Maruti Suzuki WagonR Long Term Report: August 2019

It has been another busy month with the WagonR. With consecutive shoots around Mumbai, I used the WagonR constantly as a support car. And our photographer, Yash – who finds himself in the boot more often than on the seat – seems quite happy with it, thanks to the large 341-litre boot. The rear seat folds flat, which gives him enough space to move about and shoot some of the pictures you see in the magazine.

I, on the other hand, am just loving how peppy the 1.2-litre engine feels. It has transformed the Wagon R into an absolute fun car – something it was never known to be. You can feel the punch right from 2,000rpm, and the engine doesn’t throw a fit when revved hard either. Over the past few weeks, I have driven the Wagon R extensively on the hills, and each time, I’ve returned with a huge grin on my face. There’s just so much fun to be had while pushing a regular car to its limits.

While the engine plays its part in making the car lively, the steering somewhat dilutes that character. Although its light weight does help while manoeuvring it in traffic around the twisty roads, it doesn’t feel communicative enough. In most cases, I wouldn’t mind if commuters like this don’t have a well-weighted and precise steering, but given what its engine is capable of, it’s hard to live with that compromise.