[Vikram9193]

They’ve been stubborn with the turbo-automatics and sunroofs. Two defining features of the last few years.

Personally I like driving Suzuki hatchbacks these days. Something refreshing about a light and nippy car. And the latest launches have robust feeling suspension too. They do need better interiors. Always the fear of a rattle developing.

[cityslicker86]

What Maruti seems to forget is that buying a car in India is as much a heart decision as its a brain decision. No matter how efficient, reliable, servicable the car is, it has tug at the heart's strings. When they were launched, 800 did it, Esteem did it, Zen did it, Swift did it and maybe the Fronx.

But off late, with the exception of maybe Fronx, no other car from Maruti's stable has instantly appealed to the customers. The new Swift could have, however I feel the styling is a bit tamer and the engine downgrade (3-cyl) is definitely a diluter. They Jimny is simply too small and too expensive. It never stood a chance with the Thar being in the market.

Honda is probably in the same boat.

On the other hand, Tata, Mahindra, Hyundai and VAG have been seducing the customers with s-e-x-y looking vehicles that come with strong powertrain options (including Turbos) and latest bells and whistles, and of course an innovation or two to set them apart. Just look at what Mahindra is offering in the 3XO. Mouth watering features that though at a price, tease the customers and pull them into showrooms. Panoramic sunroof and level-2 ADAS in a sub-4 m compact SUV!

Maruti definitely needs to change its approach. Fronx is a step in that direction, but it needs to be more courageous and less entitled.

[ballkey]

I am thankful they exist and selll the products they do. There needs to be attainable options for a lower-income family who aspire to one day own a car with a 5 lakh budget. I'd like them to pivot harder to EVs - an Alto EV with a 4.99L sticker would be game-changing. Also innovate in developing pan-india charging infrastructure. They do seem to know how to build a reliable nationwide network for sales and service.

[TheSMG]

Marutis are reliable and can be serviced at remote locations due to wide spread ASC network are the only strong points supporting it as a market leader. However, it seems they will loose this edge sooner or latter as most of the cars are pretty reliable now.

Moreover, presently Maruti cars are no longer cheaper to maintain as their ASC are always trying to fleece customers while servicing by adding extra add-ons. This has happened to me during all my service. In Baleno the manual states to replace Brake fluid and coolant at every 20,000 KMS, but when I went to get the car serviced and was overseeing my car getting serviced from the lounge they did not change brake fluid or coolant and instead just topped it off. When I highlighted it to their Manager, he did nothing and told me that he can replace one more time if I feel so. How can a person trust their so called premium NEXA outlets with such pathetic experience. Moreover, if we give the actual feedback about service to ASC, they try to push us to rate them excellent and officials at Maruti are not concerned about all the complaints we make them, I have not received a single reply.

With this state of customer service and experience they are any how going to loose customers.

[Sober_Motorhead]

Metaphorically speaking:

- Suzuki (controlling shareholder) treats Maruti like a low risk FD.
- However, increasing number of car buyers have turned equity investors, and have found FD like returns not even inflation beating / unappealing.
- There will always be FD investors - so Maruti will survive, for now.
- Obviously, a point will come when their underperformance (relative to inflation) will standout and even conservative FD Indians, will shift away.

At Maruti:
- Frugality only obsession seems to be killing innovation at Maruti.
- They seem to be fighting tooth and nail - for status qou.
- Probably, the Maruti board can do with younger blood.

Found the below video on tesla's cybertruck, an eyeopener on how automobile manufacturing is evolving.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L6WDq0V5oBg

[NiInJa]

Maruti have experimented with some models in all segments: Small Hatchbacks, small and big sedans, premium SUVs in the past, but they have failed to the point that it makes sense to stick to their core competency of making reliable, fuss free and economical cars that offer maximum bang for buck. I honestly feel there is nothing wrong with what they are doing to stay 'profitable'. Moreover, the same logic can be applied to Toyota as well.

Here's a list:

1. The original A-Star had better safety ratings, came with a proper automatic TC transmission for a small car. But it was expensive so market did not appreciate it.

