Recap: Cars Launched in Jan 2015

New cars of India

Indian auto industry welcomed the new year with some important car launches in the month of January 2015. Tata came out with highly anticipated Bolt hatchback which is being touted as the comeback vehicle for Tata Motors. Datsun India stretched it small car Go to compete in the emerging MPV segment as Datsun Go+ against Maruti-Suzuki Ertiga and Honda Mobilio.

In the high end luxury car segment Mercedes Benz launched its smallest sedan CLA class which goes head on against Audi A3. Apart from this lot of car makers came out with new variants of their existing model. Toyota increased the heat in SUV market with launch of 4X4 automatic transmission for Fortuner. Maruti Suzuki added Z+ trim to its mid size sedan Ciaz and Mahindra introduced S4+ and S4+4WD variant for Scorpio SUV. Not to be left behind, Honda upgraded Brio and Amaze models with Audio Video Navigation. This majorly sums up the January buzz but watchout as there is lot to happen this month.

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Survey: Maruti-Suzuki India’s Most Trusted Auto Brand

Trust is a complex concept to be measured and even more difficult to earn and maintain. Brand loyalty thrives on trust and higher this rating goes more consumers follow the brand. As per 'The Trust Report, India Study 2012', compiled by the Brand Trust Advisory, Maruti Suzuki is India’s most trusted automotive brand. Now that can’t be called a surprising revelation since it’s already a well known fact the Maruti commands lots of respect and trust in India and its reflection can be seen in its annual sales figure.

Maruti Suzuki Dzire and Alto has been rated as the top two most trusted cars and BMW leads the list of luxury car brands followed by Audi. Interestingly as per the report the second and third largest automobile maker in India, the Hyundai Motor and Tata Motors could not make it to the list of top ten trusted automotive manufacturers. Come on now, the quality of cars from Hyundai and Tata has improved a lot in recent years but it seems that even in the past year people continued to suspect cars from these brands.

"The report measures 61 tangible and intangible aspects of brand trust, which combine to encompass all positive behaviours and attitudes toward a brand," Trust Research Advisory CEO N Chandramouli said.

The survey was conducted between August-November 2011 and took into account the responses and views on 17,000 brands from over 2,700 participants across 15 cities in the country and has featured top 1,000 brands from several categories.

What we are more concerned about here is how our automotive brands performed on the trust factor. So checkout below the list of top ten automotive brands as per the Brand Trust Report 2012 which have managed to gain and maintain the trust of people of India all through the year of 2011.

Source: TrustAdvisory
Read More On: Maruti-Suzuki

Rank	Brand	Category
1	Maruti-Suzuki	Four-Wheeler
2	BMW	Luxury Cars
3	Hero Honda	Two-Wheeler
4	Toyota	Four-Wheeler
5	Honda	Four-Wheeler
6	Ford	Four-Wheeler
7	Audi	Luxury Cars
8	Skoda	Four-Wheeler
9	Hero	Two-Wheeler
10	Yamaha	Two-Wheeler

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Comparison: Maruti Suzuki Ertiga vs Toyota Innova - The Inevitable Competitors

Maruti Suzuki has entered the multi-purpose vehicle market with the launch of its Ertiga MPV at the 2012 Delhi Auto Expo. The new Ertiga kick starts a new compact premium UV (utility vehicle) segment in India and will soon be joined by Chevrolet, Mahindra and others. So before the new players join the party let’s compare the pioneer of the mini MPV class, Ertiga with the ruling boss of this segment, the new Toyota Innova.

Pitching the new Ertiga (which means three rows in Indonesian language) against the recently facelifted Toyota Innova seems odd since they don’t belong to the same segment and are targeted at a different set of customer base. But going by the lack of options for MPV buyers in our automobile market the Ertiga vs Innova duel won’t feel out of place. The Utility Vehicle (UV= MPV + SUV) segment accounts for around 14 per cent of the total sale of vehicles in India and a 66 per cent of these are Multi-Purpose Vehicles (MPV), the segment where Ertiga is positioned.

(Checkout a detailed pictorial comparison between Ertiga and Innova below).

Innova has been ruling Indian hearts for many years due to its proven reliability and workhorse powerplant. Maruti Suzuki’s Ertiga is new but coming from the stable of India’s largest automobile manufacture gives it a certain halo of trust in the eyes of masses. Though an MPV, the Ertiga has a very car-like styling and stance. The front resembles a buffed up Ritz hatchback while the peeled-back headlights are reminiscent of the new Swift which along with the pronounced wheel arches and a strong rising shoulder line gives it a bold stance. The rear has a distinct design with Honda Jazz like tail light. But it can still be easily identified from behind as a Maruti product with its trademark centrally located stop lamp at the bottom of the bumper.

