Maruti Suzuki Ignis spied testing in India ahead of festive season launch; what we know so far

Maruti Suzuki, the country's largest car-maker, is expected to launch the Ignis in India during the festive season this year. The Ignis, which made its India debut at the Auto Expo 2016, is currently in its testing phase in the country. The test mules of the Ignis have been snapped in test runs across the country.

The motor buffs at IndianAutos blog have shared pictures of two Ignis prototypes snapped in Chennai. Although the images have nothing new to reveal because the cars are hidden in thick black camouflage, the repeated sighting of the model tell us work on the model is progressing at a rapid pace.

The Ignis, the third model to be sold through Maruti's Nexa premium dealership, is expected to take to the roads around Diwali this year. Unveiled at the 44th Tokyo Motor Show last year, the Ignis will rival Mahindra KUV100 and Ford EcoSport in India when launched.

Under the hood, the Ignis is likely to get a 1.2-litre VTVT petrol engine and a 1.3-litre MultiJet diesel unit. In terms of dimensions, Maruti Suzuki Ignis measures 3,700mm in length, 1,660mm in width and 1,595mm in height. It has a ground clearance of 180mm and comes with a wheelbase of 2,435mm.

The Ignis is expected to house features such as projector headlights, outside rear-view mirrors with turn indicators, 18-inch alloy wheels, a rear-mounted spoiler and LED headlights, touchscreen infotainment system, Anti-lock Braking System (ABS) with Electronic Brake Distribution (EBD) and airbags.

The new Maruti compact crossover is expected to fall in the price bracket of Rs.4.8 lakh to Rs.6.8 lakh.

[1 lakh = 100,000 | 1 crore = 10 million | 100 crore = 1 billion]