General Motors (GM) India is gearing up to launch the new edition of its Captiva Sports Utility Vehicle (SUV) by March 2012. The American manufacturer will be replacing the current 2.0 L Chevrolet Captiva with the 2.2 L Automatic Transmission variant. Market sources say that Chevrolet had been delaying the official launch of the car in India till now as it wanted to sell all the units of the current Captiva that it had stocked at dealerships. Earlier, Captiva 2.2 AT was exhibited by the company at the 2012 New Delhi Auto Expo in January.
Apart from a bigger engine, the new Captiva will have attractive exteriors, wider front grille and refreshed interiors. It will be brought to the domestic market as a Completely Built Unit (CBU) from South Korea and will be priced close to Rs. 20-22 lacs, Rs. 2 lacs more than its predecessor. According to P. Balendran, Vice President of GM India, the manufacturer may start producing the SUV in India depending on demand. Presently, close to 100 units of Chevrolet Captiva are rolled out by the company on a monthly basis.
According to Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM), there was a 12 per cent increase in the sales of premium SUVs priced close to Rs. 25 lacs last year, with a total of 17,549 units hitting the road between April-December 2011. The timing of new Captiva's launch will certainly help the manufacturer in selling the model in huge numbers. Among the competitors, Toyota has already unveiled its new Fortuner in India and Mahindra & Mahindra is working on a new premium SUV for Indian market with Ssangyong.
The company is also working full time to bring its luxury sports car Camaro to India with right hand drive mechanism. When launched in the country, it will be the top end model of Chevrolet's domestic portfolio. Malibu, its premium sedan, is not likely to be launched in the country in coming times.
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