New Maruti Suzuki DZire Launched

As a competitor in a bare bones entry level sedan market, the Maruti Suzuki Dzire was built for the clear purpose of being a cost effective mass market three box passenger car. And having sold over 3.3 lakh units till date in the domestic market, it’s safe to say the vehicle did what was expected of it.

With the arrival of the new Swift model in 2011, it was only a matter of time before MSIL got busy with carving out the look for its next generation Swift Dzire. With a boot just 145 mm longer than the current generation Swift hatch, the new Dzire has now been launched with a refreshed look and feel. Restricted to 3995mm in length to take advantage of the lower excise duty advantage for cars under the 4,000mm mark, the boot on the new Swift Dzire has been compromisingly reworked (Read : Boot Space Comparo), but still offers a healthy 316 litres of trunk space.

Performance and fuel efficiency figures on the new face-lifted or rather boot deflected sedan has certainly gotten better with both the petrol and diesel models. The K12M VVT petrol engine powered model delivers 87PS of power @ 6000rpm and a decent 114Nm of torque @ 4000 rpm. But is now capable of going from 0-100kmh in just 12.6 seconds, and offers a company claimed fuel efficiency of 19.1 kmpl.

The acclaimed 1.3litre DDiS engine will continue to power the diesel version generating 75PS of power @ 4000rpm and a solid 190Nm of torque @ 2000rpm. Going by the reputation of this engine, a forward sprint of 0-100kmh in just 14.8 seconds and a company claimed efficiency figure of 23.4kmpl shouldn’t be too far from the data that our rigorous Road Test (Read : First Drive) of the car will eventually fetch us.

For added convenience to city dwellers, MSIL has also introduced a four speed automatic transmission with the petrol engine model for now. Hopes are however that this mechanism is extended to the diesel version as well in the future.

Cosmetic upgrades on the new car are also quite apparent with the inclusion of an all new dual tone dashboard, an integrated stereo on higher models and climate control air conditioning. Safety on the new Maruti Swift Dzire is one of the most noteworthy improvements with a host of safety features such as front dual SRS airbags, ELR seatbelts, ABS, Brake Assist, EBD and an Engine Drag Control system all now part of the this reworked next gen D’zire package (Read : Special Coverage).

Priced between Rs 4.79 Lakh to 6.54 Lakh (ex-showroom Delhi) for the petrol version and Rs 5.80 to 7.09 Lakh for the diesel version the new Swift D’zire will go head to head against the likes of the Tata Indigo CS, and continue to compete against the Toyota Etios and Mahindra Verito. If one were to go by the new D’zire’s on paper credentials, it could very well prolong its long standing success in this segment in the years to come.

VARIANT WISE PRICING FOR THE NEW MARUTI SWIFT DZIRE :

*All prices are ex-showroom Delhi