[GTO]

Allow me a moment to explain:



Just like Maruti is in cars (Indian market), Intel is h-u-g-e in the chip market. If you are reading this from a laptop or desktop, odds are, your machine has an "Intel Inside" sticker on it. Also like Maruti has done to the Indian auto sector, Intel defined the chip market, enjoyed a dominant market-share and generally kept all of its customers happy.

Unfortunately, again like Maruti, Intel has been out of tune with market preferences since a while. My newest laptop which is blazing fast & has a 10-12 hour battery life doesn't have an "Intel Inside". My Android smartphone doesn't have an Intel chip. And the last Maruti I bought was an Esteem in 1996...almost 30 years ago. I know it's the same for many other BHPians who haven't bought a Maruti in a decade or two.

• Intel said no to making chips for the iPhone. A decision regretted by the company till date.

• Intel completely missed the boat on smartphones. There is a less than 1% chance that your phone is powered by an Intel chip. Unexcusable, and similar to how Microsoft / Steve Balmer handed the Mobile OS market to others on a silver platter.

• Nvidia has blown Intel away in AI chips.

• ARM architecture chips have beaten Intel in the price : performance ratio on smartphones.

• Even in the area of laptops & desktops, Apple's M3 Chips are way more powerful than anything from Intel, and way more efficient. I am typing this post from a Macbook Air 15" which offers supercharged performance with 10-hour battery life, and zero heat or fan noise. Longtime partner Microsoft is bragging about ARM chips lately.

• Intel made big mistakes in the GPU market & admitted to the same. NVidia destroyed Intel in graphic cards & owns 90% of the market today (Intel's market-share is almost 0).

• In the server industry, biggies like Amazon, Google etc have started developing their own chips due to Intel's pricing & dirty business tricks.

Similarly, Maruti is missing major market trends & preferences:

Don't get me wrong though. Maruti is the no.1 carmaker in India for very, very solid reasons. I too love many Maruti models like the Fronx 1.0L Turbo MT, Ertiga / XL6 for the comfort, WagonR 1.2L for the practicality, 2024 Swift...but there is no doubt that the company hasn't really evolved in the last 10 years as a dominant market-leader should. As the BOSS of the market, you have to dictate trends...lead them...not fall behind miserably. Just like Intel still has many good chips on sale, even Maruti has some great cars in its portfolio. But the company has long stopped behaving like the No.1 and hasn't kept up with the times. Neither is it future-ready. Why do you think Suzuki sold a part of its company to Toyota? Reason = Fear.

• A "culture of cost-cutting". Maruti's USP from day one has been cheap parts, continuously lowering costs with suppliers, saving a couple of bucks on a roofliner, 2000 rupees on interior plastics, sub-4 meter hatchbacks or value-for-money cars etc. The formula totally worked till 10 years ago. Since, customer preferences have evolved where they are willing to pay a more money for better quality. Customer aspirations have risen & how! But Maruti's line of thinking & culture remains the same it has been for 40 years. That is, mediocre quality at mediocre prices. Sit in the Grand Vitara, then come back and post here what you think of the interiors. Worryingly for Maruti, its average-selling-price per car is lower than the likes of Hyundai, Kia, Mahindra etc. From 46-47% market-share a decade ago, the company's share of the pie hovers in the 40% area currently. Still dominant, but lower...and I repeat, with a lower average selling price per car.

• The market wants premium 20-30 lakh cars, but Maruti simply doesn't know how to build a "high quality premium car". Yes, Maruti just doesn't have the in-house capability to build an XUV700, Punch EV or Seltos 1.5L Turbo today. Hyundai-Kia have really beaten Maruti black & blue here, while even homegrown boys (Tata & Mahindra) are successfully selling competent 25-30 lakh rupee cars. Other than a Toyota-rebadged model (Invicto), Maruti has nothing above 20-lakhs and certainly no product that offers "premium quality". The market is screaming "we want premium'ish products & will pay a premium rupee for it". Maruti screams back "here is yet another value-for-money car with ordinary interior quality and a boring powertrain". The Grand Vitara gives you two powertrain choices with either 102 BHP or 114 (!!!)...and one of the motors is a triple cylinder! Hyundai-Kia will sell you a 158-BHP Turbo Petrol. Mahindra will happily deliver a 200-BHP turbo-petrol or 180-BHP turbo-diesel to you tomorrow.

