Maruti Suzuki to source Brezza also from Toyota
28 Mar 2019
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Maruti Suzuki’s star performer Brezza will be manufactured at Toyota’s India facility, Toyota Kirloskar Motors, in 2022, after Toyota launches Maruti Suzuki’s other model Baleno later this year.
Toyota will also sell the Brezza, although with modifications, as per the agreement.
This will be the second Suzuki model that Toyota will be selling after it licensed out the Baleno, which will be sold by Toyota later this year.
The Brezza will be manufactured at one of the two factories of Toyota Kirloskar Motors. Maruti Suzuki, India's largest car maker, will not have to make any investment in its partner’s capacity.
The agreement is part of the MoU signed by Toyota and Suzuki in February 2017, under which the two will mutually supply products and components.
The MoU also entails business partnership in areas, including environmental technologies, safety technologies, information technologies, and mutual supply of products and components.
The Brezza, a sub-four meter urban SUV, clocks an average of 13,000 units sales every month. The changes that Toyota intends to make to the Brezza before retailing it through its showrooms, remains undisclosed.
"If in future Maruti Suzuki has to rearrange production then it will have the flexibility to source the Brezza from Toyota as per requirement," said an industry source.
It has been further decided that Maruti Suzuki will continue to be the sole manufacturer of the Baleno. A derivative of the car will be sold to Toyota Kirloskar. "This will result in incremental sales for the company," Maruti Suzuki said in a statement.
Further Maruti Suzuki said ‘Toyota Hybrid System will be provided in future products of the company, which will help it become a front runner of clean technology in mass market and help in sustainable development of Indian Automotive Industry’.
Last week, the two companies increased their sphere of partnership to now include joint production, the popularization of electrified vehicles, the sharing of engines and the inclusion of more commonly used car models.
Maruti Suzuki’s board also approved the reappointment of Kenichi Ayukawa, the serving managing director and CEO of Maruti Suzuki, for a further period of three years with effect from 1 April 2019.
Meanwhile, Maruti Suzuki India launched the third generation WagonR on Saturda last. The Big New WagonR boasts of a bold design, enhanced space, comfort, next generation infotainment system and advanced K-series engine offering excellent fuel efficiency and driving pleasure. It has a robust body language with a wide stance, which makes it strikingly attractive.
The Big New WagonR is engineered and built on fifth generation HEARTECT platform, which increases safety of occupants through effective absorption of impact and dispersion of crash energy and assures stability.
It also comes with stronger heart of 1.2 L engine that delivers powerful performance in addition to the 1.0 L engine.
In fact, according to Maruti Suzuki, the Big New WagonR offers excellent fuel efficiency for both the engine options - 21.5 km/l for 1.2 L variant and 22.5 km/l for 1.0 L variant - which is nearly 10 per cent higher than the outgoing model.
