Maruti launches new DZire at Rs 4.79-Rs 7.09 lakh

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Maruti Suzuki India on Wednesday rolled out a shorter version of its entry-level sedan DZire at an introductory price between Rs 4.79 lakh and Rs 7.09 lakh (ex-showroom, Delhi).

The new model is available in both petrol and diesel options and it qualifies for the excise duty of 10 per cent enjoyed by small cars as it is shorter than 4 metres.

While the petrol version will be powered by a 1.2 litre engine, the diesel one will have a 1.3 litre engine. An automatic transmission variant will also be available in the petrol version.

"The company and its vendors have invested over Rs 230 crore for the new DZire. The new model will be cheaper by Rs 25,000-Rs 30,000 than the older version," Maruti Suzuki India Managing Executive Officer (Marketing and Sales) Mayank Pareek told reporters here.

The company has priced the petrol variants of the new DZire between Rs 4.79 lakh and Rs 6.54 lakh, while the diesel ones will come for Rs 5.80 lakh-Rs 7.09 lakh.

The prices of the existing DZire ranges between Rs 4.94 lakh and Rs 7.29 lakh (ex-showroom Delhi).

The new DZire has at least 150 new features compared to the existing one. The company, however, will continue to produce the old DZire in some specific variants like the base model in stripped down version to target the fleet segment.

The new sedan will be produced at MSI's Manesar plant. It is looking to recover lost ground this year after it was hit by a series of labour unrest at the plant last year.

The current DZire has a waiting period of 3-4 months and MSI is looking to address the issue by gradually ramping up the output.

Since its launch in 2008, MSI has sold over 3.2 lakh units of DZire so far. The existing model did not enjoy the excise benefit on small cars as it is longer than four metres.

As per current government policy, cars below the length of 4 metres and engine capacity of 1,200 cc in petrol and 1,500 cc in diesel qualify as small cars.

Those bigger than the specifications come under the big car category and attract excise duty of 22 per cent with an additional fixed duty of Rs 15,000.