Drive the Punch EV back-to-back with any compact Maruti and you will feel that Maruti has fallen at least 10-years behind the learning curve.

When Maruti thinks premium, it's for a car like the Jimny. All of us enthusiasts love the cute 4x4 and its capability, but Maruti's over-confidence led to over-pricing the car, and it flopped on launch.

• Electric Cars! I would expect a market-leader to stay on top of emerging technologies that are proving popular with tech-savvy customers...cars that have a younger age profile, thousands of customers pay premium bucks for and a technology that the government wholeheartedly supports. Nope, Maruti is still in the "testing" phase of EVs, while others have been happily selling them & wowing customers for years.

• Turbo-Petrols, Dual-Clutch ATs etc. Yes, Maruti has one turbo-petrol, but that is hardly available across the range. The big engine you will get however is a boring 1.5L naturally-aspirated petrol that feels like it is from the 1990s. Mated to a transmission also that is from the 1990s.

• Falling behind in technology: ADAS in a Maruti? Nope. If you own a Maruti and want ADAS, click here. A chauffeur is the only type of advanced-driver-assistance-system you're going to get in a Maruti today. Note: I am not a fan of ADAS at all, and never use it, but it is a technology that showcases how tech-friendly a car manufacturer is. ADAS is a barometer of the carmaker's R&D ambitions.

• Turbo-diesels still sell & that's a fact. One cannot be a market-leader and not offer an option that tens of thousands of customers choose each month. Especially in Crossovers, MPVs & SUVs, Maruti is at a serious disadvantage by not selling a diesel, when there is so clearly a market demand for them. The worst part is this = Maruti built a fantastic 1.5L turbo-diesel that totally wowed me & Kanad at the time of our review (link). On a scale of 10, I'd give that Maruti diesel an 8.5 or 9. Shockingly, Maruti wasn't prepared for BS6 emission norms. How is that even possible? The government had given ample time for everyone to prepare, and other manufacturers sure did successfully. Maruti's superb 1.5L diesel sold for about a year, before being pulled out of the market. Inexcusable, I tell you.

• A complete lack of innovation. While Hyundai, Kia, Mahindra, Tata etc. are bringing the latest technologies to mainstream segments, Maruti just doesn't bring anything new. Exhibit A = CNG cars. For decades, Maruti has been the bestselling brand of CNG cars. Good economy, but boot space totally gone. It is Tata who came up with the "twin cylinder" CNG tanks that give you boot space as well as CNG's low running costs. Drive the Tiago CNG and just see how well-thought out its CNG implementation is. Or how Hyundai-Kia innovated with the IMT gearbox. This lack of innovation in a market-leader is appalling (and very "Intel" like). When was the last time you checked out a new feature / tech in a Maruti and went "whoa, that is something"?

• A culture of "fuel economy above all else". Does FE matter in India? You bet. But it is no longer the sole criteria for customers. Look around at the best-seller models and you will see that the customer is willing to give away a little bit of fuel economy for a little better performance or driveability. Maruti is tonedeaf here. They launched the 2024 Swift with a 3-cylinder engine (instead of the outgoing model's 4-cylinders), with an engine making lesser power, and Maruti bragging "it has even higher fuel economy!!!". I disagree here. It's like Toyota saying, here is an even more reliable Fortuner. FE is already Maruti's strength & it has to start playing some new cards now.

Maruti is stuck here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aeIuFqhC7rE

But the market has moved on to this. Aspirations

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q4pzK2jST8k

• Safety. Customers are clearly becoming more conscious of their safety (and that of their families), and our desi boys (Tata & Mahindra) have truly done their homework. But, does anyone here associate Maruti with safety? Can you believe, that in 2024, Maruti doesn't have a single 5-star safety-rated model on sale?

