[knrn]

A very warm hello to all the esteemed members of the forum. This is the initial ownership thread of my latest purchase- the S Cross Zeta petrol K15B in granite gray. Hopefully I will be able to abide by the standards set up on this forum and hopefully you enjoy this.

Disclaimer

- long emotional posts. This thread encompasses my journey to attain automotive nirvana. Also the various thoughts processes going on my mind and how I bought the car and my journey leading me to it. Also it is an ode to my father who taught me so many things. He put the love of cars in my life and hence deserves a worthy mention. So please bear with me.

Prelude

As I had mentioned in my intro thread- I got hooked onto cars since as long as I can remember. My father used to own a a Maruti van in around 1988-89. Playing inside the car, moving from one row to the other and pretending to go on long drives was my favourite pastime. I had managed a trick to open the glass on the middle sliding door back then. Would open it up and climb/crawl in to my favourite playground. Papa would wonder how I did that. And frankly even I don’t remember it now. But I remember the puzzled look on his face when he would come in the evening and find me playing in the car.
He has got the driver’s genes. Keeps playing in the car all day- he would tell my mom. What I never realised then was that he never got the window fixed- perhaps he liked the fact that I discovered that small trickery myself and indirectly encouraged me. ABC on pedals. It’s the same as in studies. You just have to know which one does what. I would listen so attentively when he would lecture me on the finer nuances of driving. I didn’t understand much, but the words were imprinted on my mind.

Then in 1990, the van was sold. I was heartbroken. I would look at all the cars of our neighbors and miss the one I played in. Papa noted that- said nothing. But I still remember that warm look in his eyes- one day soon son. One day. Just wait.

Time moved on. I got involved in school. Started riding a bicycle. But in my mind, it was not the handle I was holding- it was a steering- all those years. And even my father said nothing, he knew. It was that silent conversation where no words are spoken- yet all the thoughts flow across.

Then one fine day- a few years later, my dad got me an auto mag. Either I was in 8th class or I was 8 years old I don’t remember well. However the magazine had an article on the Skoda Octavia by the great Hormazd Sorabjee. I looked and ogled at those pictures day and night. Even took the magazine to bed every night. Dreaming about holding a round wheel in my hand someday. I can’t recall where I lost that magazine but that red Skoda was all mine in my thoughts to play with.

When my grandmother finished her life’s journey and we bid her final adieu in Haridwar, my uncle had also come in his brand new esteem 1.3l. Dad was the designated driver always in our family. He took the wheel on the return journey. Drove slow while getting out of Haridwar. Out on the highway, he drove slow for a while, was getting a look around of things, looked over to me, smiled, then he huffed and puffed and let a calming breath out. Zoooooooom. From 40-100 in 3rd gear the esteem ripped and it flew( only it didn’t have wings else papa would have taken it to the skies). Cars can do this also- I thought in mind. That’s when I learned how to do a slingshot.

Fast forward and I joined medical college. It was in my first year 2001 that dad purchased a second or rather a third hand Hyundai Santro in dark green. And boy did I feel alive again. I would skip Saturdays to come home every weekend to experience the car.

One fine day- dad took me out on a drive- and asked me to get into the driving seat. Remember the ABC he said. The words that he lectured me on so many years ago blossomed in my mind and started making sense. Over the next two days he taught me how to go about. And I started driving. A dream of so many years lived and brought to fruition.

Then one day, while taking out the car through a narrow alley, I scratched the passenger side door. I tried correcting the steering, overcorrected; and scraped the driver’s side as well.
SMACK- got a big one on my head. During the 36 years of life with dad, that is the only time he hit me ever. Not before that and never ever afterwards. I came home crying- threw the car keys on the bed and yelled- I will never drive your car again papa. You love it more than me. That’s when he melted. Put his arm around my shoulder and said in the most calm and sweet voice( felt that god was speaking to me) Son- like today, you will come across many scrapes and scratches in life. Let today not be a lesson in driving but it should be a guidance in life. You cannot just throw away everything. I will not be here forever. So learn to get up and get going again. Hurdles will come. Some you will cross. Some will make you falter. But you have to get up every time you fall and start anew. Come let’s go again.

Since then dad always sat in the rear seat passenger side and would look out for the car’s width and tell me what to do. Overtake from the right. Brake- honk and flash lights. Gear down and push. No- you don’t have enough width. Now you have a gap- close in. Let the car in front get across. Look this one is trying to cut in- slow down and let him in. And that is how he became my guide and navigator. And that is how I became a driver.
Drove that green Santro over 80,000 kms. Then after 2 years dad got a relatively new silver Santro deluxe model from my uncle. I was thrilled to drive a newer car and it had power steering too. The guidance and the navigation from the back seat across continued to pour in. Did so many trips. Drove that car for more than 1,85,000 kms.
Then one night dad dropped me in hostel and was driving back home. It was night. He misjudged a curve and landed in a ditch. The car rolled three times over. Luckily dad was well. Seatbelt saved him. The person in the car following him saw the Santro toppling and came over to help my dad. I got the news the next day. The car was declared total loss. Both of us were heartbroken.

