2022 Maruti Suzuki XL6 review – Worth upgrading?

In 2019 the XL6 brand was first introduced in India by Maruti Suzuki. The idea behind was to create a premium MPV vehicle at an affordable price. Well, that worked in the favour of Maruti Suzuki up to an extent. Customers who were not able to afford premium MPVs priced much higher than their budget turned their heads towards the XL6. Now, the company is betting more by adding some new tech and features in the updated avatar of the 2022 Maruti Suzuki XL6. The new XL6 has also received some mechanical changes. Maruti invited us to test drive the all-new XL6 in Bengaluru and here’s my first take on it.

To begin with, the exterior changes are minimal. In the front, it gets a new grille with an X pattern design. The tyres size has gone up by an inch - previously it used to have 15 inches wheel but now it comes with 16 inches. The design of alloys is also different and yes they do look smarter than before. There is a new shark fin antenna. The rear profile has also received a couple of changes, such as the addition of a new chrome strip in the hatch and clear lens tail lights with a smoke finish. Maruti is also offering three dual-tone body colour options which hopefully will appeal to the younger buyers. Rest in terms of exterior everything is the same as before. As I said, the changes are minimal but they do make it look a bit fresh.

The interior of the new XL6 is improved and does offer some new features. The interior layout is similar to the previous model. As far as changes are concerned. There is a new stone finish on the dashboard. The new XL6 gets the new seven-inch touchscreen with SmartPlay Pro touchscreen, which will be offered in Alpha and Alpha plus, the base variant will get the old touchscreen. Suzuki Connect for connected car features such as remote AC start, on-board voice assistant triggered by "Hi Suzuki" command, 360-degree camera, tyre pressure monitoring system, and ventilated front seats. These are in addition to the previously available provisions such as cruise control, automatic AC, aircon vents for the second and third-row seats, push-button start/stop, keyless entry, idle stop-start, and more. Maruti Suzuki has also increased XL6's feature list; the six-seater MPV now comes with four airbags, ABS, EBD, reversing sensors, electronic stability programme, hill-hold assist, and speed alert system as standard while the top-end variant also has a reversing camera.

The dimension of the new XL6 has not changed at all. But it’s worth mentioning that the space inside is very practical. The seats are leather stitched and comfortable. Second-row passengers will have ample legroom, headroom and decent thigh support. Being a 6 seater access to the third row is also convenient and the third row also has decent space for an average height person. Long journeys won’t be as comfortable as they would be in the second row but a few hours' drive shouldn't be an issue.

The new Maruti Suzuki XL6 comes with the new K-Series 1.5-litre Dual Jet, Dual VVT engine with Progressive Smart Hybrid technology. This powerplant develops 102 bhp with 137 Nm and can be had with a choice between a five-speed manual gearbox and a six-speed automatic transmission with paddle-shifters. This new powerplant returns ARAI mileage of 20.51 km/l with manual transmission and 20.3 km/l with the automatic gearbox.

The car that I drove in and around Nandi hills had the all-new 6-speed torque-converter automatic gearbox with the new 1.5-litre petrol engine. In the beginning, the new K-series engine feels calm and composed. The power is delivered in a linear manner instead of an instant power delivery upfront. The 6-speed automatic gearbox is obviously better than the previously available 4-speed automatic but I believe it is still not the quickest when it comes to gear shifts. The part where I felt that the power delivery could have been better is when I was trying to move past the other vehicles on the highway. It takes its own time to deliver the power which at times can kill the fun of driving on the highways.

The ex-showroom price of the new XL6 starts from ₹11.29 and goes up to ₹14.39 lakhs for the top variant. The updated XL6 and Ertiga are the result of Kia introducing Carens in the MPV segment. Yes, Maruti Suzuki has upped its game by adding new features and tech in the New XL6. Apart from a couple of things that I believe still need to be improved, the 2022 Maruti Suzuki still has that brand value and practicality quotient which will work in its favour and keep this brand alive in the race of premium budget MPVs.