Maruti Suzuki is expected to launch a flagship seven-seater SUV in the near future to compete against Hyundai Alcazar
Maruti Suzuki India Limited (MSIL) is working on a number of new launches for the near future and in 2022, we do expect the brand to introduce the facelifted Baleno and the new-gen Vitara Brezza which could go by the name Brezza. The largest carmaker in the country is preparing the next generation Alto as well while the Jimny off-road SUV and a midsize SUV are also in the development.
Courtesy of the recent leaks from a dealer meet, we now know that MSIL has planned to launch at least five new SUVs in India catering to the modern demands of the customers. While Maruti Suzuki holds the highest market share in the domestic space, its main rivals such as Hyundai, Tata, Mahindra and Kia have made use of the surge in popularity of the compact and midsize SUV segments better.
The Indo-Japanese manufacturer appears to have the next generation Vitara in the pipeline for India and it could have an overall length of around 4.3 metres to compete firmly against Hyundai Creta, Kia Seltos, Nissan Kicks, Renault Duster, Skoda Kushaq and VW Taigun amongst others in the highly competitive midsize five-seater SUV segment.
Internally codenamed YFG, it will be underpinned by the DNGA platform as it will be developed in association with Toyota. The five-seater will spawn Toyota and Maruti Suzuki SUVs that will be manufactured at TKM’s Bidadi plant in Karnataka and both will be developed based on each brand’s preferences and requirements. It could be powered by a strong hybrid 1.5-litre petrol engine.
Moving up the ladder, Maruti Suzuki will reportedly bring in a three-row SUV codenamed Y17. It will become the flagship SUV upon arrival and very few details are available at the time of writing. It could act as a direct rival to the Hyundai Alcazar and is expected to sit on the same Heartect architecture as the Ertiga MPV.
It could act as a replacement to the XL6, which is due an update next year and it may as well rival Mahindra XUV700, MG Hector Plus, next-gen Scorpio and Tata Safari. A 1.5-litre four-cylinder petrol engine with hybrid tech could be utilised and it could be linked with a manual and an automatic transmission. The Baleno based compact SUV codenamed YTB is expected to rival Hyundai Venue and Kia Sonet, and it could be the production version of the Futuro-e SUV concept.
*Pics for reference only