It is no surprise to anyone that almost every car manufacturer wants to sell an SUV in the INR 10 – 20 lakh price bracket. Not only is the market acceptance high for such cars at this price, but there’s a good amount of profitability as well. Now, Toyota and Maruti Suzuki are going to work jointly to produce a mid-size SUV to rival the likes of Hyundai Creta and Kia Seltos. The SUV in question here will be based on the recently unveiled Toyota Raize.
To be built on the Toyota-Daihatsu DNGA platform which is a modular chassis, both brands, Maruti Suzuki and Toyota will spawn different looking SUVs. Unlike what they have done with the Maruti Suzuki Baleno and Toyota Glanza. The Daihatsu Rocky and Toyota Raize have already debuted in Japan, and the new SUV for India could make way to the streets by 2021-22. Point to note, the Rocky and Raize SUVs are sub-4 metre products, but for India, this SUV would be more spacious and longer measuring close to 4.3 metres in length. Still, this one will remain a 5-seater SUV.
While the top hat, the exterior styling will be a different based on the brand themes for Maruti Suzuki and Toyota. On the inside, we expect a lot to be common for cost efficiency. So expect the steering, seat upholstery and other minor stuff to be suitable to each brand.
Now it remains to be seen if both brands are interested in offering a diesel engine in the future. But for now, it is safe to assume that a 1.5L petrol engine could power this upcoming SUV from Toyota and Maruti Suzuki. This will only be a front-wheel driven car, and no 4×4 will be on offer.
We’re expecting the Toyota iteration to be slightly expensive compared to the Maruti Suzuki model which will be retailed via the Nexa channel.
