Living with a (2009)Wagon R in 2020

We are a typical middle-class family and buying a car was a big decision back then and is still now. I still remember that the first car that my family bought was a Maruti 800 and as most of you know that car was a legend in itself and needs no introduction, I can go on and on about the 800 but that story will be for another day as this day belongs to the Waggie.
The reason to change our car was mainly due to the lack of space and the boot otherwise the 800 was running good and we were facing no problems whatsoever in the ownership of the car. When we made up our mind to buy a new car we had three choices in our hand (1) Wagon R, (2) Santro, (3) Beat. But our family didn’t choose the other two because we didn’t like the looks of the Santro, and there were only quite a few service stations of Chevrolet. So we finally circled upon the Wagon R as it offered unrivaled space with a price well under our budget. Another paramount factor was that you can’t go wrong with a Maruti as it was unbeatable at that time in terms of service and maintenance and that’s when we decided to bring a brand new WagonR as our new family member. 

INTERIOR
 The Waggie was huge when compared to 800 in every way possible way and if you have seen a Wagon R you know that it's not the most handsome looking car out there due to its tallboy shape but it also meant that the car has huge, with loads of headroom. Even a person whose height is around 6 feet will be more then comfortable and this list gets better when you add those wide opening doors so ingress and egress a painless experience and if you have old people in your home they would appreciate this aspect of the Wagon R. The Waggie is so spacious that once you have been inside one you will feel cramped in every other car of this segment. The Dashboard & Upholstery is typical of Maruti. There is some rattling sound once you have done 50-60K Kms. Rear seats are primarily designed for 3 kids or slender people. The whole interior is in black except the center facia and the area near the AC console which has a sort of silverish accents which makes it look good even to this day. The glovebox is of decent size and you can just store the basic stuff inside like the papers or anything small. The one glaring issue is the fit and finish and the quality of the plastic as it’s just not up to the mark even if we compare it with its rival like Beat.
As for the creature comforts you have got front power windows and a decent AC which works well for front passengers but take some time to extend the cooling to the rear bench so anything above 40 degrees and running the AC on full blast you will feel that the engine starts to feel a bit strained and you will need to plan for the upcoming overtakes. The seats offer decent support and will keep you comfortable but don’t expect much comfort over any long distances.

LOOKS
Waggie is one of its kind car in India. In this segment, Maruti also brought Estilo (baby Innova), Wagon R (baby SUV) and A-star (stylish hatch) all in different designs but on the same platform. And even if most critics praised the other two for their looks, what really sold well was Wagon R.
It has got a peculiar tall boyish look which does take some time getting used to and is not appreciated by many but has clocked good numbers and needless to say has developed a cult following of its own. The car doesn’t look astonishingly beautiful but it grows on you with time.

RIDE & HANDLING
The car rides on 13 inchers and while the ride of the car is fairly smooth at city speeds and the steering is decently light which makes it easy to maneuver in the city but when you go on open roads things do change rather quickly, as the soft suspension makes the car bouncy on the slightest of undulations while the light steering does not weight up nor gives up any feedback while the tires don’t provide much grip and all these woes add up when you take into consideration the height of the car which gives you the pronounced body roll. If you are reading this and thinking that the Waggie is bad on highways I would say not but you can't just challenge the laws of physics if the car has so much height the body roll will be there and you have to take care that you take the sweepers at the highway at a reasonable speed. As far as braking performance goes the brakes are decent enough for city use but while riding at speeds of 90 and above you will feel that the initial response is missing and a feeling of sponginess is there and when you hit the brakes hard be ready for a nosedive. To sum it up I would say that the Stability and Handling is just OK unless you try to take it to extremes.

Engine & performance
 The Wagon R uses a 1061 cc engine which churns out 67bhp, and is quite a free-revving motor and can rev freely up to 6500 RPM and is torquey enough, though it won’t give you a kick in the pants feel, and with time some horses might have left the barn but it does its job well. The torque band lies around 1000 to 4500 RPM and if you go below 1000 and you will feel a lag and as the car climbs above 4500 you will feel an evident increase in the engine noise and the power also tapers off. The car can do 100kmph without a fuss at 3200RPM and can maintain the speed easily. The driving position is unique and pro-city drive while the gearbox feels as if there is some jelly or molten rubber filled in it. You have to get used to it and ignore the issue, as it is quite reliable otherwise. Pedals are placed such that you feel as if you are sitting on a chair. Your leg (lower part) is more upright than in any saloon
The economical speed is around 60KMH and in the city, you will get 12kmpl to 13kmpl in the city while your AC is on and will return you around 15kmpl to 16kmpl when you don’t use your AC while you will get around 16 on the highway with AC and up to 19 without AC. 
Safety Front
I will keep this part short and simple the safety front in this decade-old Maruti is non-existent it is just not there. So god saves you if you crash and the interior has a protruding base which tends to touch your knee if you are above 5 feet 8 inches and in the event of a crash, there are heavy chances that the front passenger will suffer heavy damage to there legs.

  
LIKES 
- High stance of driving, feels like driving a small SUV, convenient for city drive
- Lot of space above your head gives a roomier feeling
- The engine is fairly powerful and needs less gear shifting
- Mileage is excellent as it is a trademark of Maruti
- VXI tires are wider and safer compared to LX/LXI
- Bonnet is very short, so easy to drive in the city
- Car is easy to park and drive in narrow congested lanes.
- Damages/repair are easily catered in any garage
- The boot is amazingly wide and deep, bigger than many higher segment cars, including swift (2008 Gen)
- It has a large number of pockets for utilities.
- In short, it is a mini-SUV within 5 lakhs
- AC is pretty good for front passengers
- 175/70 R13 tube-type tires. These are wider than most cars in the segment.
- BIG boot, which is supplemented by foldable rear seats
- Power steering, power brakes, front power windows
- Central locking
- Has tachometer
While there is plenty to like there are some things to dislike too

Dislike
- Frequent stop-and-go traffic situation becomes a pain as one has to repeatedly move between Neutral and 1st gears. But then, in this segment, this is expected.
- The gear lever is long and a bit rubbery.

- Long drives are a pain as the pedal position is awkward and tiresome and NVH levels are high at high speeds
- The rear seat is not so comfortable
- AC doesn’t cool the rear benches so well in peak summer
- The paint quality at the engine bay is very poor
-The car is not a looker but you will get used to it.

Conclusion
So to sum it up I would say it has aged like a really fine wine and we love it more every day as it requires almost negligible money to run except the basic wear and tear. However, some issues cannot be ignored like the lack of any safety feature whatsoever the brakes that don’t want to give any feedback after 90kmh. On the plus side, the engine still works like a charm and the practicality still works for me.  When you drive this decade-old frame it will make you a better driver as the rolly polly suspension teaches you a lot about weight transfer and where and when to break so it doesn't unsettle the car and the old school charm of driving a car with no aids. My final verdict would be it’s an amazing city car with good grunt and space but lacks highway mannerisms terribly.