• Maruti is also falling behind the curve on features. Forget their other models, even the 23-lakh rupee Grand Vitara doesn't have premium sound (subwoofer, amp), auto wipers, electric seats etc. at a time when the market is literally yelling "we w-a-n-t features". The recently launched Swift doesn't get an auto-dimming IRVM (!!!!), TPMS (literally 1000-rupee cost for OEMs), a sunroof or properly sized spare tyre. The Brezza was actually the last car in the segment to get a sunroof!

• Some models are just royally ignored & left to wither. The Ciaz today feels like a vintage car & is the oldest sedan on sale in India. The Ignis is 8 years old. The Ertiga (an especially important product to the bottomline) and WagonR are over 5 years old, and talk is only of facelifts (not all-new generations). The Ciaz is perhaps the oldest car you can buy for 12-lakhs, along with the antique Mahindra Bolero.

I feel that Intel missed some really big opportunities & trends. Maruti is guilty of doing the same. In fact, one can see some similarities with Hero MotoCorp too.

Posts like these from Maruti owners feel like a TL;DR summary of what I have taken 1600 words for. He revisits Maruti after 20 years and says:

Originally Posted by Sober_Motorhead

Had Zen’s and the Esteem 1.3 in the 1996 – 2004 periods.
Currently use an XL6 automatic, from the Maruti stable

What’s not changed much in 20 years
1. Largely retains fun to drive characteristics.
2. Felt fragile then. Feels fragile now.
3. Rattle prone (improved from the Zen though).
4. High road noise.
5. On bad roads, feels like it will fall apart - but never does.
6. Won’t leave you stranded on roads due to breakdowns.

Refraining from safety related comments.

What’s changed for the better:
1. Nexa service center lounge’s.
2. Service center coverage.

[ninjatalli]

What still holds the fort (and that 40+% market share) for Suzuki is that dealership network reliability. Yes, dealerships are more and more focused on fleecing the customers but the trust factor is still strong among the masses. Hyundai and to a limited extent Mahindra & Tata are trying to get there but are no where close enough.

I once faced a significant brake issue in my Scross on a long trip to Goa. Pulled in the nearest service center (and only one) in a remote tier 2 town (and hundreds of kms away from a proper city); and my issue was diagnosed by a bunch of young mechanics with some support over the phone from a bigger service center and the issue was figured out and corrected. I can't with confidence say that can be done in a Hyundai or a Tata situation. Faced a lot more trouble with my VW even when exposed to only metro based service centers.

Till the time Maruti-Suzuki has this benefit over it's rivals, the masses will still stick with Maruti. Maybe in a decade (if they continue like this), they might slip to #2 but only time will tell.

[84.monsoon]

The biggest problem is corporate culture. Maruti Suzuki seems to completely lack any risk appetite. It has the combination of the worst of the hierarchical and risk-averse Japanese culture and the penny-pinching, slow, old-world Indian PSU mentality and culture. Leaders like RC Bhargava have shared this culture. He has personally opposed and lobbied against all and any progressive emission and safety regulations over decades, including BS6, dual airbag rule, setting up of Bharat NCAP, 6-airbag rule, CAFE regulations - you name it.

Maruti desperately wants the world to freeze in the 2005 -2015 era. Customer preferences should not evolve, safety requirements should not increase, FE and emission targets should not come in, etc. An attitude far from how a market leader should think and move to shape the market and drive progress and innovation.

[bhansali_hardik]

They had burnt their hands with the Kizashi, Grand Vitara and the s-cross 1.6. (Jimny to a large extent) They have just given up on the Indian market and on Indian consumers. Tata has turned it around for aspiration part of it largely thanks to the JLR driven design language for the bigger cars and great execution in the EV space.

MSIL has taken the other route to go even more safe with the Toyotas which take Indians for granted and have laughed at us all along!

