Maruti Suzuki may be the king of small car segment and number one carmaker in India but the journey and reign looks incomplete without a successful SUV. The only options available in the SUV segment are Grand Vitara (now discontinued) and rugged Maruti Gypsy which isn’t made for day to day drivability. While almost all major carmaker is making its entry in the SUV segment with their respective vehicles to cash in the popularity Maruti remained committed to make small car segment its forte.
In 2012, Maruti showcased XA alpha SUV concept and since then everyone was waiting for transition of concept into reality. Four years later, wait came to an end when Vitara Brezza was showcased at 2016 Indian auto expo which later on launched in India between the price tag of Rs. 6.99-9.68 lakhs (ex-showroom Delhi). We already had a quick spin with the SUV and we’re pretty impressed with the rounded package. Now, let’s go through some of the positive and negative aspects of the SUV which would help you in making the buying decision.
Pros:
- Let’s start with first thing first .i.e. design, though it is might not be the most handsome looking SUV you’ve ever seen but its well proportionate stance, strong front design, dual tone color shade adds personality to the SUV and makes it better than the rivals.
- Apart from design, cabin is also another strong point of Brezza. The amount of space you get inside is quite phenomenal considering it’s only a sub 4m vehicle, in addition commanding front view, loads of storage space and wide boot garners high score for practicality and comfort.
- Recent launches suggest that Maruti is trying its level best to improve interiors and technology of its offerings, Baleno and S-Cross are the biggest example of it. Vitara Brezza is nowhere behind in this section as it gets Smartplay touchscreen infotainment system with Apple car play, mirror link app, reverse parking camera, cruise control, projector headlights with LED DRL, start stop button, rear parking sensors on/off button and much more.
- Safety, another segment which Maruti is trying to portray it as a selling preposition to the customers like it did with S-Cross, Baleno and now seems it’s turn for Vitara Brezza. The baby SUV gets driver side airbag on the base variants with optional safety package which adds ABS and driver side airbag along with reverse parking camera and rear parking sensor on top variants.
- The SUV is available with tried and tested 1.3l DDis diesel mill which offers good performance thanks to low kerb weight, firmer suspension, low resistance tyres and long gearing ratios.
Cons:
- Though the cabin has quite long list of features and design is also good enough for sub 10 lakh SUV but the quality isn’t. The plastic inside and solidity is just average and top notch lower than Ford Eco Sport and seats too could have been given leather treatment.
- The Vitara Brezza is just available with diesel powertrain only, no petrol and booster jet too is at least a year away, Ford EcoSport gets two petrol engine choices. It also misses out on automatic transmissions and AWD whereas both TUV300 and EcoSport have the luxury and convenience of an automatic.
- The engine has an initial turbo lag under 2000rpm as one expects from DDis mill and also NVH levels are not up to the mark as well especially at higher speeds.
- Waiting periods for the SUV varies from 6 months to 11 months depending upon the city and variant though Maruti has ramped up the production to bring down the long and irritating waiting periods.