Next we got a brand new Santro- again (dad loved Santros, didn’t he) white erlx model in 2007, which I own till date. Did so many trips and drove it well. It’s done more than 1,50,000 on the odo at present and still runs flawless. I got married in 2014 and this car brought my wife home. This car came with me wherever I went- like a faithful knight’s steed. Time moved on and I settled in Jalandhar. And papa got sick. He had renal failure. The faithful steed took us to many hospital trips. I saw the man who was as big and strong as a mountain, crumble and fall to the forces of nature. It’s heartbreaking. Often when I took him to the hospital, I would come down to the parking and sit alone in my car- cry my heart down; let the sadness within out and would go back up to his room cheery faced. Getting up from the scrapings of life’s hurdles and going at it again. Dad knew. Never said anything.

He was on peritoneal dialysis which meant he had to carry the dialysis bags wherever he went. With family that would add up to a lot of luggage. I wanted to buy a bigger vehicle now. Was looking over to buy an Innova Crysta. Even started collecting money for the same. 2 months before his last- papa said- I know you want to buy a new car. But take an old man’s advice- use this money to buy a house. I heeded his saying. After all he was my navigator and guide. Dropped the idea of buying the Innova.

On 31st Dec 2019, the last day of the last good year we all had, dad passed away. He was not doing well. I started from Jalandhar to pick him up from our ancestral house in Batala- 80 kms away. Intended to take him straight to the hospital from there. Dad was happy that I was coming home to take him. Let me get some rest before my son comes he told my mom. He laid down to get some sleep while mom got busy packing. And never got up.

2020-covid- the world in lockdown and a state of turmoil everywhere. It is as if he knew, and left before it got worse. He always knew when to leave a party. The way I know him, he must have gotten down to 3rd and revved his way up, slingshotting past everything in his way up to the heavens.

Goodbye dad. We had a fantastic run. Given a chance, would love to do it again.

I heeded my father’s last wish. Bought a house.


I know that I am not supposed to divulge personal details but a petrolhead like my father deserved a special mention. He did not know teambhp. But had he- he would have been a distinguished Bhpian by now. I write this on a very emotional note as a final grace to a befitting soul who deserved this. And somehow my heart feels light as I do. It is the first time in nearly two years that I have opened up about him. If you read this- I thank you.

Posting a few pics of him. That’s him in his heydays on his way to the Amarnath. Loved to travel that man.

Another one of him and me when I was small. It is my favourite. The last is him playing with his grandson 2 months before he went. It was at this point that he advised me to go for a house. Not visible in the picture is an RC RED FERRARI scale model he got for his grandson. Should be introduced to these wonderful machines was his statement.

[knrn]

Introduction

As I had mentioned that I was looking over to buying a bigger vehicle to ferry us around. Had gotten a chance to drive my brother in law’s crysta and I was smitten by the power mode. Anyways. During this time- before the covid lockdown, after my Sunday morning rounds in the hospital when I would get free by 12 or 1 noon, I would drive out to a car dealership showroom. Any showroom and have a look at the cars there. I would request the salesman to give me time alone with the cars around. Would make mental notes and come back. Now the next entire week would be spent reading Team-BHP reviews, test drives, ownership threads, watching YouTube videos. Armed with all this information, next Sunday I would again go to the showroom and take a test drive. I only drove one vehicle at a time and put my acquired knowledge to test. Would come back and plan for the next model next Sunday. And so it went on like this for 2-3 years extending till when the lockdown opened. It was my love for cars that kept me going, or perhaps somewhere in mind I was paying a homage to my father. Whatever but that’s how I used to pass my weekends since it was the only free time I would get in the entire week. During those 2-3 hours with the car in the showroom or on road- I felt alive. I felt free. Took test drives of all available vehicles starting from the Maruti Spresso to the mighty Fortuner. Only the German giants- Mercedes, BMW, and AUDI were spared since I knew that they were out of my league. Well even the Fortuner and Endeavour were out of my league but still it was something I could have bought. Would have needed to pull a few more strings.

