Maruti Cars
Maruti Suzuki India (MSIL) is one of India’s leading automobile manufacturers. Here, east meets south; the Delhi-based company is a subsidiary of Suzuki Japan, and India’s largest OEM of passenger cars. Out of every two cars sold in India, one is a Maruti. It flaunts an inventory of 13 models with over 150 variants. Back in 1983, Maruti’s first car, the iconic Maruti 800 was the one that caused the revolution in the entire nation. Now, the car maker’s array includes cars like the premium hatchback Ritz, and the popular compact A-Star.Maruti runs two production sites. The Gurgaon facility’s three plants roll out an amazing 700,000 cars every year. The Manesar facility rolls out another 300,000 units. The Maruti 800 had set foot in India when only two contenders, the Hindustan Ambassador and Premier Padmini were around. Right now, it has so many others on the battlefield. To add to the stress in the competition, in come the new BS IV emission norms. The stricter norms sure ensure a greener environment, but they have pushed out M800 from 13 cities. The M800’s engine does not obey the new rules.Maruti exports over 50,000 cars every year and more than 730,000 cars are sold within the nation every year. If Maruti 800 was India’s largest selling compact car till 2004, the Maruti Suzuki Alto is the current largest selling model in India. Also, the Maruti Swift is the largest selling model in the A2 segment.As mentioned earlier, over half the cars sold in India are Maruti cars. During 2007-08, Maruti rolled out 764,842 cars, of which 53,024 were exported to other nations. On the whole, more than six million Maruti Suzuki cars have touched the Indian roads since the launch of the first Maruti car on 14 December 1983.Currently the car maker offers 15 models, Maruti 800, Alto, New WagonR, Estilo, A-star, Ritz, Swift, Swift DZire, SX4, Omni, Eeco, Gypsy and Grand Vitara. While the Maruti Swift, Swift DZire, A-star and SX4 are produced at the Manesar plant, the Grand Vitara is brought into the country from Japan as a completely built unit (CBU). The remaining models are manufactured at the car maker’s Gurgaon Plant. Around 75,000 people are employed directly by Maruti Suzuki and its partners.The auto maker also has plans of bringing in many more new cars into the market. As of now, the Kizashi, Cervo and the RIII are on the cards. The Kizashi car which was showcased at the 2008 Auto Expo will mark Maruti’s entry into the D segment of cars. To compete with the world’s smallest car, the Tata Nano, Maruti plans to display its power with the Cervo which is likely to be priced at around Rs. 1.5 Lakh. The RIII concept which was launched at the Delhi Auto Expo in January 2010 may also see production very soon. Along with these, a diesel variant of the Maruti SX4 will also soon debut on the Indian roads.