2022 Maruti Suzuki XL6 Review — A Big Step Up From The Outgoing Model

The 2022 Maruti Suzuki XL6 was recently launched at a starting price of Rs 11.29 lakh for the base Zeta model. The top-spec Alpha+ Dual Tone Automatic costs Rs 14.55 lakh, ex-showroom. The new XL6 features a slight redesign when compared to the older model with new design elements making the MPV stand out.

Apart from the change in design and styling, the new Maruti Suzuki XL6 features a new engine with a lot of technology to make it more efficient than ever before. We drove the new Maruti Suzuki XL6 for a few hours to find out what this MPV is all about. Is it any better than the older model? Is it more efficient and does it drive better? Read on to find out.

Design & Style

Elegant and classy are the first words that come to mind when one looks at the new Maruti Suzuki XL6. It is a more mature design and the XL6 certainly seems to be aging like fine wine. It is great to see the MPV get to this level within three years of its existence.

The headlamps have been retained from the outgoing model. They are LED units and only the turn signal indicators are lit up by halogen bulbs. Though the entire front end looks very familiar, everything up front except for the headlamps has been redesigned.

The new grille is the biggest change of them all. The design of the grille itself is pretty simple. However, the oodles of chrome that have been slapped onto it brings in a lot of bling. If you like chrome, you're sure to like the front end of the new XL6.

The grille gets a strip of chrome at the top and a strip of chrome at the bottom. There is a bigger and thicker chrome strip that runs across the grille horizontally. There is a large Suzuki logo in the middle. The logo is larger than you think it would be and is, therefore, more in-your-face.

The bumper too has been redesigned. The new Maruti Suzuki XL6 features an all-round matte black cladding and this makes for a rather interesting styling. Up front, this cladding is seen on the bumper and the bottom of the bumper features a matte silver scuff plate.

Move over to the side profile and the first element that grabs your attention is the new alloy wheels. These are 16-inch machined dual-tone alloy wheels and in our opinion is the best-looking element on the new XL6. These premium alloy wheels are shod with MRF Wanderer ecoTred tyres.

The plastic cladding on the wheel arches could have been a little slimmer than it currently is. On the front fender is a new matte black design element with chrome inserts. You then notice the chrome door handles. It is the only chrome bit on the side profile. The MPV possesses strong character and shoulder design lines and this makes it look a bit more bulky and muscular.

The cladding on the sides has a matte silver insert that runs along the sideboard. A significant addition to the new Maruti Suzuki XL6 are the new UV cut windows that filter out harmful UV rays and this is very effective indeed. Finally, there are roof rails finished in matte silver.

At the rear, there are several changes but the new tail lamps are the ones that attract the most attention. The design of the tail lamp is identical to the outgoing model however, the styling has changed a bit. The tail lamps are smoked and this lends it a modern and youthful appearance.

The new XL6 features a blacked-out strip on the tail gate with a chrome strip in it. Also on the tail gate are the XL6 and SmartHybrid badging. On top is the spoiler with an integrated stop lamp and windscreen washer. At the bottom is a redesigned bumper with vertical reflectors. On the whole, it is a refreshing design and is a whole league better than the older XL6.

Cockpit & Interior

Maruti Suzuki's vehicles have always been known for their spacious and practical interior and the new XL6 follows the same notion. When you tug on the chrome door handles and open the door, you are greeted by the black interior of the new XL6.

The 2022 Maruti Suzuki XL6 features an all-block dashboard but there are other elements to it as well. It gets a grainy wood finish trim underneath the AC vents. Under this wood trim is a sillver strip. The AC vents themselves are very stylish and the dashboard features three horizontal lines that seem to connect the AC vents.

Taking centre stage on the dashboard is the 7.0-inch touchscreen infotainment unit. It features Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, however, it is wired and the MPV still lacks wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. The infotainment unit is Maruti Suzuki's Smartplay Pro unit and therefore features lots of connected car technologies.

Positioned below the screen on the dashboard is the control panel for the Automatic Climate Control. It features a small LCD screen to display the settings of the climate control and this display is flanked by the two knobs that control the fan speed and temperature.

Below this is where the centre console begins and you find a 12V socket as well as a USB port through which you would connect your phone to the infotainment unit. The controls for the seat ventilation is placed right here. There is some space to position your smartphone, however, there is no wireless charging.

