Complete review of Daewoo Matiz

When Daewoo Motors India Limited launched its small car in 1998 little did they know that the car would have terrible retention value. Even today people who owned or even drove that car can skip praising that car. And this was not for the reason that it was a great car, but it had a huge cuteness quotient. People loved it for its curvy lines and roomy interiors, powerful airconditioner, practical utility of the car was great with basic goodies.
Performance was good for a 796 c.c. 3 cylinder 6 valve engine. It has a peppy 52 bhp @ 6000 rpm enigne and good low torque of 7.3kgm@3500rpm. Ride and handling is much better than it's rival Santro launched almost at the same time. The Air-Conditioning did wonders in hot & humid Indian summer. And the best was the milage that the car returned on highways. Many of the owners whenever they got chance could not stop boasting of of what they used to get out of every litre of petrol. Many of them have even reported geting in excess of 25 kms!!! Well in city it used to give around 14 to 15 kms per litre.
With this car there can be oncly two things. You love it or you hate it. There can be no middle path. It had roomy Interiors and comfortable seats in contrast to its size. Inadequate boot space was a bit of a problem.
On the contrary absence of a tachometer was surprising. Gear shift a little vague and clunky with long travels for the gear lever. Daewoo claimed it's a superior cable operated shift, but many could not agree.
In all it was a dream car for many till the time its parent company started having financial problems in South Korea. And it had a trickle down effect on indian subsidiary which shut shop in 2005 officially.
Every car has its share of problems. Even Matiz had it. Many of the owners were disappointed with aftersales services and high cost of spare parts. And when things turned bad finding a Daewoo workshop became a pain.
All this coupled together has seriouslu affected the residual values of its cars, no matter how good or reliable they are today you can still find a used Matiz for a throwaway price.

Technical Specifications
Dimensions and Weights
Overall Length (mm) 3495
Overall Width (mm) 1495
Overall Height (mm) 1505
Wheel Base (mm) 2340
Ground Clearance (mm) 170
Front Track (mm) 1315
Rear Track (mm) 1300
Boot Space (liter)
Kerb Weight (kg) 800
Gross Vehicle Weight (kg)
No of Doors 5
Fuel Economy
Mileage Highway (km/liter) 18.5
Mileage City (km/liter) 13.4
Mileage Overall (km/liter) 15.2
Capacities
Seating Capacity (person) 5
Fuel Tank Capacity (liter) 35
Performance
Maximum Speed 146 Km/Hour
0-100kmph 17.4 seconds
1/4 Mile seconds
Engine
Engine Type/Model
Displacement cc 796
Power (PS@rpm) 53 PS @ 6000 rpm
Torque (Nm@rpm) 71 Nm @ 3500 rpm
Valve Mechanism SOHC
Bore (mm) 68.5
Stroke (mm) 72
Compression Ratio 9.3:1
No of Cylinders (cylinder) 3
Cylinder Configuration Inline
Valves per Cylender (value) 2
Fuel Type Petrol
Fuel System Electronic MPFI
Transmission
Transmission Type Manual
Gears/Speeds 5 Gears
Clutch Type
Final Reduction Gear Ratio 4.44
Suspensions
Front Suspension Independent McPherson Struts
Rear Suspension Isolated trailing links
Steering
Steering Type Rack & Pinion
Power Assisted N/A
Minimum Turning Radius (meter) 4.5
Brakes
Front Brakes Ventilated discs
Rear Brakes Drums
Wheels and Tyres
Wheel Type Steel
Wheel Size 4.5Jx13
Tyres 155/70 R13 Bridgestone