Updated on May 13, 2021 - Maruti Suzuki S-Cross is the flagship car from the house of this Indo-Japanese car manufacturer in the Indian market. In this article, we have shared with you its Pros and Cons.
Original Article - November 19, 2020; Maruti Suzuki started the Nexa chain of dealerships with the S-Cross. In a nutshell, the S-Cross was the most distinctive product from the Japanese carmaker in the Indian market. It was built on a different platform, came with a 1.6-litre torque-heavy diesel engine along with a premium tag. Unlike most of the Maruti cars in India, it didn't take off well and Maruti decided to drop a facelift with a sole petrol engine. Shifting from twin-diesel engines to sole petrol is a worthy move? We find that and more in the pros and cons of the Maruti Suzuki S-Cross.
Pros:
Space
Maruti Suzuki S-Cross the much more spacious than the Vitara Brezza thanks to the added length. The S-cross, being longer than other sub-four-meter SUVs, offers a lot more space than its rivals. The shoulder room is good and the headroom is great like in every Maruti car. The seats are really supportive and the rear seats also offer great under-thigh support.
Efficient Petrol Engine
As we told you earlier, the S-Cross was a diesel-offering before till the BS6 emission norms come in effect. But things have changed for good and the 1.5-litre petrol engine in the S-Cross offers a perfect blend of performance and efficiency. The 1.5 AT in the S-Cross also comes with the Smart Hybrid technology which improves both on-demand torque delivery and fuel economy. The motor produces 105 PS and 138 Nm of torque, paired to either 5-speed manual or 4-speed AT.
Good Ride and Handling
The Maruti Suzuki S-Cross is a comfortable crossover and comes with a good ride and handling balance. The suspension tuning is great and it neither feels soft nor stiff and offers a good ride quality. The high speed stability is great and it doesn't move around much either. However, the Renault Duster is still the king to dethrone in terms of ride and handling in this segment. The handling of the S-Cross is nothing remarkable but does the job well without any non-sense.
Price
On paper, the S-Cross takes on the likes of Renault Duster and some sub-compact SUVs. Maruti has priced the S-Cross well and it doesn't pitch in the category of compact SUVs like the Creta or the Seltos. On comparison with some sub-compact SUVs, the S-Cross offers great value in terms of engine refinement, fuel economy and sheer space and comfort. As the Vitara Brezza also chose the petrol propulsion, the gap between the Brezza and the S-Cross is too small and the latter screams more value too.
Cons:
No SUV Stance
In the crowd of sub-compact SUVs claiming to have the resounding looks of big SUVs, the S-Cross stays glued to its Crossover body style. For some, it may work but in majority, the S-Cross lacks the SUV proportions which people do expect at this price point. Even the smaller sub-four metre SUVs like the Kia Sonet and the Tata Nexon feel much more rugged and attractive.
Lack of Features
There is no doubt that the S-Cross comes with a good set of necessary features. But in 2020, cars are getting more and more features where the S-Cross lacks behind. Features like electric sunroof, rear AC vents, 6-airbags, passive safety features are missing whereas others like ventilated seats, wireless charging and air purifier are not close to even dreams. Maruti should have offered some interesting features with the S-Cross to up the game by some margin.
Old-school 4-speed Auto
This is one department Maruti Suzuki should now work on. The 4-speed torque convertors are history for many carmakers but MSIL are still keeping them on the front with products like the Ciaz, Ertiga, XL6, Vitara Brezza and the S-Cross. It's not that the gearbox has any problems but the competition is way to ahead with DCTs and TCs. The 4-speed AT of the S-Cross feels just fine inside the city but for the highways, it lacks the ratios and affects fuel efficiency as well.
No Diesel Engine
Not only the S-Cross, the diesel engine range is missing completely from the largest carmaker in India. Maruti Suzuki wrongly anticipated the fate of diesel engines post the BS6 era as rivaling carmakers are posting great demand for diesel cars. Hyundai Creta and Kia Sonet records near-equal demand for both petrol and diesel options and MSIL misses out on a big market share. Sooner or later, MSIL should bring the diesel engines back to keep its paces with competition.
Those are the pros and cons of the Maruti Suzuki S-Cross and if you have some more to add, leave them in comments. Also, become a part of interesting automotive discussions by joining our Whatsapp group here
