Maruti Suzuki gears up to launch new Dzire sedan

Maruti Suzuki India today released a teaser sketch of its all-new Dzire sedan, which is to get an official reveal in New Delhi on April 24. With the new version of sub-four-metre compact sedan, Maruti will be looking to accelerate sales of one of its best-selling models in India.

The Dzire sold a total of 167,266 units in FY2016-17, enough to get it third place in the Top 10 best-selling passenger cars in India. But the market reality is that sales of the Dzire have been slowing down as they have for the compact sedan market. Sales in the last fiscal were down 14.63 percent as compared to 195,939 units in FY2015-16.

Over a nine-year period (January 2009 to March 2017), the Dzire has sold a total of 1,334,934 units, comprising 856,931 diesel variants and 478,003 petrol variants.

According to Autocar India, what sets the new Dzire apart from the earlier car is that the car isn’t half as compromised a design. Targeted more at the owner drivers rather than fleet operators, the new Dzire is much nicer to look at. The profile, to begin with, is a lot more attractive now and well balanced. There’s a nice flow to the bonnet and fenders, the windscreens and the roof blend into a uniform arch and the strong shoulder line and the compact boot give it plenty of definition.

Up front, the new Dzire borrows its headlights and grille enclosures from the all-new Swift hatchback, and the bonnet, front fenders and headlamps appear to be shared as well. The chin, however, is completely different. It looks much more upmarket. Maruti designers have added tonnes and tonnes of chrome (around the grille, inside the headlights and it even gets chromed whiskers) and on the Dzire the sporty floating grille has been converted into a more traditional air dam

The new Swift Dzire, which is built on the same platform as the Baleno and the new Swift, is likely to be powered by the current crop of engines, the punchy 85hp, 1.2-litre K12 petrol and the popular Fiat-based 75hp, 1.3-litre Multijet diesel. Both engines will come with AMT single-clutch automatics as well as manual gearboxes. And these engines should be sufficient as the new Dzire is expected to be a substantial 70 or 80 kilos lighter than the outgoing car. Unlike the Ciaz, there won’t be a SHVS system on the Dzire just yet, but insiders say a more powerful electric assist system is being worked on. Maruti is keen to hold onto the lead as far as fuel efficiency is concerned.

The new Dzire will go head to head with the Honda Amaze, Ford Figo Aspire, Tata Zest and the Volkswagen Ameo in India. Expect keen pricing from Maruti for its big-selling compact sedan, with prices starting not too far from the current car, somewhere in the range of Rs 5.5-10.8 lakh. The step up in ability, however, will be huge.