Why I downgraded from a Mahindra XUV500 to a Maruti Ignis AMT

Well, frankly it has been a delight to drive the car, in-spite of having moved from a much bigger and powerful car.

BHPian shekatkar31 recently shared this with other enthusiasts:

Ok... just to add my perspective to this very interesting thread.

I moved to the Ignis Delta AMT from XUV 5OO. Background story being that I had to sell the latter once it was nearing 10 years in Delhi NCR (somewhere in 2021). The Ignis was, at that time, being used by my wife since 2017. We got the Kushaq for her and I got the Ignis (albeit at that time I thought it would be a stop-gap till the time I got another one).

My work involves mostly city driving in Delhi and every 2-3 months I have to go to the mountains - mostly alone - to HP and UK for work and occasional excursions / treks. So the driving is a mix of city driving, highways and a good share of mountain driving.

Well, frankly it has been a delight to drive the car, in-spite of having moved from a much bigger and powerful car. The following are the points I would like to highlight:

- Very high maneuverability in city. The compact size enables parking in tight spots, easy movement in all kinds of traffic. This was a big comfort over the previous car.

- The compact size also helps in mountain roads, especially narrow roads. When major roads are blocked during rains / landslides and you have to go through alternate routes, which can at best take 2 cars with some difficulty, this becomes a huge plus point.

- High power to weight ratio - with a 1.2l engine and only 850 odd kgs, this works in 2 ways i) overtaking and pushing in city traffic, especially in start-stop situations; ii) high incline or bad road conditions, especially in the mountains. Going to remote mountain villages, this is a boon. I have personally been able to get Ignis out of spots, where bigger cars aren't able to do so.

- Comfortable on Highways - If you are willing to swallow your ego, the car gives a very comfortable drive within the speed limits. 100 to 110 feels a breeze and never have I felt the engine to be complaining. In XUV, I used to drive at the same speed and hence have not felt anything missing.

- Good AMT sensor - In all three situations, the sensor works very well. On inclines, the car simply won't move to the 2nd gear below 3k rpm, hence there's no question of stalling; and the shifts are very intuitive as well.

- Mileage - Even including mountain stretches, an outstation trip easily gives close to 20 kmpl. I am a very conservative driver and maybe this helps as well. Highways is 22 at least, with reasonable cruising. City is close to 15-16.

- Low service costs and ease of repair - Maruti is one of the most reliable brands in the country and consequently, their ownership costs are low. Also, in case you get stuck somewhere, repair shops easily are able to at least get you to the next large town.

The only negative that I have found in the car is the suspension being stiff. The rear suspension of the car does take a toll on the rear of the driver as well. However, in such cases, one has to be slightly more aware of the road undulations.

So overall it has been a very good experience. I have taken the car to the Parvati valley in HP and till Munsiyari in UK, across some treacherous conditions, in snow as well as in rains. The car has performed very well in all these conditions

Hope this gives some fruitful insight. Personally, I now don't intend to change the car. Spent around 60-70k on service (fluid replacements), window rain strips and tyres last year and have felt a marked improvement in the driving. So hopefully the car goes on for the next few years as well.

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