So after I had gotten my hands down on everything available I decided to set down my requirements, what I wanted as a must, what I can do without and what was available in each. Jotted down a major pros and cons sheet from all the knowledge on Team-BHP and YouTube. Now a big folder adores my study. Anyways my requirements were-

1. SPACE- you can get anything fitted in a car after buying, the only thing you can’t add is real estate- SPACE- to a car. Coming from humble Santros so far, the car had to be spacious. Preferably 4 meter plus.
2. ENGINE- wanted to buy a bigger powerful vehicle. Preferably 1.5 or more in petrol. And if diesel had to be 2 litre or more. No replacement for displacement.
3. RIDE- wanted a good suspension. Not too tight (Seltos) not too soft and bumpy(old Xuv 500). The right balance. I know this is leading up to the old duster but a balanced suspension was a must.
4. HANDLING- gone are the days when I would rev my way up to glory and do perfect apex turns on the twisties in Himachal. Had a family to carry, so a balanced but taut handling was sought. Something that could change direction like a butterfly but not bodyroll the passengers inbound. And still be liveable as a day today family car.
5. BOOT SPACE- again more the better since we carry a lot of luggage on our trips. The luggage should not spill over onto the seats.
6. TYRES- preferably 16 inches or more. Bigger tyres maketh bumps feel small.
7. REAR SEAT CENTRE ARMREST- a must have so that whoever is sitting in the backseat should have a comfortable stay.
8. Good AC- ACC or manual. Didn’t matter but should provide good cooling.
9. NO AFTERMARKET FITMENTS- I have burned my hands with the Santro. Had gotten installed a DVD player with a screen, 7 speakers including a jbl sub woofer, two dedicated amps. Needless to say, I used to get the battery changed every one and a half years. So a good list of accessories factory fitted.
10. MANUAL ONLY- I love manual gearboxes. Gives you a more controlled feel of the car.


As you can see, most of requirements are of the mechanical types and not the fancy gizmo/ gadgetry. I like the car for what it basically is- a machine to be driven by man and not a gimmicky video game experience.

After setting up my requirements I sat down to narrowing down to my choices and finalised on the Innova Crysta. It had everything I wanted, plus more power and space. To a practical mind- the Innova Crysta trumps the Fortuner too.

But then papa said- get a house. So there goes all the money. And all the wishes associated with it.


I will not detail down on what are the alternatives I considered since that knowledge was acquired and fortified with my own experience from this forum only. I will only mention what tugged my heart.

I started waiting for a suitable time to fill up my coffers and buy what I yearned. But with each passing day, the Innova was getting expensive. With a heavy heart, I started looking at other options.

Two of my colleagues bought new cars- both of which I was instrumental in the purchase of. Due to my quest of driving and experiencing all cars hands down, I am the unproclaimed car guru in my circle. So one bought an Xuv500 w9 and the other bought a black edition Harrier XT plus. And I got to drive both and enjoy what each had to offer. Sundays were now spent going on long drives with either of them and I got to know the vehicles better.

Not going into much details but mentioning a few strong points of each:
The Harrier is a looker. You can spend hours admiring its beauty. In black- nothing else looks better.
Good interiors and a fantastic sound system. Lovely suspension.
The only fly in an otherwise good ointment, it is a struggle to find the best seating position. Somehow the centre console always fiddles with your left knee and makes clutch operation more of a tiring chore than a fun experience. To everyone- Harrier XT plus in automatic is the variant to buy if you plan to own one. The XT plus is the most vfm variant.

The xuv500 has the better engine. Very smooth especially if you come from a harrier.

Looks handsome.
Suspension is a sore point.
Sound system is average.
Sadly it’s no more.

I started waiting for the new xuv700 to come by. Was thrilled when it launched.
I was eagerly waiting for the test drives to start.

Now something happened. My other brother in law
bought a Maruti Brezza petrol. I drove it extensively during my recent trip to my in laws in Madhya Pradesh. And I liked it.

Moreover with the BSVI norms in place, and what with the DEF/SCR/LNT exhaust tech on the new diesels made me wary. My average monthly driving is around 500-600 kms max. Suddenly diesel stopped making sense to me. Coupled with the fact that I had recently driven the brezza petrol which I found to be a decent performer made me confused.

Started depth researching the petrol brezza and on this forum as well as YouTube, discovered that the S Cross is better product of the two. Moreover at 4.3 metres it is a whole foot longer than the Brezza. Real estate- checked tick.

Now I was clear in my mind- if were to spend short of 11 lacs, it would be the S Cross. If more then I would straightaway pick between the Harrier and the Xuv700. I was waiting for the xuv700 to roll out, get tested and pass its niggle lot initial phase.

All of a sudden, 2 weeks ago, wifey came over to me and said that the Santro has really gotten old and makes its age felt. She didn’t feel safe while travelling in it. The same thoughts were echoed by my mother as well. I had a few long trips coming up in October. So they both suggested to buy a new car soon. Finance was a worry. There goes my plan for getting a HARRIER/ Xuv700. Also since shraadhs were starting a day after put me in a tight spot.

So at 11 in the night the plan was made to get a new car. I made a few phone calls. The car had to come on Sunday only because from Monday shraadhs were starting. So went on Sunday and got the car.

