The Value for Money car. Review on Maruti Suzuki Omni-E

My Omni has been like an additional limb of my body since 1998. I first bought a pre-owned 5 seater Omni in 1998 (1994 registration) and drove that for 2 years. Then bought a brand new one in 2000 December and have done 38000 Kms since then.

The pros first -

1. Well, with a price tag of 2,45,000, there's not much I could have asked for. The space inside is great. Infact that's the whole reason why I have stuck to Omni till date. At this price, such space is nowhere available. I went out with 11 friends together in that car (5 seater). 7 people can fit in if needed.

   
   




2. But more than that, I have got addicted to the ''truck-driver-like'' driving position of the Omni. The sedan driver probably would never approve of this but once you get the taste of the posture, you would never care about the drivers ''at the bottom''. When I drive my car, and look at other small cars driving past, I actually feel pity for them for having to drive so close to the road :-).

   
   




3. The pick up is fairly good. When starting from a green light, apart from the two wheelers and the snazzy expensive cars, it beats almost everyone else. One good reason could be the rear wheel drive. Most other small cars are front wheel drives and as a result, lose out on power.

   
   




4. Even with 6 - 7 people on board, you dont feel any performance drop except the turning radius increases.

   
   




5. Excellent, exquisite, superb maneuverability. People who have driven in Kolkata roads knows too well what it means to a car in this city.

   
   




6. The engine sound is quiet low although the engine is inside the cabin (under the driver's bu.t.t).

   
   




7. The car is almost maintenance free even after 4 years and 38000 Kms.

   
   

OK... there are a looooots of Cons but once again, at 2,50,000, you are obviously not going to get to many pros.

1. Let's not talk about the safety of this car because there'e aren't any. A minor head-on collision can break your legs and I refuse to talk about the major ones.

   
   




2. The Center of Gravity is probably way above the roof of the car. When you take a slight turn, you better reduce the speed to 40 or else you might find the CoG way above the bottom of the car.

   
   




3. The car is so light with thin wheels that in the bumpy roads, it acts as a good digestion medicine.

   
   




4. There's no provision for AC.

   
   




5. The dash board and overall interior and exterior design was probably conceived from the first prize of a sit & draw competition of car design for 10 year old kids. Less said about this, the better.