2018 Maruti Ciaz Review – A Complete Family Saloon

2018 Maruti Ciaz Review

Car Tested: 2018 Maruti Ciaz; Road Test No. 972; Test Location: Bangalore, Karnataka

Price OTR Mumbai: Rs. 9.49 – 13.13 lakhs

Maruti is known to produce cars which Indians love and the Ciaz is no different

The Maruti Ciaz has always been a popular choice with customers looking to buy a C-segment sedan and it has given some sleepless nights to its rivals. The company is looking to increase its market share with the 2018 Ciaz which is basically a mid-life facelift that not only looks better but also is more powerful. New features too have been added to take on the competitors but are the new additions enough to make the 2018 Ciaz a better package, read on to know.

Exteriors – The 2018 Ciaz continues to have the same design as the outgoing model although with some new design elements. The front receives a revamped bumper along with a rounder looking bonnet that is surrounded by LED headlights and DRLs. The fog lights too are LED and have a new enclosure which in all makes the car look wider. The new front grille gets a gloss black finish and the fascia looks bolder now. Compared to the front, the rear gets more subtle changes like new internals for the LED tail lights and a revamped bumper. There’s no change to the side profile of the 2018 Ciaz except the fact that the top-spec variant sits on precision cut, 16-inch alloy wheels. The lower variants ride on 15-inch alloys while the base trim comes with steel rims. There’s ample use of chrome all around the car.

Interiors – Even though the layout of the 2018 Maruti Ciaz has remained the same, the dashboard gets a different shade of faux wood. The centre console houses a 7-inch touchscreen infotainment system that supports Apple CarPlay and Android Auto along with MapMyIndia navigation. The instrument cluster too has a new design with a bigger multi-information display which looks more modern now. However, the bigger MID isn’t offered with the diesel variant. The sedan is loaded with plenty of features like auto headlights with auto levelling (no manual levelling), keyless entry, push-button start as well as cruise control. The cabin continues to feel roomy and the use of lighter shades help in making the inside feel airy but the overall quality of plastics isn’t that great as they are hard-touch.

The Maruti Ciaz has many features on offer but doesn’t come with a sunroof

The rear of the sedan can seat three people comfortably but the middle passenger doesn’t get a headrest like the other two. Under thigh support isn’t the best and people taller than 6-feet will feel cramped for headroom. The floor is however flat which somewhat helps. There are steering mounted controls for driver convenience and the air-conditioning is as powerful as ever. Boot space is good but the spare wheel isn’t an alloy. Also missing is a sunroof which we Indians have grown to love and is offered with Ciaz’s competition.

Performance – The 1.3-litre, DDiS diesel motor on the 2018 Maruti Ciaz is the same as before and produces 88.5 HP and 200 Nm of peak torque. Although it has a Smart Hybrid Vehicle System (SHVS), it is not the same as the on one on the new petrol engine. This engine is quite noisy and has a lot of turbo lag but offers good performance in the mid-range and scores high on the efficiency front. The new engine is a 1.5-litre, K15 petrol motor that for the first time comes with an SHVS. The SHVS on this one has a lithium-ion battery and in total, it produces 103.5 HP and 138 Nm of peak torque. This is an increase of 13 percent in power and 6 percent increase in torque figures than the earlier engine.

With the petrol engine, the manual gearbox offers more punch

Coming to the real-world performance, the petrol motor feels very refined at low RPMs but becomes coarse post 4000 RPM. It has a punchy low-end but the mid-range is flat. The top-end is the same as any other naturally aspirated Japanese motor and it screams. The red-line comes in at 6500 RPM for the manual variant while for the automatic variant it is nearly at 6000 RPM. But this extends to about 6500 RPM in ‘L’ and ‘2’ modes. The manual gearbox is the one with more life here simply because of its slick shifts and a light clutch. The automatic gearbox is slow to upshift and downshift and you cannot take manual control of things.

Both the engines come with class-leading mileage figures and make the 2018 Ciaz, India’s most efficient sedan in its segment. The petrol engine returns 21.56 km/l and the diesel motor returns 28.09 km/l. This is partly thanks to the SHVS system that basically helps in three things, switching off the engine while at a traffic signal, regenerative braking which recharges the battery under braking and torque assist in which the system assists the engine in performing better. However, not much could be felt when we drove the 2018 Ciaz.

Driving Dynamics – Maruti claims to have made changes to the suspension of the 2018 Ciaz. Not to say that it was uncomfortable earlier but the changes make the ride even plusher for the passengers. We could easily feel it during our stint with the new model and it rides well for the most part. It is only on really bad roads and deep potholes that a thud could be felt inside the cabin. The suspension setup is very apt for the Indian road conditions but this also takes a toll on the handling. Body roll is considerable and no feel and feedback from the steering makes matters worse. It simply refuses to weigh up at high speeds and centre at low speeds but the good thing is that the car feels planted. The stopping power from the front discs is good and the brakes a fine job of bringing it to a halt within a short distance.

Safety – Maruti Suzuki has gone ahead and updated the safety package of the 2018 Ciaz. The new systems on offer are speed alarm and seatbelt reminder for the front passengers. The speed alarm beeps every 60 seconds above 80 km/hr and starts beeping constantly post 120 km/hr. ABS with EBD comes as standard and there are still only dual front airbags. This is disappointing as its competition like the Hyundai Verna and Honda City offer up to 6 airbags. The automatic variants are installed with Electronic Stability Program (ESP) for when the car begins to swerve around and Hill Assist. Not much needs to be said about the automaker’s service which has proven itself to be excellent.

Verdict – The Maruti Ciaz was in no way different from any other car from the company in terms of value. The 2018 model takes this trend a notch higher with more features and a powerful yet efficient petrol engine. It is now even more comfortable and is perfect for those looking for a congenial ride on a budget. It is, however, not a fun-to-drive car which is a huge deterrant if you are not the chauffeur driven types. The 1.5-litre petrol engine does give the 2018 Ciaz a fresh breath of air and even comes with a mild hybrid technology. Taking everything into account, the 2018 Ciaz is an even better value-for-money proposition than before and ticks all the right boxes to be a good family sedan.

What’s Cool

* New exteriors make the car look more modern
* Comfortable ride
* Feature rich
* New petrol engine comes with SHVS

What’s Not So Cool

* No feel and feedback from the steering wheel
* Less number of airbags compared to rivals

Alternatives: Hyundai Verna, Honda City, Toyota Yaris, Volkswagen Vento

Further Reading –

Maruti Ciaz Long Term Review – VideoMaruti Ciaz SHVS Long Term Review – Second Report
Maruti Ciaz SHVS Long Term Review – Initial Report
Maruti Ciaz SHVS Review
Maruti Ciaz Review
Maruti Ciaz vs Honda City
Maruti Ciaz vs Honda City – Video

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