Suzuki's Gujarat plant to start trial production from January; Baleno, Vitara Brezza waiting period to go down

Suzuki Motor Corporation is inching closer to inauguration of the Gujarat manufacturing unit that will supply vehicles exclusively to Maruti Suzuki. According to reports, the Japanese car maker will start trial production in the new plant in January 2017.

The first assembly line will manufacture close to 15 lakh cars. At present, the combined output of Maruti Suzuki's plants at Manesar and Gurgaon is 15 lakh cars a year.

Once production commences at the plant, it will ease pending demand for Baleno and Vitara Brezza, reports Business Standard. Currently, the premium hatchback and compact SUV have over 50,000 pending orders each.

The waiting period for Baleno and Vitara Brezza currently stands at 6-8 months and 8-9 months, respectively.

The key product from the plant is likely to be Baleno as the company plans to export the hatchback to over 100 foreign markets. The Vitara Brezza is also expected to be exported once the production begins at the Gujarat facility.

The plant will be a significant step towards Suzuki's goal to 50 lakh cars by 2020. At least 20 lakh cars are expected to be sold in India and most of the cars for the domestic market will be manufactured in India.