Maruti Ertiga Long Term Review
Spacious & practical cabin coupled with an easy to drive nature & stellar ride quality make the Ertiga the perfect family car
Looking back at the last decade, only a handful of long term cars I have had were powered by a petrol engine. Diesel domination was at its peak as we entered 2011 and since then diesel cars had a great run, well almost till the Government deregulated the prices of diesel. I totally love the way diesels drive, especially with the peak torque spooling up at lower RPMs. However, BS6 norms have sealed the fate of most diesel cars in India. Now as the world moves towards petrol again, we were happy to welcome the Ertiga petrol in our long term garage.
Ertiga’s value-for-money aspect has given it an edge over the competition
The Ertiga is a very practical car which makes it mandatory for me to take possession of its keys (as I vouch for practicality over anything else). The second-generation Ertiga has been a big step forward over its predecessor and some people have even speculated that it may fill into the Innova’s shoes. That, however, is not the case. The Innova has been untouchable and the Ertiga certainly does not compete with it. What it does, however, is seat the same amount of people in relative comfort at one-third the price and personally, I am quite fond of it.
Clever use of space allows maximum room for passengers & their luggage
The biggest highlight for me was the practicality and the space it offered and I managed to utilise it to the maximum. With two car seats fixed in the second row (for the kids), there was abundant space for the passengers and luggage. The ISOFIX Child Seat mounts are a standard feature now making it a lot safer for the children. We set out for our camping trip towards Kolad. The road leading to Kolad is a well-surfaced highway for two-third of the way, while the last one-third is a very patchy & broken road which would put the suspension through a tough test. Ride quality is pretty good although the rear suspension tends to bounce a bit when you tend to go fast over some bad patches on the road.
Light clutch and good high speed stability makes it ideal for road trips
The SmartPlay infotainment system is quite intuitive and easy to use. Android Auto came in handy as we mapped the location of our destination. The interior layout is pleasing to the eye and most importantly, the Ertiga is so easy to drive. The clutch is light, the steering feels centred and the car feels well planted. Handling isn’t that great but it works well for the average buyer whose requirement for a practical MPV supersedes the minor compromise in the handling. Though we didn’t encounter any hiccups out on the highway or on the bad roads, the fact is that the steering is not the culprit, it is the tyres which run out of grip on heavy braking and hard cornering, maybe I am just being too ambitious here.
K15 motor offers punchy performance while also being extremely refined
Maruti’s SmartHybrid technology is not a gimmick and actually improves the fuel economy of the Ertiga by 13%
The K15 motor is a gem and it performs brilliantly too. I have recently been driving another 1.5-litre petrol car from another brand but there is nothing out there which remotely comes close to Maruti’s engine, be it performance or fuel economy. Just to check if the SmartHybrid system really works or is just another marketing gimmick, I tried an experiment. I fuelled up the car to the brim, switched off the SmartHybrid for the full driving cycle on the same tank of fuel and the Ertiga returned 11.5 km/l. Tried the same with the SmartHybrid on and in a similar driving cycle, the car returned 13 km/l suggestive that this system has some practical implications.
The cabin has a very pleasant air to it
As I see it, cabin space is the biggest USP for the Ertiga. The last row is the main talking point here as this is where the space crunch is really felt in 3-row cars. Thanks to the large travel range of the middle row, legroom in the last row was adjusted to seat a 6-footer and there was no complaint from this person even after a 4-hour long journey. There are plenty of storage areas in the cabin which offer tons of practicality as the boot space is compromised when the last row seats are upright. The Ertiga continues to be the preferred tracking car for our shoots due to its large windows and superb space in the boot (with the rear seats folded) enabling us to carry large amounts of equipment without much trouble.
Maruti will soon unveil the Ertiga with a BS6-compliant diesel engine
What’s Cool
* Spacious and practical cabin
* Frugal and punchy petrol engine
* Superb ride quality
* Maruti’s excellent service network and resale value
What’s Not So Cool
* Rear suspension is a bit bouncy
* Diesel engine isn’t offered anymore
Maruti family having a small meetup before the lockdown was announced
Further Reading –
2019 Maruti Ertiga Review
2019 Maruti Ertiga Video Review
2019 Maruti Ertiga Hindi Video Review
Maruti Ertiga Pros & Cons [Video]
Maruti Ertiga Pros & Cons In Hindi [Video]
Maruti Ertiga vs XL6 – English [Video]
Maruti Ertiga vs Maruti XL6 – Hindi [Video]
Maruti Ertiga vs Mahindra Marazzo – Shootout
2019 Maruti Ertiga vs Mahindra Marazzo – Hindi Comparison Video
Maruti Ertiga SHVS Test Drive Review
Maruti Suzuki Ertiga vs Honda Mobilio – Shootout