The Maruti Suzuki Ritz has been on sale for three years now, and a facelift is long since been due. The 2012 Ritz has appeared on Suzuki's Japanese website, and it is expected to go on sale in India soon. 

The facelift features a more aggressive front bumper design, with minor changes to the grille, headlamps and bonnet. The wheel arches are more pronounced, the waistline is more well-defined, and at the back, the bumper gets vents and an interesting not-quite-rear-diffuser type design to break the monotony of the large, flat area. The tailgate loses its inward curve for a flatter surface - this should assuage those who never liked the Ritz's concave rear, besides having the practical side effect of liberating a little more boot space. The wheels, of course, have a new design. 

On the inside, the colours and materials seem to have changed a little, though the basic layout remains the same. Quality might get a boost, since it is now being sold alongside the new Swift, which is a leap ahead of the old Swift in interior quality. The 1.2-litre K-Series petrol will get variable valve timing for both intake and exhaust valves like the new Swift does, increasing power output and fuel efficiency. The diesel will remain the same, but with tweaks to improve the same two parameters as the petrol. An automatic gearbox is available for export models on the petrol, but seems unlikely to go on sale in the Indian marketplace. 

One can expect a corresponding increase in price for the Ritz (after Maruti's standard introductory price strategy, of course) for the changes mentioned above.

Ritz Jeele ye pal will be telecast on Star Plus over 6 weekends, Saturdays and Sundays at 7:30pm starting on Sept 10, 2011.

The company will be inspecting the components and if found defective; they will be replaced free of cost. The recall comes months before the company plans to get the all new-Swift into the market. Click here to check if your Maruti needs inspection.

With the oncoming of the Super Turbo Diesel SX4 and the subsequently the company's CBU Kizashi, whose deliveries to customers begins in March, we will get to see how the company sustains this growth.

The current 1.2 litre engine car market has the Chevrolet U-VA, Skoda Fabia(Petrol), Hyundai i10 and the i20, Indica Xeta and the old Fiat Palio (available in the second hand car market).  With the Maruti Ritz being aggressively priced, the market for this segment as become even tighter. The competition is now cut throat as all the cars are value for their money. 

The Skoda Fabia is the most expensive hatch of the lot. Honda with its Jazz plans for India, will be take away the title from the Fabia of the most expensive 1.2 litre hatchback. The Jazz could bear the Rs 7 lakh tag, even after localizing 70% of its parts. With the Indian thinking of going for a bigger car at the same price, Honda could have a hard time with its Jazz, as the Renault Logan, Maruti Suzuki Swift DZire, Tata Indigo and a few more saloons like the Hyundai Accent are available at a price equal to or less than the Jazz, which could be a reason for lesser sales of the Jazz. 

On the other hand, Honda brand sells in India. People in India can buy Honda even when blindfolded. So Honda could add another spark to this on going battle between the 1.2-litre engine powered cars. We believe that the Jazz could be affected by its price tag.