With the launch of its Ertiga, Maruti not only intends to attract a new class of customers into its fold but also expects to take away many of the Toyota buyers who used to shop in the ‘Innova market’. Now that’s easier said than done. Ertiga does not make a style statement like say the Fluidic Hyundai but its appeal lies in the neutral ‘please all’ design and that’s what is going to help it be the choice of the whole family. So let’s try to decipher the new Ertiga while not forgetting what Innova has to offer.

Ertiga vs Innova: Target Base.

Toyota Innova is designed to move 7 people in comfort and can accommodate the 8th passenger in times of need. That’s one of the reasons what makes it a hit in the taxi segment as well as for personal use. Checkout Ertiga and you’ll find that it’s built to enable 6 people (4 adults + 2 kids) to travel together in peace and can still find space for one more rider if required. So what set of customers is Maruti Suzuki aiming at with its new MPV? Answer is - a conventional Indian middle class family with an average income and in need of space for 1 or 2 more people than what a usual hatchback or sedan can accommodate. Generally speaking, a complete family normally consists of 5 or 6 members: Parents (2) in age group 55-75yrs, self and spouse (age 25-45) and their 2 offspring’s (age 5-15). Till now people of this segment had to either choose a large 3 row SUV (15-20lakh) or had to stretch their budget to atleast the Innova territory. So with launch of Ertiga, Maruti intends to hit the sweet spot of Indian customers looking for a MUV at a price of a mid-size sedan.

Ertiga vs Innova: Structural Advantage.

Toyota cars are built to last and have comfortable interiors but boring looks and Innova is no different. Maruti Suzuki made vehicles are known to be value for money, practical by design and are loved for their highly fuel efficient motor and pleasing looks and Ertiga carries on this tradition. Technically speaking Innova is based on the old body on frame construction architecture and due to the inherent rigidity of this structure it can endure bad roads better. Ertiga on other hand is a modern MPV based on an extended Ritz platform, which itself is based on a modified Swift platform. Due to this monocoque construction it gets advantage over Innova in terms of better ride comfort, stability and handling.

Ertiga vs Innova: Space vs Utility.

Dimension Innova Ertiga Length (mm) 4585 4265 Width (mm) 1760 1695 Height (mm) 1760 1685 Wheelbase (mm) 2750 2740 Boot (liter) 400 135

The inside of the Maruti Suzuki Ertiga looks spacious and a lot of credit for it goes to the all beige interior colour. It has 3 rows of seats just like a traditional MPV with a maximum capacity to carry 7 passengers at a time. But realistically speaking, shoulder room will be at a premium if 3 adults decide to sit in the middle row since Ertiga is only as wide as the all-new 2011 Swift. The seats of the middle row can slide forward/backward as required. The 3rd row is best left to kids or really short adults. Legroom & head-room are in extremely short supply there. Notice that the 2nd row seat has a 60:40 fold-down split. You can also completely fold down the 2nd and 3rd row of seats when more than 135 liter of boot space is needed. Ertiga is no match for the amount of room including the luggage space you get inside a full size MPV like Innova. On comparing the outer dimensions you will notice that Toyota is longer by quite a margin even though both have almost the same size of wheelbase. This is due to the fact that Ertiga has very short overhang and the loss of space inside make its proportions compact on outside. And a smaller body shell allows lots of flexibility to park and maneuver easily even in congested areas, giving it an edge over Innova.

Ertiga vs Innova: Engine & Fuel Efficiency.

Comparison	Innova (Diesel)	Ertiga (Diesel)	Innova (Petrol)	Ertiga (Petrol)
Power (ps)	102	90	132	95
Torque (Nm)	200	200	181	130
Fuel Economy (ARAI Kmpl)	12.99	20.77	10.35	16.02

Just like Innova, Maruti’s new UV also comes in both petrol and diesel versions. Suzuki’s highly acclaimed K-series petrol engine family is joined by its youngest member with the debut of the new K-14B VVT 1.4 liter petrol motor in Ertiga. But the main volumes puller will however be the 1.3 Liter DDiS Fiat derived Multijet turbo diesel engine, which is the same unit that powers the SX4. Its pulling torque power is equal to Innova’s 200Nm even though net power is lower. But being a smaller and lighter vehicle gives Maruti Ertiga the advantage of higher power to weight ratio and better mileage.

