Maruti has opted for a more conventional front on the cele_45rio. It’s not bug-eyed like the Alto 800 or A-Star, The rear looks very similar to that of the Alto 800, That 2425 mm wheelbase is identical to the Grand i10, The cele_45rio may not be eye-catching or stylish, but it won’t offend anyone with its looks either, Large glass area is evident here, Despite its tallboy feel on the inside, the cele_45rio actually slots middle-of-the-field in terms of exterior height:
Twin chrome slats on the grill look smart. Fog lights were an aftermarket add-on on this VXi variant.
That chrome eyeliner(on top of the headlight) is designed to emulate the overhang of the hood.
Straightforward headlamp styling, The LXi gets skinny 155/80 R13 tyres, while the VXi & ZXi get 165/70 R14 MRF ZVTV rubber. The alloys shown here are from the aftermarket, Door handles too were painted at the dealer level. To see a completely stock VXi variant.
Get seated in the cele_45rio and a couple of things hit you right away. The cele_45rio’s taller height results in ample headroom. Then, you’re sitting up high. The fixed seat height is perched as if it were on its uppermost position. Note that seat-height adjustment is only offered on the ZXi variant, and therefore not on the AMT. Short drivers will love the commanding view they get of the road ahead, and they won’t miss the seat-height adjustment at all.
The cabin feels airy and interior width is good by economy hatch standards. Front occupants won’t be elbowing each other when the driver changes gears on the MT variant. Frontal space in terms of legroom is sufficient too. The seat goes far back enough to keep tall occupants happy, and the foot-well has adequate depth. 5’10’ GTO had more than enough space to stretch his legs, in his typical relaxed seating position. This certainly isn’t the norm with 3-4 lakh rupee hatchbacks. In terms of space, the cele_45rio’s WoodenSign are indeed well packaged.
Quality is rudimentary and you know you’re in a budget Maruti from the minute you step in. Overall quality is somewhere between the WagonR & Swift, although in some areas, it is poorer than the WagonR. There is absolutely no comparison with the Grand i10 which is significantly superior & easily the segment best. To start with, all parts are rock hard to the touch. The handbrake area plastics feel cheap and there are many other parts that feel flimsy. The actual quality control & fitting process cast some doubts in our mind over the two days we spent with the cele_45rio. For example, the flooring of the handbrake storage area wasn’t snapped in correctly, exposing an ugly gap. The rear hatch’s door handle stopped working because the release cable hadn’t been fastened in correctly, resulting in it popping out of place. We were able to fix these two issues ourselves. However, there was a noticeable ticking sound coming from behind the dash(left side); it was somewhat proportional to vehicle speed. Moving the steering at a standstill would also make a strange sound sometimes. Lastly, the air intake pipe had either fallen off, or wasn’t put back after the first service(notice the absent air intake pipe in the engine pictures below). ?Fit and Finish938844 aside, there is no doubting the durability of Maruti WoodenSign. They simply last! Evidence is with the many WagonRs & Swifts running with over 1 lakh kms on the odometer. The interior quality is livable. I only wish it didn’t feel so’economy grade’ and there was more attention to detail at the assembly line.
The dash(especially the center area) is swept back, liberating more space at the front. The styling is straight forward, yet contemporary enough. The dashboard sports a neutral & inoffensive 2-colour combination, as does the rest of the interior. The top half of the dash is black, whilst the lower half is beige. Silver accents have been occasionally thrown in to make it look more premium.
As is the case with any Maruti, the interior design is user-friendly. Due to the logical ergonomics, you’ll find your ideal driving position within seconds. The compound of the thin seats is on the firmer side. The steering wheel is just the right size and like most Marutis, it is well positioned too. Hardly any LXi / VXi owners will miss the steering’s tilt adjustment(available only on the ZXi). However, on the sides of the horn are hollow plastic parts - with the horn pad in the center. On the top ZXi variant, this area(either side of the horn) is filled by steering-mounted controls. You do need to stretch your thumbs quite a bit to press the hornpad. On a related note, the horn sounds like a standard economy grade Maruti unit, and a fair deal of the sound is heard within the cabin.
