We're looking to purchase our first car and we've shortlisted the Maruti Baleno Zeta and Maruti Dzire ZXI. Since my husband and I have recently learnt how to drive, we're more comfortable driving a manual car. We intend to use it daily for office commuting, around 50km, and occasionally head out of the city for long drives. Which one is better?
Megha Thacker, Mumbai
Autocar India says: On account of its sedan body style, the Dzire is the more expensive of the two. It is also the newer car, and what you get is a fresh design, an upmarket-looking interior (due to its bright, beige colour scheme), and a relatively larger boot, all while being similar in dimensions to the Baleno. The Dzire's suspension strikes a better ride-handling balance, and even though its new three-cylinder petrol engine is down on power compared to the Baleno's stronger and smoother four-cylinder unit, the Dzire's is likely to be a bit more fuel efficient. In their mid-variants, both, Dzire and Baleno have a similar feature set too. But keep in mind that rear headroom in the Dzire isn't as generous as in the Baleno, and if you or your family members are over six-feet tall, this could be a bit of a challenge. However, if that isn't the case, between the two, the Dzire is the better pick.
