Maruti may drive in SUVs priced up to ₹20 lakh in next three years

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Maruti Suzuki, the nation’s automobile market leader known for its small and affordable cars, is making a big shift to sport utility vehicles, and will have a range of SUVs priced up to ₹20 lakh in the next three years.

The maker of the Alto and Wagon R intends to launch four new SUVs starting at ₹10 lakh, adding more options to the Vitara Brezza for customers who want to upgrade from a small car to a Maruti Suzuki SUV, people with knowledge of the plans said.

The company believes the lack of upgrading options in SUVs in its portfolio was taking such customers to rivals like Hyundai, Kia, Mahindra & Mahindra and

, which all offer a range of products priced ₹10-20 lakh, they said.

While trying to fill that gap in its product line, the local unit of Japan’s Suzuki Motor will also be taking its core USP of fuel efficiency into the SUVs.

The new range of SUVs will offer CNG and hybrid systems along with petrol powertrains, allowing it to offer double-digit fuel efficiency in large SUVs too, the people said.

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spokesperson told ET that customer preferences were evolving and that the company was consistently working at bringing new products by closely monitoring the market trends and customer demands.

Co may Launch Futuro Concept

“However, as per our policy, at this time we cannot give any future guidance on new product lines. We will share with you relevant details in due time,” the spokesperson added.

maruti

In a presentation shared with dealers in November, Maruti Suzuki informed the channel partners that the company would have four new options in the SUV segment, starting from a compact sub-four-metre vehicle to a 4.4-metre, seven-seat SUV.

Including these, the company aims to have a portfolio of more than half a dozen utility vehicles in India, including its existing UVs like the Ertiga, the people said. Much like the cars, Maruti Suzuki intends to have an option at every ₹50,000 price point in the SUV range, they said.

It markets the Ignis as an ‘urban SUV’, with prices ranging from ₹5.5 lakh to ₹8.5 lakh. The company is expected to launch the Futuro concept crossover on the Baleno platform, codenamed YTB, in 2022 to take on the Tata Nexon.

The YTB crossover will sit alongside the Vitara Brezza, which is due for a facelift. The YTB and the Brezza are positioned in the ₹ 8-12 lakh range.

It will bring in the Suzuki Jimny off-roader, codenamed YWD, which will come with three-door and five-door options to take on the Mahindra Thar. It is likely to be priced ₹10-15 lakh.

Vehicles in Tieup with Toyota

Two vehicles developed in association with Toyota Motor as part of their global partnership will likely be launched next year and the year after.

A 4.2-metre SUV, internally codenamed the YFG, will position itself against the Hyundai Creta, while the larger 4.4-meter vehicle will take on the Tata Safari and Mahindra XUV 700. These are likely to be positioned in the ₹10-20 lakh range.

These new models are likely to bring an incremental output of close to half a million units in the coming two to three years, said one of four people in the know ET spoke to.

Experts say, just like Maruti’s entry into sub-4 meter SUV market with Brezza several years ago expanded the segment, the new launches are further expected to offer a fillip to the already growing SUV market in ₹10-20 lakh space. Maruti Suzuki senior executive director Shashank Srivastava in a recent interview to ET had said if other global markets were a precedent, the SUV segment should grow to around 45-48% of the Indian market from 39% at present, which suggested further headroom for growth in the segment.

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