Chevrolet Captiva- First Impressions

Well, the Honda has it. It's called the CRV and has been a success ever since its inception. Suzuki too has it and it is called the Grand Vitara. The Hyundai has it as the Tucson and Nissan, as the X-trail. And it will not be long before Toyota gets its Fortuner here. So it is probably the best time GM thinks about trying its luck to grab a piece of the cake.

We are talking about the Soft roader segment here. These look like regular SUVs, with ample ground clearance and aggressive stance, but are designed to spend more time on the road than off it. They will tolerate a degree of loose surfaces and inclines with their mild four wheel drive systems, but it is usually advisable to stick to the road with their pleasant car-like handling- the reason being that they are based on saloon cars.

Manufacturers have realized that for an SUV to be successful, it should have a large number of seats and diesel engine. The Captiva has these and much more. It will be the only seven seater soft-roader in its segment until the Toyota Fortuner comes along. Like its rivals, the Captiva will be brought in as a completely built unit (CBU) and that means it will not be cheap. Price will be close to Rs. 20lakhs but for that you get a great soft-roader. It has got the quintessential SUV looks and plenty of equipments on offer. It will have more power from the same 2.0 L diesel engine as the Optra Magnum. And it should, since it has to haul the 1800kg kerb weight, which is considerably more than that of the car.

The design of the Captiva has some captivating flair to it. The head lights and chrome grill which form the family identity reminds about the younger Aveo. The bulges in the bonnet, triangular vents on the front fender and the protruding wheel arches add character to the vehicle and so does the sloping roof line which is now the norm for sporty SUVs. The bumpers have skid plates incorporated into them and these stand out in contrasting silver colour. Smart looking alloy wheels and roof rails complete the overall look.

Interiors are made of quality materials and the overall layout is pleasant. There is a liberal use of silver finish throughout the fascia and a display unit takes centre stage. This display has all the information related to climate control, a temperature gauge, a distance to empty meter and a compass. The instrument cluster had the rest of the dials and gauges and looks great too. All seats except those at the rear row have ample space and support. Access to the rear most row is not quite easy and these seats are best suited for children than adults. Fortunately, these can be stowed down on the floor to maximize the boot space.

The engine as mentioned earlier is quite similar to the Optra Magnum's 1991cc engine, except that this one is in a better state of tune. In this state, the engine should produce around 148bhp and 32.6kgm of torque. Performance is adequate with 100kmph coming up in about 13 seconds. It remains to be seen how GM adjusts the engine to suit our fuel, when it is launched here. The car should come with a manual or the 5speed automatic transmission which will soon be available in the Optra Magnum.

The handling is pretty decent for a tall SUV, the wide track and long wheel base helping here. What is more remarkable is the ride qualiity which is brilliant. The vehicle comes equipped with hill descent control and ESP in the top end variants. The drive-train usually runs the vehicle as a rear wheel drive but once it senses wheel slippage, it directs power to the front wheels as well. There is no manual selector for the various four wheel drive modes as in more serious off roaders.

To sum it up, the captiva makes a good case for itself. It has great looks, a torquey diesel engine, a right blend of ride and handling, good equipment levels and quality interiors. The price of Rs.20 lakhs would seem a bit high, but this is the case with its rivals which are imported as well. But then theoretically, it has space for seven people, which none of the other soft roaders can offer. Well, the Ford Endeavour has seven seats and a diesel option, but it is an old school SUV and not a soft roader. The Captiva is more in line with modern times and has less bulk to ease driving in cities. It will/won't be until December that this one arrives, but it will definitely be worth the wait.

Volkswagen Passat (First drive)

The people's car is finally here. But how many can actually buy one? It is not the affordable Fox or Polo that we are receiving now, but the Passat which will retail for nearly Rs.22 lakhs. The car is assembled from kits at the Skoda facility in Aurangabad and will be slotted in between the Laura and the Superb. Localisation and expansion of model range in future will see the price coming down some day.

Volkswagen or what it is commonly abbreviated as VW, stands for "people's car" or "folk's wagon". The company gets its name from the way it evolved into its present state and there is a story behind it. And that the great Adolf Hitler had to do something with it, is more interesting. It was on Hitler's demand that Ferdinand Porsche designed VW's first car. Hitler wanted a car that was simple and cheap and the Beetle was born. Hitler even took the pen to redesign the front end of the car designed by Ferdinand Porsche. In its life time, the Beetle has sold the most number of units for any car in the world.

The Passat is a thoroughly modern car and shares the good traits of the VW cars. It is based on the stretched Golf platform known internally as the PQ46. Expect the next generation Skoda Superb to be based on an even more stretched version this platform. The Passat is known world over for its reliability and tank like build quality. Styling is not its key point, but the present generation Passat manages to look a lot sleeker than its predecessor. The swooping lines, lashes of chrome and the jewel like clear lens light clusters add to the appeal of a conservative design. The boot section is slightly bulbous and has a crease at its top that resembles a spoiler. A Volkswagen logo which is also the boot release button, takes centre stage at the rear. From the front, the vehicle looks unique with the chrome surround for the grille and the headlamps which have a fusion of circular lamps in rectangular units.