Aged interiors, non aspirational product line, the safety saga and so on! Last time MSIL got me excited was with the breeza and that was that! It was aspirational, great package, sorted chassis, boxy stance and the diesel which is the power mill to millions of car even today. However, they have even managed to make the latest gen breeza horrible and it's gone backwards in time in a bad way.

They need a major brand revamp for people to even think about splurging on MSIL, let alone the bad line of cars that they have right now.

They will manage to keep up the fort, but how long? It really is a declining story in writing at the current chosen path.

[ashis89]

My father is a retired senior citizen who doesn’t have a keen eye towards cars anymore. And he has liked his Marutis as they’re reliable and offer uneventful ownership experience. So when said that Maruti is boring and most people with a half decent budget don’t look at a Maruti anymore, I was surprised.

That the market has moved on and Maruti is a laggard, even my father agrees.

[neofromcapone]

First things first, it should be referred as Suzuki

Relationship between the Government of India, under the United Front (India) coalition and Suzuki Motor Corporation over the joint venture was a point of heated debate in the Indian media until Suzuki Motor Corporation gained the controlling stake. This highly profitable joint venture that had a near monopolistic trade in the Indian automobile market and the nature of the partnership built up till then was the underlying reason for most issues. The success of the joint venture led Suzuki to increase its equity from 26% to 40% in 1987, and to 50% in 1992, and further to 56.21% as of 2013.

Suzuki has controlling stake, it decides the company's fate.
When we say Maruti, we can't bring ourselves or maybe myself to critique the company.
If I call it Suzuki, it might get badly mauled like Tata Motors or maybe even Fiat.

Suzuki has deliberately not allowed Maruti to innovate, the last best innovation was Eritga. And that was in 2012.

If not for Uber & Ola, the WagonR wouldn't be anybody's "blue-eyed boy"

Imagine, till date, not being able to launch a WagonR EV, it would have single handedly brought down cab fares.

Let's face it Suzuki is milking it way to the bank with Maruti.
Unless a major course correction takes place this company (will still be profitable) is a wasted potential.

[wheelspinner]

Spot on. I think Maruti is not keeping up with trends. The millennials liked boring designs and economical maintenance/fuel economy. So did the generation X. However, the generation Z is starting to care about looks, safety and a number of other factors. I know it's subjective, but Maruti cars lack in almost all these factors especially looks.

In this way, probably the next generation would start moving towards the other modern alternatives, if they manage to expand their service network and market share like Tata. Who knows?

[theAutomaniac]

This thread takes me back to 2019 when we used to have similar threads because all Maruti cars back then, were outdated.

The biggest problem in my opinion with Maruti, is Suzuki! Suzuki for the past 10-15 years has been nothing but a carmaker that is dependent on India, and a liability for Maruti! They try to extract the maximum profit and maximum royalties out of Maruti and India, just so they can continue selling cars in the rest of the world.

And the problem with being the provider of a dependent and ventilator ridden family is that you often have to compromise on spending on yourself! Because if you start focusing on yourself, the dependent people will die.

Hence why, if Maruti wants to take the risk of entering bigger segments, they will have to develop new engines, new technology, set up new production lines, all for something that might not be as profitable as their current crop of cars! Therefore their masters sitting in Japan won't allow this because it will reduce their profitability!

Maruti was ready for BS6 diesels and EVs back in 2019 with the E15A and WagonR EV respectively, but Suzuki shelved their plans due to lack of initial profitability! Even on the enthusiast's side, Maruti was kicking it in Motorsports but had to withdraw because the masters wanted to make more money! Maruti was ready with India's second-best warm hatch Baleno RS (First being Abarth), and best diesel crossover S-Cross 1.6 in 2017 but had to stop selling due to the masters!
So unless Maruti breaks from the shackles of Suzuki, I don't see them bringing any out-of-the-world-tech in their cars!


That said, I don't think Maruti is as bad as this thread portrays!
The internet makes us believe that India demands faster cars, when in reality, most Cretas. Slavias and Kushaqs sold on roads, are the slower and more frugal engines. Only Virtus, Sonet, and Seltos have dominant sales figures for turbo-petrols, and that too is only because their go-fast versions look a lot more sportier than the regular versions!
Case in point, Hyundai itself had to discontinue the i20 Turbo and restrict that engine to NLine due to low sales, and the same might soon happen to Creta.

