Maruti Suzuki 1.5 litre diesel Ciaz Road Test Review

The premium sedan Ciaz has emerged as the best seller in its segment for the third consecutive year. The Ciaz has sold over 2.56 lakh units cumulatively since its launch in 2014. The Ciaz already has a 1.5 litre petrol engine which is doing pretty well in the country. It’s also there in the new Ertiga. Now the Ciaz will have a new 1.5-litre DDiS 225 diesel engine and it comes mated to a new 6-speed manual transmission.

Performance

Since all the interior and exterior features remain untouched, we shall only be delving upon the performance of the Maruti Suzuki Ciaz with its new 1.5 litre diesel engine. The new engine delivers a peak torque of 225Nm@1500-2500rpm and maximum power of 94hp@4000rpm.

The first thing I noticed missing in the new 1.5 litre diesel engine was the fact that it does not have smart or mild hybrid technology feature that was there in the 1.3 litre diesel engine mated to a 5-speed gearbox. The technology is handy when it comes to idle start stop function which helps conserve fuel. But that’s no big deal and no one who buys this car will miss this feature. 

Before I get into explaining my drive experience, let me point out that this new engine has an improved low end torque. In fact, when you step on the accelerator you really do not realise the turbo kicking in and this in turn generates good solid torque at the low-end which makes city driving simply awesome.  Those of us who are living and driving in cities know that our driving exhilaration lasts from one traffic light to another.  It’s in such a drive pattern that a low end torque is so fulfilling, offering instant bursts of power.

So is this diesel engine noisy and irritably full of vibrations? Now, it’s here that the Maruti Suzuki engineers need to be given a pat on their backs for ensuring that the NVH levels are refined. NVH stands for noise, vibration and harshness that people within the cabin of a car experience when they are on the move.

To begin with, the car comes with a Dual Mass Flywheel along with optimised compression ratio. All this has resulted in superior NVH performance, which in turn has resulted in a comfortable driving experience. And to add to that, the use of light-weight aluminium casted cylinder head and block along with optimised engine calibration has contributed to improved fuel efficiency.

Since I am going to just restrict my views on the performance, it’s important that I explain the advantages of a dual mass flywheel. Even a layman out there should sit back and understand this feature.

Those of you who have been driving cars for long know that apart from the various mechanical problems that come your way, there is definitely one relating to your clutch. This problem occurs at some stage of your driving. Since the clutch pedal is depressed a zillion times to change gears, a time comes when your clutch wears off. Now vehicles come with either a single mass flywheel or dual mass flywheel. Many cars come with single mass flywheel. A dual mass flywheel is basically two flywheels with springs in the middle to act as a dampener. The springs help absorb engine vibration which in turn reduces wear on the transmission and the rest of the drivetrain.

On the other hand, a single mass flywheel gives you a direct contact between the engine and clutch assembly.  It is obvious that a single mass flywheel cannot dampen engine vibration as well as a double mass flywheel. So with a double mass flywheel in the a 1.5 litre diesel engine Ciaz, the ride is a lot smoother and better.

The only flip side I see to a double mass flywheel is that unlike the single mass flywheel, the cost towards replacing a clutch and flywheel assembly is a lot more. Here the entire assembly is a lot more complicated and has to be replaced as a complete unit.  So please be careful when you depress the clutch while changing gears.

Maruti Suzuki has also talked about an optimum compression ratio. Without going into details of a compression ratio, let me point out that an engine's compression ratio is the ratio of the volume of gas in the cylinder when the piston is at the top of its stroke (top dead centre, or TDC) to the volume of gas when the piston's at the bottom of its stroke (bottom dead centre or BDC). It is the ratio of compressed to uncompressed gas. To put it plainly, increasing the compression ratio to an optimum level definitely improves fuel economy as the fuel in the cylinder is burnt efficiently. And in a diesel engine where there are no spark plugs involved, the fundamentals of compression ratio hold a lot of significance.

Now getting back to the drive, I am truly impressed by the new diesel engine from Maruti Suzuki and within the cabin, the NVH levels too are top notch.

As for the 6-speed manual transmission, well it is a perfect mate to the 1.5 litre engine. Gear shifting comes easy and light. It’s only when you get into uncongested highways that you can actually shift to the sixth gear and let the car maintain a 100km plus speed. Within city and on light traffic roads, gears 4 and 5 are ideal for a smooth ride. Since this new engine is mated to a new six-speed manual transmission, unlike the five-speed that was available with the earlier 1.3 litre diesel engine, the reverse gear is slotted near the first gear. This too is a convenient feature.

Verdict

The Maruti Suzuki Ciaz with the new 1.5 litre diesel engine is quite a capable car with superb acceleration and convenient low end torque. While it’s an ideal car for city drive, it’s also a comfortable car for long drives, since it comes with several convenient offerings, be it the spacious cabin, the comfortable seats, the smart entertainment system, a cavernous boot, safety features, besides a smart design.  Now with a new 1.5 litre diesel engine, one can definitely look forward to a hearty performance!