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A month before the Delhi Auto Expo, India’s largest carmaker Maruti Suzuki on Monday unveiled the teaser of its all-new compact car design language.
A car based on the new ‘ConceptFutureS’ design will premiere at the expo and will be similar to the XBEE (cross-bee), a compact crossover wagon that was showcased by Suzuki Motor Corp at the Tokyo Motor Show.
Sources close to the development told BusinessLine that the vehicle will be launched by 2020 and is expected to be priced between ₹4.50 lakh and ₹8.50 lakh. Maruti will also launch its first electric car in 2020.
A different look
“It will be neither an SUV, nor a compact hatchback. It will have a different look altogether under the sub-four metre category — [and will be positioned] between the Vitara Brezza and Swift,” a source privy to the development said.
A Suzuki Japan statement issued in September 2017 described the XBEE as a compact crossover wagon that fits in various lifestyles.
“This new genre of [a] compact crossover wagon combines [the] wagon packaging of [a] spacious cabin that exceeds its class in a manoeuvrable compact size, with [the] rough-road drivability and functionality of an SUV, and embellishes it with [a] distinctive, unforgettable styling design that has [the] strength and toughness of an SUV,” the statement had said.
Explaining ConceptFutureS, CV Raman, Senior Executive Director (Engineering), Maruti Suzuki India Limited, said: “The increasing preference for UVs [utility vehicles] and their bold architecture inspired our design team to study a new character for compact cars. ConceptFutureS could mark a distinctive shift in how compact cars are shaped and designed in India.”
Design cues
“Compact is beautiful, ConceptFutureS beautifully carries forward this Suzuki slogan and creates its own positioning by breaking away from the conventional proportions of a compact car,” Maruti said in a statement.
The sketch reveals an upright stance, commanding higher seating and ground clearance, and a horizontal hood, giving it an aggressive stance and posture.
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