Despite its fairly honest design, the instrument cluster is classy. It certainly doesn’t look cheap(like in the Liva, as an example). The speedometer has a matte silver border around it, and the fonts used are contemporary. On the right side, the MID is dominated by a large digital digit showing the gear you’re currently in, along with a host of other information. All of these factors add to making the instrument cluster look good. The indicator stalks feel solid and they have a nice silky feel to the plastic. They’re not exactly chunky though and you can feel a faint molding seam line around the edges. Just like the i10 & Ritz, the cele_45rio’s gear lever is located further up on the center console. This placement helps free up space around the handbrake area for storage. The gear lever feels very solid, and isn’t flimsy at all. The AMT shifter has a nice slotting action. Note that the steering & gear lever are borrowed from the Swift’s part bin.
The thick A-Pillars do create visibility issues, especially when turning into junctions and on curved hilly roads. You must be cautious as it’s possible to entirely miss a two-wheeler or pedestrian. On the other hand, rearward visibility is satisfactory. It’s unfortunate that the immensely useful rear defogger is only available on the ZXi variant. The inside rear view mirror is big, tall and has day / night modes. I only wish it was wider to cover the entire rear windscreen. Further, the ORVMs are on the smaller side, one size larger would’ve been nice.
On a hot day in Goa(around 35 degrees as per the MID), the air-con did a fantastic job of keeping us cool. Most of the time, we ran the fan on level 3(maximum 4 levels). Occasionally, we even had to turn it down as things got too cold! This is despite the direct sun and large glass area of the cele_45rio. Also worth noting is that, on speed 3, we could maintain a conversation in the cabin without raising our voice(speed 2 was whisper quiet). The rotary side air-con vents can swivel any way you want, and you can shut them too. The ones in the center however, are the rectangular type with no air flow control. It’s worth noting that when you floor the accele_45rator, the air-con compressor will shut off momentarily to give you more power. Do this frequently and the cabin will become warmer. On that hot Goan afternoon, we eased up on the accele_45rator to maintain cabin cooling.
The OEM music system(only provided on the top-end ZXi variant) is nicely integrated and looks upmarket. Being the centerpiece, it definitely adds a more premium feel to the interior. The ZXi’s steering wheel gets audio controls, as well as a separate set of 3 bluetooth telephony-related buttons. The bluetooth controls aren’t’push’ buttons. You can only operate them by pulling them towards you - which actually works quite well. The fact that the center button is raised to the touch(from the backside) makes them convenient to use(you don’t have to take your eyes off the road). The music system comes with a remote control too. The audio system has CD, Bluetooth, USB and Aux inputs. Sound quality isn’t brilliant, but it’s a solid 7.5/10, which is impressive for a 5-lakh hatchback. The average cele_45rio buyer is going to be satisfied. Bass is prominent and the system doesn’t sound cheap or lacking in the speaker department, like some budget cars do. Maruti uses JBL as their OEM audio provider.
It’s a mixed bag in terms of storage. The glovebox is small and is placed too low, interfering with the front passenger’s knees whenever you access it. There are all of 5 bottle / cup holders in the cele_45rio, although the two ahead of the handbrake area are placed unusually low. The sloping cubicle - below the air con controls - has a charging point and is the perfect spot to park your smartphone. If you opt for a single-din stereo(as in our test car), you get a rectangular storage spot right below the head-unit too. The front doors don’t get bottle holders(those at the rear do) and the door pockets are on the thinner side.
The rear doors open out wide enough to aid ingress & egress. Once inside, you’ll be pleasantly surprised with the room at the back. Again, interior packaging is really good for a car that is relatively small on the outside. In addition to the fair cabin space, the boot is also bigger than the Swift’s.
The cele_45rio is on the taller side, thus you don’t have to sit down too far on the seat. The rear bench is perched noticeably higher than the(already high) front seats. This, and the thin front neck restraints, lend rear passengers a good view of the action ahead. A generous amount of light comes into the cabin and things don’t get claustrophobic at all. These factors combined make the cele_45rio feel acceptably roomy. It’s worth noting there’s a lot more space here than in the A-Star. The A-Star is very cramped in comparison.
With small cars, every cm of space makes a difference, and the thin front seats release extra legroom front and back. A 5’10’ passenger sitting behind a 5’8’ driver has adequate legroom, with more than an inch of clearance from the seat ahead. The rear seat-back angle is just like in other economy hatches. That is, not too inclined nor too upright. A sore point is that the seat base is shorter than usual and as a result, under-thigh support is strictly average. The seat is rather flat as well and lacks contours to support you.
