Maruti Suzuki has ruled out the possibility of a cheaper, two-wheel-drive (2WD) variant of the Jimny SUV. The carmaker introduced the Jimny, the successor to its immensely successful off-roader Gypsy in India, in June 2023.
- Jimny 2WD could dilute the brand value, says Maruti
- Not an active consideration despite customer interest
The compact Jimny – re-engineered into a five-door version specifically for India – has not seen a great start in terms of sales, which has hovered in the 3,000-unit monthly ballpark since launch.
The reason for the Jimny’s slow offtake can be primarily attributed to two things – its intended positioning as an off-roader and a slightly optimistic pricing, which ranges from Rs 12.84 lakh to Rs 14.89 lakh, ex-showroom. The Mahindra Thar was also launched as a 4x4, but later got a 4x2 variant, which has seen great customer interest.
According to Shashank Srivastava, senior executive director, Sales and Marketing, Maruti Suzuki India, “While we have received feedback from several customers asking for a 2WD variant of the Jimny, it will go against the Jimny’s core brand ethos.”
“Globally, Jimny is an off-roader, and it will be a dilution to the brand if we introduce a two-wheel drive variant. Therefore, a 2WD Jimny is not in active consideration, and we will continue to sell the 4WD version,” Srivastava added while addressing the media in a press conference on December 1, thus confirming our previous report about the Jimny not getting a 2WD version.
To give a boost to the relatively sluggish sales of the Jimny in the carmaker’s portfolio, Maruti Suzuki had introduced discounts of up to Rs 1 lakh during Diwali. Starting in December, the carmaker has introduced an even more aggressive scheme by slashing the prices of the entry-level manual-transmission variants by Rs 2 lakh for a limited period. It is now available at Rs 10.74 lakh, ex-showroom.
Srivastava says it was the lesser availability of components for the automatic variants that skewed initial production towards the manual variants, leading to significant discounts, but the supply chain has now improved considerably.
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