‘Puttin’ on the Ritz’ is a very famous slang expression – meaning to dress very fashionably. Inspired by the swanky and exclusive Ritz Hotels in Paris and London, the expression is also the title of a pop song written and published in 1929 by Irving Berlin. So when a car is named ‘Ritz,’ you expect something grand and stately, exuding luxury. That bubble bursts when you realise that the Ritz in question is manufactured by India’s peoples’ car manufacturer, Maruti, and is actually the Suzuki Splash – a mini-MPV as Suzuki asserts globally. Due to copyright reasons, Maruti wasn’t able to name it thus in India – hence the name change. Either way, it seems to be working, as Maruti’s been reporting impressive initial sales. So, let’s see just what’s making the Ritz the new hot favourite among Indian small car buyers.

The Ritz (Splash) story begins in January 2004, when a group of 10 exterior and interior designers travelled to Germany to spend time absorbing and analysing European trends in cars, fashion, lifestyle and design. They presented three design proposals, A, B and C, which were displayed to audiences of Suzuki distributors and compact MPV owners. ‘Proposal A had a sporty, stable look, but didn’t emphasise the height of the car; Proposal B had a chic and charming look, appealing to female users; and Proposal C had a contemporary look.’ Proposal A proved the most popular, and the result was ‘Project Splash,’ which made its debut at the Paris motor show in September 2006.

There are mini-MPVs and there are mini-MPVs – they all don’t have to look like the Innova or be a Honda Jazz. The Ritz has an interesting design. Depending on which direction you’re viewing the car from, it’s fresh and quirky, odd even. Yes, it’s an eye-catcher, packed as it is with many shapes and curves – integrating a sporty look with a tall-boy stance and a relatively tall body. Strongly flared wings, a bold nose, and a flowing roof line are all key elements in creating the Ritz’s friendly, endearing personality. The Ritz measures at a length of 3,715mm, width of 1,680mm and height of 1,620mm – making it quite compact overall, yet surprisingly spacious through clever design. The ground clearance is 170mm, and the turning circle is 4.7m. While the Zxi petrol rides on 185/70 R14 tyres, the Vdi uses thinner 165/80 R14 tyres on 14x5J rims. It shares the Swift’s platform, albeit shortened by 20mm, which is why the wheelbase doesn’t match. The kerb weight of the Vdi, which is what we tested, is 1,100kgs. Compared with the Swift, the tall boy design results in increased headroom both front and rear. Plus, the front and rear seat hip-points have also gone up – making the Ritz easier to get in and out of.

	The ride is good, and the sound insulation is excellent - making the Ritz diesel a very comfortable car indeed for everyday use

The interior is quite distinctive too. The fascia has three eye catching elements – one is the large speedometer with a white dial and amber backlighting right behind the steering wheel, the other is a very interesting tachometer pod, which is mounted separately above it, and, lastly, the ‘waterfall’ centre console, which starts with the AC vents, and flows down encompassing a 2-DIN JVC music system, the AC controls, and finishes with the gear lever at the bottom – freeing up space between the two front seats.

What does it drive and handle like, then? Surprising well, actually. Vdi meant that I had the 1.3 liter GM-Fiat one-time Engine of the Year winner under the hood. While it’s become a known quantity by now, the surprising bit (irritating for Fiat fans) is that Maruti have done a far superior job of insulating the engine than Fiat themselves in the Grande Punto. Yes, it still has the inherent diesel clatter, but that clatter is much less in the Ritz. The gear ratios also make the Ritz a peppy little thing. The engine revs willingly as we’ve seen before.

Driving in fourth gear at 40km/h, the engine is dawdling at a quiet 1000rpm, step it up to 60km/h, and it’s doing somewhere between 1500-1700rpm – that’s one of my peeves with the tachometer in the Ritz, it needs to be graduated better. Driving at the Delhi city speed limit of 50km/h in 4th gear, which incidentally feels painfully slow, the engine is barely working at just 1400rpm. If you step on it, the response is a bit sluggish initially, but the car picks up from 60km/h. At 70km/h, you’re doing 2000rpm, and 2400rpm at 80km/h, which is the DND speed limit. Repeating the evaluation in 5th gear, 70km/h comes up at 1500rpm, 80km/h at 1800rpm, and at 100km/h the engine is still doing just 2400rpm – well under the noise threshold. It’s possible to go to 5000rpm in third gear, and shift into fourth, at which point the car is moving swiftly at 130km/h seemingly effortlessly.

	In the process of making it past a traffic light before it turned red, the Ritz experienced a little rear-end movement as I turned the corner with the power on in second gear, which instantly put a smile on my face

Yes, the tall boy design means there is a bit of body roll, but that’s felt only when making abrupt changes of direction. In the process of making it past a traffic light before it turned red, the Ritz experienced a little rear-end movement as I turned the corner with the power on in second gear, which instantly put a smile on my face. The ride is good too, and the sound insulation really is excellent – making the Ritz diesel a very comfortable car indeed for everyday use. Any peeves? Two actually – the door mirrors fold, but they don’t fold in completely owing to their size and design, and also the central locking is sans keyless entry.

The Ritz is available in a generous range of eight colours: Fire Brick Red, Bakers Chocolate, Blue Blaze, Silky Silver, Racing Green, Glistening Grey, Midnight Black and Superior White – probably one more reason for the car doing well on the dealer forecourts.

At the end of the day, Maruti Suzuki must be commended for moving the small car game forward once again. The Ritz provides a surprising, and virtuous, blend of style, space, economy and relative performance at an attainable price. It performs and feels far more refined than either its proportions or price lead you to believe, and that’s why Maruti have another winner of their hands.