Maruti Ertiga 7-Seater : Auto Expo 2012

[GTO]

Mod Note : Team-BHP's Official Maruti Ertiga Review has been uploaded at this link (Maruti Ertiga : Official Review). Please continue the discussion over on the review thread (Maruti Ertiga : Official Review). Thanks





High Points:

- Team-BHP was the first to show the world the Maruti Ertiga via this Scoop Thread (SCOOP Pics! Maruti Suzuki's new 7 seater MPV Ertiga *UPDATE* Spotted again Pg.29,30). Thanks to Chevelle for sharing

- Appears to be Maruti's first 7 seater that won't break your bones (after the Omni & Eeco)

- 3 rows of seats

- Built on a stretched Swift platform. Basically, its been extended to include the 3rd row of seats

- Length: 4265 mm, width: 1695 mm & height: 1685 mm. Wheelbase : 2740 mm

- Note that its not eligible for the lower excise slab as its over 4 meters in length. The petrol engine is also larger than the stipulated 1.2 L capacity

- Powered by a 1.4 litre K series VVT engine or the Fiat 1.3 MJD diesel. Petrol is rated at 94 BHP (@ 6000 rpm) and max torque of 130 Nm (@ 4000 rpm). The diesel is rated at 89 BHP (@ 4000 rpm) and max torque of 200 Nm (@ 1750 rpm). Will be interesting to gauge just how it behaves with 7 onboard

- ARAI rating : Petrol 16.02 kpl & Diesel 20.77 kpl

- Launch in the March - April period

- The UV segment has recorded superb growth in the last 3 years. Further, don't forget, UVs are extremely profitable (unlike cheap hatchbacks). Maruti will charge 2 - 3 lakhs extra for a stretched wheelbase, an extra row of seats and an engine that's 200 cc larger

- Features include dual AC (pictured below), 6 speaker audio + USB input, steering mounted audio controls, keyless entry, multi information display and electrically adjustable mirror. Climate control is conspicuous by its absence in the ZDi (pictured below)

Front is a mix of both, the Swift & the Ritz:




Longer wheelbase is obvious. At first glance, I thought someone photo-shopped the Ritz!


While the front shares similarities with other Marutis, the boring rear doesn't have any design elements in common. In fact, the rear looks somewhat like the Jazz:






15" inch alloy wheels:


Been in the Swift? Well, you've been in the Ertiga too. Mostly. Dual-tone with beige makes the interiors feel airy, something you'd want with 7 onboard! No climate control even on this ZDi variant. Though the vehicle is a 7-seater, remember, it's still as narrow as any B-segment hatchback:






Height-Adjustable driver's seat:


Expect 2nd row legroom to be in the range of a Swift / Ritz. And that's not saying a lot. Doors opens fairly wide for easy ingress / egress:


The 3rd row is best left to kids or really short adults. Legroom & head-room are in extremely short supply. Notice that the 2nd row seat has a 60:40 fold-down split. Also, 3rd row occupants will get a bottle holder & cubby hole for the knick knacks. 3-point seats belts too (not just lap belts):


Rear occupants get their own air-conditioner blower with independent volume control:


Useable boot space is lesser than even the Maruti 800s with the 3rd row of seats in place. Good for a couple of small bags at the most:


Yup, the last row can fold away:


Mad rush to check the Ertiga out (as is usually the case with any new Maruti unveiling). This is apparently the "media exclusive" day

[GTO]

Thread moved from the Assembly Line to the Auto Expo 2012 Section

[romeomidhun]

Thanks for the report, GTO. How is the fit and finish, and road presence?

[krishnavamshi24]

Nice man looking sweet

[mooza]

Thanks a ton GTO, for the nice pics, which say a lot about this vehicle

How did the suspension feel when you got in and out of the vehicle ? A bit softer than the Swift, would be my guess.

I like the looks of this MPV, the views from the front, especially.

Wish they had provided a split folding third row seat for flexibility, since the boot space is very less.

Should be a successful MPV though, as it will create a new segment in the Rs. 6 to 8 lakhs range.

I guess the prices would be revealed only during March or April during the launch.

[hyper-VTEC]

Ldi/Vdi would be lapped up in huge numbers by taxi operators. Does not seem to have the space like an Innova though. And doesn't look premium either. But it will sell since its a Maruti.

[Nitrous Power]

Nice report. After a long time, a good looking Maruti. It looks small compared to Innova and I think this will create a segment of its own instead of competing against Xylo or Innova and will find mostly individual buyers and not the commercial operators due to small footprint.

[sumeethaldankar]

The car actually looks good and seems to be the next best looking vehicle after the swift in the maruti stable but i hope they price it right else it might go the Kizashi way.

[sachinj12]

I somehow liked the Ertiga!! If priced right, it will sell. There are many who will buy because its a MSIL+MJD. As someone pointed out, the lower end diesel will be a hot cake among the yellow board drivers.

Not impressed by the interior. Its like buying a Swift all over again

Originally Posted by nurni76

The beige steering wheel looks out of place.

+1 to that.

I prefer gray/black for interiors and that includes steering as well. I am not a fan of Beige.

If the vehicles proves itself, when its time for a change, I might trade my Dzire for this


EDIT: What is the expected price ?

[vb-san]

After a while, seeing a car with clean, fuss-free design lines (and yet modern looking) from Suzuki. The last one IMO was the Suzuki SX4 hatchback, which never made to India. Good going!

[nurni76]

Originally Posted by sachinj12

I somehow liked the Ertiga!! If priced right, it will sell. There are many who will buy because its a MSIL+MJD. As someone pointed out, the lower end diesel will be a hot cake among the yellow board drivers.

Not impressed by the interior. Its like buying a Swift all over again

Agree it looks good. They could have changed the interiors a wee bit. The beige steering wheel looks out of place. The last row is for kids and so what, even XUV at 12L can"t seat adults in the last row.

@GTO, can the last row fold fully flat? The pictures don't suggest so

[tommani]

GTO, can you please confirm if the middle row is on rails and can be moved backwards or forward to increase legroom in both rear rows?? I am not too sure by looking at the pics.

Overall car looks decent.

[bblost]

Now that my wife has seen this pic, my plan of buying a Sumo is down the drain.

[mooza]

@Nurni76, a pic in the Scoop pics thread (re-attached below) shows a fully folded flat third row seat.

I think the middle row seat was slid back in the car in the above pics, indicating sliding second row seats in one of the trims, at least

[SDP]

Thanks GTO for the report and the pics.

While everybody else is at least trying something new in visual design, Maruti seems to be happy with the conventional (read boring). How many more 'new' models can they come up with, which basically look the same?

BTW, what segment would this vehicle belong to? MPV? Or a new segment compact-MPV may be?