Maruti Suzuki's next offering in the sedan segment, Ciaz, is not expected until September but the spy photos of the car has been doing the rounds on the web for quite sometime.
Now the latest in the line is an image posted by the MotorBeam team, which shows Ciaz being tested outside Maruti's Gurgaon plant. The car is seen heavily camouflaged, thus not revealing much details on its design.
Ciaz, the new entry into the C-segment, was first seen at the Delhi Auto Expo 214 and is likely to make its India debut in September. The car, codenamed YL1, is expected to replace the underperforming SX4 sedan in the country and resembles the Suzuki Authentics concept car, which was shown at the 2013 Shanghai Motor Show.
Ciaz is likely to pack the same 1.3 liter Multijet diesel or 1.4 liter K Series petrol engine of Ertiga. Under the hood, it is expected to carry some of the features of both SX4 and Ertiga. Other speculated features of the car include 16-inch alloy wheels, keyless entry, push button start, puddle lamps and leather seats.
The car is also expected to host a number of safety features like Anti-lock Braking System (ABS) with Electronic Brake-force Distribution (EBD). Rumours are also rife that the Maruti's new sedan will get the Automated Manual Transmission (AMT) technology, which was introduced with the new Maruti Suzuki Celerio. Ciaz will take on the likes of Hyundai Verna, Honda City and Volkswagen Vento.
Maruti is also rumoured to launch the AMT version of Alto K10. Alto K10, a successful small offering of Marurti, has seen a dip in its sales in recent years. The introduction of the AMT variant of Alto K10 is expected to salvage its losing charm in the sub-continent market.
(Edited by Vishnuprasad S Pillai)
