• Maruti Suzuki to launch a new premium MPV based on Toyota Innova Hycross by July 2023, as confirmed by the company’s chairman in a recent earnings call.
• The new MPV will be the first Toyota product rebadged for Maruti Suzuki in India and will be sold through the Nexa dealership chain as its flagship model, featuring some unique styling cues and interior trim variances compared to the Toyota version.

Maruti Suzuki has stated that it will launch an all-new premium MPV in India. This new vehicle will be based on the Toyota Innova Hycross and will be available for purchase in July 2023. This development was first reported on in October 2022.

This new MPV, as previously reported, will be a sister vehicle to the already successful Innova Hycross and, like the Grand Vitara, will be manufactured at Toyota’s Bidadi facility and delivered to Maruti Suzuki.

Toyota announced last year in a regulatory filing that it was planning to debut a C-MPV in the fiscal year 2022-2023, which would be shared with alliance partner Maruti Suzuki.

Maruti Suzuki management verified this fact on its most recent earnings call. “We will source a vehicle from Toyota; it will be a strong hybrid, three-row, top-of-the-line vehicle in terms of price,” stated Maruti Suzuki Chairman RC Bhargava. “I don’t think the volume will be large, but it’s a pioneering vehicle in terms of carbon-friendly hybrid technology.” It will arrive in around two months.”

First Rebadged Model from Toyota for Maruti

Suzuki-built vehicles such as the now-discontinued Vitara Brezza and the Baleno have been cross-badged and sold in India as the Toyota Urban Cruiser and the Glanza (or the Starlet in South Africa) since the alliance’s beginning in 2017. In some regions, including as South Africa and the Middle East, the latest-generation Baleno, Ciaz, Ertiga, and even Celerio are sold as Toyotas.

This future luxury MPV, on the other hand, will be the first Toyota product rebadged for Maruti Suzuki in India and offered through the Nexa dealership chain as its flagship model. Two Toyota vehicles, the RAV-4 and the Corolla Waggon, are sold in Europe as Suzuki models, the A-Cross and the Swace, respectively.

Difference from Toyota

We expect Maruti’s version of the Innova Hycross, like the other cross-badged goods from the alliance, to feature some distinct stylistic cues, primarily on the front with a unique grille, and a separate bumper and headlamp design. More aesthetic changes at the back could feature a distinctive tail-lamp design based on the Nexa motif already seen on the Grand Vitara, Baleno, and Fronx.

Expect interior colour variations as well as trim variances between the two models, similar to the ones seen on the recently announced midsize SUV siblings, the Hyryder and Grand Vitara.

The Innova Hycross is already a popular car with a big waiting list. Toyota has suspended bookings for the highest trims because to excessive demand, thus it’s unclear how many of these vehicles Toyota can provide to Maruti.

“These volumes may be small… People will begin to notice the vehicle’s performance once it enters the market. Today, the same vehicle that Toyota launched has a 12-month waiting list. “How many vehicles we will get from them will depend on their capacity as well as their needs,” Bhargava remarked.

Launch time of Maruti’s Premium MPV

Maruti just unveiled the Fronx for Rs 7.47 lakh, and the Jimny, which will be released sometime next month, is the brand’s next big launch. The premium MPV will be available for purchase by July of this year, with deliveries beginning shortly after. Nexa stores will sell all three models.