Buying a used Maruti Ritz

In Brief

The Ritz cashed in on the Swift’s success and went on to become a steady seller through its tenure. It’s still on sale and in need for a generation change. It isn’t getting one since there’s no plans for a new Ritz though. The Ritz was launched in 2009 by Maruti Suzuki to capture customers who did not want to get caught up in the waiting periods of the Swift and so here there was another car that didn’t offer anything different from the Swift mechanically but came with an all new design. It got Maruti decent success without much marketing spends as the car has reliable engines and gearboxes, offers plenty of space and is an ideal city car.

On the Road

The Ritz comes with the familiar choice of 1.2-litre 87PS petrol and 1.3-litre fiat sourced 75PS diesel engines both mated to 5-speed manual gearboxes. The petrol also gets a 4-speed automatic that’s quite a nice car to drive in the city. The tall-boy stance and high set seats give a commanding view of the road and also give ample space for four adults, unlike the rather claustrophobic rear of the Swift. There’s a fair bit of body roll if pushed hard but otherwise a very livable hatchback. The Fiat sourced multijet diesel seems to be tuned best in the Marutis, very drivable although the turbo-lag is evident.

Moving in

The Ritz is a bit funky on the inside, not as much as say a Beat but lively nonetheless. A pop-up tacho on the dashboard is a nice touch and the quality of plastics is not too bad. The darkish interior does look a bit dull on cars that haven’t been maintained well so easy way to spot a ignored Ritz is a glance at the interior. It will not give you the whole picture but a glimpse at what to expect. Rear sear space is good, and the front seats are comfortable.

Efficiency

The Ritz petrol returns 18.5kmpl, the diesel comes up with 23.2kmpl and the automatic goes 17.16km on a litre of petrol. All are ARAI certified figures. In the real world, expect in the ballpark of 14, 19 and 12kmpl respectively.

Buying used

There’s a reason why Marutis command a good value in the pre-owned car segment – The service network is so wide and the parts are affordable. There’s little reason to take your car to a unauthorized workshop and so the chances of badly, irregularly maintained car are few. There’s not much except for the regular maintenance logs that you need to check in a Ritz. In the diesel, check the pick-up and for dark exhaust fumes. This is mainly due to clogged injectors which is an expensive replacement. And since the Ritz is quite front heavy, check for front brake pads wear and uneven tyre wear. The Ritz requires a basic service every 10,000km and a major service every 40,000km to keep it in shape.

Money-wise

There are plenty of Ritz examples in the market but don’t expect anything ridiculously cheap. Very early examples of a top-end petrol Ritz from 2009 will cost you a little under Rs 3 lakh and add Rs 20,000 to a Ritz that a year younger. The diesel Ritz of a similar age but higher mileage should cost about Rs 1-1.2 lakh more than the petrols.