In a car exhibition, seven cars of seven different companies — Cadillac,…
2021
In a car exhibition, seven cars of seven different companies — Cadillac, Ambassador, Fiat, Maruti, Mercedes, Bedford and Fargo — were displayed in a row, all facing east, such that:
Cadillac was immediately to the right of Fargo.
Fargo was fourth to the right of Fiat.
Maruti was between Ambassador and Bedford.
Fiat, which was third to the left of Ambassador, was at one of the ends.
Which of the following is true?
- A.
Maruti is immediately to the left of Ambassador
- B.
Bedford is immediately to the left of Fiat
- C.
Bedford is at one of the ends
- D.
Fiat is second to the right of Maruti
Attempted by 6 students.
Show answer & explanation
Correct answer: A
Concept
In a linear arrangement, fix the most constrained clue first, then place the remaining items relative to it. When everyone faces the same direction (east), "to the right" and "to the left" are consistent for all of them, so positions can be laid out on a single line and each clue checked as a fixed offset between two cars.
Building the row
Take the row from left to right. Start with the most restrictive clue: Fiat sits at one end and is third to the left of Ambassador. Placing Fiat at the left end fixes Ambassador three places to its right:
Fiat is at the left end (position 1); Ambassador is three to its right (position 4).
Fargo is fourth to the right of Fiat, so Fargo takes position 5; Cadillac, immediately to Fargo's right, takes position 6.
Maruti lies between Ambassador and Bedford, so the three sit together as Bedford–Maruti–Ambassador, filling positions 2, 3 and 4.
The only seat left, position 7 (the right end), goes to Mercedes.
The complete row, left to right, is:
Position | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Car | Fiat | Bedford | Maruti | Ambassador | Fargo | Cadillac | Mercedes |
Reading off the answer
From this row, Maruti (position 3) sits directly to the left of Ambassador (position 4), so "Maruti is immediately to the left of Ambassador" is true.
Cross-check
Bedford is at position 2, not next to Fiat and not at an end, so the statements about Bedford fail.
Fiat is at position 1 and Maruti at position 3; counting from Maruti, Fiat is to its left, not to its right, so that statement fails too.
Mirroring the whole row (reading it from the other end) keeps every clue satisfied and still leaves Maruti directly beside Ambassador, so the conclusion does not depend on which end you start from.