Maruti Suzuki India Limited, the country’s largest car manufacturer today rolled out its 1 Crore (ten millionth) car.
The historic 1 Crore car, a Metallic Breeze Blue coloured WagonR VXi (Chassis No 243899) rolled out from the Company’s Gurgaon plant.
With this landmark achievement, Maruti Suzuki becomes the only Indian car company that makes its entry into the select club of automobile manufacturers across the globe who have crossed this milestone.
On the occasion, Mr. Shinzo Nakanishi, Managing Director and CEO, Maruti Suzuki India Limited said, “As we reach this historic landmark, we thank our founding partners who laid a solid foundation of values and practices. We thank our customers who have brought us this far. The commitment of employees and continued strong support of business associates has played a critical role all through the journey. Their enthusiasm and commitment is especially reflected in manufacturing around 5 million units just in the last 6 years. Today is a day of pride for the full Maruti Suzuki family.”
Maruti Suzuki India Limited, started operations in India in 1983 (then Maruti Udyog Limited) as a joint venture between the Government of India and Suzuki Motor Corporation, Japan.
The Company’s journey towards 1 Crore mark, picked momentum in recent times through several focused initiatives like capacity expansion, higher productivity levels and enhanced R&D capability demonstrated through product refreshments. A new car design philosophy, as evidenced in world strategic models like the Swift, SX4, A-Star, Ritz and WagonR helped to win customer’s hearts. Contemporary DDiS and Super Turbo Diesel engines and the K-Series petrol engines helped to reinforce the technological supremacy of Maruti Suzuki.
Maruti Suzuki currently offers a wide range of 16 passenger vehicle models in India. It is the largest car maker with over 45 per cent share in India’s passenger vehicle market.
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Starting with the handing over to the first Maruti 800 to the first customer in December 1983, the Company produced the First Millionth car in 1994. The cumulative production reached Two Million in 1997. The next big landmark of Five Million was reached in April 2005, almost 22 years after the first car was rolled out.
The present product portfolio of the Company includes compact cars Maruti 800, world’s largest selling Alto, Alto K10, Estilo, WagonR, Ritz, A star and Swift, MPV Omni and Eeco, sedans Swift DZire and SX4 and SUV Gypsy. The Company also imports Grand Vitara and premium luxury sport sedan Suzuki Kizashi, from Suzuki Motor Corporation, Japan. Maruti Suzuki range of models is available with petrol, diesel, CNG and LPG fuel options. With over 900 sales outlets and 2900 service workshops, Maruti Suzuki has the largest sales and service network in India. It is the sole base for producing diesel engines and the world strategic export model, A star for Suzuki Motor Corporation, globally. With two manufacturing facilities and a combined manufacturing capacity of 10 lakh (1 million) cars a year, Maruti Suzuki currently produces over 12 lakh (1.2 million) units per annum. The Company is setting up two new plants which will bring in an additional annual capacity of 500,000 (0.5 million) units. Once these new facilities are in place by 2013, the Company will have a capacity to manufacture over 17 lakh (1.7 million) units annually. The Company is also setting up an R&D facility, Suzuki’s largest R&D centre outside Japan. The Maruti Suzuki’s R&D teams are working collaboratively with Suzuki Motor Corporation, Japan for designing cars for the global markets.
Maruti Suzuki’s revenue has grown consistently over the years. During 2009-10, Maruti Suzuki posted revenue of Rs 301,197 million. The revenue was Rs 203, 583 million in 2008-09, up from Rs 178,603 million in 2007-08.