Maruti Suzuki Ciaz / Alivio C-Segment Sedan – Production Images

Later this year, Maruti Suzuki will replace the SX4 sedan with the Ciaz, which was showcased in concept guise at the 2014 Indian Auto Expo. Maruti Suzuki has already stopped production of the SX4 sedan, which is currently available at chunky clearance discounts. The Ciaz will also be sold in China, where it will be called the Alivio. Images of the production version of the Alivio have hit the interweb and the car will go on sale in China shortly.

The production version of the Alivio, at least from the released imagery, looks a lot less appealing than the concept version. The plain Jane looks might have to do with the black paint job of the car, and the smaller wheels that take away some of the sheen that the concept version had. A high boot with tail lamps that seem vaguely inspired by ones on BMW and Honda are other major design elements on the Ciaz/Alivio.

Like the outgoing SX4 sedan, the Ciaz/Alivio is a tall car, quite unlike the low slung Esteem and Baleno models, that preceded the SX4 and Alivio/Ciaz. For the Chinese car market, Suzuki has given the Alivio dimensions of 4,545 mm in length, 1,475mm in height, 1,730 mm in width, and a 2,650 mm wheelbase. It will be interesting to see whether these dimensions will be carried over to the Indian market’s Ciaz sedan as well.

If the India-spec Ciaz retains the dimensions of the China-spec Alivio, the car will be one of the largest C-Segment models, inching into D-Segment territory. In China, the Alivio will be powered by a 1.6 liter petrol engine with 6 speed manual and CVT automatic gearbox options. In India, the 1.4 liter K-Series petrol and the 1.3 liter Fiat Multijet turbo diesel engines are likely to be offered with the car, with manual gearboxes as standard fare.

The Maruti Suzuki Ciaz is rumoured to offer a slew of class leading features, to back Maruti Suzuki’s efforts to crack the C-Segment sedan market. The interiors of the car, which is based on the Ertiga platform, will see a fair share of parts sharing, albeit with material quality upped by a few notches. This parts and platform sharing is expected to give Maruti Suzuki enough leeway to price the Ciaz sedan very competitively.

Images courtesy AutoHome