Maruti SX4 Diesel coming next week - Review: Maruti Suzuki Kizashi review, pictures, gallery

What it is?

Maruti Suzuki India, country's largest car manufacturer, launched their first luxury sedan earlier last month. Though every second car sold in India is a Maruti Suzuki car, they did not have any cars in the luxury segment. As the market for such cars was growing, Maruti Suzuki launched the Kizashi sedan in order to tap on the growing market. First launched as a concept car that made its first public appearance at the 2007 Motor Show in Frankfurt.
Outer impression:
Suzuki Kizashi is a sedan with an ornate exterior design. It flaunts both - European style and Japanese timelessness. For a driving enthusiast the low-slung front, honeycomb grille, projector jewel-like headlamps, rectangular fog lamp, body colored rear view mirrors and door handle bars make the driving experience complete. The headlamps, the tail light cluster and the bold rear parking assist indicators add functionality to beauty in this attractive body. The luxury Japanese car is a story in cabin spaciousness and dynamic character. It calls for a passion for driving and handling. With reasonable pricing and great driving performance, the Suzuki Kizashi comes in a single petrol engine and two transmission options. The 6 speed manual and Variable Transmission categories are available in Snow White Pearl, Premium Silver Metallic and Super Black Pearl.
Ambience and theme:
Suzuki Kizashi has a comfy and luxurious interior. It is not only stunning to look at but also highly functional. The great interior features offer electric power steering, Rack & Pinion, fantabulous stereo controls, dual zone climate control, pollen filter, futuristic dashboard, matt black silver edged centre piece, and cool beige ambience. The car is fitted with the latest audio system comprising CD/MP3 player, 7 speakers and Bluetooth and USB port abilities. The SmartPass keyless access and automatic unlock compliment the plush beige adjustable lumbar support. Storage options come in the form of an overhead console, cup and bottles holders and an elaborate console box.
On the road:
The Suzuki Kizashi is equipped with a 2.4 liter, J-Series DOHC engine with 4 cylinder and 16 valve empowerment. The combo of 175 bhp at 6,500 rpm with a torque of 230/4,000 Nm/rpm makes it unbeatable on the road. Power and efficiency have a new name - The Maruti Suzuki Kizashi.
What’s it up against?
Honda Accord, Volkswagen Jetta and the Skoda Laura
Why would you buy it?
•    Dual exhaust pipe r.
•    Anti-Lock Braking System.
•    Electronic Brake force Distribution.
•    4 Speed intermittent wipers
Why you wouldn’t buy it?
A first from Maruti. Would want to wait and watch.
Pricing
Manual Transmission - Rs 16.5 lakhs (Ex-Showroom)
Automatic Transmission - Rs 17.5 lakhs (Ex-Showroom)
Gallery

Pic: Suzuki Kizashi soaks up bumps easily

The car did invite its fair share of curious onlookers wherever we took it, though it didn’t attract much attention at first, given its resemblance to a rather grown up SX4. It’s bigger than the SX4, but does well to hide its size. In fact, the silver-grey car we drove actually looked smaller than it is.
The looks…

Photo: Kizashi definitely is a good looker - though it resembles the SX4 a bit

The Suzuki Kizashi looks sporty when viewed from up front, with the twin projector headlamps, large honeycomb grille and spoiler with integrated fog lamps. The large 17-inch alloy wheels and low-profile 215 / 55 tyres give the car a sporty stance and fill up the wheel-wells nicely.
The design is curvy with a subtle crease on the lower part of the car. At the rear, the tail lamps wrap around from the rear fenders, rounding off the design. The boot lid has a tiny spoiler with a stop lamp built into it and is slightly bulky, but goes well with the overall design. A noticeable feature at the rear is the twin exhausts with chrome covers, giving this a car a sporty look.

Photo: Classy interiors

The Kizashi features keyless entry and ignition. You just have to have the key fob in your pocket (maximum distance of 80 cm), and to enter the car, you need to just touch a button on the door handle. The doors close with a nice thunk, again something one doesn’t expect from Maruti. Step into the car and you are surrounded by beige leather, which gives the car a nice, luxury feel. The dashboard is two-tone, with grey on top and beige below. All the plastics are of superior quality and have a soft touch about them.
The front seats of the Kizashi are electrically adjustable, with the driver’s seat getting height adjust and lumbar support adjustments, as well as memory settings for three drivers. This is a nice touch if the car is going to be driven by more than one person in a family. The seat hugs you very well and give you that perfect driving posture. The front passenger seat is also electrically adjustable. The seat belts are height adjustable.

Photo: Sporty looking twin exhausts at the rear

The steering adjusts for both reach and rake, allowing a driver to completely customize his driving posture. The car has a start-stop ignition button. If you don’t have your foot on the brake and press the ignition button, it switches on only the ignition, while the multi-information display asks you to depress the brake pedal if you want to start the car.
The steering wheel has controls for the audio system and cruise control. Below the steering are two buttons to switch the modes of the multi-information display and for the trip meter. Behind the steering you will find two paddles on the automatic version for manual shifting.

Photo: Paddle shifter on the CVT Kizashi. Steering adjustable for reach and rake.

The switchgear on the Kizashi is not like all the other Maruti offerings. This one has the headlamp controls on the left stalk and the wipers on the right. It also features rain-sensing wipers. The instrument panel has two large dials with the left one housing the tachometer with the red-line starting at 6,500 rpm and the temperature gauge. The right pod houses the speedometer and fuel gauge. The digital multi-information display takes up the middle and displays average speed, average fuel consumption, instant fuel consumption, gear indicator, trip meter etc. To the right of the steering console is the fog lamp switch and switch to turn off the traction control system, as well as the electronic boot release. The door arm has the controls for the electronic door locks, electrically adjustable and folding mirrors, besides the power windows that also have an anti-pinch feature.
The Engine…

Photo: 2393 cc petrol engine is powerful enough to haul the Kizashi around easily

Push the ignition button and the Kizashi instantly buzzes to life. Sound dampening is good with hardly any noise filtering through into the cabin at idle. The DOHC, 16-valve, 2393 cc petrol engine puts out 176 bhp of power at 6,000 rpm and 23 Kgm of torque at 4,000 rpm. It is transverse mounted and drives the front wheels in the model that will be sold in India, though there is an AWD version available in other markets.
But when the engine is revved hard you can hear a very sporty note filter into the cabin, with the twin exhausts adding to the sound effects.
The Drive…
The Maruti Suzuki Kizashi we drove was the automatic, though Suzuki will also be offering the six-speed manual transmission. The car has built-in audio reverse sensors that beep when reversing. Visibility in the rear-view mirrors is good, though the high boot lid is a bit of a hindrance. However, the parking sensors help.
Shift into drive mode and the car pulls away smoothly. It glides along silently in city traffic without any fuss. The suspension absorbs bumps quite smoothly and dealt very well with rumble strips and speed breakers. One could hardly feel the bumps. Even on hard cornering the car seemed confident. The feel one gets with this car is quite sporty and visibility out of the windscreen is great, making this a good driver’s car.

Photo: Note the little door to the boot accessible from inside the car