Maruti Suzuki To Upgrade The Alto

Maruti has been the market leader in the Indian automobile industry for many years now. In the month of July 2016, seven out of the top 10 best-selling cars in India were from the Japanese car firm. Two cars from the South Korean car manufacturer Hyundai and one car from the French carmaker Renault completed the top 10 chart. Although, Maruti has a wide range of offerings in India, the company accepts that they are facing a strong challenge from Renault.

The Kwid has been clocking good numbers since its launch and it is rare to see a relatively new entrant makes its way to the top-10 selling cars in India. Renault launched the Kwid with an 800cc motor in September last year to take on the Alto 800. Earlier this month, the French carmaker also introduced a more powerful version of the Kwid to compete with the Alto K10. Maruti Suzuki confessed that as the Kwid gains more popularity, it poses as a serious threat to the best-selling car in India, the Alto.

In July 2016, Maruti Suzuki sold 19,844 units of Alto, while Renault managed to sell 9,897 units of the Kwid over the same period. Kenichi Ayukawa, MD and CEO of Maruti Suzuki reportedly said that the company is working to upgrade the Alto to counter the challenge laid by the Kwid. He further added that the company is enthused by a good response to the Vitara Brezza and the Ciaz, both of which made the list of best-selling cars in India last month.

Ayukawa also stated, "Originally entry cars had big volumes, but now people expect a little more premium cars. We have to prepare and respond to all these expectations. The Indian customer is upgrading and expecting more premium vehicles.”

The Japanese firm currently has two operational manufacturing facilities, both of which are in Haryana (Manesar and Gurgaon). The company is now gearing up to begin production in Hansalpur, Gujarat, from 2017 where new cars models such as the Swift, the Ignis and the Baleno RS will also be produced. This new plant will not only help the company reduce the waiting periods on its Baleno and Vitara Brezza models, but also help ease the pressure on the plants in Haryana.