The cupholders in the centre console are cooled and the dial for the cooling too is located right next to it. Finally, there is the gear lever and behind it is the adjustable armrest for the driver and front passenger.

The seats are finished in black and are perforated. The ventilated seats are a boon especially during hot summers. The flat-bottom steering wheel is compact and sport. It gets mounted controls for the audio, calling, cruise control, and even for the voice commands. The steering wheel too gets a silver insert.

The new Maruti Suzuki XL6 features a digital-analogue instrument cluster. The analogue gauges include the speedometer, tachometer, fuel level, and temperature level. There is a full-colour MID in the centre that displays a lot of information including the current fuel efficiency, average fuel efficiency, range, current torque & power consumption, etc.

The instrument cluster looks modern and refreshing and lends great character to the cockpit and interior. On the whole, it is a youthful and modern interior that isn't the most attractive to look at. However, it is one of the most useful and practical interiors in the segment.

Practicality, Comfort & Boot Space

Practicality is a factor that takes great prominence for Maruti Suzuki and all of its cars are very practical. The new Maruti Suzuki XL6 too ranks very high on practicality. The door pockets are pretty deep and each of them can accommodate a 1-litre bottle along with a few other small things.

The glovebox in the dashboard too is deep and one can store lots of things in it. As aforementioned, the centre console has a space to place a smartphone and there are cupholders too. Under the adjustable sliding armrest is a small cubbyhole to store something the size of a wallet.

The passengers in the second row get a 12V socket to make use of, and there are also seat back pockets to store a magazine or a newspaper. Passengers in the third row too get a 12V socket and both passengers get cup holders.

One aspect where the new Maruti Suzuki XL6 scores really high is comfort. It has always been a very comfortable MPV and the 2022 model takes things up a notch, especially for the driver and front passenger. The Maruti Suzuki XL6 now features ventilated front seats and this is a boon on hot and sunny days.

It gets a three-step control and is therefore very flexible in how it actually functions. Adding to this is the effective climate control system. There are AC vents placed night above the second row which cater to both the second row and third row passengers.

At the time of testing the new XL6, the summer heat was almost at its peak and the air-conditioning was doing a fabulous job at keeping the DriveSpark team cool. However, the ventilated seats were a revelation in just how great this feature is, for a tropical climate.

The front seats offer great thigh support and back support. The driver's seat features height adjustment as well. The most comfortable seats though are the captain seats in the second row. Each seat gets its own armrest and though the door pads are made of hard plastic, the area where the passengers' elbows rest has a foam padding to make it more comfortable.

Things aren't as comfortable for passengers in the third row though. Getting in and out is easy, however, if the captain seats are pushed all the way back, there is a lack of leg room. However, given the space in the second row, the captain seats wouldn't really need to be pushed all the way back and hence knee room is alright in the third row.

Make no mistake, the third row in the new XL6 is much better than the third row in many other MPVs. The third row seats can be reclined or it can also be folded down, and this brings us to the boot space. With all the seats up, the new XL6 boasts a boot space of 209 litres.

Inside the boot are two plastic trays that can be opened up to reveal deeper storage space. Fold the third row down though, and the storage space goes up to 560 litres. Even the captain seats in the second row can be folded to offer more space, and this takes the figure to 692 litres. However, the captain seats do not fold down fully thanks to the large and comfortable headrests.

Engine Performance & Driving Impressions

In terms of outright performance and sheer acceleration, the Maruti Suzuki XL6 was never a brilliant performer. The target audience the MPV caters to, doesn't require such levels of performance. Then comes the fact that the new 1.5-litre engine in the 2022 model produces a slightly lower figure in terms of power output and we expected lower performance levels.

However, the new Maruti Suzuki XL6 proved us wrong with its increased low-end performance. This comes courtesy of the Mild Hybrid system that includes the Integrated Starter Generator that helps the engine with some additional turning force whenever needed.

The new Maruti Suzuki XL6 is powered by a 1462cc, four-cylinder engine that puts out 101.6bhp 6,000rpm and 136.8Nm 4,400rpm. It can now be paired with either a 6-speed automatic gearbox or a 5-speed manual gearbox. The 5-speed manual is the one that has been retained from the outgoing model, however, the 6-speed torque converter is brand new and we ended up spending a lot of time in the auto variant.

