Maruti Suzuki Grand Vitara CNG will be launched in India in December 2022 and it will likely have a claimed fuel efficiency of 26.10 km/kg
Maruti Suzuki India Limited (MSIL) has rapidly been expanding its CNG lineup in the domestic market and it looks like more models are getting the dual fuel treatment. Only a few days ago, the largest car producer in the country introduced the CNG-spec Baleno and XL6. It was followed by the launch of the Toyota Glanza CNG and the bookings for the Urban Cruiser Hyryder CNG have officially opened as well.
The Toyota midsize SUV, in its CNG avatar, will arrive amidst the discontinuation of the Urban Cruiser compact SUV. While the official launch date is not available yet, the Japanese manufacturer will introduce the Hyryder CNG sooner rather than later. It looks like the sibling of the Hyryder, the Maruti Suzuki Grand Vitara, will gain a CNG variant as well.
The launch of the Maruti Suzuki Grand Vitara CNG has been scheduled for next month and it will become the first Maruti model to feature a regular petrol mild-hybrid, a strong hybrid and CNG fuel options. In addition, customers wanting to own a fuel-economical midsize SUV but could not afford the strong hybrid variants will have the CNG iteration as an attractive choice.
It will also help in expanding the portfolio of the Grand Vitara and if it launches before the Brezza CNG, it will become the first CNG-powered Maruti Suzuki SUV in India as well. The 1.5-litre four-cylinder K15C mild-hybrid petrol engine will be utilised. The same engine in its CNG specification already powers the Ertiga CNG and XL6 CNG.
We do expect the same performance numbers to be retained as it will develop around 88 bhp and 98.5 Nm in the CNG mode – Around 15 hp less powerful and 38 Nm less torquey. The engine will likely be paired only with a five-speed manual transmission only. The variant details of the Maruti Suzuki Grand Vitara CNG are yet to be divulged.
Compared to the respective petrol mild-hybrid variants, expect the midsize CNG SUV to be costlier by Rs. 75,000.