Even regarding EVs, Maruti's first Born-EV is set to be launched in 2025, which is in line with timeline of Born-EVs of other manufacturers like Hyundai and Mahindra.

The only problem with Maruti IMO is the lack of premium image, and lack of a base to build bigger cars on. Hopefully we will see Maruti addressing these pretty soon.

Regarding features, I will agree that Tata is doing a lot better than Maruti. BUT, what about the quality and reliability? I just need to put out a search on Google saying "XYZ Tata car issues/breakdown", and 1000s of articles will pop out! Even on FB groups of these carmakers, people are facing issues with parts as basic as the gearbox and wiring!
With Maruti, you won't have a car that has all the trendy tech, but you will at least have a car that you can trust!

Even in case of Hyundai, old 1st gen i20, Verna, Accent etc are non existent, while 1st gen Swift, Dzire, and even low selling models like Ritz are still very common.
This again proves that instead of a great experience for 5-7 years, Maruti focuses on providing a good experience for 15+ years! They are basically a low-budget Toyota, also the reason why Toyota picked them for partnership!

Regarding innovation, they are developing a series-hybrid engine, and are working on multiple other technologies as well, simply highlighting that Suzuki is also investing, but rather in the long term and not in trendy and short-lived stuff!

So, does Maruti have a problem? Yes! They need to do better at making premium cars.
Do they have a Intel-like problem? No! They still have their basics right and a strong future lineup. And they also know the Indian customer better than anyone else!


That said, the new gen not buying Maruti is a serious problem for them. A lot of people in my own circle have swayed away from Maruti unless for small cars. Even I don't see myself buying a Maruti unless it is a Jimny or a Grand Vitara AWD. (And I won't keep either of them stock lol)

[gt3t0uring]

My two points:

Switchgear: This might come off as a very petty issue but for a person like me who loves attention to details, Maruti should change the those ancient cheap power window buttons. They are fine in cars like Alto, Celerio, WagonR but in cars like Baleno, Grand Vitara and Fronx? No way, it’s like a spot on the “premium” image they have made for the Nexa cars.

Engine/powertrain: I agree, the loyal and core buyers of Maruti do not even think once about the potent boosterjet and it shows through sales figures. But when they already have the 1.0 boosterjet and it is now made locally then why not put it in something like the Ignis? What a F-U-N car it would turn out to be
We already have reels/vids about the Fronx and Baleno RS giving tough fight to VW Polo, i can only imagine what Ignis would feel like.

Also cars with the K15 engine need that 6th gear. Cruising @100kmph with revs around 3000 doesn’t go well with me.

[iSubham]

The parent company, Suzuki is itself running around worldwide with its pants down. Just read an article a few days ago that their Thailand plant will be shut down due to lack of competitive products against Chinese EVs. They barely sold 10,000 units in the previous fiscal there.

Remove their India & Japan operations, Suzuki has only two manufacturing plants left worldwide. Indonesia which only manufactures the Ertiga and Hungary, which manufactures the European spec SX4 S-Cross and Vitara, both of which are terribly outdated by European standards with dwindling sales every year. Every other car for worldwide markets is imported from either India or Japan.

The've bowed out of North America & China, the two largest car markets by far, a long time ago. Their Indian operations are what has kept them afloat worldwide for so long. They have absolutely no path to electrification ( the eVX is a rebadged Toyota) and are only now beginning to mull series hybrids for their cars.

As pessimistic as this might sound, I don't see Suzuki surviving independently, even the next 10 years on the back of solely Maruti. They will be bought out by Toyota for whom the buyout would mean a firm foothold in the fastest growing passenger car markets. And by that time, not many would care about brand Maruti.

