Celerio X: Adding sport to subtlety

The segment that comfortably rests above the ‘A’ segment of cars in the Indian market seems to be breathing the most. And a large part of the promising ingenuity and originality that this segment offers may be significantly contributed by the onset of the Maruti Suzuki Celerio, a car that revolutionised a segment with many firsts, and offered a trove of goodies, even if with a frugal appeal.

The Celerio’s love factor has been its simple design, according to some. At a time, when carmakers are pushing serious ideas in cutting-edge design and aiming to ignite a sort of an ‘oomph factor’ in their cars, the Celerio, as its design speaks globally, is very much to the point, yet defines seriousness and resoluteness. With an airy and roomy cabin, wide windows, user-friendly equipment, wide-opening doors, and a robust stance, the Maruti Celerio, which started off slowly in the market, has gradually won good respect from patrons, who have continued to make a beeline to possess this beauty.

When Maruti introduced the Celerio in 2014, this was the first car in the A+ to B segments to sport an automatic AMT (Automated Manual Transmission) variant, with a technology termed ‘AGS’ or ‘Auto Gear Shift’. This proved to be a game changer for the car and the company, with the Celerio emerging as a favourite among women and first-time buyers as well.

But as it goes, cars do age in design, and with competition hot on the heals, with similar if not better innovations in play, Maruti decided recently to offer its prized car a much-needed new avatar. To make it more appealing and to dash in a pinch of sporty looks, the makers launched the all-new Celerio X this year. This new celerio attempts to mimic a kind of a peppy, sporty, young and smart urban crossover, albeit affordable.

The first look of the car will give a different feel from the normal Celerio model, which itself saw a conventional facelift in the meantime. The ‘X’ graphic makes for a bold entry, while an exciting blend of orange and other colour accents with black hues, beef up its energetic appearance.

Sporty design

Aiming at youth, if not other than family customers, the makers have targeted a new customer base, which prefers something sporty and contemporary in their cars. Predominantly, the carmakers have played a lot around the colour black, where the Celerio X stands different from other cars. There are paneled bits all around the car that tend to offer it its ‘X’ factor.

The alloys, the side bidding, the rear bumpers, and the surrounding areas of the fog-lamps are all in black, which makes the car look appealing in all angles. However, a black roofing would have beefed up the sporty look of the car. While the Paparika Orange shade has been kept as the launch colour, Torque Blue, Caffeine Brown, Arctic White and Glistening Grey are the other colours available in the series.

Not a very different cabin

While the Celerio cabin traditionally was a simple one, this mantra re-chants itself even in this new car. As the attention given to the exteriors is immense, the interiors have been neglected. Again, the Celerio X gives the same feel as in the older version. It is spacious enough to accommodate five persons inside the cabin, along with the driver.

The driver seat height adjuster, cup holders within all the doors, and two in between the gear lever and the hand break, electric ORVMs, and a host of other features and some more cool stuff have been retained, which adds to a comfortable driving experience. At least a slight change in the interiors or adding some other features would have made a huge difference for the Celerio X, as a departure from the other Celerio.

Pleasurable drive

As Maruti Suzuki India claims, the all-new Celerio X is sporty without the sweat. This again reforms city driving with the auto gear shift (AGS) technology. This is the most-desired feature among city drivers to beat the hazardous city road traffic conditions, and helps in stress-free long drives. The need-for-speed drivers are allowed to switch to the manual mode of gear transmission, where the gear can be transmitted according to their necessity.

Maruti Suzuki has already revolutionised with the K-series engine with drive-by-wire technology in its Alto. Again the makers have promised to give the same engine performance as with the existing Celerio model. This series of engine makes one to feel the burst of energy as soon as he or she turns on the ignition. This can also be felt, when we induce more torque, when it is in automatic mode. The exhaust noise delivers the hum similar to a sports car, which will drive any driver crazy to speed up the machine. The alloy wheels again delivers a good road grip for the car, even bringing it to a halt at any top speed.

An anti-lock breaking system, front seat belts pre-tensioner and force limiters, helps passengers, the driver and even pedestrians to be enveloped in safety. Offset and side impact safety-compliance are the other key aspects in the safety perspective that we see in the new Celerio X. Manufacturers have promised a mileage of 23.1 kmpl, which is pretty impressive.

A worthy mid-segment car

The new Maruti Suzuki Celerio X will satisfy the sporty desire of most car owners, who prefer city-friendly cars. Apart from appealing to a family audience, this car could also appeal to an age group of 20-30 years, which is the youth segment. The launch of the Celerio X, a sporty design car, is expected to be a strong contender for the company, being competitely priced between Rs 4,76,306 and Rs 5,61,725 (ex-showroom Bengaluru).