New Maruti Suzuki S-Cross: What is under the hood?

What’s it to look at?
Being a true crossover the S-Cross always looked as the chick urban mixture of two compacts – sports utility vehicle and hatchback added with an elongated hood. This distinct identity gives the S-Cross something which could make it standout from the crowd.

Engineers at Maruti Suzuki worked to keep this distinctness intact with the new model. In fact they have made the S-Cross look bolder, more visually appealing by some not-so-major but impactful tinkering of design for the bonnet, front grille and tyres.

The bland-looking flat bonnet of the previous generation gets replaced with a sculpted bonnet which greatly adds to its muscularity. Four neat lines running full length of the hood, slightly flared wheel arches, and the raised black symmetrical bumper with dedicated fog lamp assembly gives the S-Cross a beefy stance.

Then there is the most notable change of the front grille. A 10-slat chrome grille in vertical format lends the car a dominating look even when not in motion. This coupled with the all-new LED projector headlamp assembly with daytime running lights (which in previous generation looked straight out of the SX4 sedan) make the S-Cross look vibrant.

On popular demand Maruti decided to change the wheel size of the S-Cross following a common feedback of lack of good handling from earlier generation S-Cross drivers. The car now gets wider tyres coupled with a new alloy design and dual tone finish. The rear of the car has been left largely unchanged except for the fact the tail lamp also gets LEDs.

How’s the interiors?

The all-black interiors of the S-Cross coupled with silver lines running on borders lend the car a premium look. The soft touch dash board, chunky steering, front centre armrest and the meaty front seats make an instant connect with the driver.

With steering mounted controls for audio, Bluetooth connectivity and cruise control there are an array of buttons that could make one feel slightly confused during times of haste. Air-conditioning gets automatic as well as the option of manual override and with a dedicated LED screen indicating the exact level of cooling/heating.

There is also the 7 inch touchscreen Smartplay infotainment system with voice guidance that allows connectivity to both Apple Carplay and Android Auto. The system which is connected to four door inserted speakers and two tweeters also features voice command and can be remotely controlled through the smart phone app. However, it needs internet connectivity for map navigation and making your way through the points of
interest may not be as easy as navigating through a newly bought iPhone.

The instrument console gets a multi-information display which houses a hi-definition TFT display screen that can show a multitude of information such as fuel consumption, trip meter, driving range and gear shift indicator, to name a few.

Even without adjusting the steering or the driver seat height, the back support-hand-feet-vision coordination on the S-Cross is one of the best among Maruti cars. All the necessary controls – buttons and knobs – can be easily reached without having to look at them.

The driver side window gets anti-pinch feature which automatically rolls down when an obstacle is detected. The electronic cruise control system lets the driver pick any cruising speed of over 40 km/hour.

Voice navigation is loud enough but annoying because the audio is tuned to the American accent which then has problems pronouncing Indian street names like ‘Raja Harishchandra Marg’. The utility space provided on all doors and glove box is plenty.

As far as instrument ergonomics goes the S-Cross does not disappoint on almost all counts, but then no car is perfect. The front central armrest is placed oddly and if used by the passenger obstructs the driver’s gear change movements.

What about the drive?
The S-Cross comes only with the tried and trusted 1.3 multi-jet diesel engine sourced from Fiat with smart hybrid function. This four cylinder motor which is mated to a five-speed gearbox generates a peak power of 88ps at 4,000 rpm. Owing to low demand, Maruti has discontinued the 1.6 litre diesel unit which was also sourced from Fiat.

The S-Cross now comes equipped with the Smart Hybrid technology (SHVS) which has idle stop-start. During heavy traffic conditions the car’s engine goes into hybernation once the foot is off the clutch and the gearbox is in neutral. It fires back to life instantly once the clutch is pressed, thereby resulting into fuel savings. The car also has torque assist and brake regeneration system.

In lower gears the car is very happy to lug forward and the feedback from the accelerator is just about precise. Though the noise from the engine bay was noticeably high in these gears, there was no vibration of any kind.

Clutch operation was soft while a slight jab at the accelerator meant the machine moved effortlessly. Braking was smooth and surprisingly not over enthusiastic as could be the case in most modern cars. All in all the feedback from all the three pedals was pleasingly happy.

Gearbox operated glitch-free and with utmost ease. The car could move from stand-still even in second gear which can be stretched even to 40 kms per hour. Reversing the car was the best feature since it is guided by a camera fitted in the rear bumper. Dynamic guideways and warning sounds greatly help the driver who need not even look into the rear view mirrors.

Pushing any car into narrow lanes meant compromising on the free ability of finding space for reversing for a U turn. But despite its size the S-Cross managed to squeeze itself out of the lanes without a scratch after managing a tight U turn.

Should you buy it?
The S-Cross has a package that is best suited for a buyer who wants the practicality of a SUV matched with the convenience of a small sedan or a large hatchback. At slightly over 4300mm in length it is the biggest car (not SUV) to be priced below Rs 10 lakh. Styling may not impress everyone but the vehicle is designed keeping in mind the young and tech-savvy urban buyer.

Sold through a strengthening network of Nexa outlets the S-Cross does not have a fair competition at the moment with only a few me-too products available including variants of the Hyundai Elite i20 and the Toyota Liva.

Among the safety features the car has are ABS with EBD, driver and front passenger airbags and ISOFIX child seat mounts as standard. Other features include parking sensors, seatbelts with pre-tensioner among other things.

The car has been launched in four variants and five colour options with the smart hybrid function becoming standard across all the variants. These will reach showrooms in the next two days and the prices will be announced shortly.

Maruti Suzuki clocked 53,000 units of the older S-Cross in two years translating to an average monthly of 2200 units. As per company officials an upside of 10-15 percent is expected from the upgraded model.

Flashy styling, unconventional European looks and aggressive design make the S-Cross a very interesting overall package. Expect it to be priced at around Rs 8.5 lakh as it does not qualify for the small car benefits.