With other manufacturers struggling to find growth and momentum in the sluggish automotive market in the past months, Maruti Suzuki has been laughing its way to the bank, courtesy of the all new Celerio hatchback. With an ace up its sleeve, Maruti launched the Celerio with the AMT automatic gearbox that was an instant hit with the masses, who received the comfort and snob value of an automatic at an affordable price. However, if you are planning to get your hands on a Celerio yourself, we have some bad news for you. The Celerio now commands a waiting period of around 4-8 months depending on the variant.
The Celerio ZXi and the ZXi (Option) trims have a waiting period of 4-5 months, while the VXi (AMT) variant has a waiting period of 7-8 months. Even after four months of launch, the demand for the Celerio does not seem to reduce. A major reason for the high waiting period however is the shortage of the AMT gearbox, which is manufactured by Magnetti Marelli and is imported from Italy. Maruti also doubled the production capacity of the Celerio from 5000 units to 10,000 units to keep up, but it seems it’s still falling short from the actual demand.
Launched in February, the hatchback with the AMT gearbox is not only convenient to drive in cities, but also returns an impressive fuel economy of 23.1 km/l as per ARAI. The Celerio uses 1.0-litre K-Series petrol engine that produces 68 PS of power and 90 Nm of torque, mated to a 5-speed manual and AMT gearbox. The company also recently launched the CNG variant across the country, but with the 5-speed manual transmission variant only.
The top-end Maruti Suzuki Celerio ZXi trim has been priced at Rs. 4.34 lakhs, while the ZXi (O) has been priced at Rs. 4.78 lakhs. The Celerio VXi (AMT) variant on the other hand has been priced at Rs. 4.43 lakhs (all prices ex-showroom, Delhi). Maruti will also bring the Celerio diesel with the all new 800cc diesel engine that is being developed for the Maruti Y9T LCV, set for launch early next year, while a ZXi AMT variant with all the bells and whistles has also been planned to be launched later in the year.
