Maruti Suzuki India Limited (MSIL), the largest passenger car maker of India, has been facing a bad time in the past few months. Lost market share, labour problems at Manesar production plant and steadily increasing competition from other manufacturers have been the bane of this giant in recent times.
In a bid to recapture its lost glory, the company is lining up a number of vehicles to showcase at the upcoming 2012 New Delhi Auto Expo. At this event, which will be the biggest ever in Asia, Maruti Suzuki will enter a few new segments and hope to ruffle a few feathers here and there with some new models.
One of the most talked about launches is the Ertiga, a compact Multi-Purpose Vehicle (MPV). The company will exhibit this car for the first time at this high profile event and will certainly be hoping that all eyes will be at its stall. This car will be assimilated with a new K14 VVT engine and will also be available with a 1.3 L diesel DDiS Diesel Super Turbo Engine.
Apart from this MPV, the company will also foray into the Sports Utility Vehicle (SUV) segment with its first model of this type.
This sudden focus on passenger utility vehicles stems from the potential of the segment. At present, this segment accounts for 15 per cent sales of the total cars sold in the Indian auto industry. The MPV segment alone is responsible for 9 per cent sales of automobiles in the domestic market. Therefore, this move by Maruti Suzuki into uncharted territories will help it in increasing its bottom lines.
As per Mayank Pareek, Managing Executive Officer (Marketing and Sales), Maruti Suzuki, “As the market gets more competitive, we have to gear up for the new dynamics. We are thus showing the best we can offer. The new models like the SUV, MPV and MUV will prove to the world that we are future-ready. We need to get first-hand feedback for this,”
With the launch of these passenger utility vehicles, the biggest small car maker of India will aim to capture a magnanimous 50 per cent share of the domestic passenger car segment by 2015.
But it seems that utility vehicles are not the only ones that this company is looking to unleash upon Indian roads. The company may also be thinking about expanding its small car portfolio in India by exhibiting two sub-800 cc cars at the Auto Expo in January. These two cars, called the MR Wagon and Palette, will be powered by the same 660 cc engine, though their price will remain higher than that of the 800 cc Alto.
Though the event will be used as a platform for showcasing these cars, the company has no immediate plans of launching them in India. In fact, the real purpose of this move will be to assess the response of the members of key demographics, namely small car buyers, about these vehicles. This concern stems from the fact that both cars look quite unconventional and will be priced close to Rs. 3.5 lacs to Rs. 5 lacs, quite high considering their engine capacity. However, these have created a niche in the Japanese market due to their spacious interiors, peppy exteriors and excellent mileage and the company will want the same for India too.
With many product unwrappings lined up by Maruti Suzuki for the upcoming New Delhi Auto Expo, the company will hope to reinvigorate sales and regain lost consumers.
