Need For Speed Maruti Edition: 5 Quickest Maruti Cars We’ve Ever Tested

What do you think of when the term Maruti comes up? A car that’s reliable, practical, budget friendly and comfortable, right? Never in your right mind would you relate performance with Maruti vehicles. And yet, there are a few cars that stick true to the brand’s character while inducing a pinch of fun and excitement. So in this story, we take a look at a few of those cars we tested and found to be quickest within the family:

Maruti Fronx 1-litre MT: 10.38 Seconds

One of the latest offerings to sport the Maruti badge is in fact the quickest Maruti we’ve tested to date. With a 0-100kmph time of 10.38 seconds, the Fronx grabs the pole position, thanks to an ebullient turbo-charged 1-litre petrol engine that puts out 100PS and 148Nm. This unit can be had with a 5-speed manual or a six-speed automatic, but our recorded run was done using the manual transmission. 

While the Fronx might not be the quickest turbo-petrol offering out there, its performance is good enough to put to shame a few SUVs and cars in a segment above. Head here to know what all cars the Fronx can beat. Prices for the Maruti Fronx start from Rs 7.46 lakh (ex-showroom).

Maruti Baleno RS 1-litre MT: 10.52 Seconds

It was the Baleno RS that first introduced the Boosterjet engine to the Maruti lineup. With 102PS/150Nm of output waiting to be unleashed at your foot, the Baleno RS was a performance car for the people. It comes in at second position, just slightly behind the newer Fronx, which makes use of hybrid tech to snatch victory from the hatchback. We took it to the BIC in Delhi-NCR, and you can read our impressions of the Baleno RS on a track here.

Maruti Ciaz 1.5-litre Diesel MT: 10.93 Seconds

While diesels might be a thing of the past for Maruti and its India lineup, the Ciaz diesel still makes it to the list, grabbing the last podium spot. And in all fairness, there’s not much between the top three in this list, just fine margins.

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Ciaz’s 1.5-litre diesel engine used to put out 95PS and 225Nm of output, which was good enough to propel the compact sedan from 0-100kmph in just 10.93 seconds. The engine was paired to a 6-speed manual and had a handful of torque at its disposal. And despite all the performance, the 1.5-litre Ciaz diesel was also rather fuel efficient. You can read more about it in our detailed road test review.

Maruti Grand Vitara Hybrid 1.5-litre AT (WET): 11.55 Seconds

The Maruti Grand Vitara’s strong-hybrid powertrain recorded a time of 11.55 seconds to reach 100kmph from standstill. Mind you, this test was carried out in wet conditions, so it is possible that there is still room for improvement. And given that this was the strong-hybrid powertrain, you also get tons of efficiency, be it in the city or on the highway, with a decent amount of performance on tap. You can read about the Grand Vitara’s review here. Prices for the Maruti Grand Vitara start from Rs 10.70 lakh (ex-showroom)

2021 Maruti Swift 1.2-litre MT: 11.63 Seconds

Maruti had launched the current-gen Swift facelift back in 2021. And with the facelift, the Swift received a new 1.2-litre DualJet engine. With an output of 89PS and 113Nm, coupled to the light weight of the Swift, it recorded the sprint from 0-100kmph in 11.63 seconds. The test was carried out in a manual variant. We’ve also tested the 2023 BS6 phase-2 Swift with its automatic gearbox, and it clocked 0-100kmph in a comparatively leisurely 14.05 seconds. A new-gen Swift is on the way and you can know more about it here. The current Swift is priced from Rs 5.99 lakh (ex-showroom) onwards.

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Were you surprised to see any of these models make the list or is there any other car you were expecting to be here on the list? Let us know in the comments below.