[rakesh_r]

Maruti has never been an "Aspirational" brand. How many of us actually dream of "owning" a "Maruti" some day? As Hormazd said in one of his podcasts, they restricted themselves so much to "Kitna Deti hai" mantra that people perceive them as a middle class car manufacturer.

Current owners, please dont get me wrong, I have been buying Maruti cars all my life, barring from the Gurkha. Started off with my dad buying our first car, a 98 Zen VX, then a 2010 Swift Diesel, an SCross 1.6. We bought an Alto K10 in 2013 for my marriage, which we still have, currently have a Wagon R (preowned) for city commute.
Whats common between the first four cars I have mentioned, performance and drivability. As much as I loved taking the corners with the Swift, i enjoyed the push to the seat experience that my remapped Scross used to give, not to mention the Alto k10 (which still has a wonky steering) is sure footed and still does triple speeds with ease. Wagon R is all about being a practical city car.
When i bought the Scross, people used to make fun saying, who would spend 15lacs and above on a Maruti, thats the image Maruti has.

Good cars from Maruti have bombed, Baleno 1.6, Kizashi, Vitara, Baleno RS, SCross 1.6 and to an extent, the Jimny. They brought in Nexa, but just opening up a swanky showroom with sales guys wearing suits and holding an Ipad just doesnt cut. Maruti just needs to stop parts sharing, where every car right from the Alto till the Invicto or Jimny use the same power window switches (an example). Read somewhere on tbhp that Maruti cut down the compressor capacity of the Baleno, just to reduce cost hereby effecting cooling efficiency.

Where are those fun to rev engines, like the G13? Maruti had an excellent inhouse made Diesel engine. It would have made its way to the Jimny if it still was present. Maruti did manage to p$#s of some of their Diesel car customers (including me) when all of a sudden they started marketing how bad and uneconomical Diesel engines are as compared to their CNG and petrol engines wheras they were all praises when they had the Multijet.

Just look at how Tatas or Mahindras has evolved in terms of Safety. Maruti continues to sell tin cans. They need to stop emphasizing on just "Kitna Deti hai" mantra.
Will i still buy a Maruti, yes but limited to a beater car only. I still get spares for my Wagon R and Alto k10 with close to zero downtime, and this is one of the criteria for me when it comes to owning a beater. When its time to replace the Gurkha (soon), it will be something more safe, fun to drive, spacious and more upmarket.

[Motard_Blr]

I just read this:
https://jalopnik.com/the-new-gmc-aca...ctu-1851536402
GM added a small light just to make the car look cooler.

I can't imagine Maruti doing anything like that!

Tata added some animal sketches on the glass or in the glovebox. I can't imagine Maruti doing that either.

The problem with Maruti is that it doesn't have a personality that anyone would find charming. The human equivalent would be the saying "All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy".

The entire organisation is built that way so it's no wonder that the products and the experience are the way they are. In my opinion, any coolness or scope for enjoyment comes from Suzuki.

Maruti is a super tanker sailing at full speed and changing direction is going to take a long time.

[jigar1791@gmail]

My 2 cents -
In India, Maruti is to automobiles what Samsung is (used) to Smartphones.

Market Dominance and Brand Loyalty:
Maruti: Just like Samsung was a go-to brand for first-time smartphone buyers, Maruti Suzuki has long been the preferred choice for first-time car buyers in India since a very long time. The brand's strong association with reliability, affordability, and extensive service network has cemented its place in the minds of consumers.
Samsung: During the early 2010s, Samsung dominated the smartphone market with a wide range of models catering to different price points and consumer needs. This helped Samsung build a loyal customer base similar to Maruti's in the automobile sector.

Product Range and Accessibility:
Maruti: Offers a diverse range of vehicles, from budget-friendly options like the Alto to more premium models like the Ciaz. This broad spectrum caters to different segments of the market, ensuring there's something for everyone in the 5-15L budget.
Samsung: Had a similar strategy with its smartphones, offering entry-level to flagship models. This range made it accessible to a wide audience, reinforcing its market position.

