Maruti Suzuki
Ertiga MPV
Maruti Suzuki has unveiled their
Ertiga MPV for the Indian masses. It is the first compact MPV in it's segment
and will go on sale in April 2012. It is a 7-seater, and is 4265mm long, 1695mm
wide and has a height of 1685mm. The Ertiga's wheelbase is 2740 mm, 10mm short
of the Innova and the car on display was shod with 15' alloys.
Powering the Ertiga is a K14 VVT
1.4-litre petrol motor. Yes, it's an all-new K-Series engine from Maruti and it
produces 94 bhp@6000 rpm and 13.2 kgm@4000 rpm. Maruti Suzuki has stated an
ARAI certified 16.02 kpl fuel efficiency figure for the petrol. The Ertiga will, importantly, also be
available with a 1.3 DDiS Super Turbo diesel engine (same as on the SX4) which
produces 88 bhp@4000 rpm and 20.4 kgm@1750 rpm. The diesel boasts of an ARAI
certified 20.77 kpl fuel efficiency figure.
On the inside, the Ertiga has a
three-spoke, tilt adjustable electric power steering, twin air-con, USB
compatible audio unit, steering mounted audio controls, keyless entry and
central locking. In addition to that, it has a Multi-information Display (MID),
power windows with auto-down function and electrically adjustable ORVMs. The
variant on display was the ZDI, so the features may vary. The dashboard is a
clear adaptation of the one on the current Swift. Boot space varies between 135
to 735 litres depending on whether the last rows of seats are folded down or
not. The last row of seats are accessible through a folding middle row although
it is best left to kids or luggage.
The Ertiga sports a McPherson
strut suspension at the front and is based on the Swift platform - not the SX4
as was being speculated. Maruti Suzuki has added that an automatic transmission
variant is certainly not on the cards, thus continuing a yawning gap between
market expectations and feasibility. Expect the usual Lxi/Vxi/Zxi and
Ldi/Vdi/Zdi levels of variants to be offered on the Ertiga. We'll keep you
posted!