Maruti eyes carving niche in MPV segment with upcoming car Ertiga

Maruti is set to foray into compact MPV segment next month. The new seven-seater Maruti Ertiga is aimed at establishing a niche in the MPV segment of the Indian car market. With the new MPV ‘Ertiga’, Maruti Suzuki India is hopeful to attract the large families and hatchback up-graders towards the MPVs rather thant the sedans. According to the company’s Managing Executive Officer – Marketing, Mayank Pareek the commercial buyers are not at priority for Ertiga and the new car would surely not grate the market share of the segment toppers Mahindra Bolero and Toyota Innova instead it would be introduced between these two.

See More Maruti Ertiga Pictures                                                                        Read More on Maruti Ertiga

Auto experts suggest that for decades now the Indian car market has been ruled by the small cars but the MPV segment too has flourished over the years. The people of the country at present look at the MPVs as taxis but the better prices and features can make people try out different vehicles. The volume drawing category for the MPVs is the families in rural areas with Mahindra Bolero topping the charts with the total sale of 8,000 units per month and Toyota Innova following the suite with 5,000 units per month. The M&M Bolero prices range from Rs. 6.19 lakh to Rs. 6.69 lakh and Toyota Innova prices range from Rs. 9.14 lakh to Rs. 13.54 lakh. Both the Innova and the Bolero are traversing the Indian roads as the major people mover and Maruti Suzuki India is sure that the new Maruti Ertiga is going to surpass the sales figures and fan base of Toyota Innova; the company however is not sure about overtaking the likes of Bolero in the commercial segment.

See More Maruti Ertiga Pictures                                                                        Read More on Maruti Ertiga

Mr. Pareek while narrating the success story of the Swift hatchback mentioned that the launch of Maruti Swift in 2005 started a revolution in the hatchback segment. The company’s initial sale target was 2,000 units per month but the actual figures were way too high than expected. He added that with the Maruti Ertiga the company wants to carve out a niche segment for vehicles that are easy to drive in cities and park in the poky parking spaces. The current Swift hatchback sales are around 20,000 units per month and Maruti Suzuki India is confident that Ertiga would fill in the shoes of Swift both in terms of sales and waiting period. Other car makers in India are too routing to tap the MPV segment like Hyundai is readying for the release of Hexa-Space, the MPV it unveiled at the Auto Expo 2012. Toyota is planning to introduce a MPV built on the Etios platform, Nissan looking forward to roll out Evalia and General Motors is planning the launch of a ‘yet to be named’ MPV by the end of 2012.

Read More on : Maruti Ertiga review