2. The Baleno Sedan and Alturas Station Wagon: The Baleno sedan was one of my personal favorites with a great engine, but again the price was a bit prohibitive.

3. Alto 1.1L : Plonked the Wagon R engine in Alto and it made one heck of a pocket rocket. Didn't quite set the sales charts on fire.

4. Kizashi: This car is similar to the movie Shawshank Redemption. It never really took off in theatres when released but went on to become a cult later. People are uploading illegal drag races of the Kizashi with latest sedans these days.

5. S-Cross 1.6L: The car's engine was explosive, but let down by some issues and lack of 'premium' feel.

6. The Original Grand Vitara: This too was nice car which should have been revived to compete with current ScorpioNs or Seltos top of the line versions.

7. Jimny: Nothing much to say, but this car simply cannot be compared with other cars as it caters to a different audience. Sadly, it has failed in India, but was a hit in other markets till emission norms became stringent and the engine could no longer be used.

The Ignis, Ritz are international models and did pretty well in their era. The Ignis is one of the favorite cars in the U.K. but the Wagon-R outsells the Ignis in India, that says a lot about how value conscious Indian customers are. Similarly, the new Baleno has been dropped in Europe region but continues to sell in good numbers in India.


The fact is Maruti has one trump card that aces everything else: Reliability and Trust. They need to improve the plastic quality at the earliest. When I was in the market to get a car, I would have happily got the latest Harrier or the older XUV 5OO back in early 2019. The problem was I could not trust any one of them. I had a baby boy in 2019, and I have done late night drives/long drives to remote areas with just the wife and our toddler in a Maruti without worrying about anything going wrong or getting stranded in the middle of the road. Try doing that in any other car

Given a choice, I will still choose a reliable car with less power and tech over a tech loaded car whose console goes off while driving (Tata/Mahindra), whose service centers are clueless about a car's wiring and dismantle a car completely (Tata/Jeep) or a car whose ADAS works unpredictably (Honda) or has some weird fuel pump/AC/ABS issues (VW/Skoda), has critical issues around steering rack and paint chipping and newer direct Injection turbo engines overheating (Old Hyundai i20, Creta) but no official recalls done.

[ZenMaster]

Maruti refusing to improve its interior design and plastic quality is akin to Air India not cleaning and refurbishing their existing planes and waiting for the "new" planes that are are 5 years out.

I have a feeling that Maruti is banking on the new EVX model to give itself a makeover. I remember reading from somewhere about Shanshak Shrivastav saying the the EV model is meant more for exports (which probably translates to Maruti expecting it to be a slow seller in India.) It seems like they are putting a lot of time into this EV product to perfect it. It will definitely be a halo car for them (even if it doesn't sell well in India). Also from the spy shots its apparent that the interiors is also quite distinct from current Marutis.

So just like Air India, we can only hope that they have their own best interests in mind and improve within the next 2 years.

[GS2323]

Maruti Suzuki seems to have lost the value card too

I believe, the problem with Maruti is that they are not being honest to themselves and that has led to them over-pricing their vehicles, for some reason, they seem to have convinced themselves that they can sell the cars at a premium, but can they?

They have been able to milk the customers for the last 2-3 years but now with the supply chains all sorted out again & the revenge buying tapering off, will they be even able to hold on to that 40% market share if they do not work on their greed. A few case in point:

The Fronx turbo delta plus MT comes in at around INR 10 lacs ex-showroom, however, for that price you can have an XUV 3xo MX2 pro AT - A 300 kg heavier car with 6-airbags as standard & a proper AT, even the Swift's top variant with an AMT comes in around INR 9.5 lacs.
Okay, even we do not consider that particular variant of the 3xo which is exceptionally priced, think about an alto starting at > 5 lacs (on-road for the most basic variant with AC & power steering) & a WagonR which starts at > 6 lacs on road - these maybe cheap but not value propositions in my book.

The thing is, earlier, Marutis used to be very good 2nd/3rd/beater car options for those moving to higher segments as primary cars - But this is not the case now

[AutoDowntowner]

All this happened since Suzuki too over majority of ownership & they changed logo from M to S.
It is the same observation of my several colleagues who have worked in MSIL. Suzuki is getting more & more desperate every year on cost cutting.
Correct me if I am wrong.

