Maruti-Suzuki’s Victoris is full of bells and whistles — 21 trims, 64 ambient lights, ADAS

Maruti-Suzuki has shed every iota of conservatism with Victoris SUV. I drove the top ZXi+ model with the optional panoramic sunroof, priced at Rs 17.75 lakh ex-showroom.

The Maruti Suzuki Victoris SUV has a generous feature set | Photo: Kushan Mitra

Maruti-Suzuki has been an immensely successful company. While it no longer enjoys the 50 per cent market share of the early 2010s, it still dominates the Indian passenger vehicle segment with 43 per cent. The Dzire, Swift, WagonR, and now even the Baleno and Fronx, are permanent fixtures in India’s top ten highest selling models. Their success is visible on the roads and in the share markets. One accusation, however, can be thrown at the Indo-Japanese firm — it is slow to change, almost lethargic.

But when I drove the new Victoris SUV from the carmaker, something else became obvious. When Maruti-Suzuki does decide to change, it embraces it whole-heartedly. Everything about this vehicle defies expectation. The company has shed every iota of conservatism with this car.

Just a few years ago, chairman RC Bhargava questioned the relevance of global safety norms and tests for India. The Victoris has the full shebang: a five-star adult and child occupant rating from both the Bharat New Car Assessment Programme (BNCAP) and the stricter Global NCAP. Indeed, it has the highest Global NCAP score for any made-in-India car in its segment. This is in no small part thanks to the fact that the Victoris is the first Maruti-Suzuki vehicle to feature Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS). There is also an all-wheel-drive version, a hybrid variant, and a CNG model with an underfloor tank.

I was driving the top ZXi+ model with the optional panoramic sunroof, priced at Rs 17.75 lakh ex-showroom, almost identical to its rivals for a similar automatic model.

There are altogether 21 different trim levels. This from a carmaker that once offered buyers two options: ‘Take It’ or ‘Leave It’. The company has even gone a step further by removing the spare wheel and providing a puncture kit instead, although I’m not sure how that will play out.

This new SUV, in the large and growing compact sports utility vehicle segment (vehicles between 4,000 and 4,500 millimetres in length), will be sold through Maruti’s Arena network, which has more than 3,000 outlets in over 2,500 cities and towns across India.

While it will also compete with the Grand Vitara sold through Maruti’s Nexa network, and will almost certainly cannibalise sales there, its main rivals are the Hyundai Creta, Kia Seltos, and Tata Curvv.

 

All the bells and whistles

With its feature set, the Victoris has come to play with the big boys.

Take the Dolby Atmos sound system, for example. I was blown away by its fidelity. I played everything from Fleetwood Mac to Badshah, with some Pandit Jasraj and Tchaikovsky in between. I gave the system a proper workout, and I’ll just say this much — if I really wanted to have a music party, like those Swifties organising sangeets to celebrate her engagement, I’d do it in this car. I have written before that I grew up in an era of cassette tapes and cheap speakers with tinny sound.

Inside the Maruti-Suzuki Victoris | By special arrangement

This is a feature-heavy vehicle. It ticks all the boxes with a larger infotainment screen and full digital instrument cluster on the higher trims, a panoramic sunroof, and 64 ambient lights. Even the ADAS system is the advanced Level 2 version, with rear cross-traffic warning.

Interestingly, Maruti-Suzuki is also offering a version without a sunroof, even in the higher trims. After seeing the harrowing viral video of a child in Bengaluru hitting his head on an overhead barrier while standing through a sunroof, I think this is a smart and much-needed move.

 

Less kick, more comfort

But here’s the funny thing about the Victoris. When I was talking with Partho Banerjee, senior executive officer, Sales and Marketing at Maruti-Suzuki, he told me: “Power and handling are hygiene features these days. If you have noticed, we are not talking about how ‘powerful’ this car is, but more about how much technology and entertainment this car gives you.”

That might not sound like music to the ears of an automotive purist. A motor vehicle is, after all, meant for driving, and someone like me wants to have some fun occasionally around corners, playing with the throttle and brake pedals. But I’m not always on a highway; I also commute inside a city, whether for the school drop or to office. As someone who’s been stuck in traffic at Mahipalpur, the Silk Board junction, or the Western Express Highway, I understand Partho’s point. You don’t care about 0-100 times or top speed. You do care about having a comfortable electric seat, a great audio experience, and soothing lights.

To be sure, I did go out on the highway outside Jaipur, and it must be said the Victoris is actually quite a nice vehicle to drive. Maruti-Suzuki vehicles have always been sharp handling vehicles, and while the K15C engine the Victoris shares with the Brezza and Grand Vitara isn’t the peppiest around, it gets up to speed smartly and is very economical. But I also believe there’s a market of late Millennial and Gen Z buyers — Maruti’s target audience for the Victoris — who would want something a little more exciting under the hood.

It seems almost petulant to ask for more variants, but if Maruti could do more here, it would be to put the wonderful Boosterjet turbo engine from the Fronx here as well.

And call me a conservative old fogey, but maybe a spare tyre isn’t a bad thing in India.

Kushan Mitra is an automotive journalist based in New Delhi. He tweets @kushanmitra. Views are personal.

(Edited by Asavari Singh)