Now it seemed to create a furore everywhere. Everyone in my hospital and the showroom were shocked that how can you get a new car in 4 hours flat without any booking or arrangements or papers. When I went to get the car papers, the owner of the showroom called me to his office and congratulated me. He said that this is the first time in 7 years that he had seen a car being sold so quick. How did I manage? I smiled and said that I have good friends.
So this is the story. All unfolded in a span of one day.

I mean a 4 metre plus car at less than 11 lacs on road is actually an astonishing package. A lot of people have been asking me how I got it so quick so I thought I will reveal the secret behind the quick buy.

First, I took loan from HDFC bank and I have a good standing with them since I have my home loan from them too. Secondly I have been visiting the Nexa showroom for more than a year taking test drives and checking out offers. So the RM there became a good friend.

Saturday night at 11 I called up the Nexa RM and asked do they have any cars in the inventory. The Nexa showroom is a part of Lovely motors here and they have a huge complex which houses Nexa, Maruti arena, KTM, Bajaj, Hero, Honda and one more agency I can’t recall now. And they have two such facilities here. The RM told me that they have 2 zetas lying in the yard, a gray and a white. I said that I will arrange the payments provided if he can give me a car on Sunday. He said that if payment is cleared in total, he can give me the car. The paperwork can be done on Monday. Next I called up the manager of the HDFC BANK. Nice of him to pick my call at 11.15 in the night. He said that he can release the payment since I already held eligibility at the bank. Just send me a pic of car delivery and a an email of the demand letter from showroom. I will see the rest. He said.

So next day Sunday after hospital rounds I reached the showroom at 2. Deposited 2.5 lacs downpayment. The car was in the stockyard. The RM then talked to the bank manager and within half an hour, the remainder amount D.O. Letter was e mailed to showroom. Now the RM talked to the GM and requested that mine was a special case. You don’t get such Customers everyday he told his GM. And all the payment is received. The GM okayed the handout. The car was washed wiped and parked in the delivery area. Pics taken and I sent them via WhatsApp to the bank manager that indeed I am buying a car. The manger sent an ok and voila- the car was handed over to me. Yesterday I went to the showroom and all the paperwork was done and I was handed everything. I forgot to mention that I had carried the team bhp pdi checklist. Checked the car before delivery. Again during paperwork I had the checklist to see what documents to get. They got the car registered and took a paper print out of the registration number. The HSRP will arrive in 2-3 days. Needless to say that both the showroom authorities and the Bank employees took an extra effort in my case and that’s how I got the car. I had read such stories but to be a part of one- I felt like I was the hero of my own movie.

The best part- the showroom owner it seems was a little furious with the staff but since all payment was clear there was technically no glitch. Tuesday evening my phone got bombarded with messages for car booking, allotments and loan approvals.

The owner of the showroom told that he wanted to meet me in person just to be sure of everything. He was quite enquiring of me when I met him but after a 15 minutes discussion( this was Monday evening when I had gone to get papers), he said- I thought that you must be a big shot to have done everything so quickly but you are a young bloke. He complimented me for my friendly and polite nature and said that his staff made a right choice by rushing up the formalities. Also he mentioned that customers like me came once a blue moon and it was a pleasure meeting me. I thanked him and said that your team should be praised for the work they have done. So this was how the entire cookie crumbled and got eaten too. Now when I think about this- I laugh. Indeed- God was kind to me.


The car had 40 kms on the odo. It is a June manufactured vehicle. Tyres made in March. The granite gray looks splendid. Driven 100 kms till now. I really appreciate the planted nature and on road behaviour of the car. First thing I did out of the showroom was fill petrol. 40 litres till my heart started pounding seeing the price and I stopped. Got the air pressure dropped to 33 psi from the showroom 45 psi. The bumps that would make me jostle around in the Santro are dismissed aplomb. Still getting used to the dimensions. Good car to drive.

The car is driving well. Not been able to take her out on a highway since I don’t have the RC as yet. HSRP had arrived and now fitted. So will hold my observations till I take her out.

Thanks to the forum and brethren here. I have learned so much that my mind had the clarity of a sparkling sapphire while talking and dealing with the executives in what and how I wanted all things.

All in all I paid 10.90 lacs for the car including everything.
Attaching a few pics. The key fob looks and feels premium. Was handed a lovely Nexa branded key chain.

My RM Mr Ankush, sweet man, arranged a car delivery on a Sunday while earning the ire of his boffins. That’s me in orange.

My mother with the wonderful gift she has given me.

A few shots of the car. Haven’t driven it much. And not had time to experience the car fully. More pics and my experience with vehicle to follow in a few days.

Thanks for reading.

[knrn]

Acknowledgements

On a small note- I would like to thank the various people who directly or indirectly helped/ influenced me with the purchase. SDP, MPKsuhaas, Abirnale, Muthailaipatti- I have read your thread umpteen number of times. Had it been the Xuv- it would have been because of you guys.
Ashis89 for the support I asked for at times. His thread on the seltos is an eye opener.
Leoshashi- the Walking talking Maruti Suzuki encyclopaedic man. Your posts and thread provided me with crystal clear knowledge.

