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.
