English
The Maruti Suzuki Vitara Brezza sub-compact SUV has been a runaway success for the Indian carmaker. Slotted in the highly-competitive and price-sensitive sub-4-metre SUV space, the vehicle has been designed by head of design C.V Raman, and it is entirely produced in the country, making it all the more special for the carmaker. To add to this, the Vitara Brezza exceeded the 10,000 bookings mark in October 2016 and 1.72 lakh bookings recently. Now, to add icing to the cake, the Maruti Suzuki Vitara Brezza has won the Indian Car Of The Year (ICOTY) award for 2017. The award was presented in a ceremony in Mumbai, and it highlights the immense success that the Vitara Brezza has seen since its launch in March 2016.
Maruti Suzuki has long been known as the manufacturer of budget-friendly, fuel-saving, compact hatchbacks, but it has been doing well by expanding beyond this brand image and establishing itself as a maker of more premium models like the Maruti Suzuki Baleno and S-Cross as well as larger cars, like the Vitara Brezza. Despite the bold move outside its comfort zone, Maruti has also smartly played within its strengths, with the Vitara Brezza being an SUV that is compact in dimensions, low in price thanks to its sub-4-metre length, and high in mileage with its diesel powertrain. Also Read: India spec Maruti Suzuki Ignis revealed; price, launch date, features, specifications & bookings
Maruti Suzuki Vitara Brezza
The Maruti Suzuki team was recognised at the ICOTY event by Dr. Raghupati Singhania, Vice-Chairman & Managing Director, JK Tyre & Industries. Indian singer-songwriter Gary Lawyer provided the music at the event. The previous year saw the Hyundai Creta win top honours. For this year, around 19 new cars were in the running, and 6 of them were filtered out at the final jury round. The final top 6 models that were competing for the award were the Hyundai Elantra and Hyundai Tuscon, Toyota Innova Crysta, Skoda Suberb and Ford Endeavour, apart from the Vitara Brezza. The Hyundai Tuscon won the second prize, while the Innova Crysta ranked third. All three are, of course, models that have not only captured the hearts of automotive experts and journalists but also the general public, raking in huge sales numbers.
The ICOTY is selected based on a number of parameters, including styling, safety, fuel efficiency, pricing, comfort, performance, value for money, suitability to Indian conditions, technical innovation and practicality. The Maruti Suzuki Vitara Brezza certainly ranks in all these parameters, so the winner this year is not that debatable. Its success has led to a fair share of problems for Maruti too. Demand for the sub-compact SUV has been so high that the waiting period is now around 6-8 months. As of November 2016, the company has been able to deliver less than 40% of the orders booked and is working hard on resolving the production crunch. The new Gujarat facility will likely help a lot here. Also Read: New Maruti Swift 2017 to launch with AMT gearbox
Maruti Suzuki Vitara Brezza
The Maruti Suzuki Vitara Brezza, despite playing in the sub-4-metre segment, is suitable brawny for the SUV space with its black under-body large front air intakes, floating roof, large bumpers, wraparound taillights and 16-inch wheels. At its heart is the 1.3-litre DDiS engine that delivers 89 bhp of power and 200 Nm of torque, linked to a five-speed manual transmission. The SUV offers 24.3 kmpl, which is the highest in its class at the moment. Maruti may soon launch an AMT version, along with a petrol engine variant in the early months of 2017. The larger Suzuki Vitara SUV may also make its way into India.
For breaking news and live news updates, like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter and Instagram. Read more on Latest News Cars News on India.com.