ChiragM- the official writer of the S Cross petrol review. Read your words countless times.

The Moderators and senior members of the forum- GTO, Onkar, Blackwasp, I have read your comments so many times. And a heartfelt thanks to be a member of the forum where I could write my heart out.
Thanks Team-BHP and cheers.

[knrn]

Exteriors

The car was purchased on 19 September. Now that I have spent some time with the car I can describe my experience. Have been taking notes since day one as to what points to mention here. Many members have already described this vehicle in immaculate detail and repeating the same would be tedious. So I would mention my points of interest and observation.

It was sheer luck that I was able to get the car so quick. The dealership had two vehicles in their stockyard. Both were June manufactured and I was able to get the Gray one.

The colour looks very nice in sunlight. It is a sort of deep metallic gray more towards lighter than dark. As comparatively the gray on the Polo VW CARS appears much darker. Still the car is a pleasing treat visually and appears neutral.
The vehicle is a big one. The size is appreciated when I see it standing next to my Santro as well as other cars parked in neighbourhood. The other day I was looking at the car from my balcony and there was an Etios standing by. The vehicle length wise looked perhaps a tad bigger than the Etios. Partly a reason I can think of is that the SCross being a hatchback has a longer cabin- roof length as compared to the sedan like cab of the Etios. Still the vehicle looks huge when viewed from the top.
On a side note- even the santro appeared big to me when viewed from Balcony. Anyways.

The car doesn’t appear to be as tall as it should be. Although it has similar height as the brezza still the brezza appears taller. Maybe the elongated cabin acts as as illusion. Or maybe it is the dark colour.

One fact I noted during pdi- the s cross has large plastic panels black ones running across its entire length and breadth. Despite the trim levels or body colour, on all models they are black. So in lighter shades like white or silver, the car appears short in height, as if it is cut in nearly half, while in darker colours, the panels seem to merge with the body shade making the side profile appear large.

Being a dark shade. The grill also seems to merge with the body and the chrome up front feels less excess. I do miss the led drls of the alpha model but still the headlights appear nice and big. Only thing is- as pointed out by ChiragM in the official review, the front has too many contours. The flip side is that these contours act as the visible boundary of the bonnet when viewed from the driver’s seat.

The side profile and rear appear very much neutral to me. Overall the design seems neither too extravagant nor too less. And in dark shade appears to be a neutral timeless design. I like how it looks. Need to do a good photo shoot of the car. Before I take this thread any further. After all a picture is worth a thousand words. Will update the thread with more pictures and descriptions of the car’s features in a day or two.

[knrn]

As promised, pics of the exterior. Did a detailed photo shoot yesterday evening. Turned out well.

Pic 1- The side profile view. The colour is pleasing enough. Notice how the black cladding merges seamlessly with the tone of the body and appears to make the car look big.

Pic2- The rear profile. Neutral design. The black cladding again merges very well with the overall look of the car.

Pic 3- The front. The grill appears less toothy in this shade and again the looks merge well with the car. Also note the santro standing across the road.

Pic 4- A close shot of the headlights. The projector and high beam both are 55 watts each thus the headlights have 110 watts of light. My santro has Phillips rallyeyes 100/90 watts. They appear brighter but the headlight spread on the Scross is more uniform. I am not going to change any bulbs. No fiddling. Will keep the car as stock as possible. I miss the led drls of the alpha model though.

Pic 5- Another view of the S cross standing in the driveway of my garage. The garage is still filled up with quite a lot of stuff so I park the Scross here and the santro across the road. The balcony with the grill above belongs to my house.

[knrn]

Exterior contd.

Providing some drool worthy shots. These are the best angles to look at the car. Looks uncannily BMW-ish if I may be permitted to say. Handsome car this one.

[knrn]

Interiors

A look at the interiors. They are quite spacious although the dark theme makes it feel congested but seated inside it feels quite roomy. The abundant glass area also helps in giving an airy feel.

Please note the seat covers I got installed on seats and also the rubber mats. They are official showroom accessories. A close look at the front fascia is also included. I like the cushioned leather steering cover provided. Makes the steering both meatier and nice to hold. The steering is adjustable for both rake and reach.
The trip meter shows the kms the car has done. The last trip( as I had mentioned that had a few out station trips planned, this was the first one. 231 kms one way as I had filled up the tank before starting). The displayed range increases or decreases depending on your driving style.
I got these nice cushions memory foam, a pair for the car.
A view of the boot with the boot tray installed. The mat appears sturdy however it covers the two cubby holes at the sides. On a hilarious note, I had purchased the jopasu duster and was waiting for it to come so that I can take a pic of it lying in the boot of the car.

That’s my son taking advantage of the rear seat centre armrest- not exactly the way I had planned for it to be used but kids nowadays are more innovative I feel.