[It's Magic]

Although I agree that they are not acting like market leader and dictating terms, but rather following market trends, it seems to still be working for them. They continue to hold more than a 40 percent market share. Also, Maruti Suzuki was hardly a market innovator at any point in time. They have always followed any innovation after it proved successful. Many features like big infotainment system, keyless go, rear AC vents, etc., were introduced by other manufacturers in small cars (the primary domain of Maruti Suzuki), and Maruti followed suit once these features became the norm. They even introduced the Brezza (compact SUV) much later than other competitors. If we talk about EVs, it seems Maruti is still waiting for them to become mainstream before they launch their own EV.

The main USP of Maruti Suzuki is it's service network and fuss-free ownership. How many other manufacturers can currently match that?

My point is, Maruti Suzuki has been mostly following the market for many years now, and it seems to be working for them. I believe Maruti Suzuki will still remain at the top even after the next five years.

[SchnelleKurven]

Superb thread, I just find all the Maruti Suzuki cars meh. Gone are the days when the base zen, swift were fun to drive but practical and well priced cars. Swift’s tagline ,’you are the fuel’ , rang true.

Today all their cars are as exciting as Tin can toasters; anyone remember the atrocious Zen Estilo, it was shockingly bad. Fronx 1.0 is the only car I can consider , but where is the safety rating on that.

Somehow I feel, the years of neglecting safety are coming home to roost. Suzuki has treated Indians as second class citizens, making callous statements about airbags, abs, crash tests , rear seat belt alarms and what not.

As many have quoted , people buy Maruti cars for the historical legacy and peace of mind factor, but you know what they say , don’t rest on your laurels !

[Delta Wing]

I saved a buck in 2006 and bought an AMD powered laptop in 2006 over an intel powered one, went kaput in a year, reason-chip heating ruining the motherboard. The same year I bought my 10 year old Esteem, ran without fuss for 5 years, serving me for many 500-700 km drives I cherish. Then i bought a used SX4, 5 years old in 2012, of 2007 make. My brother had a honda city dolphin same vintage. His city was sold quite a few years ago, and while we say much about honda reliability, that one went for repairs all too often and was replaced by a CR-V, whereas my SX4 remained more with me than with the service center, and is still running well. Apple is cited as an opposite in this comparison, but I say, Apple sells for one thing - vertical integration, and Maruti has it! They tuned others's engines better than the engine makers' cars. An Apple iphone 12 is abused by my kid for hours, never runs hot, never slows down, never gives a problem, even after four years - name a car which resembles this in India, and i guess it will be a Maruti. And mind, Apple competed in the top premium segment of its categories, whereas Maruti competes in the most difficult, price sensitive (inealstic) segments, which is a feat. Do they need to innovate? For sure, for the 800 they did and see how they displaced the incumbents with the 'dabba gadi' tin cans. Built like a tank, a tijori on wheels - words from reviews i remember for the Linea (i loved it to bits, but Fiat wouldn't even give me a test drive so went off looking for another car), and the Punto (GTO's review of old). Well, the tank and the tijori could not last as much as the tin can, as time shows. Where is the Polo today, and where is the Figo (or, for that matter, its maker), even if on stilts, whereas there is a Baleno + 4inches = Fronx? We criticize the Ciaz as being too old, but Maurti ain't betting on a has been segment (burns my sedan loving heart, albeit needing 190 mm ground clearance which only, ahem, sx4, the sedan has), unlike a Honda which plonks a hybrid in a city but not the last hope Elevate. EV? Let's revisit this thread in 5 years, when the current crop of fancy EVs start to go to scap. I know it's the dispoable era, and a smarphone of 1L is worth 10K in 4 years, but I'll say this - durability is the least desired product attribute by companies now which are devoid of values sans shareholder returns, and we are made fools by fancy trinkets, which we need to throw away in a few years, while paying a premium for them. Is there any surprise that long term reviews of cars have gained avid following? All this debate is strictly urban, whereas VFM tag still rules suprme in this large country, which shows on the monthly sales numbers. Yet, if they don't play the feature+safety ball, Maruti will be fondly remembered in another 20 years with retro threads as a brand that built the country and faded in the onslaught of new consumer trends. How can they survive and change the future for themselves? We need a new CUV to replace the Brezza, it's looking old already. We need a new Alto, on stilts, but with more features. We need a Swift crossover, and fast, with the strong hybrid, and the turbo option.The government - please promote the hybrid by cutting the insane taxes - you want to move to a sustainable India, but will create a massive speed breaker for people to easily climb with their EVs, but not with a hybrid, beats me! Or maybe not, since you sold you stake - homegrown businesses have successfully lobbied for the EVs against the Japs' hybrids, but what about the taxpayer! But i digress. We are talking about the longevity of a company here, so what does it take for a company to live long? The Japanese do have the longest life spans on the planet. No offense to anyone's (contrary) opinion or to the love for their cars, all the cars I mentioned in this post are the ones I like very much. May Suzuki live through Maruti everlong in India, after all they have borrowed the name of an immortal!

