[romeomidhun]

Originally Posted by zenren

Very unlikely to get K12.
...
Moreover, the additional cost of K12 engine over K10 would make it difficult for Maruti to give an attractive sticker price for Celerio.

Yes, I agree. Celerio (with K10) being in a bigger and better platform than WR, will surely cost more than WR. But a K12-equipped Celerio will not cost as much as Ritz, as Ritz in built in a much bigger platform. Maruti can price a K12 Celerio LXi at 4.10L, I guess.

[Ritzvxi]

@ Mods: After writing the post, I feel that I have gone off topic, you can either delete the post or re-post it in an appropriate thread.

First the time lines of the launches:
Wagon R: 1999
Swift: 2005
Ritz: 2009

i10: 2007
i20: 2008
i10 Grand: late 2013

Well I agree that the numbers do not do justice to Ritz. But nevertheless it is a brilliant product.

Now from the Maruti Suzuki (MSIL) standpoint, they had the WagonR way back in 1999, then came the Swift in 2005 and the Ritz in 2009. So the trio of WagonR, Swift and Ritz have been getting the numbers for MSIL for all these years.

Although Hyundai should have come in with something in between i10 and i20, they preferred sticking to the higher end (Verna, Elantra, Sonata (after the initial hicups, finally seems to have got right the design) and Santa Fe). Which means they did not have an answer to the Ritz (Yes they had Santro, but MSIL had WagonR).

After all the these years, they have brought in the i10 grand and Eon (better late than never).

From the looks of it (or better photography) The Celerio seems to be a head on challenge for Hyundai EON.

All and all, Hyundai seems to be better positioned than MSIL, considering the design, models, service availability/quality. And the way they have adopted to the Indian market. I guess Hyundai is the only company which continues to successfully challenge MSIL in India.

Personally, I dislike Hyundai cars, don't know the reason (may be due to the chic image OR because SRK endorses them).

End of the day, although when singled out, the Ritz deserves much more than it has achieved. But, I guess MSIL should be lauded for the product, and they should be happy seeing at the numbers it has brought in.

[a4anurag]

Originally Posted by aniketi

I guess Maruti mainly concentrate on their blockbuster cars only like Alto, Swift, Dzire, Wagon R and Ertiga in current market conditions. I hardly see any ads for Ritz or other cars like SX4, A star etc. Showroom guys also mainly focus on their top selling cars. Somehow i have seen that showroom people from Maruti always push Swift and Wagon R the most. Don't know what is the reason behind it. May be they have more commission for those cars

The cars you have mentioned are the bread and butter for Maruti garnering highest sales in their respective segments so the pushing for these cars by the SA's push harder to get their respective brownie's.

The Ritz was just a gap filling product between the WagonR and the Swift and mind you the Ritz did well when there were long waiting periods for the Swift but since the waiting periods have vanished for the Swift, customers are happy to buy the Swift.

When I was buying the Swift ZDi, any colour than White and Silver were readily available for delivery but the rest were needing a week or two waiting. My Torque Blue colour demanded a two day wait due to no stocks as it is a very low chosen colour so minimal stocks at the dealer.

Originally Posted by zenren

Very unlikely to get K12.

Maruti cannot give anything bigger than K12 for Dzire and the upcoming compact SUV (whenever it comes!) due to tax benefits. So they need to ensure that they project K12 as a premium engine and not an entry level engine.

K10 should be more than sufficient for any car smaller than the Swift since they have 800cc car as their entry level and K10 as tier 2. Celerio is certainly not big enough to qualify as a premium hatch. Moreover, the additional cost of K12 engine over K10 would make it difficult for Maruti to give an attractive sticker price for Celerio.

Absolutely, Giving the Celerio a 1.2L petrol will be like the K10 for the Alto.

The K12 is for the Ritz, Swift and Ertiga as I feel it is best suited for them whereas the K10 will cater to the Celerio better than the 800 cc engine.

Anurag.