Maruti-Suzuki, India's largest car manufacturer, kicked off proceedings at the 2016 Auto Expo in New Delhi by unveiling the Vitara Brezza, it's upcoming compact SUV. Conceptualized, designed and developed completely in house by Maruti's engineers in India using a Suzuki global platform, the Vitara Brezza is aimed straight at the Ford Ecosport and Mahindra TUV3OO.
From the looks of it, the Vitara Brezza is quite a style statement from Maruti-Suzuki. It heavily borrows design elements from the international Vitara and presents it in a compact footprint, with its length falling short of the all-important 4-meter mark. It's compact dimensions notwithstanding, the Vitara Brezza looks butch, sports an upright hood and squarish wheel arches, gets short front and rear overhangs and boasts a high ground clearance of 198 mm, all of which are typical SUV traits. The two-tone paint job exclusive to the top-end variant promises to be an unique differentiator as well.
Did we mention the top-end Vitara Brezza in red-black and blue-white combos look snazzy?
While the exteriors are all new, the engine isn't. The Vitara Brezza's power source remains the tried and tested 1.3-liter DDiS diesel engine that churns out 89 horsepower and 200 Nm of torque. The power is transmitted to the front wheels through a 5-speed manual transmission. It's interesting given that the premium Baleno gets the same engine in a lower state of tune while the Vitara Brezza gets the same tune as the S-Cross. Though not officially confirmed, we expect Maruti-Suzuki to launch petrol-engined variants and automatic transmission at a later stage.
From the official images released, the interior design doesn't break new ground but we expect Maruti-Suzuki to load the Vitara Brezza with features. The official brochure lists cruise control, multi-coloured instrument cluster and touchscreen infotainment system with GPS navigation amongst others! Maruti-Suzuki claims the Vitara Brezza meets the frontal offset and side impact crash tests that will come into force in India from 2017. A driver airbag is standard on the Vitara Brezza while front passenger airbag and ABS (Anti-lock Braking System) with EBD (Electronic Brake-force Distribution) is provided as an option from the base variant.
Pre-bookings for the Vitara Brezza starts immediately while the price announcement and official launch will happen a few weeks down the line. Well, we see "blockbuster" written all over the Vitara Brezza! You do as well, don't you?
I wonder what the overseas models are going to look like. It'll be interesting to read about the car's specs and how it rides in comparison to its competitors.
ReplyDeleteWe believe the Vitara Brezza is an India-specific model that could be exported to a few emerging markets. Suzuki has the Vitara to cater to mature global markets and do not need the Brezza.
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