There is a sense of solidity prevailing through out the vehicle, be it the doors that shut with a satisfying thud or the switches on the dash board which operate the electromechanical hand brake. The dials which are set deep in the instrument panel, resemble those of the Audi A8. The dash board design is interesting with multiple layers for the various sections. The centre console which is in brushed aluminum has a large display screen which also has the GPS related information. All the seats are sufficiently large and supportive. The rear seats are even more relaxing and the back rest angle is near perfect. Boot space at 565 litres is sufficiently large as can be expected from the bulbous boot. However it is a bit short on legroom and the rear seat does not feel as wide as say, in an Accord.

The only version that is on sale now, is the 2.0 TDI. It is a diesel unit that employs VW's 'Pumpe Duse' (PD) technology which employs individual fuel pumps at the top of injectors instead of a high pressure common rail for all the injectors. The engine puts out 140bhp@4000rpm and 32.6kg-m of torque. This is mated to a 6 speed DSG gearbox. The gear shifts are seamless and the ratios for the gearbox are well chosen. Acceleration is pretty decent for a car which weighs 1454kgs and top whack is 208kmph.

The vehicle rides well over broken sections of roads but handling is a bit uninvolving. The electronic power assist for the steering, devoids it of any feel. And the soft suspension won't like the corners very much. It is more of a luxury cruiser than a corner carving tool. The rear employs a four link independent layout that offers great ride quality. The front part is taken care of by MacPherson struts. The Indian vehicle has a raised and toughened suspension all around. Braking is entrusted to ventilated discs at all the four wheels which are shod with 205/55 section 16 inch tyres.

The Passat is a well built and comfortable diesel luxury car. For the price, there is nothing that could beat it. And it fits right in between the Laura and Superb in the Skoda range. It has to be seen as to who would take care of the sales and service network. Whether it is Skoda or VW itself, you get a lot of car for your money. The top end versions come with six airbags, six way adjustable powered driver's seat, ESP and many others. More than all, it is very reliable - a fact that it has endeared to millions of taxi drivers across the globe.

Maruti Suzuki SX4

The Public Relations department of Maruti is now being replaced with whatever people they could find, knew, which end of the telephone to speak into. When you ring them up asking for a press car, they say “sorry”, for the next two months. However there is one who has been the Regional Sales Manager of Maruti for quite some time now. He is good at his job and has a good image among colleagues and sub-ordinates. And the best part? He likes motoring journalists.

Regular readers of this column must have noticed my penchant for performance and how the Maruti SX4 failed to excite me during the ‘performance mid-sizers’ comparison test, few weeks back. This comparison test was squarely aimed at finding the best driver’s car that would do the job for the family man as well. The lack of performance in the SX4 was slight but obvious when tested alongside its rivals and cannot be excused when you think that the Baleno it replaced had an even better engine.

Also I had mentioned that buying a costly Maruti does not make you feel very elite. The entire buying process is a hurried one after which they have to attend to another sale. It was all about volumes that they cared for and lost focus on quality and customer satisfaction.

Now, being the Regional Sales Manager, Mr. Anand could not ignore these comments. He decided to take them positively. Firstly, to give me a better perspective, he sent me another SX4, at a time when it could not be more ideal. It was raining heavily, the roads were more potholed than ever and there is no better time to appreciate this vehicle’s high ground clearance and fantastic grip than this. And secondly, he said he would arrange a training programme for those executives who deal with SX4 customers wherein they will be taught better methods to handle elite customers. The outcome of this experiment is yet to be seen, but it is sure that the already long queue of SX4 customers will be even longer, once it is done.

After driving this car again, I still think that the performance of the SX4 is best termed ‘docile’ and that there is not much interior space on offer despite looking like a leviathan on the outside. But if you look at it as a package, it all begins to make better sense. It does 0-100kmph run in about 12.1 seconds which is not quite quick, but performance is not the first thing that most people look in a family car. You are not going to buy it for winning races, are you?

The SX4 is built on a stretched and widened Swift platform. So it handles like a slightly larger Swift. Body control, despite the high centre of gravity is precise. Grip levels are further elevated by the wide tyres. What you would definitely like about this car is the way it handles our bad roads. The ride may be slightly on the stiffer side, but the huge ground clearance of 190mm and big 16” tyres ensured that it didn’t have any troubles by the craters on our roads. Road undulations were barely felt, with the vehicle remaining well poised while doing 120kmph on bad roads. It ran over bumps and earthern roads like an SUV and never did I have to slow down for fear of scraping the underside. So finally here is a car that suits our challenging Indian roads.

Coming to equipment levels, the SX4 leads the competition. It offers ABS, Airbags, climate control, integrated stereo, alloy wheels etc in the top version making it fantastic value. It all looks great with the Lexus like dash board and the beige interiors. Front seats are well padded and visibility ahead is great. The only serious gripe with the car is the lack of comfortable accommodation for a fifth passenger. The high central transmission tunnel carried over from the original all-wheel-drive cross-over SX4 and the bulging centre portion of the back rest makes life slightly difficult for a third passenger. Two people in the rear seat will be a happy ‘lot’, with decent head room and upright seating position.

When you sum it up, the SX4 is a great family car. It may not be very fast or frugal, but it is great value. The competition has several talents that can rival the SX4 but as an all-round car, it emerges without getting beaten much. The results of our performance comparison test were accurate. Had it been not a search for the best performance car, the SX4 would have ranked better, particularly when you consider its practicality on our roads. It is arguably the best car in Anand’s opinion. I would add ‘The best car from Maruti’.