Maruti Suzuki to enter into LCV segment with Y9T (codenamed)

After capturing the passenger vehicle market of India, the country's largest carmaker is aiming to enter into the light commercial vehicles (LCV) segment. The board of Maruti Suzuki has approved a proposal to start production of LCVs. As per the report published on ET, a Senior Maruti Suzuki Executive revealed this information at an offsite with its vendors in Malaysia last week.  

The company is working on a new LCV codenamed Y9T, which will compete against the Tata Ace. The new LCV will get a new 2-cylinder 800cc diesel engine, and the vehicle is already in production cycle. People close to the development of this LCV revealed that the company's first LCV will come out from its Gujarat plant, which goes on sale in FY16. The company is working on a range of LCVs, which are being manufactured at the India research and development centre. The India-Japanese new R&D facility in Rohtak is likely to start by next year. The company is also planning to develop a range of diesel engines for its passenger cars and LCVs. It has been sourcing diesel engines from the Italian carmaker 'Fiat', Maruti Suzuki sources multijet diesel engines to power hatchbacks, sedans and multi-purpose vehicle Ertiga.

Speaking to the ET, four people close to the development said that the two-cylinder 800cc engine, which will be used in LCV and turbocharged variant for small cars are already in development phase. The company is also aiming to develop a whole new diesel engine family, which is expected to include a 1.2-litre three-cylinder engine and 1.4-litre four-cylinder engine. If the new engine family gets approval from management, then it is expected that the new engines will complement the Fiat's 1.3-litre multijet. 

Deepesh Rathore, India MD for IHS Automotive said,"I think Maruti would definitely need to look beyond Fiat for the diesel engines". The company might also develop bigger engines, but there is nothing clear from the management at the moment. The new LCV will compete against the likes of Tata Ace and Mahindra Maxximo, which are selling at a high node.

Experts believe that both these segments will open new paths of growth for Maruti Suzuki. "The company told vendors that its strong brand and network will help in achieving a healthy market share in the growing LCV space," revealed by one of the vendors present at the annual meet.

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