Thumb the starter button and the petrol engine quietly comes to life. You barely hear the engine. Pin the pedal to the floor though, and the engine becomes quite audible at higher RPMs. Slot the gearbox into ‘D' and the MPV starts crawling forward without any hesitation. You do not feel any jerks and it is a smooth drive.

Driving in D mode at a decent pace is a breeze. The gearshifts are barely felt and the gearbox does all the work in absolute silence. That being said, we should also mention the slight jerks that were felt while shifting through reverse, neutral, drive, manual and back at standstill. These jerks however, are not felt while shifting between drive and manual while in motion.

Then of course it was time to use the paddle shifters and that meant slotting it into the manual mode. In ‘M' mode, the gearbox holds onto each gear until the redline, unless the driver uses the paddle to shift up. The gearbox reacts brilliantly to each shift request and there's barely any lag, bearing in mind that this is a torque converter.

The K15C Smart Hybrid engine features an ISG that allows it to have a couple of extremely useful features. The first of which is Idle Start/Stop. This feature cuts the engine off at red lights, therebys aving a bit of fuel. The MID in the instrument cluster even has a readout of just how much fuel has been saved and this is displayed in millilitres.

Given the skyrocketing fuel prices, every millilitre is important. And the next feature enabled by the ISG saves some more millilitres of precious petrol. At lower RPMs, the ISG assists the engine by providing additional torque as and when needed. This is the reason for the MPV to have a better low end than the outgoing model despite having a lower peak power figure.

However, if you are a little too enthusiastic, the engine does feel a little underpowered and it becomes quite evident at full throttle. The new Maruti Suzuki XL6 is an MPV that is comfortable at decent speeds and when the driver is not throttling the life out of the engine. Make no mistake, the XL6 can still do triple-digit speeds on the highway, but it is no speed runner.

The XL6 is a tall vehicle and this is felt in the corners. It isn't a corner carver in any sense and it would be wrong of us to expect it to handle brilliantly in tight corners. It can however, take longer, flowing curves at ease, once again at a decent pace and not on the edge. There is some body roll, but this is not a deal breaker.

The steering is light, which is a boon at low speeds and it still remains light at higher speeds too. This might take away a small chunk of the driver's confidence. On the whole, the new Maruti Suzuki XL6 is a nice MPV to drive. It is easy-going and relaxing, especially with the ventilated seat feature turned on.

Safety & Key Features

Maruti Suzuki in recent times has improved the safety features on its vehicles drastically. These safety features are also found on the new Maruti Suzuki XL6.

2022 Maruti Suzuki XL6 Safety Features:

- Suzuki-TECT Body
- ABS with EBD
- Four Airbags
- Electronic Stability Program
- Pedestrian Protection Compliance
- Impact Compliance
- Seatbelt Pre-Tensioners
- ISOFIX Child Seat Anchorages

2022 Maruti Suzuki XL6 Key Features:

- Ventilated Seats
- Ventilated Cup Holders
- LED Fog Lamps
- 360-degree Camera
- Auto ORVMs
- Second-row AC Vents
- Captain Seats

Variants, Pricing & Colours

The new Maruti Suzuki XL6 is available in six variants and nine colour options.

2022 Maruti Suzuki XL6 Variants:

Maruti XL6	Manual	Automatic
Zeta	₹11,29,000	₹12,79,000
Alpha	₹12,29,000	₹13,79,000
Alpha+	₹12,89,000	₹14,39,000
Alpha+ Dual Tone	₹13,05,000	₹14,55,000

All prices mentioned are ex-showroom, Bangalore

2022 Maruti Suzuki XL6 Colours:

- Nexa Blue
- Opulent Red
- Brave Khaki
- Grandeur Grey
- Splendid Silver
- Arctic White
- Opulent Red With Black Roof
- Brave Khaki With Black Roof
- Splendid Silver With Black Roof

Though the Nexa Blue shade already existed in the XL6 lineup before, the new model comes with a new Nexa Blue that in our opinion looks a lot better than the older one.

Verdict

Is the new Maruti Suzuki XL6 better than the older model? Yes. It is way better than the older model. It gets several new features and a new drivetrain and is a brilliant daily driver for you if you are looking at purchasing an MPV in this price range. It further helps that the vehicle is more efficient in its new avatar.