Ertiga vs Innova: Market Price.
Maruti Suzuki has the bandwidth to price Ertiga very competitively due to its large scale of operation, high amount localization and lots of component sharing like extended Ritz chassis and a specially tuned SX4 diesel engine. Also its dashboard is lifted straight out of new 2011 Swift..well almost. So a starting price of 6.5 to 7 lakhs should not be a surprise. New face-lifted 2012 Toyota Innova now comes with a base price of Rs 8,87,400. Now that’s quite a price difference but don’t forget that Innova is much bigger and more powerful than Ertiga.

Ertiga vs Innova: Conclusion.
By now it is clear that no matter in how much detail we try and compare Maruti Ertiga with Innova, the bottomline always remains the same i.e. both MPVs are different and by comparing one with other we do justice with none. Pitching Innova against Ertiga is just like comparing the mighty Ford Endeavour with the compact Skoda Yeti SUV. Ertiga and Innova are vehicles of different segment. Innova already rules the large MPV market and Ertiga don’t have any rivals yet to compete against in the compact MPV segment. But that is going to change soon when manufactures like Chevrolet, Renault, Nissan, Mahindra etc come to the market with their own version of mini MPV.

Read More On: Maruti-Suzuki

Photo Gallery: New Maruti Suzuki Ertiga vs Facelifted 2012 Toyota Innova

Ertiga vs Innova Front Side View

Ertiga vs Innova Front Grill, Headlight, Fog Lamp

Ertiga vs Innova Dashboard, Steering Comparison

Ertiga vs Innova Interior Space Comparison

Ertiga vs Innova Boot Space Comparison

Ertiga vs Innova Boot Space with 3rd Row Folded

Ertiga vs Innova Rear Comparison. Notice Bottom Lamp.

Ertiga vs Innova Front Profile View

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Truth Be Revealed : Maruti Suzuki Alto vs Hyundai Eon Comparison

The Korean car maker Hyundai is known for sculpting beautiful shapes out of raw metal. But with launch of its new baby hatchback Eon, Hyundai has set a new benchmark in low cost car design. Now with the presence of Hyundai Eon in the Indian entry level car segment the other budget hatchbacks like Maruti Suzuki Alto, Alto k10, Maruti 800, Chevy Spark, Tata Nano etc suddenly seems to look boring and ancient in comparison. But does that mean all these cars will lose their market share overnight just because a smart looking car has been launched?

It is wake up time. In the Indian car market scene looks of a car is an important factor in its success but the deciding factors have always been: KKH- Kitne Ki Hai (Price), KDH – Kitna Deti Hai (Fuel economy/efficiency), product reliability plus ease and cost of maintenance and service. So no doubt Hyundai’s Eon can win fashion contests but can it crack the code of our unique small car space is yet to be seen.

Lots of reviewers are giving over importance to looks of new Eon as if it’s all that’s required. But as they say ‘looks don’t win battles’, here we will try and look at comparison between the ageless Maruti Suzuki Alto/Alto K10 versus new fluidic Hyundai Eon from a more practical, real life point of view.

Fuel Economy Comparison: Eon vs Alto: Kitna Deti Hai?

Mileage Comparison	Local (kmpl)	Highway (kmpl)	Overall (kmpl)	Fuel Tank (litre)
Hyundai Eon	15.6	24.3	17.7	32
Maruti Alto K10	16.3	26.3	18.8	35

All seem to be talking about how fuel efficient Hyundai Eon is, considering the official ARAI mileage figure of 21.1kmpl and Suzuki Alto K10’s 20.2kmpl. But as we all know ARAI gives only the ideal test condition figures and not the real world fuel efficiency numbers. So to know what average fuel consumption we can expect in our day to day driving, guys at Overdrive tested and found some actual figures which differs a lot from ARAI published mileage of Eon and Alto. Considering these figures (mentioned in above table) we note Alto has superior fuel efficiency over Eon in local as well as highway drive. Now taking into account the overall (local + highway) fuel economy and fuel tank size of both the cars we can get a usable result. In one tank full of petrol Eon can be driven 566.4 kilometers whereas Alto will keep running for 658 kilometers i.e. almost 91 km more that Eon.

Speed Test: Eon vs Alto: Who’s faster?

