India is currently the sixth biggest car market behind China, USA, Japan, Germany and South Korea. Japanese car maker Suzuki is expecting India to climb up the ladder and break in to top three by end of this decade. The Hamamatsu auto major's Indian subsidiary, Maruti Suzuki is determined to play big part in the projected growth.
Also read: With 4 launches this fiscal, Maruti Suzuki's reign in India could just get longer
"India is expected to grow into the third-biggest car market in the world by 2020 and we are determined to play a big part in that growth," said Kinji Saito, Executive General Manager and Managing Officer (Global Automotive Operations), Suzuki Motor Corporation (SMC), at the Geneva Motor Show, reports Business Standard.
Maruti Suzuki is in the pole position in India with nearly 50 per cent market share. Maruti Suzuki Alto is the bestselling car in India while Dzire, Swift, WagonR, Vitara Brezza and Baleno are the top sellers from Maruti Suzuki's stable. Suzuki Motor Gujarat, subsidiary of SMC has also commenced production at the new plant exclusively for Maruti Suzuki to raise its total production to 2 million units by 2020.
The Gujarat plant will have a capacity for producing 7.5 lakh units annually once the operations start in full swing. Maruti Suzuki's two units at Gurugram and Manesar have a total production capacity of 1.5 million units annually.
Maruti Suzuki new car launches in the past two years are highly successful. The Baleno and the Vitara Brezza launch in October 2015 and March 2016 respectively are leaders in its segments. The company also launched Ignis compact crossover and Baleno RS hot hatch in 2017. Initial response indicates new models are also destined to taste victory.
As part of its 2020 target, the company had earlier said it would bring out 15 models. For the next financial year, Maruti Suzuki will launch all-new third generation Swift, compact sibling DZire and upgraded version of its premium crossover S-Cross.
