the company that INR 20,000 will be transferred to our account if we sold our old car to someone (not to someone in our blood relations and friends) and provided a proof of it to the company within 110 days from date of purchase of the new car.

HOW DID MARUTI SUZUKI SWIFT DZIRE AUTOMATIC CAME INTO PICTURE?

Exactly 3 days after booking the i10, I came across an article on team bhp having the title “Dearth of C segment sedans with a diesel engine + Automatic transmission” which on that day was treading on the home page of the website. It portrayed precisely what we required from the manufacturers. This particular post by GTO mentioning the dzire having an automatic transmission made me search for an official team bhp review and was thrilled to find a review of the automatic dzire as well. I went through the same promptly and although nothing praiseworthy was written about the 4S gearbox, the other aspects ticked the right boxes. Those were

1. Maruti Suzuki product
2. Swift Dzire
3. Best in class 1.2 L K series engine which hopefully will give more mileage than i10
4. Bigger boot than i10
5. Sedan and overall a bigger car than i10.
6. It will fit in our garage and more importantly suited our pocket.

My father went to the Maruti dealer and had a look at the car in flesh and really liked it in white color. Asked for a TD and was given a short one in a non TD vehicle and a smile on his face confirmed that "this is it."

We cancelled the i10 booking (deduction of INR 2000 was done) and booked the Dzire Automatic. It was available in stock with the dealer and we got it delivered on the 18th July 2012 (exactly 29 years after I and Isuzu came into this world).

Just curious to know why aren’t there automatic test drive vehicles available when there are manufacturers churning out for us to buy? We check and try a new shirt / pants thoroughly which hardly cost INR 1000 or more, but when it comes to cars, manufacturers want us to buy it without a test drive!

More about the new ride!

Ex Showroom Price: INR 6.67 Lac
Third and Fourth year warranty, Insurance, Logistic charges and Temporary number: INR 34.5 K
On Road Price: INR 7.01 Lac
Freebies: Parking sensors, Floor mats, Car Perfume and Teflon coating on top
Engine Type: 1.2 L, K Series Engine
Fuel: Petrol
Transmission: 4 Speed Automatic

What I Like:

1. Responsive Engine.
2. Chilling Air Conditioner when car is in motion.
3. Zero lag in power with AC switched on.
4. ABS with EBD and brake assist (Heard a lot about bad state of braking in L and V models. This safety feature really inspires confidence.)
5. Multi Information Display with amber lighting.
6. Ease of city driving, thanks to the automatic transmission.
7. Powerful headlights.
8. Airy interiors.
9. Rear seats are at a height from the front ones. This helps in getting a better view of the surroundings.

What I Didn't Like:

1. Beige Carpets.
2. Slopping front hood: I can't make out till where it is. Isuzu had a straight hood which helped in judging correctly the stopping distance.
3. Horn pad is in the middle making it difficult to honk.
4. The so called mud flaps. Pretty useless.
5. High raised rear parcel tray makes reversing a chore.
6. Less or No cooling by AC at standstill.
7. Cramped legspace at the back.
8. The body shell is more than the glass area which leads to less airiness feeling inside. Once seated inside, the windowsill is still above the elbow area when kept at 90 degrees. Some of us like to keep the windows down and keep the hand resting on it. But it isn't that comfortable here.

What I miss:

1. Cruise Control: This feature would have made life a whole lot easier as extracting good mileage from an auto tranny means constant acceleration at highest possible gear. Any undue increase in pressure on the accelerator would mean a downshift which will hamper the efficiency. Cruise control will help maintain that exact speed which is bound to increase fuel efficiency. On a closer look at the speedometer, I saw two words, Cruise and Set. So the system is capable of such a feature but not for anyone owning the new Swift Dzire.

2. Skinny Tires: These are like Usain Bolt wearing flip flops for running. My figo gets better shoes than these. No doubt it is the best handler.

3. Defogger and Automatic Climate Control would have been an added bonus.

Ride Quality:

Really soft and cushiony city ride quality with no pothole bumps filtering into the cabin. Took her on the highway once but due to its run in period, didn't exceed 70 kmph speed. It behaved well but I can't commit now about her at highway speeds.

Other Points:

1. This thread seems to be the first ownership thread for Swift Dzire Automatic as I was unable to find one on Team-BHP before I started it. Mods, please confirm.

2. Super silent and refined engine, too smooth for our liking as this is our first petrol car.

3. The auto tranny works well with feather touch acceleration and 4th gear comes up at 60 kmph with 1500 revs at the counter. Once the engine has warmed up, 4th comes up even at 50 kmph. Squeezing more out of that drop of pricy fuel.

