NEW DELHI : Maruti Suzuki, India’s main automaker, on Wednesday launched its flagship way of life off-roader, Jimny, with a beginning value of ₹12.74 lakh, ex-showroom. Competitor Mahindra’s well-liked SUV Thar, begins at ₹13.87 lakh ex-showroom for its base-level four-wheel drive mannequin.
Whereas Maruti Suzuki’s Jimny is on the market in a five-door model, the Thar is obtainable as a three-door variant. Nevertheless, Mahindra is engaged on a five-door variant of the Thar, which is able to immediately compete with the Jimny, individuals within the know stated, in search of anonymity.
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The five-door Jimny holds important export potential for Maruti Suzuki, because it goals to promote 60,000 models in worldwide markets in FY24, double the 30,000- 40,000 unit gross sales goal it has set for the home market. Maruti has near 30,000 bookings for Jimny because it showcased the product on the Auto Expo 2023 in January.
The approach to life SUV class in India, nonetheless, is dominated by Mahindra’s Thar, which is well-liked with numerous city consumers for its rear-wheel drive variants. The Thar can also be obtainable in three engine trims (1.5l, 2l and a couple of.2l) with each petrol and diesel gasoline sorts. Whereas the Thar’s commanding street presence and off-road capabilities have garnered it a big order guide, Mahindra has been making efforts to ramp-up manufacturing to scale back ready durations, which go as much as a yr for the rear-wheel drive variants. The homegrown automaker is but to fulfil deliveries for 58,000 bookings for the Thar. The Jimny is a smaller and lighter product, with solely a single 1.5l petrol engine variant. It doesn’t include a rear-wheel drive choice.
The approach to life SUV class is a quickly increasing sub-segment inside the sport utility automobile market, witnessing gross sales of almost 40,000 models final yr.
Recognizing the potential of this section, Maruti Suzuki seeks to seize an even bigger slice of the pie, with an expectation to double the section’s volumes with the Jimny. Nevertheless, as a consequence of its specialised 4×4 capabilities, it anticipates the product to initially cater to a distinct segment market.
“The Jimny has been priced at a premium. It has its legacy and a devoted fanbase, however the Thar and Jimny are incomparable. Thar is extra of a life-style automobile, whereas Jimny offers worth with off-roading functionality in five-seater dimensions. It will likely be attention-grabbing to see the protection scores of Jimny within the coming months to do a greater comparability. The excessive value might deter Maruti to draw increased volumes however ought to simply cross volumes of competitors”,Gaurav Vangaal, affiliate director, S&P World Mobility instructed Mint.
In line with auto intelligence agency Jato Dynamics, the top-end computerized transmission of the Jimny is function wealthy and presents 20 distinctive options that aren’t supplied by rivals like Mahindra Thar or Power’s Gurkha.
Up to date: 07 Jun 2023, 11:12 PM IST