Maruti Suzuki Wagon R pros & cons — Yes, you read that right

Enough about BMWs and Ferraris, let’s discuss the Wagon R today. Maruti Suzuki is celebrating 25 years of the Wagon R in 2024, and there are lakhs of examples of this tallboy still running on the roads today. What makes this hatchback so special? Here are the top Maruti Suzuki Wagon R pros and cons.

Maruti Suzuki Wagon R pros

Spacious

The Wagon R is so spacious that you can sit three more people in it than your neighbour’s Ferrari. The tallboy design makes it suitable for even the tallest of people. The abundance of storage spaces enhances the practicality quotient, especially if you’re still running yours on petrol and not CNG.

Fun to drive

The Maruti Suzuki Wagon R is faster than the fastest production car on the planet in 1990. Keeping the jokes aside, taking my friend’s Wagon R for a spin made me realise that you don’t need a sportscar to get pleasure from driving. The rawness of the Wagon R and the absence of any sorts of driver aids make you feel in control all the time. It goes in the direction where you want it to go.

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Design

You can’t deny that the Wagon R looks better than an $ 80,000 Tesla Cybertruck. And design is not just about how a car looks. The Maruti Wagon R has been well packaged by the designers to judiciously make use of every inch of space available. It is also wider than before, making the occupants feel at ease.

Stood the test of time

While there is an ongoing debate on whether a quote from a certain Enzo Ferrari about engines and aerodynamics has stood the test of time or not, the Maruti Suzuki Wagon R certainly has. Thanks to the continuous updates and changes that have been made to it, the Wagon R has been able to stay relevant and is being sold in large numbers even in 2024.

Fuel efficiency

When driven at its top speed, the fuel tank on a Bugatti Veyron would get emptied in just 12 minutes. When driven at its top speed, the fuel tank on a Maruti Suzuki Wagon R would take you across multiple states in the country. The car delivers a mileage of over 20kmpl when run on the highways, and the efficiency in the city isn’t bad either. Let’s not even get to the CNG. And this is not just true for the Wagon R, but for Maruti Suzuki cars in general.

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Maruti Suzuki Wagon R cons

Mediocre seats 

The seats of the Wagon R aren’t too comfortable, and they do fall short on under-thigh support. A big miss in context of the seats is the absence of non-adjustable headrests. This is also relevant for safety reasons, which is also a concern in case of the Wagon R otherwise. It does get a bunch of other safety features though, such as 2 airbags (the one that I drove had none), ESP, ABS with EBD, hill-hold assist, rear parking sensors, and more.

Design

Let’s be fair. While it doesn’t look as bad as the Cybertruck, it doesn’t really have the looks to grab eyeballs either. Among modern looking cars like the Nissan Magnite and Citroen C3, the Maruti Wagon R does look like a car of the past. Maruti did try to make it appealing with the Stingray, but that didn’t yield any substantial results.

Not a fan of highways or mountains

The Wagon R isn’t as good of a car for intercity travel as it is for commuting in the city. On higher speeds, the instability does kick in and body roll is very pronounced. It is not the mountain goat either, unlike its sibling, the Maruti Alto. The NVH levels of the Wagon R also make it feel like a budget car.

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Won’t get you the likes on social media

The Wagon R isn’t your favourite influencer’s car, and it isn’t likely going to get you many likes either. While the popularity of the Wagon R does have its own positives such as easy availability of parts, the car is actually a bit too common to be noticed and appreciated. You don’t want a car that everybody is driving, do you?

Value for money competitors

The top-end goes up to Rs 7.32 lakh (ex-showroom, Delhi) for the top-end AMT variant. If it’s not too much of a task for you to stretch your budget a little, you can get yourself the Nissan Magnite, or maybe some other car that is from a segment above. Cars like these offer a great value for the small premium that they require you to pay.

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