Dr. K.M.Cherian

Recently I heard that MS is going to discontinue the production of its Rirz model. I was surprised at the move . I own a Ritz VDI for the past 1 year and 9 months and have done 17,700 kms . I find it to  be an ideal car for a small family both for city as well as for high way dirve. I give here my experience with the car.

This hatch back has a unique shape with a beautiful front and side views. But many do not like the rear side but I do not mind. The tall built and high seats are most suitable for senior citizens, people with back problems and tall people for boarding as well as alighing. The drivers seat gives a good view of the front and rear (through RVM) road and sides without any hindrance. Both on the city road and high ways it gives a smooth and hussle free drive.

Most of the days I commute a distance of 25 kms one way. Once on the road I shift the gear to 4 or 5 as soon as possible and  avoid raising.Generally maintain a  speed between 40 -60 km/hr and the rpm not more that 2000 but mostly at 1500. This is possible only on a road which is not  very busy and without much elevationa and turnings. With this  manner  of driving,  I get a reading of 30kms/litre by the time I cover 6-8 kms from my starting point. I continue to maintain this average  by constant speed and the rpm. And when I reach my distination, the trip aveage remains  at 30km/litre. If the gauge had a higher limit, I believe it would have shown a  still better trip average. Here I must emphsize that it is without AC. With AC I get about 23- 25 km/ litre. But one cannot predict the average one gets on the city road because of the unpredicatable nature of the traffic and blocks. But still I can vouch that I get better average than all the cars I have used ( 8 cars) so far from 1976.

Another advantage of this car I noticed was with 75 ps at 4000 rpm along with 190 torque at 2000 rpm facilitates one to over take other vehicles with confidence when required. It also enables to speed up when necessary with out any problem. The 60/40 split  in the rear seat is a blessings to carry extra baggage.

I have enjoyed driving it and people who have travelled with me in the car also have nothing to complain about the space. comfort, seating, AC etc. The high roof actully avoids a claustrophobic feeling one gets in some other  cars.

Some minor cons I have noticed were , Maruti could have provided bottle holders on the rear doors, the quality of the door mats  is very poor. The company may try to redesign the rear side and relaunch the same vehicle to attract the consumers. With a better marketing strategy and sales promotion Ritz witll become a hot selling cake in Maruti Suzuki's basket.

Tall built, high seats, view from dirver's seat, smooth drive, fuel economy, power , ACoccasional difficulty in putting into reverse gear, view of the rear side, bad floor mats