[abhkop]

Great insights on why Japanese are lagging behind on the Motor Inc. podcast.

https://youtu.be/hyPUSX02lIQ?si=iq8Que69NFCvMF7M

[ringoism]

I have a good friend who as a well-paid VP of some tech firm or the other, having owned a Harley and a Triumph Tiger, was pretty happy to buy top variant XL-6 and Jimny. He also switched to an Interceptor for the same reasons of ease of service, and has been immensely happly with it. I believe he put 40k km's on the XL6 in a year and a half of ownership, largely in touring.

I agree that going to 3-cylinders in various models has been a mistake, and was the one thing I truly disliked about my father-in-law's Wagon-R Stingray, which after some very spirited drives in Mizoram I came to see as a pretty cool little rallyish-car. Even that 3-cyl. was spirited, but just too rough.

Friend in the U.S. still has two SX-4's and thinks they're pretty great.

Both those and the S-Cross and the Omni and Carry and even variations on the 800 had AWD in other markets, which if the S-Cross had here would be very aspirational for me - I think it's one of the best-looking and most appropriately-sized cars on the road.

Lastly, here in Manali as other rural places, Maruti Alto and Mahindra Bolero Camper rule, whether a taxi wallah is taking tourist couples to Rohtang/Sissu, or a villager is taking a goat someplace, or well-dressed family members to a mela. Average family is pragmatic and don't seem to have any shame in driving them, the better-heeled have bought up as many Jimnys in the past year as Thars in probably the past decade.

I know this is a small snapshot of a particular demographic - but then so is Team-Bhp, generally speaking!

-Eric

[shibujp]

Owned 4 Maruti cars starting from a Maruti 800 5 speed in 2000. Owned a Polo GT and currently an 2017 X1 20d. I loved all my Maruti cars, put no less than a lakh on them and found no reason why they have to bow their heads before their German stable mates.

1. 100% peace of mind. Between the 4 lakhs kms put on three of the Maruti cars they haven't left me on the road..not once.
2. If quality and consistency is so easy to fix them why don't the others fix them? Maruti has invested in quality that's why. The same derided corporate culture is responsible for that.
3. Rattles...I think Maruti made me customised versions of these models because I never had them
4. Basic mechanical fundamentals...peppy, decent handling and agile.
5. They are light cars. Treat them so and they will be just fine.
6. Very few Maruti models are made for enthusiasts. They are made for owners who just want a trouble free, affordable, decent ride with low operating costs. Driven decently they give you just that. And occasionally Maruti bring out these kick-ass fun to drive cars, that those who brought and enjoyed them know.

Has the old Maruti culture slipped? Maybe but just as much as a general deterioration in the car industry. No more in my opinion.

Is Maruti struggling...sure..every company goes through an ebb and flow. Remember the days before the Swift? The fundamentals are still strong though the product line may be considered weak.

P.S: A fair comparison of chips is not Intel and NVIDIA. It should be Intel and AMD.

Drive on,
Shibu