Performance Comparison	0-100 kmph (sec)	Top Speed (kmph)
Hyundai Eon	19.08	131
Maruti Suzuki Alto K10	15.2	153

Alto’s higher fuel efficiency has not been achieved by compromising on performance. In Overdrive’s 0 to 100 acceleration test Eon reached ton in a lazy 19.08 seconds whereas Alto reached 100 in just 15.2 seconds. Plus on an open highway run Hyundai’s small fluidic gives up on touching 131 kmph whereas Maruti’s old workhorse keep galloping till 153 kmph. In short Alto is more like a pocket rocket- small and fast.

Engine Comparison: Eon vs Alto: Who’s powerful?

Powertrain Comparison	Engine (CC)	Power (PS)	Torque (Nm)
Hyundai Eon	814	56	76.5
Maruti Suzuki Alto K10	998	68	90

Engine is said to be the soul of an automobile. Japanese have always been great at making amazing engines and Suzuki is no different. If you drive Eon and Alto back to back you’ll notice two prominent things immediately. One- Alto has way more powerful and refined engine and second- due to Eon’s narrower power-band you need change gears much more frequently than in Alto. Moreover in Alto you feel very less engine/transmission vibrations on control levers like accelerator, gear shift etc. than Eon. K10’s 998cc, 68bhp twin-cam engine is one of the best in this segment and goes on to show just how good a three-cylinder can be. Along with a precise-shifting gearbox it makes Alto an ideal car for people who love to drive.

Design and Ergonomics Comparison: Eon vs Alto.
Alto has been designed keeping in mind the practical needs and requirements for its user’s comfort whereas Eon’s shape has been crafted to make a style statement. Due to its rising shoulder line Eon has a small glass area at rear and thus limiting the amount of light coming in from the sides and making it claustrophobic. Further, the thick A-pillar decreases the overall frontal visibility. Also due to longer back seat base your legs may hit against the B-pillar while getting in and out of Eon. In contrast, Alto has much better all-round visibility with large window area, slimmer pillars and more ergonomic ingress & egress.

Price Comparison: Eon vs Alto: Kitne Ki Hai?

Price Comparison (KKH)	Price (ex-showroom, Delhi)
Maruti Suzuki Alto	2,32,000
Hyundai Eon	2,70,000
Maruti Suzuki Alto K10	3,04,000

Hyundai Eon starts from base price of 2.7 lakhs and goes upto 3.75 lakhs whereas Alto can be bought for 2.32 lakhs and Alto K10 for 3.04 lakhs. So you need to cough up atleast 38,000 rupees more to buy Eon base over Alto base. Also since Alto is not a new launch so you can expect to get some discounts at dealer level as well. In contrast Hyundai has already announced that it’s going to increase car prices in a months’ time thereby further diluting Eon’s value for money image.

Sales Comparison: Eon vs Alto: Who sells more?

Car Sales Comparison	Sept. 2011	Oct. 2011	Nov. 2011
Hyundai Eon	7188	6315	7418
Maruti Suzuki Alto	21198	15197	24422

A new car garners maximum sales in first 2-3 months of its launch after which the number of units being sold comes down to a comparatively lower but stable figure. Being a recent launch Hyundai has been managing to sell on average about 7000 units of Eon for the past three months which by any standard is a very health number till you compare it with Alto who has been getting 25,000 new customers month on month for past many years. Recent downfall in Alto’s sale has nothing to do with Eon but with production shutdowns and labour issues at Maruti’s factory for the past many months and it has been resolved now. Rather than making a dent in Maruti Alto’s market share, Eon has been eating into sales number of its elder sibling Santro Xing.

Another reason for Alto’s superstar performance all these year has been low cost of maintenance and service provided by Maruti throughout India. Even though Hyundai has been building a decent pan India dealer network but it pales in comparison to Maruti Suzuki's network. Also the average cost incurred on maintaining and servicing a Hyundai product in comparison to Maruti has always been higher.

Maruti Suzuki Alto/Alto K10 has been ruling the Indian automobile market for almost 11 years now and it’s no mean task to fulfill needs and meet expectations of generations of Indian masses. Ask Tata (‘Nano’) how difficult it is to earn trust of people no matter how good your product is. So it will never be easy for a new ‘fluidic’ boy to dethrone the King of Indian small car market in a hurry.

Disclaimer: This comparative analysis is done to remind and highlight the true positive aspects of Alto which seem to have be been ignored by one and all since the launch of Eon. It does not in any way intend to undermine the qualities and potential of Eon being a wonderful hatchback.

Read More On: Maruti-Suzuki | Hyundai

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