S-Cross crossover SUV was the flagship for Maruti Suzuki until the launch of the new Grand Vitara
Maruti offers some of the best selling cars in India. Out of 10 highest-selling cars last month, 6 are from Maruti. Out of the 6, 4 are hatchbacks and form these 4. While Maruti continued to focus on hatchbacks, there was another segment which was registering massive growth. This was the SUV segment.
Here, Maruti only had the Vitara Brezza and S-Cross on offer. Though Vitara Brezza was India’s best selling SUV for a very long time, sales of S-Cross never matched that of rivals Hyundai Creta or Kia Seltos. Maruti realized the need to launch a new compact SUV that will be more effective in rivalling the likes of Creta and Seltos. With the launch of Grand Vitara, Maruti aims to change that.
Maruti Pulled The Plug On S-Cross
S-Cross was the first product to be sold through Maruti’s premium Nexa dealership. But with Grand Vitara now launched, there is no need for the ageing S-Cross. It has now been officially discontinued from India. Maruti has removed the car from their official website.
Maruti Suzuki launched S-Cross in 2015 and has been on sale till now. In these 7 years, S-Cross managed to sell 1.69 lakh units. On average, S-Cross sold around 2,000 units a month across its 7 year life span. For most car makers, this will be a good sales number, but not for Maruti.
S-Cross was initially launched with a choice of 1.6L turbo-diesel engine which was capable of 118 bhp of power and 320 Nm of torque. Other engine was a familiar 1.3L turbo diesel unit capable of around 90 bhp and 200 Nm. Both these engines were sourced by Fiat. 1.6L unit was coupled with a 6-speed gearbox, while 1.3L engine only got a 5-speed gearbox.
The pre-facelift had a punchy performance. S-Cross got a facelift in 2017 and got a BMW-inspired grille which made the car more attractive in looks. But despite the update, there was hardly any change in sales numbers. For a premium flagship product it lacked rear AC vents which even Dzire got, interiors were lackluster, very few feel-good features.
New Gen S-Cross Launch Not Planned
Globally, S-Cross has been replaced with an all-new model. But that will not happen in India. Maruti has no plans to launch new gen S-Cross in India. For now, their focus is on ensuring the success of their newest compact SUV – the Grand Vitara.
In the first month, Maruti has managed to sell almost 5k units of Grand Vitara. For the same month, Creta sales were almost 13k and that of Seltos were at 11k. Next few months will reveal if the Grand Vitara manages to break the stronghold of Creta / Seltos in the compact SUV segment.
