[malq]

There are a few parameters here which need to be taken into account:-

a) Currency fluctuations thus bringing down the cost of quite a few of the imports.

b) Pricing strategies by Mahindra/Logan, VW/Vento and Ford/expected small sedan. This will force Maruti's hand across the range. Especially as market share goes down.

c) Prediction of slow-down in 3-box segment. Already there is resonable talk of hatchbacks costing the same as 3-box, soon, all other things being equal.

A 10-lakh sticker price for this new car from Maruti is not going to be a surprise. Keep an eye on the way Merc/BMW are beating down their prices in their lower end cars.

[fx45]

just got a confirmation from an insider source that MUL may launch it as soon as it can and it has already invited major auto mags to conduct a drive for Kizashi.

[GForce1980]

Man! Oh Man!!!

The more I look at this car, the more I fall in love with it. The front looks just awesome. Very aggressive, but classy at the same time.

The rear end could do without the fat boot lip though.

Here are the pics of the new Kisazhi Sport model:

[ahmed26]

Autocar india August edition says it will be priced around 16-17 lakhs......Lets hope they are wrong and maruti comes up with something within 14lacs without compromising on the 2.4 petrol.

[ampere]

More importantly, where is the diesel coming from? Do they have one in their arsenal?

[GForce1980]

I really doubt if it will be priced 16-17 Ex-Showroom Delhi. It is not "Designed" to compete with them. This is a sporty sedan with a wheelbase smaller than an Accord & Camry.

Accord - 2800mm
Camry - 2775mm
Kizashi - 2700mm
Civic - 2700mm

By design, it is to compete with the Civic. If it is to succeed in India, it should be powered by the 2.0 litre J20 Suzuki Petrol & should be priced between 10-14 lacs like the Corolla Altis.

If they can also get the 1.9 DDIS, they will surly have a winner on their hands.

If they want to compete with the likes of Accord & Camry, they must use their Kizashi 3 Concept platform. That was 2800mm & the concept looked killer!

[supremeBaleno]

@GForce1980, awesome snaps there. Looks great in red. The first one is now my wallpaper.

[shortbread]

The Kizashi is a highly capable car and most reviewers have been stunned by this car wearing the humble S badge. But Maruti facec a huge uphill battle to make this a success in India:

• Firstly its a Maruti that costs more than 8 lacs and historically we know what results these have yielded.
• Unlike other major auto cos. in India who assembles their 10lac+ cars locally, Maruti prefers to import them as CBUs, which induces additional duty/taxes and the consistently strengthening Rupee against the Yen will just increase the cars price without adding any actual value.
• Finally its a 2.4 petrol, which in the current circumstances is not the most preferable fuel option. There are plenty of buyers in the segment for a Diesel variant, but the issue is Suzuki does not have one. The car has not been launched in Europe due to this (Europe primarily prefers hi tec diesels to petrol engines) and if Suzuki is struggling to bring out a Diesel variant for Europe, the chances of India getting one are even smaller. Maybe VW can assist.

But thsi is one of the best packages brought out by Suzuki after the Swift and clearly deserves to be a success.

[nurni76]

Originally Posted by supremeBaleno

@GForce1980, awesome snaps there. Looks great in red. The first one is now my wallpaper.

Same here. I am changing my Team BHP profile picture as well. This is a stonker in Red.

Originally Posted by ahmed26

Autocar india August edition says it will be priced around 16-17 lakhs......Lets hope they are wrong and maruti comes up with something within 14lacs without compromising on the 2.4 petrol.

Yes I too read that issue. They have all praises for the car, but at 16-17 L, it wouldn't sell despite a fantastic engine and great ride and handling abilities.

Originally Posted by GForce1980

Man! Oh Man!!!

The more I look at this car, the more I fall in love with it. The front looks just awesome. Very aggressive, but classy at the same time.

The rear end could do without the fat boot lip though.

Here are the pics of the new Kisazhi Sport model:

Thanks for these pictures. The alloys look fantastic and so is the red colour. If it is priced closer to a Mn bucks then this is my next car

[vijayrv]

Lets for a second assume that this info is correct. This implies that the serious contender for this car is Corolla, Civic, Cruze etc and not the Accords and Camries. If this is true, the price point of 10L is the NTS (Net to Suzuki) price. Again this pricing is assuming that it will be manufactured here. Otherwise, this pricing model of comparison with other cars is void as price would strictly be driven by the import cost.
The ex showroom price minus accessories would be another 15-20% over this which would be 12,00,000 (transporting the car, octrois freights etc) Again after adding dealer margins and other costs which would be another 20-25% minimum, we are looking at roughly 15,00,000 on road. I think this is more or less in line with the 16,00,000 bracket that was published.

At this price point, how can Suzuki compete with Corolla on price and with Camry on car specifications? This is what Sonata did and was a major failure. Mainly because the customer wouldn't accept to compare it with a Camry and it was pricier than a Corolla.

If their marketing strategy is to attract potential Camry customers, then a lower pricing might not be the right way to go. With 25 Lakhs at my disposal, If i were a brand conscious guy, I would rather buy a 3 series. If I were a price conscious buyer with some importance to brand, I would prefer the Camry.If i were a brand conscious buyer with limited budget, I would buy the Corolla. If I were a buyer with limited budget but need the space of a Camry, is when I would look at this car. But then again, I would need to be only a sedan buyer or I would look at a Fortuner. So the target audience should be a budget conscious, brand agnostic buyer looking at buying a sedan with similar features as that of a Camry. Oh and BTW, this car is much smaller than a Camry. Man!!! Gets more and more confusing

TL;DR Kizashi market strategy is bull ****

[GTO]

I saw the car at the Auto Expo in person and believe me, she has presence. What I especially liked is the low & wide stance. Looks like the SX4's big brother from the front...and no quirky / weird design lines. Was blown away by the interior quality, but knowing Maruti, expect some cheapness by the time its launched here.

This car will go in the C+ segment, and directly against the Corolla, Civic, Cruze etc.

[srishiva]

Man, It looks so good. It looks delicious in red. You can just gaze at it.
The best Maruti can do is to price it same as Civic, Corolla since its actually a little higher than these cars.
Cant VW use this for something from their stable? There is a Kizashi Turbo with 290HP!

[Sankar]

The placement of the front fender marker lamps spoils an otherwise clean profile. Imho it will look mounted higher and after the front wheel arch.

[S5157]

The car looks great.But Problem is how Maruti can get people who want to buy a 10L + car into their showrooms to atleast have a TD.Maruti is yet to learn the art of selling upmarket cars.

[Sugeeta]

Maruti Suzuki has finally expressed that Ki-za-shi would not be launched in 2010. As expected, the release would be slated for Q1 2011 (?).

Too many new launches this year in Q3 / Q4; the scene looks overcrowded already.

A unique car like this from the Maruti stables.....sure deserves an exclusive launch!!

Lets look forward to the VW Vento in the meantime.

SM