Maruti Brezza Facelift to get sunroof and side airbags?

The Maruti Brezza is the best selling sub-4 meter compact SUV in India but competition is rising. The Brezza, which was introduced in 2015 is over 3 years old, and is due for a mid life makeover. A Team-BHP source, who wishes to stay anonymous, reports that the facelifted version of the Brezza will offer two key features that are becoming quite popular in the compact SUV segment – sunroof and side airbags.

Render courtesy IAB

Side airbags could possibly mean two additional airbags for the driver and front co-passenger mounted on the roof, and it could also mean two more airbags for the rear passengers. For now, it’s not clear as to whether the facelifted Maruti Brezza will offer four airbags or go the whole hog and come with six airbags. The sunroof is likely to be electrically operated, as is the case with this feature on the likes of the Ford EcoSport and the Mahindra XUV300.

Apart from these additional features, the facelifted Maruti Brezza could get a few other inclusions in terms of creature comforts. What will be a major change though is in the engine and gearbox department. Maruti is moving away from diesel engines across its range and the 1.3 liter Fiat Multijet diesel engine that is currently offered on the Brezza is likely to be dumped on the facelifted version. In its place, a 1.5 liter-4 cylinder K-Series naturally aspirated petrol engine is likely to come in. Already offered on the likes of the Maruti Ciaz and Ertiga, the 1.5 liter K-Series petrol motor makes 104 Bhp-138 Nm, and also gets a mild hybrid powertrain. A five speed manual gearbox is standard while a 4 speed torque converter automatic gearbox is offered as an option both on the Ciaz and Ertiga. A similar line-up is likely on the facelifted Brezza.

As for pricing, Maruti is likely to play the value card with the petrol powered model, which will be significantly cheaper compared to Bharat Stage 6 (BS6) emission norms compliant diesel engines. The Brezza Petrol mild hybrid – the first such car in its class – will be significantly cheaper than the outgoing diesel engined model, variant to variant. This is perhaps a reason why Maruti is going in for a feature-rich approach in the facelifted version, by offering additional airbags and the electric sunroof. The Brezza currently averages well over 12,000 units in terms of monthly sales. The arrival of the Hyundai Venue has seen sales slip dramatically, and the facelifted model should bring back Brezza numbers for Maruti Suzuki.