Maruti Suzuki India Limited introduced India to its newest beast, the Kizashi, at the Auto Expo 2010 held in New Delhi. The car is expected to hit the showrooms in India later this year. The Kizashi is Suzuki’s attempt to get some attention in the highly lucrative large mid-size sedan segment across the world. Suzuki has till date launched four sedans, the Esteem, the Baleno, the SX4 and the Swift Dzire. The Kizashi will be its fifth.
The Kizashi is powered by a 2.4-litre petrol engine and generates around 185 bhp. The engine will power the wheels through a six-speed manual or CVT. We expect the manual version to be launched first in India. The Kizashi, with its looks and features will certainly contend for attention as far as the competition in the segment is concerned. The Kizashi is sized and has a similar engine to that of the Honda Accord but is priced lower. The Kizashi will compete with the likes of the Skoda Laura, and the Volkswagen Jetta.
The estimated cost of the Kizashi is around 17-18 lakh. The defining points of the cars’ success in the Indian Market would be the kind of features in the car and also to an extent the ownership cost. Maruti Suzuki has witnessed its share of ups and downs in the Indian Car Market and they surely, by now, have understood the mindset of the Indian customers. The Kizashi received accolades at the Auto Expo 2010 in New Delhi and this response might have given Maruti Suzuki a heads-up as to how the car would be received here.
