Quick(ly) in love

As auto journalists, the number of cars we get to drive is staggering (no flex intended) and that means it is hard to get attached to a vehicle unless it is something rare/incredible or historical (Ford Model T/McLaren F1/Suzuki Jimny L10). It came to me as a surprise then that when I had to relinquish the Brezza, I had actually gotten attached to it. In just over the four months that I had the car, I managed to put in over 3000km on the odo and enjoyed every RPM, gear shift and start-stop in heavy traffic. I was then put in a quandary, what do I detail in my last report? I had written about both city and highway driving experiences and our time with the car would be too short for the second free service report. So here then are our hits and misses of running this new second-generation Brezza in our long-term garage.

Cabin ambience

The cabin of this second-generation Brezza is a major step up from the first-generation car, both in terms of perceived space as well as quality, fit, and finish. This is most evident in the design of the dashboard, where you get a sleeker layout with a snazzy-looking 9.0-inch free-standing display at the top of the centre console. The textured materials around the AC vents and the quality of switches used in the climate control interface really do add to the improved quality. It might not have too much practicality in India, but the sunroof on this top-spec ZXi+ variant is a welcome source of light on a sunny day or even at night when it helps to illuminate some of the unlit switches.

Funnily enough, the wider cabin has resulted in an oddity in the form of the driver door armrest being too far away to rest your leg comfortably on the door. Perhaps a larger man than I wouldn’t find it that much of an issue.

Infotainment system with updates

One of the major updates for the Brezza is a new infotainment system. The display is a 9.0-inch free-standing unit running their Smartplay Pro+ OS but also configured for phone mirroring. When we got the car, it didn’t have wireless connectivity, which was an additional step rather than an inconvenience. Maruti fixed the issue with a software update in early 2023 for both Apple CarPlay and Android Auto connectivity, and that’s certainly improved things in terms of ease of use and a faster link-up with the system. The SmartPlay Pro+ OS is easy to use, but with the way things are, you are better off mirroring your phone. It’s a far more familiar space in terms of quick functionality.

HUD

When the Brezza entered our garage last year, I found the HUD, for want of a better term, gimmicky. However, over my usage period of the car, I have grown to appreciate the information it provides and the visibility in sunlight. During the infotainment software update, the HUD, too, got an update and now displays navigational information in addition to hybrid information, fuel levels and speed. If I had to hope for a little more, I would have also liked media information and speed warnings and hope that Maruti will add that as a part of its future updates.

Rear seat space

Given the compact dimensions of the segment that the Brezza exists in, the amount of space at the rear came as quite a surprise. We managed to put this to the test with a full load and a Mumbai-Pune round trip where all three occupants at the rear were comfortable for the entire journey. Now, this round trip in total amounted to 330km, which is kind of the point where you would start classifying it as a lengthy journey. However, on anything longer, it would become a chore if the occupants don’t shuffle seats, especially for the one in the middle who also has to contend with the central AC vents. The seats offered good support in terms of back and shoulder but could have done with a bit more in terms of under-thigh.

Boot space

In terms of pure numbers, the Brezza, in this second generation, has only grown 10mm across the dimensions table and still retains the 328-litre boot capacity but has been packaged better, creating a perception of more space inside. We demonstrated in our last report that with the seats down and the base folded up, there’s a lot of room to play luggage Tetris in terms of length, width and height.

Ride quality

The Brezza, across two generations, has demonstrated an ability to gobble up potholes, imperfections and big bumps with the ease of a full-fledged SUV. Think of it as the fruition of 40 years of building cars for Indians to drive on Indian roads (of all types). The ride is on the firmer side, and that plays to the car’s ability to take the path less taken with aplomb but without displacing the occupants. With not that much performance on tap, this ability to ride over everything is a big factor in letting you keep your pace constant. If we had to nitpick, it would be that the ride is audible, and that’s despite the fact that Maruti Suzuki has really improved NVH standards.

Things we think could be better

Better Performance

The 1.5-litre engine produces 102bhp/136Nm, which in our estimates, is sufficient at best for city speeds and out on the highway, gaining and losing speeds takes far more than we would have liked. An additional 50-60Nm of torque would have been a good boost to tap into the potential of the six-speed torque converter automatic gearbox that our car has been fitted with. The paddle shifters are surprisingly responsive, but with not a lot of torque, you will be doing a lot of shifting to be in the meat of the torque band.

In my regular city drive (Office-home and back), I was averaging 11-12kmpl, which seems par for the course for this engine and gearbox. Two highway runs got it up to 14kmpl, and we suspect it could have gone even higher had we done more. Still, that’s quite a way off from Maruti’s claimed 19.80kmpl. In our real-world efficiency tests, we got 13.10kmpl city and 18.63kmpl highway.

Epilogue

It’s been a fun few months with this second-generation Maruti Suzuki (not a Vitara anymore) Brezza. It has nice features, is very spacious and rides beautifully but could do with more poke for the engine. This additional poke would also improve the overall mileage. The looks have an everyday appeal, and this dual-tone paint scheme of brown and white is actually quite a looker.

Product Details

Make: Maruti Suzuki

Model and variant: Brezza 1.5 ZXi Plus AT Dual Tone

Price: Rs 13.96 lakh (ex-showroom)

Photography: Kaustubh Gandhi

Maruti Suzuki Brezza ZXi Plus 1.5 AT Long-Term Review: Introduction

Maruti Suzuki Brezza Automatic Long Term Review: City Report

Maruti Suzuki Brezza Automatic Long Term Report: Highway Report