First glimpse of the ‘Ciaz’ sedan from Maruti Suzuki was seen at the Delhi Auto Expo 2014 event held in February, 2014. When launched, pricing and mileage shall be two vital factors in India for this car to do well, hence the sedan coming from the Maruti stable the product's mileage is likely to be decent, as far as price is concerned a hypothetical starting price of Rs 7 lakh is being expected for this sedan. Skoda has been in the country for quite a while now, news has been doing rounds that Skoda may bring in a refreshingly new the Rapid sedan that is expected to be powered by a 1.5 Liter diesel engine that shall be mated to optional dual clutch automatic gearbox and 5 speed manual gearbox.
The Ciaz sedan is slated to be launched sometime by second half of 2014, probably just before the festive season. The Ciaz will enter the Indian automobile market loaded with a 1.4-litre K-Series petrol engine that is also found under the Ertiga's hood, along with a 1.6-litre diesel engine, which will most probably be supplied by Fiat. The engine is expected to be mated to a five-speed manual transmission. It is also said that the company may introduce the Ciaz sedan in an AMT variant. Moreover, sources have stated that the car may feature infotainment system with Bluetooth, AC with climate control, cooled glove box, steering mounted audio controls in the interiors. For safety, the sedan may be loaded with ABS and EBD technology. Though Maruti Suzuki refused to divulge details about it, a company official confirmed that the mid-sized sedan is built on a new platform and will be a completely new car for Suzuki’s global range.
The exterior of the new Skoda Rapid is not expected to receive major cosmetic upgrades this time around. But, the interiors may get a refreshed appeal and shall be loaded with interesting features. The steering wheel may probably be borrowed from the Superb sibling. With the anticipated launch of this newer version, the older 1.6 Liter variant shall be discontinued. Detailed report on pricing and technical specification is not known for now and shall be revealed during an official announcement made by the company.
The upcoming Ciaz is expected to perform well in the Indian market owing to smart design, along with performance and reliability factors that comes naturally with the Maruti Suzuki line in the country. Recently, Skoda had launched a limited edition of Skoda Rapid Ultima in petrol as well as diesel variant. The petrol version is powered by 1.6-litre MPI that generates about 103 Bhp of peak power at 5250 rpm and 220 Nm of torque at about 3800rpm. The diesel version gets a 1.6-litre TDI engine that generates about 103bhp of power at 4400rpm and a maximum torque of about 250 Nm at 2500 Rpm. The special edition of Skoda Rapid Ultima is offered at a starting price of Rs. 8,33,156 Lakh (ex-showroom New Delhi).
