Maruti Suzuki bets on XA Alpha to up its game in UV segment

Maruti Suzuki, which launched its all-new S-Cross crossover on August 5, has reported in its Annual Report 2014-15, released on August 7, that fiscal year 2015-16 will see the company launch a slew of new models.  

Chairman RC Bhargava, in his message to the company's shareholders in the 2014-15 Annual Report, has been quoted as saying: “Soon, we will also introduce the Compact SUV, the concept of which was presented as XA-Alpha. This will help us cater to an emerging class of customers who prefer SUV appeal while staying compact.”

The XA Alpha was showcased at the Auto Expo 2012 in New Delhi. The compact SUV would help the company meet the requirements of an emerging class of customers who prefer SUV appeal while retaining their preference for a compact car. It is understood that Suzuki Japan and Maruti Suzuki engineers have been jointly working on new model development.

Maruti is also working with Suzuki Japan on hybrid and electric vehicle technology and will bring it into commercial production in India at an appropriate time.  

In 2014-15, the company’s market share rose by almost 3 percent to reach 45 percent of the total passenger vehicle market in India.

“We will attach more focus on exports than what we have done in the past. We will have to plan for launching global products to serve the advanced markets and expanding our network in the emerging markets,” Bhargava added.