Tata Zest Quadrajet AMT vs Honda Amaze i-DTEC vs Hyundai Xcent CRDi vs Maruti Suzuki Swift Dzire DDiS By OverDrive:
The Zest is no doubt the most promising car that has been rolled out from Tata Motors. If you have read Bert’s comprehensive road test earlier, it’s a car definitely worth considering. The Indian manufacturer may have created the compact sedan segment before anyone did a few years ago but while the engineers at Tata went back to the drawing board to develop the next generation compact sedan, the rival cars from the top car makers in India, the Amaze, Dzire and Xcent went on sale and turned out to become instant hits, in fact together, the cars contribute a huge chunk to the total passenger car sales in India. This segment is now as competitive as the hatchback class with more cars expected from other carmakers as well. The Zest is the latest entry and is ready to roll out any time soon, should competition be worried?
Styling and interiors
The Zest is an all new design and isn’t a booted Vista, every panel is different and the overall design has a lot more character. The front end, especially due to the projector lights (first in segment) give the car a premium look compared to the rivals. The car is appealing but the Amaze and Xcent are still more proportionate and more sedan than notchback. What is even more surprising is that the new Tata was designed as a sedan first and then as a hatchback but then it is still based on the older Vista chassis so it’s a larger car to start with for a compact sedan. Viewed from the side, the stubby rear of the Tata looks even more odd than the Dzire, a longer tail would have improved styling considerably but that isn’t an option, thanks to the 4m regulation. However, the multi-spoke alloys look better than the boring designs seen in the Amaze and Dzire and the wheel wells are nicely filled thanks to 15-inch wheels. The rear end is smart and the wrap-around LED tail lamps, though not in sync with the front, add to the styling, and like the rest of the cars here, there is also a chrome strip running above the number plate. The rear is definitely more appealing than the boxy tail of the Xcent.
The Zest interior is the most current in terms of design and it features quality materials too
The Xcent dashboard is similar to the Grand i10 and is feature loaded too
The Amaze’s dashboard is the least appealing but the overall quality is good
Dzire dashboard is still modern, despite being the oldest car of the lot. Quality of materials is impressive too
Step inside the Zest and you will be pleasantly surprised by the new design, the dual-tone dash is modern and thoughtfully crafted, while the attention to detail has vastly improved. In terms of design, the Tata does feel more special than the rest, fit and finish has improved significantly and is at a few places at par with rivals. The entire cabin feels fresh and looks the most current in terms of design. Unlike the Amaze that looks boring, the Zest features quality materials like piano black and silver inserts that aid styling. The steering wheel like the exterior is more appealing than the other cars too. All cars here offer steering controls that are built to last, the Xcent’s and the Dzire’s are even backlit. The only negative for the insides of the Zest is probably the use of a few interior parts from the Vista and Manza that don’t go well with the stylish dashboard.The Harman developed stereo in the car seen here is one notch lower than in the top-end diesel and petrol models but still features everything the other top variant cars have to offer, the speakers though sound like any other factory fitted stereo from this class.
Talking space, like most Tata cars, the Zest has a lot of it to offer. Headroom is impressive both in the front and rear and is good for tall drivers too, not that the others are disappointing in this department but the Zest does squeeze in a bit more room. Shoulder room is also impressive since it is the widest car in the segment but the floor isn’t flat like in the Amaze and Xcent, the latter is based on the Grand i10 making it the least wide, the front seats in the Hyundai are also the most narrow and the rear seat isn’t ideal for three passengers despite the impressive knee-room, it is however the only car to offer a rear AC vent.The Amaze still offers the best overall space among all cars here but the front seats aren’t as well bolstered as in the Zest or the Dzire and they tire you after a long drive, the fixed headrests are taller than in the Xcent but the rest offer adjustable headrests. Rear knee-room is impressive in all three cars except in the Maruti that is similar to the smaller Swift. This is disappointing and a big compromise in our opinion. The Amaze and Xcent are also better off for the middle passengers since the rear floor is almost fully flat. The Tata surprisingly offers no rear armrest and very few storage points, the development team seems to have forgotten entirely to focus on this aspect, an important feature especially for a car in this segment. In the front, there is one cup holder between the centre console and gear lever, but what could have been the second holder like in all other cars is used up by the 12V socket. Even the door pads despite being large and capable of accommodating two bottles each, do not feature proper bottle holders, the Amaze and Xcent even offer them in the rear doors. Boot space isn’t more than the Amaze or Xcent, but the 360-litre boot is more spacious and useable than the Dzire’s.