Service Network:
Maruti: One of Maruti's strongest points is its extensive service network, which is particularly strong in India's semi-urban and rural areas. This network provides a sense of security and convenience to customers, ensuring they can get their vehicles serviced easily anywhere, anytime.
Samsung: While not as critical in the smartphone industry as it is in the automotive industry, Samsung's widespread availability and after-sales service network contributed to its appeal.

Differences and Challenges
Market Evolution:The Indian automobile market is evolving, with a growing demand for vehicles in the 15-25 lakh INR segment. This shift is driven by rising incomes and changing consumer aspirations.

Product Line Gaps: Maruti Suzuki's presence in the 15-25 lakh INR segment is minimal. This is a critical gap as consumer preferences shift towards more premium and feature-rich vehicles. Maruti's focus has predominantly been on the sub-10 lakh INR segment, where they continue to excel.
Look at my family's case - all our previous 5 purchases over the last 40 year vehicle ownership journey have been from Maruti, beginning from the humble 800 --> Alto --> Esteem --> A-Star --> Ciaz. But what next? There's nothing that Maruti offers beyond Ciaz, except for the rebadged Invicto and Brezza (with the same engine + a strong hybrid).

Future Outlook
To maintain its dominance and cater to evolving consumer needs, Maruti needs to expand its portfolio to include more premium models. This could involve introducing SUVs and other vehicles that compete in the 15-25 lakh INR segment. There have been rumors and some strategic moves indicating Maruti's interest in this space, but tangible products are yet to be seen.

Conclusion
Maruti Suzuki has a strong brand and loyal customer base, but to sustain and grow in a maturing market, it needs to address gaps in its product lineup and offer options that cater to the aspirations of modern consumers.
That can be addressed by a strong intent from the management + a very mature R&D setup to allow MSIL to put it's fingers in the 15-25L hotcake.
If Maruti can successfully enter the new aspirational segment of 15-25L bucket, it stands to benefit from the same loyalty and brand strength that has made it a household name in India.

[Fuldagap]

Maruti has consistently given the country rugged, tailored and fuss free vehicles for so many decades now. Similar to somewhat what Hero did with Splendor. Otherwise who knows how long we'd be stuck with archaic models like the Ambassadors and the then Mahindras.

Maruti has also been a responsible head starter. Taking on competition with professionalism & ethos. When the Matiz and Santro were launched, Maruti could have been wiped off with a major market share, as both the cars were fresh and competitive to the Indian scenario. But Maruti had a firm foot in the market with its own competitive products and a dealer network that none could match. This stands true even today.

Maruti 1000 was one vehicle that introduced 'luxury' for the common man who was a bit better off financially than the rest of his peers. 5 gears in a 1000 cc sedan that could take a family comfortably over long distances and without guzzling loads of fuel, ticked all the right boxes. Premier tried their hand at the Deluxe version of the Fiat 1100 but that was the last of what we saw of it, despite it being a nice version of itself.

Maruti 800 for the first time buyer, Omni for the businessman/trader, Gypsy for the army/govt, 1000/esteem for sedan buyers. They had a portfolio of cars that catered to not just one strata of society except the very rich folks. Maruti has been a car manufacturer of the masses.

With the Swift, they changed the game once again. It was a fun to drive, easy to maintain and light on pocket car. And people liked how it looked. Even in 2024, the Swift stands true to its heritage, an old but fresh and competitive, fun to drive, good looking car.

Not only did Maruti bring great, frugal cars to India, they brought in the much needed and elite Japanese way of manufacturing to the country, due to which the auto component manufacturing industry became the backbone of the economy. Tata and Mahindra learnt a thing or two from Maruti and started taking this seriously and we see the results now, decades later.

Maruti cars also don't masquerade inferior products as Maruti branded, what some other manufacturers do. Rake in a totally unrelated car from say Korea/China, put an Indian or European badge on it and sell to unsuspecting buyers. MG and XUV 3OO case in point.

Where Maruti is innovative and leads is the platform sharing, chassis and use of latest steel. While others focus on selling high end sofas with internet inside, Maruti still adheres to selling cars. Cars which can take a lot of abuse, be fuss free for 10 years or more while still being customisation friendly for the enthusiasts.