4. AC is a real chiller when the car is moving and there is no power lag whatsoever. However it is a different story altogether after the morning first start and when the car is at standstill or is being reversed out of the driveway. Only warm air comes inside the cabin.

5. A really small but irritating thing is the indicator cut off system. It isn't positioned well (not close enough to the central position) and due to this most of the time the LHS indicator doesn't switch off even after the turn has completed. Noticed the same on all Maruti cars.

Let the pictures do the talking now:

At the dealership:




His Blessings:


As reported in the official Team-BHP review of the Dzire Automatic, there is no such the silver thing around the horn:


Key Chain:


Go Beige - Matching Seat Covers (INR 2200):


Seating Ergonomics:

Till now, I have been on the driver seat (not possible to judge till where the car length is), the co passenger seat (one of the best places to be in due to good back and under thigh support) and at the back seat (less under thigh support but you get a good view of all around you). My verdict is that I need to be on the co passenger seat, enjoy the chilled AC air, sip in cool cola thanks to the neat placement of cup holder in front of the AC vent and let my father drive and enjoy stress free drive on his new ride.



4S Auto Tranny with OD off switch:


In-Car Entertainment System (ICE)

The stereo doesn't work without the key in the slot at position I. At night there is no illumination provided to the controls / buttons of the stereo. You need to switch on the parking lights or turn on the room lamp to view them.

Key in slot at position I, with parking lights off:


Key in slot at position I, with parking lights on:


This is unlike my Figo where you can operate the stereo without the key in the slot. The stereo when switched on mentions "1 hour" before moving on to the preset mode of radio / aux / CD / USB / BT Audio. "1 Hour" means that it will operate for one hour before turning off automatically if the stereo isn't fiddled in between that time. All the buttons illuminate easing the process of using the stereo. If the stereo is off and key in the slot is at position I, the ring around the power on / off brightens up to fiery red so that it is easy to locate. Really nifty features sadly missing in the Dzire.

ATF:


ABS with EBD and Brake assist:


Wicked!


Mileage with 10% highway and 90% city with 100% AC.

[negativeH]

Originally Posted by Diesel lover

I fail to understand that a car manufacturer (Isuzu) who had his factory outside India, made a custom car especially for Indian conditions with all the fitments at the correct place and the car makers who have their facilities set up in India don’t care to make a car that correctly suits Indian driving style leave aside custom made cars for the physically handicapped.

+1 to that. It's just a flip really, have never understood the logic behind not making it the right way.

Also clubbed in was an offer from the company that INR 20,000 will be transferred to our account if we sold our old car to someone (not to someone in our blood relations and friends) and provided a proof of it to the company within 110 days from date of purchase of the new car.

From Isuzu or Hyundai? How does this work, never heard of this.


Great choice the Dzire anyway. Does the auto come in the V or Z variant or both?

Automatics in the mid range is really a big hole in our automobile market.

[Harbir]

Thank you for the post. the swift dzire AT is of great interest to me because after having refused to drive automatic cars for 20 odd years, I have accepted that in India conditions, its stupidity to resist their benefit. Accordingly, my wife bought an i10 AT about a year ago. It gets 10km/l in delhi urban traffic. Haven't measured it on the highway.

The car is absolutely perfect for urban use because of its really narrow body and automatic transmission.

However I am 6'3" tall and wear size 12 shoes and the car simply does not have adequate room for me. I feel like I've been crammed into a sardine can.

the Swift AT is the smallest car available with an AT that has adequate room for me. That makes it highly desirable should I start regular commuting in delhi and decide not to hire a driver.

The bits I would be less than thrilled about: No airbags on the AT model, and the notchback swift is a significantly wider and longer car than the i10 so not quite as magical in Indian urban chaos.

I do wonder if the Swift AT's performance takes as much a hit relative to the MT as the i10 AT does relative to the i10 MT.

Do let us know what sort of fuel economy you get.

[wilful]

Congrats on the new acquisition! Some great pics too. I remember taking a look at the new Dzire when it came out - like you I was disappointed that the dealer did not have an AT version for a TD. That's was the time I was contemplating a change.
It's a pity that they have not included a AT version with airbags in their lineup.

One of your points puzzled me - about the A/c - you say that warm air comes inside the cabin when the car stops. Does the compressor cut off automatically when you stop?
Wish you many happy miles of motoring!

[Diesel lover]

Originally Posted by negativeH

From Isuzu or Hyundai? How does this work, never heard of this.

Great choice the Dzire anyway. Does the auto come in the V or Z variant or both?

Automatics in the mid range is really a big hole in our automobile market.

From Hyundai. There is a chart at all Hyundai showrooms mentioning about it.

