Maruti Suzuki and Toyota have been having an ongoing joint venture for the past few years. The two have been rolling out various badge-engineered products spread across segments and price ranges. The partnership is expected to strengthen further in the upcoming year. Here are six new Maruti Suzuki and Toyota cars to look forward to in 2025.
Maruti Suzuki eVitara
The eVitara will be Maruti Suzuki’s first all-electric SUV. The production form will be 4,275 mm in length, 1,800 mm in width, 1,635 mm in height, and have a 2,700 mm wheelbase. Compared to the Grand Vitara, the EV is 100mm longer in wheelbase and 5mm wider. The ground clearance here would be 180 mm.
The production form has a strong resemblance to the eVX concept. The key design highlights are a set of projector LED headlights with Y-shaped LED DRLs, LED fog lights, closed-off grille, chunky wheel arches and rear bumper, good-looking wheels and connected LED tail lamps.
The eVitara is underpinned by the manufacturer’s newly developed Heartect-e skateboard platform. This electric-only platform makes it possible to push the wheels to the four corners, generating more room on the inside. This architecture supports FWD, RWD and AWD. MSIL is likely to offer the eVitara with two different battery packs- 49 kWh and 61 kWh. There will be three iterations of the powertrain on offer producing 144 bhp/ 189 Nm, 174 bhp/ 189 Nm, 184 bhp/ 300 Nm each.
Inside, the eVitara will have a full digital instrument cluster and a touchscreen infotainment combined to look like a dual connected screen cluster, single-zone automatic climate control system with physical controls, flat-top and bottom steering wheel, a floating center console with charging ports located underneath, rotary drive selector, electronic parking brake and single pane sunroof.
Suzuki 7 Seater Grand Vitara
Maruti Suzuki is also known to be working on a 7-seater Grand Vitara, which would be priced between 15 and 25 lakh rupees upon launch. Expected to be out next year, thethree-row SUV will rival the like of MG Hector Plus, Mahindra XUV 700 and Tata Safari. It is likely to be powered by the same set of powertrains as the outgoing Grand Vitara- a 1.5L K15C petrol mild hybrid and 1.5L Atkinson strong hybrid. The vehicle is currently codenamed Y17 and prototypes are out on test.
Fronx Hybrid (Facelift)
Another model expected from Maruti Suzuki next year is the facelifted Fronx. It will have major changes inb design, interior, features and mechanicals. Notable improvements are expected inside the cabin- as suggested by spy shots. Previous sightings have also confirmed the presence of ADAS on the facelift.
Another key catch on this vehicle is that it will debut Maruti Suzuki’s new series hybrid powertrain. Based on the 1.2L 3-cylinder Z12E petrol engine, this will, in a way, democratize the technology in the country. Later, Maruti’s series hybrid tech will also make its way into the Swift and the Baleno.
Toyota Urban Cruiser EV
This will be the Toyota version of the Maruti eVitara SUV and will be manufactured at Suzuki’s Gujarat factory. It will be based on the same platform as the eVitara and likely have the same set of powertrains. Upon launch, it will become Toyota’s most affordable EV. The Urban Cruiser used to be the Toyota-badged Brezza and thus the Urban Cruiser EV name makes much sense.
Going by the information thta we have right now, the EV will be offered in multiple variants- with powertrain specifications comparable to those of the eVitara. Like the Maruti counterpart, a realistic range of around 300 km is to be expected. The battery packs too- 45 kWh and 61 kWh- will be sourced from BYD.
The cabin will have significant resemblance to that of the eVitara. Like the other JV products- Baleno-Glanza, Innova-Invicto, etc, the interior changes will be limited to colours and trims.
7 Seater Hyryder
Toyota is also expected to launch a badge-engineered version of the 7-seater Grand Vitara in India. The vehicle will share its underpinnings with the Maruti Suzuki Y17 SUV and have similar equipment levels. Slight visual differentiation is expected between the two. It could also sit in the 15 – 25 lakh price range.
Fortuner Mild Hybrid
The final name in this list is that of the Fortuner mild hybrid (MHEV). The manufacturer had previously diesel mild-hybrid version of the Fortuner in South Africa, and the same is expected to make an India-entry next year. Although it will have a bunch of changes inside the cabin and in the equipment list, the powertrain remains the key highlight. The SUV will draw its juice from a 2.8-liter turbocharged diesel engine mated to a 48V hybrid system.
This setup will be able to produce 201 PS and 500 Nm. The 48V electric motor functions as the alternator. It is mated to a DC-DC converter and a 48V battery pack. The electric motor charges the battery while coasting and during decelerations. The hybrid setup also improves the performance and driveability. The Fortuner MHEV is claimed to return a fuel efficiency of 13.2 kmpl.