A night time look at the fascia. I would like to point out that the centre console has a cubby hole for placing mobiles, wallet and for the usb and aux port houses a small led light. It is bright enough to visualise things yet not intrusive in vision. Displaying it on my palm. This is the space beneath the ACC controls. The ACC is a chiller. Even in the sweltering Punjab heat, I run it at 24 degrees and blower at speed two. Cools down the car very fast.

What I loved was that as a soon as the car comes to a halt and gets switched off, these tiny footwell lights turn on. I really liked this feature.

The Smartplay studio interface stereo works well. Sound quality is average. The car comes with 4 speakers- one on each door though the front ones are louder. The dashboard houses two tweeters at the corners. The connectivity via Bluetooth is ok ok for music. Using the usb cable and apple carpaly improves the music and call quality. Maps can only be used if CarPlay is connected.

The front centre armrest is sliding and very comfortable to place and rest arms for both the driver and passenger. Needless to say I am really enjoying these small things.
The internal rear view mirror. The field of view is less. Also it’s attachment to the windshield feels flimsy.

[knrn]

I realised that I needed to put in some kilometres before I start writing the about the driving experience. So took a break to put on some kms.

Went for two long drives to Jammu from Jalandhar onto Udhampur and outer Katra. Two trips. 690kms each to and fro. 690 halved out thats 345 out ofp. But really really heavy traffic and then a Creta is the smallest car you will see, Fortuners and Harriers and Innnova Crystas rule this place with an odd Thar thrown in and then there is what I consider menace- someone In a diesel swift or desire who thinks he can take Michael Schumacher’s empty place. They are a nuisance as a whole. ( with due respect and no offence to any of the responsible owners who drive these wonderful machines, just the few niggling ones)
Anyways the stretch from Pathankot to Jammu is bumpy but good. It is the Jammu Udhampur stretch that takes the cake. Ribbon like wavy Tarmac with some blindingly fast corners and chicanes, lovely tunnels with stretches of arrow straight roads. They (MIGHTY NHAI) have cut across mountains to make straight roads. Plus a few winding tunnels. It is a good place to test out your car’s dynamic capability. And also the first 4 gears or 5 ( in case your car is 5 or 6 geared). This Udhampur road is driving nirvana, not exactly the Stelvio pass but nearly there, heaven, a good way to test whether the claimed horses on your engine were truly well breastfed by their mother. And indeed no better place to put this theory to test than this road. Getting on with it…

This wonderful piece of machinery has already been explained and described beautifully with exquisite details by many experienced brethren out here on the forum. Hence I will not - for the risk of sounding repetitive- describe the car under separate headings of suspension, ride etc. Rather I will write a collective experience encompassing all these aspects from a driver’s and owner’s point of view under the heading


THE DRIVE

As I had mentioned I had a few planned trips to Jammu and Udhampur in the start of October. So I used them to put some miles on the car and understand how it behaves. To see if it actually holds up to the praise lavished upon it and does it actually hold itself high as has been described.
If I were to sum it up- dynamically sorted - is the phrase I will use.
Keyless entry with the fob in your pocket is a breeze. The heavy door( as compared to the Santro) feels heavy and opens wide. Ingress and egress is easy. Once inside you are greeted by the fascia which neither feels too cluttered nor too lean. Foot on clutch, press the engine start button, and the steering motors purrs a little before the car springs to life. Followed by silence. It is hard to tell whether the car is on or off. I opted to look at the tacho needle to confirm. The console meters are lit even during day. I like the blue and white hues. I will add that the dials are raised, providing a 3D effect something akin the Innova crysta. The MID displays useful features from which door is open to providing all the useful info. Me, I always keep the display to the one showing distance to empty DTE. Has been useful in planning my filling stops. So far, the car has returned a decent FE of 16-17 kmpl on the highway and even 8 in the city. The gearstick feels and looks premium. I am a fan of short gear sticks. The slots are perfect and the feel goodsome. Slot into first, leave clutch and the car moves off standstill effortlessly. No serious picking of speed, no alarming lurches, just a controlled and powerful forward creep. The clutch is nice and easy to use. Softly sprung. On the move dab the accelerator and the car gains momentum. Onto second and the car is now at speed. Doors auto lock above 15 kmh. By now the ACC is effectively cooling the car. I keep it at a temp of 23.5 with the blower speed at 2. Even the rear passengers don’t complain and the car cools quickly.

