AUTOMATIC REIGN

The Amaze CVT quietly nails the basics and then ups the game with ADAS. The question is - does it justify the premium over the Dzire AMT?

- SIDDHARTH

The Maruti Suzuki Dzire is officially India's most fuel-efficient automatic petrol sedan, offering a certified fuel economy figure of 25.71 km/l. It also comes loaded with features – a sunroof, a 360-degree parking assist camera, wireless charging, an integrated tyre-pressure monitoring system, and more. On paper, it seems to be the perfect urban runabout.

But here's the twist - it's not!

In the real world, the Dzire feels out of its depth in the stop-start chaos of city traffic. Its jerky 3-cylinder engine and slow-shifting AMT leave you working harder than you should. Ironically, take it out on the open highway, and the Dzire transforms - planted, efficient, and surprisingly refined at triple-digit speeds. It's almost like a budget grand tourer in disguise.

And, then, there is the Honda Amaze VX CVT, priced just 1 lakh more. It doesn’t come with a sunroof or a 360-degree camera, but what it does offer is a smoother driving experience, better low-speed comfort, and active safety technology, including ADAS. This leads to a compelling conundrum - should you save that one lakh and live with the Dzire's compromises, or stretch your budget a bit and get a car that's inherently easier to live with every day?

Let's dive into this unexpected comparison.

CITY DUTY

Let's begin with what the Dzire aims to be - a compact, efficient city sedan. And on paper, it ticks all the boxes — it's easy to drive, easy to park, and comes loaded with tech. But fire it up, and that illusion begins to fade.