Maruti Suzuki India Ltd. Thursday introduced the Ertiga multi-purpose vehicle, marking its entry into a segment that is crucial for the country's largest car maker by sales to expand its market beyond small and mid-sized cars.
"This car is meant for a compact-car customer wishing to upgrade to a bigger car," Managing Director Shinzo Nakanishi said at a press conference. "This [utility vehicles] is a promising segment and we have been largely missing from this segment."
Sales of utility vehicles have been growing at a fast clip in India and have so far remained immune to expensive loans, high fuel costs and prolonged inflationary pressures that impacted demand for small cars and mid-sized sedans.
Customers have started preferring utility vehicles in India where family sizes tend to be large. Local sales of such vehicles rose 16.5% in the fiscal year ended March 31 to 367,012 autos. In comparison, total car sales grew just 2.2% to 2.02 million.
The robust demand for utility vehicles has also prompted other auto makers to introduce more models in the segment. Ford Motor Co. F +1.51% plans to introduce its EcoSport model later this year while General Motor Co. GM +1.48% will introduce two utility vehicles from its partner SAIC Motor Corp.'s 600104.SH +1.00% portfolio.
Maruti's Ertiga is based on the company's RIII concept that was unveiled during the New Delhi Auto show in 2010. The concept was developed jointly by Maruti and its Japanese parent Suzuki Motor Corp. 7269.TO +1.00% The Ertiga will be pitted against Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd.'s Bolero and Xylo, Toyota Motor Co.'s 7203.TO +0.30% Innova, Tata Motor Ltd.'s Sumo and General Motor's Tavera models.
The New Delhi-based auto maker will sell Ertiga with a newly-developed 1.4-liter gasoline engine from its so-called 'K-series' family and a variant of the 1.3-liter diesel engine that Maruti sources from Fiat F.MI +1.67% SpA.
About Pricing
Ertiga will be available in both petrol and diesel variants. The petrol variant is priced between Rs 5.89 lakh and Rs 7.30 lakh, while the diesel option will cost between Rs 7.30 lakh and Rs 8.45 lakh (ex-showroom Delhi).
While the petrol variant is powered with a 1.4 litre engine, the diesel one will have a 1.3 litre powertrain. The company said the petrol variant delivers a fuel economy of 16.02 kmpl and the diesel one gives 20.77 kmpl.
While the petrol variant is powered with a 1.4 litre engine, the diesel one will have a 1.3 litre powertrain. The company said the petrol variant delivers a fuel economy of 16.02 kmpl and the diesel one gives 20.77 kmpl.
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