In the second gear the car moves effortlessly without lugging even without any accelerator input. However if you dab on the pedal, you will notice that initially it hesitates while going from a 1000- to 1300 rpm. Anything above 1300 and the engine begins to pull linearly. It doesn’t feel strained or laggy. As revs climbs it rather eases out. Speed is built up gradually till 2000 rpm at which point you can either up shift for a comfortable drive or move on with the rpms. Above 2000 rpm the pull from the engine increases and revs climb quickly to 3000 rpms by which time you are doing brisk speeds. The cabin is silent till here.
From what I have driven so far, I feel that this engine loves to be in the 1500-2500 rpm band. This bandwidth gives a very smooth driving experience and the cabin is also quiet as well. In 5th gear the car is readily cruising at around 85 ish km/h at 2500 rpm and feels effortless. The automatic variant is already at a 100 now by the way and even the Ciaz does a 100 at 2600 rpms. There should have been a 6th gear but then may be the car would have bogged down when loaded and this is quite a spacious car which can take a lot of load. So with the 5th gear, although the FE takes a hit but the car is always in the powerband. And personally this is what I usually drive at. Between 80-90. Even if speeds go down till 60 or 55 I don’t feel the need to downshift ( provided I am not in the middle of an overtake) , simply dab in the accelerator and the car comes back to the stated speed. At low speeds, the car feels a bit choppy on humps and bad roads. It will make you realise what you are driving over but the suspension does its work silently. As speeds build up, the ride starts feeling and getting flat. Potholes at speeds are dismissed aplomb and overall it makes for a very very comfortable driving experience. The steering is adequately heavy at speeds. Lane changes are smooth and the car feels very composed. Overall the drive is smooth and silent. The passengers inside won’t feel anything and will sleep comfortably. My son goes off to sleep as soon as we start our journey and so does my mom and they don’t even realise when we reach our destination. So this is how I drive with family in a calm and relaxed manner. The car feels very smooth and with that refined k15b engine I think that this is a practical sedate driver’s dream.
By the way, just for comparison sakes, the Creta even in its diesel guise is much more quiet.

And when I am alone, just like Henry cavill in mission impossible when he removes his tie, unbuttons his cuffs and raises his sleeves, I hold on to the rpms a little longer. The car quickly reaches 3000 rpm. From there to 4000 the car feels very very slightly hesitant, as if asking ARE YOU SURE YOU WANT TO DO THIS? And when you cross 4000, it is like- ok;as you wish. And then it shrugs and wakes up all those sleeping horses and brings those nm s of torque to life. It snarls and just rips forward. The progress now is very quick. In no time you will hit the limit at 6300 rpm when you up shift and repeat the sequence. Revving an NA engine to the limit is fun. The more you stretch it, the better it gets. It’s the last of the Mohicans by the way- only this, Hyundai and Honda offer NA engines in the 1.5 guise. The pull post 4000 rpm is so quick that it leaves drivers around you puzzled that how can it be so quick. But unlike the other brands mentioned, the engine shows some hesitation to rev but once it does, It is exhilaratingly and scarily fast. Why scarily- because all this while you are shooting forward like a tomahawk missile low to the ground, the car covers all the bases really well. It has a very good ability to mask its speed. Coupled with those wider rubber on the tall 16 inchers, that lovely suspension, that taut and dynamic chassis, it cocoons or rather fools you into thinking that you have become a great driver. The handling and ride at high speeds is exceptional. It recovers from undulations almost instantly. Changes lanes so smoothly without upsetting its composure. Rides flat and flat. People start chasing you out of ego. Let me tell you. A good driver can really fly with this car and be uncatchable. However for all this conglomerate equation of a very dynamic package, two variables will let you down inconsistently or decide your limit.
One is the steering. You know what I am talking about. Although the steering is decently heavy at speeds and light at parking, feel is just about it. Some drivers say that it doesn’t return to centre dead position. And also there is a dead/ vacant spot in the centre which is appreciated at highway speeds. But I am ok with it. I have the habit to manually turn back the steering to the centre position thereby controlling the exit trajectory out of the curve. Also the central vagueness in my opinion is a failsafe to maintain straight line stability. There is a central dead zone and the car turns only after crossing this. Makes changing lanes a smoother affair. I have driven my Boss’s 530d Msport and the steering; it is razor sharp. It even detects a hair’s breadth movement.

Second is the tyres. Although now the s cross has 215/65R16 UX Royales, these are way better than the elanzos but still not up to michelins. Still the car feels good to drive. It is peaceful when you want it to be below 3000 and a hooligan above 4000. Your wish your command.

The headlights are adequate. I have 100/90 rally eyes on my santro. So at any point of time the road is lit up by 100 watts. In the s cross, the low beam, always on is 55 watts. Switch on high beam another 55 watts so a total 110 watts illuminating the road ahead. I am not counting the fog lamps since their spread is too close to the car. Overall I am happy with it. No upgrades planned.

I remember Hormazd Sorabjee quoting in his auto car review that this is a car to be bought with a practical head. And he was right. It has all the ingredients thrown in. Personally I feel the car loves to be in the low rpm band. High rpm’s for the fun only sometimes when you are in the mood for it.


