Toyota and Maruti Suzuki are planning to launch a new SUV in the Indian market. The brands under the global partnership have already begun road testing the SUV in India. Images of the development mule have emerged on the internet, revealing a fully camouflaged SUV on public roads. Reports suggest that the development mule is under test in Bangalore and codenamed D22. The Toyota-Maruti Suzuki D22 is likely to be positioned above the Maruti Suzuki Vitara Brezza/Toyota Urban Cruiser and rival the mid-size SUV segment.
Toyota and Maruti Suzuki will jointly manufacture the D22 SUV at Toyota’s production plant near Bangalore. Sources suggest that Maruti Suzuki will provide the parts for the vehicle. The D22 will spawn two SUVs with different top hats to easily distinguish between the Maruti Suzuki SUV and the Toyota SUV. This will be entirely different from the current partnership where Toyota has been rebadging Vitara Brezza and Baleno. Expect the Toyota version to have a design language similar to the Toyota RAV4. The Maruti Suzuki version cannot be speculated at this time.
While the information on the new SUV is scarce, speculations are that both the Toyota and Maruti Suzuki will use the same powertrain. Of course, this will help the brands streamline production and optimise the economies of scale. The brand will also be able to price the SUV in the Indian market aggressively. The SUV could use the Maruti Suzuki 1.5-litre four-cylinder petrol engine on the D22. However, the brands may not supply a diesel motor.
The Toyota-Maruti Suzuki D22 will compete with the MG Astor, Kia Seltos, Hyundai Creta, Renault Duster, Volkswagen Taigun and Skoda Kushaq. The new D22 is likely to come with a price tag in the range of INR 9 lakh ex-showroom to INR 15 lakh ex-showroom.
Also Read: Maruti Suzuki working on Tata Punch rival, YTB is a sub-4-meter SUV