Maruti S-cross all-wheel drive being tested in India

Maruti’s first attempt at the small SUV segment, the S-cross, was launched last year with an option of two diesel engines. Very little has happened since then, apart from a price revision and the introduction of a limited-edition model. We do know that Maruti doesn’t intend to launch an all-wheel-drive variant, which is sold in the European market, in India, but it is testing the S-cross AllGrip (AWD) here.

The S-cross AllGrip was first spotted last year at the Raid de Himalaya and quite recently at the  Desert Storm. For those unaware of these events, Raid de Himalaya and Desert storm are two of the most challenging off-track motorsport events held in India and Maruti is one of the official partners for both these events. Maruti’s factory-backed team drives the Grand Vitara at these events and so far they have been very successful.

Our sources tell us that despite this, Maruti sees little benefit from racing a vehicle that is not on sale in India. Hence, the carmaker intends to race the S-cross and thus add to its brand image and leverage some of this in the sale of the model. Given the fact that the S-cross is struggling against its more traditional SUV competitors, the racing and sport image of the crossover could help its case.