Speaking to the Indian media on the sidelines of the Japan Mobility Show, Suzuki Motor Corporation (SMC) Chairman Toshihiro Suzuki laid out some of the challenges for Maruti-Suzuki, India’s largest carmaker. SMC is Maruti-Suzuki’s parent company. He laid out some ambitious targets for Maruti-Suzuki aiming to regain a 50 per cent marketshare in India which he admitted would be challenging but announced that Maruti-Suzuki will launch eight new SUVs in the Indian market in the next “five-six” years.
But with capital investments of Rs 70,000 crore till the end of financial year 2030-31 growing annual production to four million units annually, Suzuki highlighted Maruti’s aggression. “We aim to be the largest producer of electric vehicles in India both for the domestic market and exports,” he said ahead of the domestic market launch of Maruti-Suzuki’s first electric vehicle, the eVitara in December. The eVitara which is produced exclusively at Maruti-Suzuki’s plant in Hansalpur, Gujarat also highlights another aspect of Suzuki’s gameplan for making India a global hub for exports. “This year (ending March 2026) we plan to touch over 400,000 units exported from India. India is today the leading exporter of cars to Japan and we lead in sales of Indian cars in Japan.” One aspect that highlights Maruti-Suzuki’s success in the Japanese market is the five-door Jimny which is produced at the company’s Gurugram facility with over 50,000 bookings since exports began. There is currently a six-month waitlist for the vehicle in Japan.
Commenting on Chinese canakers also becoming aggressive with exports, Suzuki mentioned that the company would have to be selective in the exports market and do so profitably. He questioned if Chinese carmakers were making any money pointing out that in another sector dominated by Chinese manufacturers, solar panels, even the market leader made losses. Coming to Chinese domination of the battery supply chain for electric vehicles, Suzuki said that it was his dream to make electric vehicles in India from “batteries and cells made in India from Indian materials.” In fact, Suzuki praised India’s ‘intelligent’ strategy in dealing with both China and the United States in the current global trade imbroglio.
Crucially, Suzuki was quite clear on the future pathway for India when it came to carbon neutrality.
He believed that India has ‘multiple pathways’ for achieving this and refused to put his eggs into any one technology basket. While he stated that Maruti-Suzuki will be the leader in battery-electric vehicles in India he effectively ruled out the launch of a small electric vehicle from Maruti-Suzuki anytime soon based on cost concerns. Suzuki Motor Corporation had showcased their first electric ‘Kei’ small car for the Japanese market earlier, the Vision e-Sky.
“India is a big country with a lot of resources. I feel that Ethanol-blending and flex-fuel hybrids as well as Compressed Biomethane Gas (CBG) will play a major role in India. In addition, there will be continued efficiency gains on internal combustion engines,” Suzuki told the media.
