S-Cross 1.6 Road Test Review

Even though the styling misses the great oomph factor, the S-Cross has everything else right about it. The vehicle is being offered with only two engine options and both are diesel. Personally I feel that a petrol mill should have also been there because a crossover is still a sedan in a way and a lot of people prefer a petrol mill in their cars even today even though a price difference still exists between the petrol and diesel fuels.

With the green lobby gunning for diesel vehicles and wanting to reduce their life span in cities like Delhi, a petrol engine would have come as a great option for many customers. Of the two diesel engines on offer, one is a DDiS 320 DOHC engine with a capacity of 1598cc with four cylinders. It will deliver 118 bhp@3750 rpm and a peak torque of 320Nm@1750 rpm.  The other engine, the DDiS 200 DOHC will be a 1248 cc with 4 cylinders. The engine will deliver 88bhp @4000 rpm and a peak torque of 200 Nm@1750 rpm. The crossover will come with a 2 wheel drive.

The DDiS 320 will have three variants – Delta, Zeta and Alpha, the DDiS 200 will have five variants – Sigma, Sigma (O), Delta, Zeta and Alpha.

The vehicle has an overall length of 4300mm, with a width of 1765 mm and an overall height of 1590mm with roof rail. It will have a wheelbase of 2600mm and will have a ground clearance of 180mm. While the 1.6 litre crossover will come with a 6 speed manual transmission, the 1.3 litre version will have a 5 speed manual transmission. With a tyre size of 2015/60R16, the vehicle has McPherson strut with coil spring for the front suspension and Torsion beam with coil spring for the rear suspension. 

The crossover comes with special features like cruise control, rain sensing auto wiper, all wheel disc brakes, auto IRVM, self adjusting clutch and fully synchronised reverse gear mechanism and high intensity discharge projector headlamps with auto function, among others.  The S-Cross has a smooth flowing roof line that slopes downward towards the rear.

Interior features include smart play infotainment system with 18cm touch panel display, Bluetooth, smart phone connectivity, navigation system.  It will also have a premium meter cluster- high definition TFT screen, rear parking sensor display, adjustable front central arm, auto AC, tilt and telescopic leather steering wheel, etc. The vehicle boasts of a boot space of 353 litres which can be increased to 810 litres when the rear seats are folded. It has a 60:40 rear seat split with two step recline.

Even though the car has a kind of plain Jane look in the front, its headlamps are smart, but the bonnet and the grille could have been a tad more stylish. But as I looked at it from all angles, I was quite impressed with its side and rear Profiles. The rear, there is no doubt, looks very chic. 

Like all crossovers, the S-Cross too is based on a new sedan platform but has been designed to make it look like an SUV.

Step inside the S-Cross and you step into a chic environment. There is a great element of freshness in the vehicle, be it its features, its inner fascia design, the TFT screen, the leather seats, the tilt and telescopic leather steering wheel, etc. It drives well too. The torque is very linear as one accelerates and the power too is adequate to zip along. Gear movement too is very easy and efficient. In July 2015 while Maruti Suzuki launches its S-Cross, its closest competitor Hyundai Motor India will be launching the Creta, a compact kind of SUV. The latter is definitely attractive.

But with the S-Cross one can be assured of a lot of peace of mind and sound engineering. The S-Cross will also score on the pricing front. It’s simple when it comes to the S-Cross, it’s family for millions of Indians and there is nothing above FAMILY!