The Hindu Business Line : Maruti 800 - 16-kmpl is a fair mileage

I AM a resident of Mumbai and after careful consideration am planning to buy the Bajaj Avenger. But I am wondering whether to buy the bike now or wait to see if Bajaj upgrades this cruiser? Is there likelihood of an upgraded variant, with a fuel gauge and alloy wheels, anytime now?

Sanjeev Sharma

The Bajaj Avenger is the lower priced, recently introduced variant of the Kawasaki Eliminator. The Avenger replaced the Eliminator and instead of the 175cc mill that the predecessor sported, the new variant now features the same 180cc engine that Bajaj offers with the bigger-engined Pulsar twin.

The Avenger has been in the market only for about eight months and its main attraction is the cruiser style construction and the value-for-money pricing vis-à-vis its predecessor. Another plus of the Avenger is that it retains the build and material quality of the original bike. The bike is targeted at the style- and performance-oriented biker and clearly cannot satisfy the excessively fuel-efficiency conscious.

With an expected mileage of 40-45 kmpl, the Avenger is really not meant for bikers who keep checking their fuel gauge. That is not the only reason why Bajaj has chosen not to load this feature on to the Avenger's instrumentation.

The traditional character of a cruiser bike is ruggedness and the open-to-the-elements look. So, the Avenger's chrome-finished single pod instrument cluster, the simple fairing-less front profile and the round headlamp exude old-world charm and are all classic cruiser features.

The same can be said of the multi-spoked, chrome-plated wheels, which is also the most preferred for retaining the cruiser's classic looks. Replacing these with alloys may rob the bike of its old-world charm. But if customers want the switch to alloys, Bajaj may offer that option too. After all, alloys have been replacing the traditional wheels in other Bajaj bikes such as the Pulsar and the Discover. But while alloys go well with these other bikes, they may not give cruisers a similar improvement in visual appeal.

I have returned from the US and would like to buy an automatic transmission car. After enquiries, I have zeroed in on the Honda City ZX CVT and the Toyota Corolla. Though the Corolla has a lot more features, I am looking closely at the mileage that the cars offer and whether the features in the Toyota car are actually needed or will be used for Indian road conditions. If the mileage number is far better in the City, I might want to opt for this Honda car. Can you compare the mileage-to-cost ratios of these cars and the usefulness of the features provided?

T. C. Venkatesan

The Toyota Corolla 1.8G (automatic variant) and the Honda City ZX CVT are clearly not in the same league or size class. So, strictly speaking we cannot compare the two cars on the features and price-to-value parameters. The City ZX CVT will cost you about Rs 8.5 lakh on road, while the Toyota Corolla about Rs 12.5 lakh. So, the difference is too big to justify comparing the cars as being equally compelling buys.

So, while they are not exactly comparable overall, we feel that the continuously variable automatic transmission in the City ZX CVT is a more advanced version than the four-speed automatic in the Corolla. On the other hand, the variable valve timing VVT-i engine in the Corolla is a more refined mill than the City's i-DSI engine. The Corolla's features have all been carefully thought out to cater to the Indian car buyers' needs and, as such, will be appreciated for their practicality and luxury feel — but, of course, that will come at a price.

But from your query it seems fairly obvious that fuel efficiency is the most important parameter for making the purchase decision. So, if the size and trim level segmentation that will make these two cars incomparable does not matter to you, and you are willing to buy a less luxurious car, then the City ZX CVT can easily be the one that will satisfy all your requirements. While the City's 1.5 litre i-DSI engine will feel a bit under-powered compared to the Corolla's 1.8 litre VVT-i engine, the former should be able to offer about 20 per cent more fuel efficiency. So, the call will have to be between high focus on fuel efficiency and a compromise on features, size and luxury at a lower price or the other way around.

Also, it must be remembered that automatic transmission cars are intrinsically less fuel-efficient compared to their manual transmission counterparts.

I own a Maruti 800 which was purchased in August 2002. The car has logged just 2,900 km on its odometer till date. It gives me a mileage of approximately 16 kmpl in Mumbai driving conditions, which I consider to be a bit on the lower side. After all, the car is the non-airconditioned Standard model and driven with only two passengers normally. Also, the brakes seem to be ineffective when driven at around 40-50 kph. Moreover, the engine gets heated up quite fast when driven for a short distance. What could possibly be the various causes for these problems and what should I do to improve the car's performance?

Manas Das

A fuel efficiency of 16 kmpl in city driving conditions is fair, even if it is in the non-airconditioned version. We cannot be certain about the exact reasons for the other problems that you have listed, given the fact that the vehicle has clocked such low mileage, unless we can rule out the possibility of odometer tampering if this was a used car when you purchased it.

So, when we talk about braking performance, radial tyres and disc brakes are a combo that will be difficult to beat vis-à-vis the M800's bias-ply and drum brakes. But, that apart, an unusually poor braking performance could be due to reasons such as brake pad wear, poor wheel alignment and even balding tyres. Check if the car also encounters a drag to the left or the right during braking, to rule out suspension-related issues and wheel-alignment problems.

The other problem, that of the engine getting heated up quickly, could simply be due to inadequate coolant concentration (may have been diluted with water in excess of allowable limit) or because of engine oil change being overdue. Check the radiator for a possible leak, which is fairly common in small cars, especially among poorly maintained second-hand vehicles.

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