Choosing between Maruti Eeco and Maruti Omni

Used Cars Market – Maruti Eeco & Maruti Omni

Before the launch of multiple seating cars from Toyota, Tata and other similar brands, Maruti Suzuki had introduced the Maruti Omni, which has become synonymous with the getaway van of kidnappers in Hindi movies. The car has a unique design mainly because its engine is at the base of the car rather than in the front. It is available in two different varieties – one that can seat 5 people and one that can seat 7 people including the driver. The body of the car is more or less tough looking and it performs well on all roads, including mountainous ones.

Another car from the house of Maruti Suzuki which seats a number of people and is within the reach of most people is the Maruti Eeco. The Maruti Eeco looks a lot like the Maruti Versa which and seats around 5 people. Unlike the Maruti Omni, the used Eeco has its engine in the frontal part of the car. Both the Eeco and the Omni are a part of the affordable multiple passenger cars from Maruti Suzuki and they are affordable at a price lesser than Rs 4 lakhs. The price of a brand new Maruti Eeco is around Rs 3.3 lakhs while the Maruti Omni costs around Rs 2.7 lakhs. However, in the used car market, the Maruti Omni costs around Rs 1.5 lakhs for cars which are under 5 years used and which have been driven for less than 20,000kms. The Maruti Eeco on the other hand costs around Rs 2.5 lakhs and these vehicles have been driven under 30,000kms and used for lesser than 5 years. You can get older Maruti Omnis at prices sub Rs 1 lakh as well.

If you are thinking of getting a multi seater car for your family and are contemplating between the Maruti Omni and the Maruti Eeco, then there are certain things to be considered. If you have more than 6 people to sit in the car at a time, it would be best you opt for the Maruti Omni as it has a model which would seat around 7 people at the same time excluding the driver. However, if you are thinking of buying a car for a family of 4 or 5 people, then it would be better you opt for the Maruti Eeco.

The Maruti Eeco has a larger base compared to the Maruti Omni at 2350mm compared to 1840mm. The larger wheelbase signifies better spacing capacity for passengers of the car. The used Eeco has a more powerful engine that has a displacement of 1196cc while the Maruti Omni has it at 796cc. As the engine of the Eeco is more powerful, the power and torque produced by it is also more. The used Eeco has a maximum power of 73PS available at 6000rpm and maximum torque of 101Nm at 3000rpm. The available of high torque at lower revolutions per minute makes the car pick up speeds quite easily. The Maruti Omni has a torque of 60Nm at 3000rpm and power of 35PS available at 5000rpm. The mileage of the Maruti Omni is around 10.9kmpl while that of the Eeco is 14.1kmpl. Despite having a superior quality engine, the mileage of the Maruti Eeco is better than the Maruti Omni. Performance and comfort wise, the Maruti Eeco certainly scores more than the Maruti Omni.

The area where the Maruti Omni scores over the Maruti Eeco is in ground clearance and fuel variants available. The Maruti Omni is available in two types of fuel variants- petrol and LPG while the Maruti Eeco is available in only petrol variant. Moreover, the ground clearance of the Maruti Omni is around 165mm while that of the Maruti Eeco is around 160mm.

Both the cars are of the non frills variety and they have a 5 speed manual transmission gearbox. They are available in a wide range of colours although the number of colours in which the Eeco is available is more. Both the cars have drum brakes as their rear brakes and the front brakes are disc brakes. The used Eeco would certainly be a better choice as its construction is sturdier than the Maruti Omni.

You can now buy either car online as sellers of these cars have listed their vehicles on car selling websites. All you have to do is enter your city and area and other specifications for the car to show you the best match. You can enter your specifications of fuel variation, colour, year of manufacture; number of kilometres travelled etc. and the website would show you the options that best suit you.

Before buying the car, you can check its actual price on the car selling website by entering the specifications of the car. Specifications such as age of the car, kilometers covered, fuel variant, colour and other aspects determine the price of the car. For example, the older the car, the lower its price would be and the more a car has travelled on roads, the lesser would its price be. This would help you negotiate better with the seller of the car. You can also read up reviews of the used Eeco or Omni before opting to buy one of them.

A word of caution to be exercised before buying the Maruti Omni or certified used Eeco is that these cars are mostly used by travel agencies and tour operators and hence mostly these companies sell the car. These cars usually suffer a lot of wear and tear and they may be internally damaged as these cars are handled by contract drivers. Therefore, it would be best if you opt for a car being sold by a private seller who has driven the car himself or herself. Make sure you go through the maintenance records of the car before buying it. You should also test drive it to see if it is in proper condition. Take it out for a long drive and listen for sounds in the engine or while braking suddenly. Test driving the car would assure you of its quality.