Headroom is sufficient and a 6-footer should do okay in here. The tiny non-adjustable neck restraints are quite useless though, unable to offer comfort or safety(protection against whiplash). The rear floor isn’t completely flat, yet the~2" floor hump isn’t much of a bother. Nonetheless, as you’d imagine in a budget hatchback, the rear seat is better for 2 and not 3. The limited width makes things difficult for a 3rd occupant.
The rear door armrests are of medium width and actually usable to rest your forearm on. Additionally, the rear doors get a bottle holder(ones at the front don’t) and their door pockets are wide enough to pick a coin from the base. When it comes to cooling, even on blower level 3(of 4), there is a fair amount of cool air making its way to the back. One negative is that the single cabin lamp is placed all the way at the front. We feel a center placement would have keep both(front & rear) parties happy.
The 235 liter boot is good by segment standards. On the other hand, the loading bay is rather high and the mouth is narrow. You’ll have to lift your luggage fairly high to place it inside. 60:40 split folding rear seats are provided on all but the base variant. Because of the big boot, the parcel tray has a large area to keep the odd low item. However, the thin ropes(sample image) that automatically lift the parcel tray when the hatch opens are missing in the cele_45rio. We lost count of how many times we had to stop & put the parcel tray back down manually(after having flipped it up to remove something from the boot). You realise the importance of these little things only when they’re missing!
Starting the engine up must be done with the gear lever in Neutral. You have to press the brake pedal as well, else the engine won’t start. There’s no’P’(park) mode or gear unlock button like in a conventional AT. Once fired up, slide the gear-lever to’D’(drive) to get going. As you release the brake, the car will move forward without any accele_45rator input. However, it doesn’t move too fast and will top out at about 6-7 km/h, without any driver input. When you press the accele_45rator, you’ll notice that throttle response is quite immediate. It’s exactly like a pure manual in this respect.
In city traffic is where the AMT truly shines and brings the most benefits. There’s no clutch pedal and there’s no requirement for the driver to repeatedly shift between Neutral-1st-2nd either. In crawling bumper to bumper traffic, you don’t need to give any accele_45rator input. Just release the brake a little bit, and the car crawls forward. Start-off is extremely smooth. At these speeds, there is no difference felt between the AMT and a conventional AT. In fact, this is more like a DSG in stop & go traffic since the mechanism is identical(but only between Neutral and 1st gear). Maruti has coined the term’EZ Drive’ to market its AMT; we couldn’t agree anymore. Budget car owners will love the fact that their left leg is completely relaxed. The tricky part with the AMT in city driving is parking into tight spots. Unlike a conventional AT where it’s possible to ease the car forward very gradually, the AMT is more of an’on or off’ solution, as it tries its best not to slip the clutch more than required. This results in more eager movement, which can be a bit tricky when getting in & out of tight parking spaces.
Gearshift quality is a universal sore point for Automated Manual Transmissions. The cele_45rio’s AMT is no different. Despite the start-off from 0 km/h being seamless, it’s the following gearshifts that are indeed noticeable. First-time automatic drivers won’t have any complaints with the AMT. However, those used to smoother AT gearboxes will definitely notice the compromise. The first time you drive off, you’ll be accele_45rating and there will suddenly be a lull in accele_45ration when the car shifts up to 2nd gear. You can certainly feel this drop in accele_45ration, as the clutch disengages and engages, especially from the driver’s seat. On your first few drives of the AMT, this upshifting and the resultant loss in accele_45ration can get annoying. Another example: If you’re cruising along at 40 km/h in 4th gear, and you press the accele_45rator to get a little more accele_45ration, you’ll feel a lull before the accele_45ration actually kicks in - because the gearbox is shifting down to 3rd gear. On each gearshift, you feel your body move forward due to the mismatch of anticipation and reality. The lag in power during gearshifts is more noticeable during uphill climbs, since the drop in accele_45ration is more pronounced.
