Best Kia Carens and Maruti Suzuki Ertiga Variants Under Rs 12 Lakh for Long-Distance Road Trips

What a Long-distance road trip lover looks for in a car

A long-distance road trip enthusiast looks for comfort, fuel efficiency, and durability in a car. Features like spacious interiors, large boot capacity for luggage, and smooth ride quality are key. Safety features such as ABS and multiple airbags, as well as conveniences like Bluetooth connectivity and automatic climate control, are crucial. High city and highway mileage and large fuel tank capacity are preferred to minimize frequent refueling stops. The Kia Carens and Maruti Suzuki Ertiga are considered some of the best cars for long drives in India.

Why Kia Carens and Maruti Suzuki Ertiga are popular among Long-distance road trip lovers

Kia Carens and Maruti Suzuki Ertiga have found favor among road trip lovers owing to their perfect blend of comfort, fuel efficiency, and reliability. As cars for highway driving in India, both models offer spacious interiors and substantial boot space, ensuring a comfortable journey even when carrying substantial luggage. Their ride quality is impressive and the body roll is well-contained, ensuring that long drives are not fatiguing.

Equipped with essential safety features such as ABS and airbags, both the Carens and Ertiga ensure the safety of their occupants. They also offer convenient features such as Bluetooth connectivity, automatic climate control, and touchscreen navigation to enhance the driving experience.

Fuel efficiency and tank capacity are other strong suits of these models. Both the Carens and Ertiga offer impressive city and highway mileage, ensuring fewer stops for fuel on long trips. With petrol engines and manual or automatic transmission options, these vehicles offer performance and fuel economy that makes them perfect companions for long road journeys.

For these comfortable cars for road trips in India, we have selected their variants priced between Rs 10 lakh and Rs 12 lakh in our comparison. If you’re a family-focused buyer, you can read our comparison of the Maruti Ertiga with Kia Carens.

Our variants shortlist for Kia Carens and Maruti Suzuki Ertiga

Variant	Price (INR)
Kia Carens Prestige	11,65,000
Kia Carens Premium iMT	12,00,000
Maruti Suzuki Ertiga ZXI	10,88,000
Maruti Suzuki Ertiga VXI AT	11,28,000

The Kia Carens Prestige, with its 6 airbags and ABS, offers enhanced safety. Though it lacks Bluetooth connectivity, the boot capacity of 216 liters, ground clearance of 195 mm, and stable high-speed stability make it an excellent choice for long-distance travel.

Kia Carens Premium iMT also provides safety with 6 airbags and ABS. Despite lacking Bluetooth connectivity, its other features, including high ground clearance and boot capacity, make it a suitable choice. If you’re big on design and style, you can check out our comparison of the Kia Carens with Maruti Suzuki XL6.

Maruti Suzuki Ertiga ZXI, equipped with ABS, two airbags, and Bluetooth connectivity, offers a comfortable ride with its large boot capacity and adequate ground clearance. It is suitable for long-distance travel with impressive city mileage.

Maruti Suzuki Ertiga VXI AT is similar to the ZXI in terms of safety and convenience. While it lacks automatic climate control, it makes up for it with good city mileage, making it a viable option for long drives.

Best variant among Kia Carens and Maruti Suzuki Ertiga for Long-distance road trip lovers

The Maruti Suzuki Ertiga ZXI emerges as the top choice for long-distance road trip lovers. This variant provides an ideal mix of safety with ABS and two airbags, convenience features like Bluetooth connectivity, and a petrol engine with manual transmission. Its city mileage and a large fuel tank reduce the need for frequent refueling stops, and the ground clearance of 185 mm ensures a comfortable ride on different terrains. Additionally, the stable high-speed stability of the Ertiga ZXI provides safety and reliability for long drives. If you’re conscious about budget, you can read our guide to the best Ertiga variants for you.

The Top 3 choices

1. Maruti Suzuki Ertiga ZXI
2. Maruti Suzuki Ertiga VXI AT
3. Kia Carens Prestige

Variant	ABS	Airbags (number)	Bluetooth Connectivity	Engine – Fuel type	Engine – Transmission	Ground clearance (mm)
Maruti Suzuki Ertiga ZXI	Yes	2	Yes	Petrol	Manual	185
Maruti Suzuki Ertiga VXI AT	Yes	2	Yes	Petrol	AMT	185
Kia Carens Prestige	Yes	6	Yes	Petrol	Manual	195

The Maruti Suzuki Ertiga ZXI tops the list due to its blend of safety features, convenience, and efficient performance along with lower price. The Ertiga VXI AT, although lacking automatic climate control, still offers similar attributes with its good city mileage. The Kia Carens Prestige is a top choice for its safety features and spacious interiors. These three variants offer a mix of safety, convenience, and performance, ensuring a delightful long-distance road trip experience.