Maruti Suzuki seeks place in crowded LCV market
Maruti Suzuki, which rules the domestic car market with a 50 per cent share, has slowly but surely started marking its presence in the business of light commercial vehicles (LCV). The Suzuki-promoted company had entered the LCV business in July 2016 and is now the fifth player in the segment though its market share is just 2 per cent.
The company had sold 460 LCVs, branded as Super Carry, in the April-January period of FY16-17. Sales multiplied manifold to 7,369 units in the first 10 months of this financial year. These numbers are small compared to the volumes that the top two players — M&M and Tata Motors — clock. But Maruti is betting big on the prospects of the segment. It has also started shipping LCVs and has exported 900 units.
“This is a new segment that we need to challenge. We have experience in LCVs globally. The Indian market offers opportunities in this space. That is why we started with it and we will consider future products. I believe that India is changing dramatically and we have to improve the transportation and delivery system in cities and between the cities. Our products will the have room to occupy some business here. We try to develop this new segment of business as we are seeing acceptance,” said Kenichi Ayukawa, managing director and chief executive officer at Maruti Suzuki.
The company said customers were opting for its LCV because of features like power, pickup, driving comfort, and mileage. Maruti Suzuki has a single product in the segment, catering for transportation of goods and it is available in both diesel and CNG variants. But it is getting ready to expand the range. “We are touching a new set of customers, different from car buyers with LCVs. We will develop new relationships and try to develop products in tune with their expectations. It will be a focus area for us. Tata Motors and Mahindra have a range of products,” said Ayukawa.
Maruti Suzuki currently ranks fifth in the goods carrier segment of LCV — after M&M, Tata Motors, Ashok Leyland and VECV. It is ahead of players like Force Motors, Piaggio, and Isuzu. Super Carry was developed at an investment of ~3 billion. Equipped with a powerful 793 cc diesel engine it promises a mileage of 22.07 km per litre and has a loading capacity of 740 kg.
The competition has started taking note of Maruti’s LCV play. “We should not discount any competition. Maruti Suzuki is very strong in passenger vehicles. They enjoy a good popularity in the automobile market. It is an important competition which we need to keep track of,” said Girish Wagh, president of the CV business unit at Tata Motors, the country’s biggest commercial vehicles maker.