Automatic comes only in the V variant + ABS and EBD with brake assist (ZXi / ZDi braking kit)

Originally Posted by Harbir

Thank you for the post. the swift dzire AT is of great interest to me because after having refused to drive automatic cars for 20 odd years, I have accepted that in India conditions, its stupidity to resist their benefit. Accordingly, my wife bought an i10 AT about a year ago. It gets 10km/l in delhi urban traffic. Haven't measured it on the highway.

The car is absolutely perfect for urban use because of its really narrow body and automatic transmission.

However I am 6'3" tall and wear size 12 shoes and the car simply does not have adequate room for me. I feel like I've been crammed into a sardine can.

the Swift AT is the smallest car available with an AT that has adequate room for me. That makes it highly desirable should I start regular commuting in delhi and decide not to hire a driver.

The bits I would be less than thrilled about: No airbags on the AT model, and the notchback swift is a significantly wider and longer car than the i10 so not quite as magical in Indian urban chaos.

I do wonder if the Swift AT's performance takes as much a hit relative to the MT as the i10 AT does relative to the i10 MT.

Do let us know what sort of fuel economy you get.

Hi Harbir,

If Dzire AT ticks all the right boxes, then you should not wait. It is the cheapest and the shortest sedan that is available with an automatic transmission. And above all it is a Maruti Suzuki car with the 1.2 K series engine.

Regarding the fuel economy, please check out the last picture of my first post.

[Harbir]

Had the Swift AT been available when we bought the i10, we would have bought the it instead of the i10 we did buy, but since we already have the i10 now and I just bought a new Pajero, I have no immediate need for the Swift AT at this time. Its just possible in the future.

[dZired]

So one more dZire on team-bhp. Welcome to the club .
This is the best choice you have made from the available options. I am sure your father would love driving it.

Originally Posted by Diesel lover

Other Points:

6. A really small but irritating thing is the indicator cut off system. It isn't positioned well and due to this most of the time the LHS indicator doesn't switch off even after the turn has completed. Noticed the same on all Maruti cars and it is a issue which hasn't been addressed.

I have been driving marutis from quite a long time. Even my 10year old zen doesnt have any such problem. Maybe I am a bit lucky in this area.

Anyways, a nicely written ownership experience. I wish you and your father many happy miles of motoring with your new possesion.

Take Care and Drive Safe.

[sgiitk]

4S Auto Tranny with OD off switch:

Oh my God. Another of these 3+1 ATs, like the i10 and co This is not a true four speed, as in the AStar?

[ashis89]

Congrats on your purchase. Also your write up is very good. Marutis are reliable and proven, this car should serve you well for another decade and half, though may not be 3 decades just like your Isuzu.
Wishing you and your father many happy miles in your new car.

PS: You mentioned your Isuzu's engine has not been touched upon. How kms has it clocked uptill now? Do you still own the car?

[Harbir]

Originally Posted by sgiitk

Oh my God. Another of these 3+1 ATs, like the i10 and co This is not a true four speed, as in the AStar?

whats the difference?

[Sankar]

Originally Posted by sgiitk

Oh my God. Another of these 3+1 ATs, like the i10 and co This is not a true four speed, as in the AStar?

Is it different than a 4+1 MT that we call 5 speed manual transmission?

[GTO]

Thread moved from the Assembly Line to the Initial Ownership Section. Thanks for sharing!

[pradyblr]

Diesel lover,
Congrats on a great acquisition!!!

Fantastic pictures and a very nice write up. This is probably the first AT dzire on team-bhp?

Did you get any discounts from the dealer? I think with dzire you absolutely need a reverse cam. The slopping bonnet is just a matter of getting used to before you get the hang of it.

Wish you many many smiles and miles with the car!!

[motomaverick]

Congrats Diesellover. More than the Dzire I must appreciate the way the Isuzu has been maintained, from the pictures it looked spotless, plus that egg yolk yellow really looks nice.

The Fiesta AT though would have costed more, might have been a good option to check, but none-the-less have a really time with the Dzire.

[Diesel lover]

Originally Posted by pradyblr

Diesel lover,
Congrats on a great acquisition!!!

Fantastic pictures and a very nice write up. This is probably the first AT dzire on team-bhp?

Did you get any discounts from the dealer? I think with dzire you absolutely need a reverse cam. The slopping bonnet is just a matter of getting used to before you get the hang of it.

Wish you many many smiles and miles with the car!!

Yes Prady, it seems to be the first one. I haven't seen any Dzire AT thread till yet.

Discounts were just reverse sensors, hanging perfume and footmats.

I know I will surely get a hang of it. But according to me the ideal car should have a flat bonnet and a sliding boot just like our Isuzu and other similar example contessa. It was so easy to judge where its bonnet ends. I believe cars of modern times made a market for these cams and sensors.