Eight-SUV Blitz: Maruti Suzuki’s Roadmap to Reclaim 50% Market Share

Suzuki Motor Corporation has renewed its ambition to regain a 50% share of India’s passenger vehicle market, a level it last held in FY2018-19. The company plans to launch eight new model,  including several SUVs over the next five to six years and expand its multi-fuel portfolio. It also targets leadership in electric vehicle manufacturing and exports from India.

Toshihiro Suzuki, Representative Director and President of Suzuki Motor Corporation, said India continues to be Suzuki’s most critical market globally. “We remain committed to achieving a 50% market share and becoming number one in electric vehicle production, sales, and exports,” Suzuki told reporters on the sidelines of the Japan Mobility Show 2025.

In FY2018-19, Maruti Suzuki, the Indian arm of the Japanese automaker, commanded over 50% market share. By the end of 2024, that had slipped to around 40–41%, the lowest in nearly a decade — mainly due to declining demand for small cars and hatchbacks, long the company’s core strength.

The company was late to catch India’s SUV boom, missing the early surge that shifted consumer demand from hatchbacks and sedans to SUVs — a trend swiftly leveraged by Hyundai, Tata Motors, and Kia with models such as the Creta, Nexon, Seltos, and Harrier. However, recognising the shift, Maruti Suzuki has since strengthened its SUV play with models like the Grand Vitara, Brezza, Fronx, and most recently, the Victoris, helping lift SUV contribution to nearly 29% of its total sales.

Autocar Professional had exclusively reported earlier in the year that the company plans to launch half a dozen new SUVs, with a strong focus on the sub-compact SUV segment — including two new models codenamed Y43 and YK9. These are expected to be pivotal in helping Maruti Suzuki regain lost ground in the fast-growing SUV market.

Maruti Suzuki offers 19 models in India, including the yet-to-be-launched e-Vitara, its first electric SUV. The lineup includes four SUVs: Grand Vitara, Jimny, Vitara, and e-Vitara — three compact SUVs (Brezza, Fronx, and Ignis), and three multi-utility vehicles (Invicto, Ertiga, and XL6).

Suzuki Motor Corporation has earmarked ₹70,000 crore in investments to expand manufacturing capacity to 4 million units annually by 2030. The target is 3 million units for the domestic market and 1 million for exports. The new SUV-heavy product offensive will be central to achieving this goal.

The update on eight new launches follows Hyundai Motor India’s recent product roadmap, which revealed 26 models over the next five years — a mix of new models, full changes, derivatives, and refreshes with SUVs accounting for more than 80% of its planned sales.

Suzuki Motor’s Mid-Term Management Plan for FY2030, unveiled earlier this year, details a multi-fuel strategy toward decarbonisation — combining battery electric, hybrid, CNG, and flex-fuel models. The plan includes four battery electric vehicles (BEVs) for India by the decade's end.

By FY2031, Suzuki expects CNG and compressed biogas vehicles to contribute 35% of its powertrain mix, with hybrid and internal combustion vehicles accounting for 25% each, and the rest EVs.