It made its mark with the people’s car, the M800, revolutionising Indian motoring with a string of affordable automobiles. Yes, it did have a fling with the upper end of the market with the Kizashi, the model that it imported as a completely built-up unit, but the prohibitive import levies proved a dealbreaker.
Maruti Suzuki India Ltd (MSIL) is not giving up on trying to tap the well-heeled, though. Fresh off the launch of its much-awaited Gypsy successor, the Jimny, the company is gearing up to roll out its maiden hybrid MPV, the Invicto, on July 5, which it says will be its attempt to ‘make a dent’ in the Rs 20 lakh-plus segment in the market.
To be retailed across the more than 600 Nexa stores it has set up, the luxury MPV will be the cross-badged version of the Toyota Innova Hycross that was launched in November 2022. Bookings for this model will commence on June 19.
“While we are protecting our 60 percent market share in the sub-Rs 10 lakh segment, we have become the leaders in the Rs 10-15 lakh category with a 30 percent market share. We have started participating in the higher price points with our XL6, Grand Vitara and Jimny and now the Invicto,” Maruti Suzuki's Senior Executive Director, Sales, Shashank Srivastava told reporters while making the announcement.
He added, “This model may not give a huge push in our market share in that segment, but we can offer products across different categories to our consumers from all segments.”
MSIL had earlier announced that it would source a hybrid MPV from Toyota Kirloskar Motor as part of a global collaboration between Toyota and Suzuki. While MSIL is yet to reveal the powertrain options for the Invicto MPV, the speculation is that just like the Hycross, this seven-seater model will be offered with a 2.0-litre, 4-cylinder engine producing 173hp as a normal internal combustion engine-driven vehicle and 183hp as a hybrid, while being mated to a CVT (continuously variable transmission) e-CVT (the intelligent version of the same) gearbox, respectively.
When asked about the market potential for the Invicto, Srivastava pointed to the emergence of the three-row premium SUV and MUV segments, which saw sales of about 2,58,000 units last fiscal. Of this, vehicles priced over Rs 20 lakh accounted for around 1,20,000-1,25,000 units.
“Previously, we have been examining vehicles separately as an MPV and an SUV. From our research, we figured that there are customers, who are looking for comfort, space, roominess, great features and good performance, which is either an MPV or an SUV or has the characteristics of both. And that is where this product comes in,” added Srivastava.
While the company didn’t share too many details, it has been learnt from sources that MSIL’s premium MPV will get a panoramic sunroof, a 10.1-inch touchscreen infotainment system with smartphone connectivity and advanced driver assistance system (ADAS) features.
When asked about the target group for this model, Srivastava said, “They fall in the age bracket of 35-45 years and are married or someone with a joint family. The monthly household income will be about Rs 1,50,000 plus, which would be much higher than the industry average. In terms of buying types, they are additional car or replacement car buyers than first-time buyers.”
MSIL aspires to become the leading SUV player this fiscal with a market share of around 25 percent. Besides the Jimny, it recently launched the Fronx, also a compact SUV, to strengthen its product range, after the Brezza and the refurbished Grand Vitara gave its offroader lineup a boost.
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