Spec Comparison: Maruti Suzuki Ertiga ZDI Plus vs Mahindra Marazzo M8

The all-new Ertiga has almost completely changed the equation of budget people movers with its premium design, new premium interiors, a new petrol engine and of course, the petrol automatic option. But a couple of months ago, there was another people mover which offered all of this and with a unique technical setup. The Mahindra Marazzo, hence, is the prime competitor of the new Maruti Suzuki Ertiga and we had to pit both the cars against each other on paper to start with.

Design and platform

The new Ertiga has moved to the new and lighter Heartect platform that also underpins the Baleno and the Swift. Unlike the older car, the new Ertiga has squared up a little with larger headlamps and grille and a high bonnet. With the SUV-ish looks, the prominent shoulder line and the floating roof, the new Ertiga does look premium.

The Marazzo gets unique longitudinal front engine front wheel drive layout on a ladder frame which hasn’t been seen in budget car segments as yet. The shark-inspired styling is also unique and does look premium. The exterior equipment is more or less similar with both the MPVs running alloy wheels. While the Ertiga runs on 15-inch wheels, the Mahindra gets 17-inch alloys along with passive cornering headlamps.

Interior and equipment

The Maruti Suzuki Ertiga always had features matching the segment benchmark and the new Ertiga continues to do that. The top-spec trim, ZDI Plus that is being considered here gets the wood-empanelled dashboard, the all-new instrument cluster, tablet touch-screen display, climate control with a separate rear AC, electrically folding wing mirrors along with rear parking camera and sensors.

Even the Marazzo has all these features and adds rain-sensing wipers, cruise control, a uniquely designed rear AC system, along with a cooled glove box and leather upholstery. Also, being longer and wider than the Ertiga, the Marazzo offers more cabin as well as stowage spaces and a decent third row space as well.

In terms of safety, both the MPVs get dual-front airbags and ABS with EBD standard across the range.

Engine and fuel economy

Since the Marazzo is offered only with a diesel option, Mahindra pits the 1.5-litre turbocharged four-cylinder against the 1.3-litre engine of the Ertiga. The Marazzo develops 121bhp of power and 300Nm of torque and comes mated to a six-speed manual gearbox when compared to the 89bhp/200Nm setup of the Ertiga, mated to a five-speed gearbox. But then, the Ertiga’s lightweight and smaller engine mean a much better fuel economy where the Maruti is rated at 25.47kmpl while the Mahindra delivers 17.6kmpl.

Conclusion

On paper, the Mahindra Marazzo seems to have the upper edge when we compare the numbers straight away. It has more space, bigger wheels, more power and also more features than the Ertiga. But when the price points are factored in, the Mahindra turns out to be almost Rs 3 lakhs more expensive over the Maruti Suzuki, ex-showroom. Now, that is a big price difference for a seemingly budget segment which makes the Ertiga a true value-for-money product.