Formula Maruti is a single-seater,

open-wheel An open-wheel single-seater (often known as formula car) is a car with the wheels outside the car's main body, and usually having only one seat. Open-wheel cars contrast with street cars, sports cars, stock cars, and touring cars, which have thei ...

class in

motorsport Motorsport, motorsports or motor sport is a global term used to encompass the group of competitive sporting events which primarily involve the use of motorized vehicles. The terminology can also be used to describe forms of competition of two ...

made and raced in

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

. Many of the top teams in Indian motorsports have run in the series, including Team Lakshmi Mills Superspeeds, Team JK, Team MRF, Gabriel Racing, WSRF Racing, McDowell Racing, and Team Valvoline. Top Indian drivers have started their career racing in Formula Maruti, most notably

Narain Karthikeyan Kumar Ram Narain Karthikeyan (born 14 January 1977) is an Indian racing driver. He was the first Indian driver to compete in Formula One. He has previously competed in A1GP, and the Le Mans Series. He has won multiple races in A1GP, British F3, ...

Parthiva Sureshwaren Parthiva Sureshwaren (born 21 February 1980) is an Indian race car driver born in Chennai. Career A1 Grand Prix Sureshwaren drove in the 2006-07 A1 Grand Prix season for A1 Team India at the Australian round, replacing Narain Karthikeyan. He ...

Karun Chandhok Karun Chandhok (born 19 January 1984) is an Indian racing driver and television presenter who last competed in Formula E for Mahindra Racing. Previously, Chandhok has competed for Hispania Racing in Formula One in . Before this, he drove in the ...

and other drivers who have had quite a successful outing in this form are Ajay Kini, Mohit Aryan, Goutham Parekh, Devang Shah, Narendhran, Sudarshan Rao, Kartik Shankar.

Design

The car was a brainchild of S. Karivardhan who wanted an affordable single seater that can be highly economical to run/own, as well as being a stepping stone to several new drivers. It made its debut in 1988 at the

Sholavaram Cholavaram, also spelled Sholavaram, is a suburb north of Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India. It is popular as Sholavaram and is also known for the Cholavaram lake. Adjoining the lake, there was an defunct Air Force Airfield which was used as a moto ...

races in

Chennai Chennai (, ), formerly known as Madras ( the official name until 1996), is the capital city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost Indian state. The largest city of the state in area and population, Chennai is located on the Coromandel Coast of th ...

. Young drivers in India often begin their competitive careers in Formula Maruti, or after a few years in Karting. Formula Maruti provides drivers with their first insights of a racecar, their first racecar experience, and this is where they cut their teeth in racecar set-up.

Engine

The engine and gearbox are from

Maruti 800 The Maruti Suzuki 800 is a city car that was manufactured by Maruti Suzuki in India from 1983 to 2014. The first generation (SS80) was based on the 1979 Suzuki Alto and had an 800 cc F8B engine, hence the moniker. Widely regarded as the mo ...

car, which is an 800 cc 3-cylinder engine. This series is a regular in the Indian motorsport scene ever since its launch in 1988. The chassis is a spaceframe monocoque with FRP body panels.

Teams

*WSRF *Rams Racing

Champions

External links

thehinduimages.com

References