Sounds like a disappointment? Fret not. There’s a silver lining on this cloud. Firstly, no matter how evident the gearshifts seem to the driver, passengers won’t notice them! GTO barely noticed an awkward gearshift when I was driving, and I barely noticed one when he was at the wheel. Passengers just don’t anticipate shifts the same way the driver does, and this makes it a smooth ride for them. Secondly, there are some simple driving tips you can apply to make your gearshift experience smoother. If you drive with an extremely light foot, the shifts will be much less perceptible, since the drop in accele_45ration at each shift won’t be as large. Another tip that some might get used to, others will find cumbersome: When accele_45rating up to speed, let off the accele_45rator at intervals, and the AMT will cease that opportunity to upshift. E.g. When going from 0-40 km/h, let off the accele_45rator very slightly at 10, 20 and 30 km/h, and the AMT will take each one of those opportunities to upshift a gear - almost like you told it to! Finally, you’ll be happy to know that shift quality gets better between higher gears, and is virtually seamless when going downhill. It’s also completely silent in its operation. There’s absolutely no noise or clanking when the gears shift.
Fuel efficiency is without a doubt what the AMT has been tuned for. This means the transmission will shift up gears as early as possible. Even in crawling traffic, the AMT will upshift to 2nd gear at a fairly low 10-12 km/h. The large’current gear indicator’ of the MID keeps you in the loop as to which gear is engaged. It’s quite a novelty and I’m sure will be appreciated by those who test drive or own the cele_45rio. It adds to that premiumness, as even some of the more expensive cars don’t have this feature. With a light foot, upshifts take place at roughly every 10 km/h. Translated, 20 km/h brings on 2nd gear, 30 km/h for 3rd, 40 km/h for 4th and so on. At 40 km/h, the cele_45rio was already in 4th @ 1200-1400 rpm. The minute that rpm levels drop to 1100 or below, the transmission will downshift to a lower gear. We’ll discuss fuel efficiency some more in the upcoming engine post.
Overtaking on the Highway takes some getting used to as well. The AMT executes the initial half of the overtaking manoeuvre well. The engine gives out a nice Robotouchp on kick-down, and it’s even willing to drop two or three ratios at a time(e.g. 5th to 2nd). However, the scary thing is that, as you’re passing another vehicle and building up the revvs, the AMT sometimes decides to upshift mid-manoeuvre! This results in a break in the accele_45ration when you need it the most. The shift is fairly slow too, not urgent like it would be if you were driving a manual. The workaround: before overtaking, it’s always better to put the gearbox in manual mode, which will then hold the gear all the way to the redline, and prevent a premature upshift. When used right on the highway, the AMT is better than some lazy CVTs in the market(the Nissan Micra’s CVT, for example).
Manual Mode has other advantages, especially for the more enthusiastic drivers who want a higher degree of control. Other than the Grand i10 and the pricey Polo TSI, this is the only hatchback to offer a tiptronic-like manual mode below 20 lakhs. On the bottom right of the MID gear indicator, there is a small alphabet:’M’ for Manual &’D’ for Drive, indicating the mode that you are currently in. We recommend shifting to manual mode before overtaking, when you need engine braking and of course, the times that you are in the mood for some fun. In manual mode, the AMT will hold a gear to the redline. Conversely, if the rpm drops too low, the AMT will downshift to prevent the motor from stalling. If you try to upshift at too low an rpm or downshift at too high an rpm, the AMT will ignore your instructions and flash the gear indicator in protest. It’s always a good idea to switch to manual mode before your favourite ghat section, because it prevents sudden and unsettling gear changes mid-corner. 0-100 times are also best tried in manual mode, but they certainly won’t match up to the true manual cele_45rio. Why? Because there’s no way to dump the clutch and get a hard launch on the AMT, along with the faster gearshifts that a good driver can pull off. An advantage of manual mode is that you can increase the amount of engine braking when going downhill. It’s quite effective, although not as aggressive as in a pure MT. A good thing is that the AMT doesn’t ever free-wheel(some dual-clutch ATs do). It always keeps the clutch & gearbox engaged, resulting in better control.
Hill starts require that you use the correct procedure in order to minimize rollback. There’s even a sticker on the driver’s door advising you to use the handbrake to aid starting on an incline. When starting off on a hill, switching your foot immediately from the brake to accele_45rator will result in the cele_45rio rolling back.before it engages the clutch and moves forward. On a steep hill, the car can roll back as much as 3 feet before moving forward. It’s dangerous, and also bad for the clutch in terms of wear & tear and