[PranavDesai]

Good move by Maruti, but why lack of marketing? Atleast they could (should) have given ad in print media. An Alto AT would be even more welcome. Today's stressful driving warrants AT.

[CARDEEP]

The Ritz Automatic is only available in Diesel. If all refer to the Ritz website screen grab posted by @tanwaramit, the engine specs are clearly mentioned as 1.2L 85ps one (i.e. the petrol engine), so no diesel auto hatch in the market at the moment .

[ACM]

Somehow with the Brio AT being released the i10, and Ritz AT both don't seem that attractive purely due to fuel effeciency and drivability concerns where the Brio seems to score due to the type of AT Box itself.

[GTO]

Originally Posted by Saanil

One thing I want to ask - a 4 speed automatic - is that bad?

Not at all. A 3-speed automatic is bad; 4-speed is just right for this class of car.

Of course, if you get a 5-speed (e.g. Brio), it might allow the manufacturer to space out ratios better.

Summary : 5 speed for this class of car is "nice" to have, not "must" have. 4-speed is a must-have though (don't ever buy a 3-speed AT).

Originally Posted by pradyblr

Just wondering if Ritz AT then shortly Swift AT is on its way?

Automatic transmissions are a nice way of adding another 75 cars to the sales tally. For someone with the reach of Maruti, and considering that the Ritz sells 6,000 units a month, it might even be 125 - 150ish. That's 5 - 7 crore in additional revenue.

The Swift has a long waiting period, hence I have my doubts if it will come with an AT anytime soon. If it does, the only reason will be Maruti trying to squeeze out numbers for the petrol engine (Diesel accounts for 90% of Swift sales).

[Vid6639]

Originally Posted by GTO

The Swift has a long waiting period, hence I have my doubts if it will come with an AT anytime soon. If it does, the only reason will be Maruti trying to squeeze out numbers for the petrol engine (Diesel accounts for 90% of Swift sales).

Probably also the reason why maruti has not introduced the wagon R in automatic. It's I've if the highest selling variants and there's no need for an AT to increase sales.

The a-star AT is probably the only way to increase sales of the a-star.

The wagon R AT if launched would be the most practical and ideal car to have as a family city run about.

Ritz will be as good but priced on the higher side compared to wagon R.

[Saanil]

Originally Posted by GTO

Summary : 5 speed for this class of car is "nice" to have, not "must" have. 4-speed is a must-have though (don't ever buy a 3-speed AT).

I think the Dzire AT is also a 4 speed automatic – I suppose the same gearbox will find its way into Ritz. Also has Maruti officially announced this? I mean it is there on the website but have they launched it yet? There will be at least some advertisements in TV/Newspapers right? – I did not come across any. Does anyone have any idea on the launch date – Diwali perhaps?

[puchoo]

Nopes , i have not seen any advertising for the automatic version of the car ,but i did find this today

Expected to be priced in the Rs 5-6 lakh bracket for the VXi trim, Maruti will soon launch the Ritz in an automatic transmission option. However, this option will be available to petrol car buyers

http://www.zigwheels.com/upcoming-la...ed-soon/14709/

Originally Posted by Saanil

I think the Dzire AT is also a 4 speed automatic – I suppose the same gearbox will find its way into Ritz. Also has Maruti officially announced this? I mean it is there on the website but have they launched it yet? There will be at least some advertisements in TV/Newspapers right? – I did not come across any. Does anyone have any idea on the launch date – Diwali perhaps?

[msmatic]

Ritz AT in zxi trim would have been more suitable. Brio AT with its low seats and all glass rear is a turn off. Looks like there is going to be no real competition to the i10 AT.

[wanderhermit]

Checked it up with dealer. It is available only in one trim Vxi and only with petrol engine. The weigh of this car 1035 kg. Just twenty kg more than manual Vxi.

Now we need some options in diesel too, with AT in this price segment.

[ananth_iy]

Originally Posted by Saanil

Excellent move! This will surely lure customers looking for an automatic car but have no other options to look at other than i10/A-star and Brio. I always liked Ritz even though many people were put off by its shape. One thing I want to ask - a 4 speed automatic - is that bad? I mean is the difference between 4 and 5 speed that great? I do not know much about Automatics but I guess 4 speed is more than enough for at least city driving right? Can some one please list advantages of 5 speed over 4 speed automatic

Actually Saanil, the difference between the 4-speed auto and the 5-speed is not in the speed. The gears ratios can be tuned to meet the speed needs. The difference is in the mileage. Typically a 5-speed auto will give you slightly less mileage than a 5-speed manual because, obviously, the automatic is just a machine that is using some logic based on speed and throttle inputs to make a choice of the gears. Hence a 4-speed auto would give an even lesser mileage than a 5-speed manual - expect 10-15% lesser mileage than the manual.

[rxpaul]

Having driven a lot of automatic trans cars in the middle east i can vouch for the convenience and stressfree driving characteristics of these AT cars. For our crowded city roads in rush hour travel these are ideal. But the reasen why car cos in India stay away is because the aam adhmi buyer cares more about his running costs which will be always higher than the nearest manual car. The AT segment is the way forward and i am one potential buyer......the Ritz as a city car has some advantages over the Brio AT
1. Its a Tall boy (easier access).
2. Lower purchase costs.
3. possible lower maintenance costs
4. a mite more spacious.

But in the Kitna deta hai stakes, the Brio 5 speed AT may beat it !

[deetjohn]

Nice development. I hope there is a Ritz VXi ABS AT variant and is priced well.

Why is Maruti so reluctant to launch the Ritz petrol variants properly? The facelift earlier and now this.

Looks like the official Ritz website is down.

[StarScream]

Originally Posted by Vid6639

Probably also the reason why maruti has not introduced the wagon R in automatic. It's I've if the highest selling variants and there's no need for an AT to increase sales.

The a-star AT is probably the only way to increase sales of the a-star.

The wagon R AT if launched would be the most practical and ideal car to have as a family city run about.

Ritz will be as good but priced on the higher side compared to wagon R.

Actually, before the Ritz, DZire and A-star, the Wagon-R came with a 3-speed AT. I remember when I was looking to buy a small runabout for my wife in 2007, the only two choices I had were the Santro AT and Wagon-R AT. Of course, the Wagon-R AT may as well have not been available because there were no test drive cars, dealer interest to sell it was zero and the wait period was a few months. No wonder then that I chose the Santro AT.

[Vid6639]

Originally Posted by StarScream

Actually, before the Ritz, DZire and A-star, the Wagon-R came with a 3-speed AT. I remember when I was looking to buy a small runabout for my wife in 2007, the only two choices I had were the Santro AT and Wagon-R AT. Of course, the Wagon-R AT may as well have not been available because there were no test drive cars, dealer interest to sell it was zero and the wait period was a few months. No wonder then that I chose the Santro AT.

Yeah but at that time the only reason Maruti used the WagonR was because they had no other body shell to plonk the AT into. Now they have Swift, Ritz, A-star and Wagon R to choose from. Also the only box they had was a hopeless 3 speed one. Now with a modern 4 speed and modern K series engines they have the flexibility.

[StarScream]

Originally Posted by Vid6639

Yeah but at that time the only reason Maruti used the WagonR was because they had no other body shell to plonk the AT into.

They did actually. The same 3-speed transmission was used in the Zen AT, although when they launched the Wagon-R AT they had discontinued it in the Zen. I believe the Maruti 800 AT also came with the same transmission. All three cars were sold contemporaneously, albeit not the AT versions.