2020 Maruti Suzuki Vitara Brezza 1.5L Petrol Road Test Review – The Emperor Strikes Back

No points for guessing which is the best selling Compact SUV in India, well everyone knows the answer is the Maruti Suzuki Vitara Brezza. Maruti Suzuki unveiled the 2020 Vitara Brezza at the recently concluded Auto Expo 2020 in Delhi and launched it just a few days back. Here we are in warm and sunny Goa to get behind the wheels of the latest avatar of the best selling compact SUV. Read on to know all on the 2020 Vitara Brezza in our detailed road test review.

 

Food for Thought

Maruti Suzuki launched the Vitara Brezza in 2016, the compact SUV  is based on the Maruti XA Alpha concept that was unveiled at the 2012 Auto Expo. The Vitara Brezza has also won the coveted Car Of the Year award for 2016. The SUV has also in less than 4 years of its launch sold over 500,000 units.

Vitara Brezza is also the fastest to achieve the milestone in its segment. The outgoing Vitara Brezza was only available with the 1.3L DDiS Diesel engine while the 2020 version is only available with a 1.5L Petrol heart.

Exteriors

The 2020 Maruti Suzuki Vitara Brezza comes with host of cosmetic changes on the outside. Though the latest Vitara Brezzas dimensions remain the same as the older model the upgrades are plenty to talk about. The compact SUV still stands at 3995mm in length, 1640mm in height and 1790mm wide.

The wheelbase for this SUV stands at 2500mm with an overall ground clearance of 198mm. Overall the basic stance remains the same as the older model, still boxy and practical looking but a lot trendy and bold. Speaking of the updates on this the 2020 model the first thing that catches your eye is the all new design chrome finish grill that has now gone thicker and bolder.

The headlights also get neat new updates and now come with dual LED projector beam along with DRL’s and turn lights placed in them. The front bumper gets a complete overhaul with a larger faux skid plate that runs higher towards the air-dam and round fog lamps that get matt black inserts around them. The side profile remain more or less the same while the highlight here being the all new design dualtone diamond cut 16 inch alloy wheels.

The roof gets blacked out effect that continues on the door frames and the A-B pillars. Silver color roof rail adds to the style quotient for the sides while the wheel arches  get faux inserts that run across the footboard mating the front and rear bumpers. The changes on the rear profile included a slightly modified rear spoiler, restyled rear faux skid-plate and all new LED tail lights that make things more interesting here.

Interiors

Like the outside the cabin of the 2020 Vitara Brezza also gets fresher with many updates. The Brezza has always had a spacious and practical cabin area so Maruti Suzuki have retained the original charm of the older model but made the all black cabin look far more premium. The SUV gets fresh looking new 3d design fabric upholstery. The driver’s seat gets height adjust along with the steering that comes with manual height adjust also gets leather wrapping now. MFD control buttons are placed on the three spoke steering.

Instrument cluster gets slightly updated and restyled. The Brezza also gets the latest 7.0 inch SmartPlay Studio touchscreen infotainment system. Rear seats come with adjustable twin headrests, foldable armrest and 60:40 split option. The Brezza has loads of cubby holes and storage places spread across the cabin area.

If you are a bit more enthusiastic and want your Brezza to stand out from others then Maruti Suzuki is also offering two special accessory pack upgrades to make your SUV bolder and sportier. You can choose between the Sporty and Urban package.

In the Sporty package you get Front, Rear & Side Skid Plates, Wheel Arch Cladding, Grill Garnish, Roof End Garnish, and Side Body accent in cubic finish, Fog Bezel Garnish, Rear Lamp Garnish, Designer Mats, Seat Cover & Interior Styling Kit Package.

The Urban pack includes key accessories like Front & Rear Skid Plate garnish, Fog Bezel Garnish, Roof End Garnish, Body Side Molding, Rear Lamp Garnish, Seat Cover, Designer Mats & Interior Styling Kit Package.

Engine – Transmission – Drive

The biggest change on the 2020 Vitara Brezza is that now it is only be powered by a Petrol engine. The Compact SUV gets its juice from the 1.5L K15B gasoline engine that also powers the Ciaz, Ertiga and the XL6. Needless to say that this engine is BS6 compliant. This highly refined engine makes 105Ps of power @ 6000rpm and 138Nm of torque @ 4400rpm. Transmission option includes the 5-speed manual and also a 4-speed torque converter Automatic option.

The petrol engine feels highly refined and peppy. The automatic version also gets the unique Smart Hybrid feature along with Auto start-stop. The initial feel of the Brezza is excellent with the cabin being extra silent. The manual version gets a super light clutch and the gear shifts are precise. The Automatic version comes with an Overdrive option placed on the shifter.

The overall drive feel is excellent and the ride quality is top class thanks to the engineers at Maruti Suzuki who have reworked the suspension setup to suit the new Petrol engine. The SUV is ever eager to dip into the corners and come out of it with flying colors. The steering and braking feedback is very positive too.

Maruti Suzuki Has a ARAI claimed fuel efficiency for the Vitara Brezza 1.5L Petrol that of 18.76km/l for the Automatic and 17.03 km/l for the Manual variant.

Competition Check

The Maruti Suzuki Vitara Brezza competes with likes of the Hyundai Venue, Tata Nexon, Mahindra XUV 3OO, Ford EcoSport and the much anticipated upcoming Kia Sonet in the Compact SUV segment

Verdict

The Brezza has been a benchmark in its segment, infact it has built the segment and ruled it till date. With this timely update Maruti Suzuki has given a boost to the Brezza which will now take on the competition head on and get huge numbers for the number one car maker of India.If we have to pick something that’s missing from the 2020 Vitara Brezza then it would be the rear AC vents, apart from that the vehicle shines in all departments. After spending two days driving the 2020 Vitara Brezza all that we can now say is The Emperor Strikes Back’.