Maruti Suzuki drives in new Ertiga tagged at Rs 8.35 lakh

The country's largest carmaker Maruti Suzuki India (MSI) on Friday said it has launched a new version of its multi-purpose vehicle Ertiga, priced between Rs 8.35-12.79 lakh (ex-showroom).

The model comes with a 1.5 litre petrol engine paired with both manual and automatic transmissions.

The auto major has also launched CNG trims of the vehicle.

The model comes with hybrid technology and driven by an all-new advanced six-speed automatic transmission with paddle shifters.

Ertiga's launch ten years ago was a significant moment in the Indian automobile industry, as it created a new segment that has been growing at a CAGR (compound annual growth rate) of 4.7 per cent," MSI Managing Director & CEO Hisashi Takeuchi noted.

The next-gen Ertiga with advanced technology features comes with a new engine and an all-new transmission, he added.

"As it stays true to its brand vision of providing comfort, technology, and safety features, while being fuel-efficient for customers, the next-gen Ertiga will surely continue to be India's go-to MPV. We are confident that the next-gen Ertiga will be widely embraced by our customers," Takeuchi stated.

Available both in petrol and CNG options, Ertiga offers a mileage of 20.51 km/l (petrol) and 26.11km/kg (CNG).

In an interaction with PTI, MSI Senior Executive Director (Marketing & Sales) Shashank Srivastava said the multi-purpose vehicle (MPV) segment has been witnessing growth over the last few years.

"In 2014-15, it used to be only around 4-5 per cent of the industry but now it has grown to around 8-9 per cent of the industry and the overall volumes have also grown from 1.6-2 lakh units in 2014-15 to almost 2.6 lakh units last fiscal year," he noted.

With the growth in the segment, MSI has also been able to increase it market share from 33-34 per cent to around 61 per cent, Srivastava noted.

"We used to do 5,000 units a month earlier till 2019 but after we introduced Ertiga and XL6, it has grown to 13,500 units a month. The total MPV market roughly per month is around 22,000," he stated.

Srivastava noted that with the segment growing, the company is updating Ertiga and also bringing in a new version of XL6 later this month.

"We would like to increase the market share further provided we have availability of the parts. The pending bookings for the company has already risen to 3 lakh units. We are hoping to increase production to reduce waiting periods," he stated.

Srivastava noted sales of Ertiga has increased despite the lack of a diesel powertrain, which used to be there when the model was launched initially.

The updated Ertiga now comes with cruise control, auto headlamps with 'follow me home' functionality, and CNG specific speedometer in S-CNG variants.

The new Ertiga can also be owned through Maruti Suzuki Subscribe at an all-inclusive monthly subscription fee starting from Rs 18,600 (petrol) and Rs 22,400 (CNG), the company said.