Maruti is very optimistic about the recently launched S-Cross crossover and is aiming to sell up to 5000 units every month by eating into the Ford EcoSport and Renault Duster’s sales.
The latest product from the Maruti Suzuki stable to hit the NEXA range of premium showrooms, the S-Cross that is priced between Rs. 8.80 to 14.50 lakhs (ex-showroom, Mumbai) is aiming to end the dominance of the Ford EcoSport and the Renault Duster SUVs by selling 4000-5000 units every month. The company is hoping that the crossover will do well in the market and as per the market demand, production of the vehicle can be altered without any problem. The figure might not look relatively large considering the number of bookings the Hyundai Creta has received.
The Maruti S-Cross is only retailed with two diesel engines and a total of seven variants, with four trims offered with the 1.3-litre DDiS 200 MultiJet diesel engine and three with the more powerful 1.6-litre DDiS 320 diesel mill. Maruti will not be offering the vehicle with a petrol engine or automatic transmission anytime soon and it won’t be exported as well as it is an India specific model. Maruti has a 45 percent share in the Indian car market and when this is coupled with ever rising sales in the SUV segment, one would expect the S-Cross to do well too. However, only time will tell whether this will really be the case or not.
One thing does not work in the S-Cross’ favor is its pricing, which Maruti claims to be very value for money. The company is claiming to have received more than 36,000 pre-launch bookings for the car. But this would have changed post test drives, revealing of its prices and the Hyundai Creta launch. With 35 NEXA showrooms at present, the figure will be increased to 100 dealerships come March 2016 spread across 30 cities in the country. Maruti is believed to have invested more than Rs. 600 crores for developing the S-Cross over a period of four years.
