Maruti Celerio diesel review, road test

Turn the key and it wheezes up slowly to a clattery idle, which sounds almost mini-LCV-like from the outside, but settles down as the car warms up. Depress the light, hydraulically actuated clutch and go for first on the high-mounted gear lever, and you’ll notice the shift action is a little firm. It’s a little hesitant to roll off the line, and is a lot smoother if you slip the clutch and feed in some throttle, after which it takes off smartly. It feels a little lazy before the turbo comes in at around 1,800rpm, but get into the solid mid-range between 2,200 and 3,200rpm and the clatter smoothens out. You do, however, hear a persistent whine every time you lift off. Push it to about 3,800rpm and it will pull a little more, but the noise and vibrations return with a vengeance. It will rev to 4,800rpm, but there is just no more power to be had here, and it’s best to move up a gear.

It is a very narrow powerband, but if you can keep it in that sweet spot of 1,800-3,200rpm, you’ll have enough power and decent refinement too. In city driving, you might find it a bit sluggish and jerky at low revs, but that too is something you can get used to; it’s masked somewhat by the short gearing. This car is clearly no performer – something reflected in its 22.66sec 0-100kph time, and in-gear acceleration is not impressive either. When it comes to refinement, a two-cylinder diesel is a recipe for a disaster. Though your first impression is that it’s not as bad as you feared, objectively, you have to admit the NVH levels are just not as good as even a three-cylinder diesel like the one in the Chevy Beat.

Ride comfort is also a Celerio strong point, and that hasn’t changed. You do feel the added stiffness at the front, particularly when you crest a steep speed breaker, but in most conditions, you’ll find a good amount of compliance all round. It also feels quite reassuring at speed, despite its tall, 165-section tyres. The steering is nice and light, but like many modern Marutis, the Ciaz included, it suffers an annoying numbness around the centre position, and a tendency to not return to straight-ahead position freely.