Maruti Suzuki Dzire CNG Spied On Test; Launch Likely Soon

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Maruti Suzuki Dzire CNG is expected to launch in the coming months as the brand plans to further widen its S-CNG portfolio in the wake of rising fuel prices

Maruti Suzuki India Limited (MSIL) discontinued the tried-and-tested 1.3-litre DDiS Fiat-sourced diesel engine ahead of the BSVI emission standards that came into effect on April 1, 2020. With MSIL’s entry-level range filled with hatchbacks across different price brackets, the lack of a diesel engine led to the brand pondering other ways to increase fuel economy.

The Baleno received the 1.2-litre DualJet mild-hybrid petrol engine, which was then added to the Dzire’s range last year. Subsequently, the S-CNG lineup grew as Maruti Suzuki believes alternative fuel technology is the way to go for the betterment of the future. Just over a year ago, the Indo-Japanese brand announced that it had reached one lakh sales milestone of its CNG-powered vehicles in a fiscal.

The total S-CNG sales crossed three lakh units in September 2020 and more than 1.57 lakh factory-fitted S-CNG vehicles were sold in FY2020-21 – making it the highest in a Financial Year. The existing S-CNG lineup comprises models like Alto, Wagon R, Eeco, S-Presso, Tour S, Ertiga, Super Carry and Celerio, and it will further be expanded in the near future.

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The largest carmaker in the country has plans to manufacture two and a half lakh CNG vehicles this fiscal – increase of nearly 60 per cent over the last Financial Year. Hyundai hopes to triple its CNG model sales to around 35,000 units this calendar year while Tata has repeatedly been spotted testing the CNG-spec Tiago and Tigor in recent months.

To extend its lead in this category, Maruti Suzuki is expected to further widen its S-CNG portfolio and the spy pictures you see here are of the Dzire. The undisguised test mule of the compact sedan clearly carried an emission testing kit and we do suspect it to be the CNG version. The rear suspension can be seen pressed from the back as well.

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We do expect the Dzire as well as its hatchback sibling, the Swift, to gain factory-fitted CNG variants in the near future. Maruti Suzuki’s S-CNG vehicles are equipped with Dual Interdependent ECUs, a micro switch to ensure the vehicle turns off and does not start during CNG filling process, and a change-over switch with auto-mode for instant switching between the fuels.