The all-new Maruti Suzuki Ertiga was launched in India last year in November. Since then, it has been a well-accepted MPV in the country as it has become the best-selling MPV in India. Last month, the sales of Ertiga grew 82% to staggering 8,864 units.
Now, it looks like Maruti Suzuki wants to improve the sales even further and is planning a more premium and rugged variant of the highly popular MPV by launching a Cross variant which has been spied recently on test in Pune. The test mule was spotted entirely wrapped in camouflage but when looked closely, it can be figured out that the Ertiga Cross features an upright nose, a much larger front chrome grille and redesigned headlights with integrated LED daytime running lamps.
The crossover also gets a new front bumper and larger air intakes and there is also a newly designed rear-bumper. Also, it sits higher compared to the regular Ertiga thanks to its increased ground clearance. The MPV on test can clearly be seen fitted with emission testing gear, which suggests that the company might be working on the BS-VI compliant K15B petrol engine under the hood of the new crossover. Due to the limited view in the spy shots, the interiors are not visible clearly but it is assumed that the Ertiga Cross may get an all-black cabin, as seen on the Ertiga Black Edition. Previous reports also say that 6-seater Maruti Ertiga Sport is also in the works.
The K15 SMART HYBRID petrol engine in its current, BS-IV version churns out 77 kW (104.6 PS) at 6,000 rpm and 138 Nm at 4,400 rpm. The engine comes paired with a 5-speed MT or a 4-speed AT. The fuel efficiency rating is 19.34 km/l (MT)/18.69 km/l (AT).
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The Maruti Suzuki Ertiga Cross will likely be positioned as a top-of-the-line variant of the MPV, and when launched, it could retail from the premium NEXA dealerships instead of Arena showrooms.
[Source - MotorOctane]