Balanced, unnerving, flat, comfortable, stable and unflinching are the words I will use to describe the driving experience as a whole. This is a car to be enjoyed both fast and slow and should be enjoyed when and whatever the mood. Also it can be used as a good everyday driver knowing you can get on even with everything on the road. .

[knrn]

Here is a visual analogy of what I went through to explore the true potential of this wonderful machine.
Here it is before the start of the journey, all raring to go.

Next at its resting place at Udhampur. And en route the fantastic frescos of nature we endured to reach our destination. Lovely winding ribbons of Tarmac, waving across the mountains.

That is the Maa Vaishno Devi trek at Katra visible from the main road.

The trip meter when we came back.

[knrn]

Other Salient Points

I thought that I will drive the car a little more to realise it’s true potential. Also had a trip to MP and Amritsar for a few weddings where I would get to drive a few other cars from my family and appreciate what the SCross is better at or not. So here goes-
1. The car is a very comfortable cruiser. At speeds below 100 one does not even feel that the car is moving.
2. Got the first service done. It is more of a check up and topping up various fluids. Opted for the service at home. The service guys, 2 very decent blokes turned up in a Maruti Versa. It was practically a workshop on wheels. Pics down below.
3. Since the car was beyond 1.5 k kms, now I could really open up. Had been following the strict run in rule of keeping revs below 3000 rpm till now.
4. The car has really settled well. Fuel efficiency has now gotten up to as high as 18 on decent highway running. Even under spirited driving the car returns 14 kmpl.
5. The suspension has bedded in by now. This is a wonderful set up. It eats up all the potholes. The drive has become settled. All that choppyness is gone. The car really rides FLAT. I drove a Crysta again. While the Crysta is stable at speeds, under full loads, it bodyrolls even during highway lane changes. Throw in some fast corners and chicanes and the body roll feels nauseous. The SCross is flat as a bed. This is a great chassis coupled to a very sorted suspension. The balance is exquisite. The composure- unfettered. I am really impressed with the ride.
4. The handling has always been the car’s forte. Throw whatever you can and it will reward you with its prowess. Even after being driven in a few other cars- my mom prefers the SCross. This is her preferred car to sleep in during a long journey.
5. The engine. I am beginning to love it more. The more you rev it, the sweeter it gets. The car can cruise at triple digit speeds all day without the passengers complaining. Overtakes are smooth and precise. I have gone fast in this car without my wife realising what speeds I was up to. And even at high speeds, the engine has enough reserve in store. (5th gear, 3900 rpms). Although this may not be the most powerful motor out there, but the combined receipe of the mechanical ingredients of the chassis, suspension and engine is delicious. High speed behaviour is exceptional. Hear this- last night I drove to Amritsar and back. 86 kms one way. On the way back, it was late in the night and empty roads meant I could touch high speeds. It took 45 minutes for the journey with me touching triple digit speeds at many points and still mom, wifey and my son were fast asleep. When we reached back, my wife was astonished that we made it so quickly but it didn’t feel like it. That is the sort of cocooning feeling you get in the car. I had heard in the YouTube reviews that while the S Cross has no one feature standing out, Maruti has all the ingredients in the right amount which makes the combined dish a whole better than many other products out there.
6. Punjab is very foggy in winters. My decision of not going for the top model and getting all Halogen lights was proved right. The car has a very good light setup. The fog lights, low beam projectors and high beam reflectors light up the road pretty well in a staged manner. The road from where the vision starts to the distant end of the visual field is completely lit. There is no blind/black spot.
The service pics and the mobile workshop.

[knrn]

Conclusion

All in all this is an excellent VFM package at the price point it offers. It has all the ingredients of a great vehicle and in the just right proportion making it a sweet receipe. The piece de resistance is the suspension and the ride. It inspires confidence. As I had said the car has a dual personality performance wise, choose your forte. I am very pleased with the purchase and I hope and pray that it continues to accompany me to my many adventures in the journey of life.

I feel very humbled and thankful to the Team Bhp forum for giving me the platform to write and concoct my thoughts. I get really emotional while writing. To the reader, thanks for accompanying me till here on a very emotional journey of purchase and ownership. Thanks once again all and keep revving.

[Rehaan]

Thread moved out from the Assembly Line. Thanks for sharing!

[AjinkyaP]

Congratulations !
Refinement of this 1.5L NA Petrol is unbeatable.
Looks elegant inside out.
Manual variants are truely VFM package.

[ArTigor]

What a writeup, Scross is such a capable car, in the initial nexa days, hadn't it been restricted to Nexa it would have sold in much higher numbers, somewhere near to Brezza numbers. Infact this is one car from the Maruti Suzuki Nexa stable that really doesnt feel like a Maruti.

[narayans80]

Nice to see a Granite Grey S-Cross with the exact same seat covers and has 2 9s in the license plate

Only difference is mine is a 2018 diesel and currently 67xxx run