Brezza, Grand Vitara, Fronx star in Maruti's SUV rush in FY 2023-24

Maruti Suzuki continues to benefit from its sport utility vehicles (SUVs) as it remains one of the largest manufacturers in the segment for the Financial Year 2023-24. From April last year to February 2024, Maruti has sold more than four lakh SUVs, which include the likes of Brezza, Grand Vitara, Fronx, Jimny and S-Cross. Though the carmaker had briefly become India's largest SUV manufacturer last year, the crown has been retaken by Mahindra and Mahindra, the maker of Scorpio-N, Thar and XUV700 among others. However, Maruti Suzuki plans to continue with its SUV offensive and aims to increase its sales in coming days.

From small and compact cars to small and compact SUVs - Maruti Suzuki's shift towards the more popular body-type in passenger vehicle segment has been rapid. In the last two years, the carmaker has driven in as many as four models, including the Grand Vitara, Fronx and Jimny. Maruti Suzuki said that it has sold 4,04,114 units of sport utility vehicles in the ongoing financial year. However, it admitted that it is likely to fail in meeting estimates of selling around 4.50 lakh SUVs within the same fiscal.

In February, Maruti Suzuki delivered 41,256 units of SUVs. Brezza, Fronx and Grand Vitara contributed the bulk of the sales in the segment. Currently, Maruti Suzuki has a little more than 20 per cent market share. The Jimny, one of the most anticipated launches that took place last year, has not been as successful as some of its siblings. However, it managed to increase its sales to 514 last month from the low of 163 units in January this year.

Compared to its rival Mahindra and Mahindra, Maruti Suzuki ended February just short by nearly 1,200 SUVs. Mahindra sold 42,401 units last month, mostly through its popular Scorpio brand which is available in Scorpio-N and Scorpio Classic versions. Jimny's sales performance could be one of the factors why Maruti Suzuki may not hit the 4.50-lakh unit sales in the segment by March-end. Its performance could also be the reason why Maruti is currently lagging behind Mahindra in terms of market share in the SUV segment.