Maruti also leads in a few other areas. Sold a lot of same cars at the same time in the Indian market which were related versions of each other.

Maruti also learnt a lesson or two in market research when the original baleno sedan was supposed to be a hit and the original swift hatchback was supposed to be a dud. The results proved the market research companies wrong. If I am not wrong, it was an Indian company called TNS.

Maruti is also extremely adaptable. When it did not have a diesel engine, it was quick to use the Fiat engine in the Swift. The market was awed and swayed. A decade or more of joy for the Swift enthusiasts and the common user alike. Other manufacturers took a cue and used the Fiat engine too.

Behemoths like Maruti know how to stick to their core competencies even when the market tries to lure them to other areas and forget about it. It is detrimental to the existence of the company in the long run. This does not mean to not innovate. I believe Maruti gives the customers true return on their investments in contrast to luring the customers with sho-sha, which is like robbing the end user of his hard earned money. Tata makes fantastic, aspirational and striking cars. But are they a great bang for the customer's buck? How long do they last, how much the customer spends on maintenance. More or less same for Mahindra. Can a Toyota owner worry about anything post the purchase of his high priced Fortuner/Innova? I guess not.

Model and badge sharing with a company like Toyota exudes confidence not only to the customer but also to the employees and vendors of both the brands. Had Maruti done the same with Ssyangyong or Geely, we would have seen the last of Marutis sooner than later.

Intel is still the dominant player in the CPU market (70-80%) market share. The other dominant player being AMD. While GPU market has been the home turf for Nvidia. Mobile processors have a lot of players, not one accounting for a major chunk of the market. Intel chip was I guess first introduced on a Motorola Rockr phone that ran on Linux in India. Talk of leading the market with innovation. Wrong choice but both Intel and Motorola tried. Android washed the market away with Qualcomms and Samsungs largely soon after this.

True that Maruti has been unable to cater to the 'luxury' segment, with Kizashi and the likes failing. But what a product it was. Global car with a fantastic chassis, engine and the steel used. And it looked great, fresh and exciting. Was the timing of the launch wrong? Who can confidently say.

Wagon R was already a major hit sans the Ola/Uber era. Ola/Uber benefitted more with the presence of a car like Wagon R than a Wagon R profited with the coming up of apps like Ola/Uber.

Competition in the market is anyways great for the buyers. The more the number of brands and the models, the better it is. India still is far behind the curve compared to other major markets. There is an evident lack of choices for the customers.

Tatas, Mahindras and Fiats have still not been able to do what a Ciaz did to the Honda City.

But it is the norm now that SUV sales are rapidly taking over other forms. Will Maruti be able to cope up with the pressure or not is yet to be seen. I reckon we are still a decade or two behind to see how Maruti fares against the competition. A 40% market share of just one automobile company says a lot is lacking in the market for the customers. For Maruti it is still great.

[Quoter]

I am so surprised listening to all the views about Maruti not catering to premium cars, cars above 15 lakh etc. What we are forgetting very conveniently within our echo chambers is that as a country, less than 10% households own a car in India and this is not out of choice. All of these households want to own a car due to absence of reliable public transport and as and when they can afford one, they will most likely start with a Maruti. That is the segment Maruti has always built cars for - First time car buyers and that is their strength.
Yes, due to the way our economy is shaping up, there is faster growth in the premium segment vis-a-vis the entry level segment, however, that is just not the target segment for Maruti. They have tried in different ways to reach this target segment with different models and the Nexa sub branding of showrooms. However those were half hearted attempts which were bound to fail as you need a complete change in mindset to move from frugality to a premium experience. It is not fair to ask the same team to cater to both requirements.
What they need is a completely different brand instead of just a different showroom experience. The current DNA of Maruti is frugality and any attempt to bring premium experiences in it will just dilute the existing DNA. They should take a leaf out of Toyota and Volkswagen to understand how to build a completely independent luxury brand while remaining commuter vehicles under the parent brand.