Zest offers good cabin space, rear knee-room is slightly more than in the Xcent but still not segment best
Xcent kneeroom is impressive but shoulder room is narrower than the rest. Note rear AC vent
Amaze rear kneeroom is the best in segment, note rear arm rest with cup holders
Dzire is the least roomy at the back while the seat is more upright. The rear seat however is comfortable
Engines and performance
The diesel engine in the Zest is the same Fiat sourced Quadrajet unit featuring a VGT for better performance, it’s a proven motor and suits the Zest fine. Everyone these days is curious to know if the motor is noisy? Well the Amaze i-DTEC motor is to be blamed here since the Honda engine, despite being so promising on paper, has let down many when it comes to NVH levels. Every time I drive the Amaze, I wonder why Honda couldn’t make this motor less noisy. The Quadrajet motor though isn’t as audible and is quite refined too, not as silent as the Xcent’s 1.1-litre CRDi, but better than the Dzire and the Amaze by a margin. Good insulation in the Zest definitely helps reduce NVH considerably but you still know that the car being driven is in fact a diesel unlike in the Hyundai.
The Tata Quadrajet diesel features a VGT and produces 90PS of max power
Hyundai 1.1-litre diesel is the most compact of the lot but doesn’t feel like one
Amaze 1.5-litre i-DTEC motor is the most powerful and returns highest fuel efficiency too
Dzire’s 1.3-litre Multijet engine offers good balance between performance and efficiency
The Zest produces 90PS of max power and 200Nm of torque, second, only in terms of power, to the Amaze that puts out a higher 100PS. The Dzire and Xcent produce lesser power, 75PS and 72PS, respectively. But one can’t come to a conclusion by just comparing power figures, real world performance is the key. The car seen here features a five-speed gearbox like the rest but then there is no clutch lever because the Zest is the only car in its class to feature an AMT. So how does it compare on the road? Well it isn’t the most spirited of all but is effortless and makes use of all the torque. There is very little turbo lag and power delivery is linear, a contrast compared to the Manza that features the same motor. But then, the Amaze still feels more torquey and there is hardly any turbo lag too, acceleration is still best in class but then top speed in the Honda is restricted to 140kmph (unless you are driving on a slope) but the odometer will still not cross 4,000rpm.
The Amaze is quickest of the lot. The Zest AMT is slower to shift gears and hence not as quick
n terms of acceleration the AMT does slow down the Zest because of the longer time taken between shifts, 100kmph comes up in 17 odd seconds making it the slowest car in this comparison. The manual transmission diesel should be quicker than the AMT model and on par with the Xcent, the Hyundai and the Maruti despite being less powerful on paper are actually quite quick on road. There is noticeable turbo lag from the Maruti but power is built up quite well after the turbo spools up and the quicker shifting 5-speed manual works wonders to propel the car quickly. The Hyundai is even more surprising in terms of performance and drivability, the small 3-cylinder motor is quite peppy and is suited for both the town and highway, it easily holds triple digit speeds and doesn’t feel like the least powerful car at all. The gear shifts are smoothest in the Hyundai and the gear lever itself like in the i10 is cleverly placed closer to the driver. One doesn’t need to shift gears in the Zest but if needed, the manual mode offers quicker shifts than in auto mode, there is also sport mode that shifts at a higher rpm but manual mode lets one shift at even higher engine speeds. In terms of overall fuel efficiency, one would expect the Xcent to top the list but the Amaze returns the most followed by the Zest AMT, Dzire and Xcent.
The Zest looks more premium viewed head-on thanks to the projector headlamps and standard DRLs seen in the top variants
Ride and handling
All the cars feature similar suspension setups, a MacPherson unit up front and torsion beam at the rear. However the cars are different from each other when it comes to dynamics. The Zest offers the best ride in the class, the suspension is tuned well for broken roads while the wider track helps improve stability, body roll is controlled and dynamics is well sorted, the diesel does feel nose heavy compared to its petrol sibling but that is the case in most cars here, the steering offers good feedback too considering it’s electrically assisted. The Dzire however is still the best handling car in the segment, the DNA from the Swift helps, not to forget identical wheelbase as the hatchback as well. The setup is neither stiff nor soft while the steering is precise and not too light, ride quality however needs to improve. The Xcent and Amaze offer a better ride than the Maruti and since the Hyundai cabin is better insulated, road noise is lower too.. Hyundai has taken the effort and added some weight to the steering but it still feels vague, the Honda steering is light especially in town but as speeds increase one expects slightly more weight, however the steering is still more precise than the Xcent and Zest. Braking is better off in the Dzire, the ABS is tuned well and doesn’t kick in early, the Xcent brakes are sharper than the rest and the ABS is more sensitive too, the Amaze and Zest feel more neutral in composition but the Zest does feel a lot heavier under heavy braking.
Xcent face is identical to the Grand i10, only distinguisher is the chrome surround seen around the lower grille
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. when will they grow to give unbiased and matured comments?
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