In what can be seen as a major achievement, especially considering the delicate market scenario in the country, Maruti Suzuki sales of its BS6 compliant models has reached the 3 lakh unit mark. This feat was achieved in just 7 months since the launch of the company’s first BS6 models.
These were the Baleno and Alto 800, which were introduced with BS6 compliant engines in April 2019, a year prior to the new emission standards to be made mandatory in India on 1st April 2020. As on date, the company has a total of 8 models which meet these stringent emission standards. These include the Baleno, Alto 800, WagonR, Swift, Dzire, Ertiga, XL6 and S-Presso.
Out of these, it is the Baleno and XL6 which are sold via the NEXA exclusive showrooms while the other are sold through Arena showrooms in the country. Sales of 3 lakh units in 7 months saw the most sales in October 2019 when a total of 1 lakh BS6 models were sold making it a strong festive season, in what was seen as a long period of slowdown.
With regard to the update to BS6 norms, while the first two models to be updated were the Baleno and Alto 800 in April 2019, the WagonR, Swift and DZire followed in June 2019 and then on the Ertiga was launched in July 2019. The XL6 got its BS6 compliant engine in August 2019 while the S-Presso was launched in September 2019 which made its debut with its BS6 1.0-liter K10 petrol engine. It is this engine which will also be making its way onto the rest of the Maruti Suzuki cars powered by 1 liter petrol engine in the coming months.
Maruti Suzuki will stop production of the diesel cars by April 2020. Brezza sub 4 meter compact SUV and the S-Cross crossover, which are currently powered by BS4 1.3 liter Fiat Multijet diesel engine, which are only offered with diesel engine, will be discontinued. Instead, Maruti is planning to launch petrol 1.5 liter Brezza and diesel 1.6 liter S-Cross.
Maruti Suzuki claims that all the BS6 compliant petrol vehicles offer a 25 percent reduction in Nitrogen Oxide emissions. The company also claims that all their BS6 cars are also capable of running on BS4 petrol; following extensive tests being conducted to gauge its feasibility.
Analysts predict that it is these environmentally friendly BS6 cars, which will offer better resale value, as compared to BS4 cars. With BS6 implementation being just a few months away, many potential buyers are planning to postpone their new car purchasing date to April 2020.