Camouflaged prototypes of the Maruti Suzuki Ciaz were spotted testing in China recently. The Ciaz, which goes by its codename YL1, was previewed through concepts shown at the Shanghai Motor Show 2013 and the Delhi Auto Expo 2014.
While the Shanghai show concept was called "Authentics", the Auto Expo show car went by the name "Ciaz Concept", which according to our sources is the name reserved for the production car, at least for the Indian market.
The Ciaz when it goes on sale towards the festive season of this year, will replace the SX4 sedan in India. As it is now, Maruti will offer the C-Segment sedan with a petrol and a diesel engine. The petrol motor can either be the 1.6-liter four-cylinder engine (found in the SX4 S-Cross) which produces 120 PS and 156 Nm of torque, or the fuel-efficient 1.4-liter K-Series engine which powers the Ertiga.
The diesel engine will most likely be the 1.3-liter Multijet motor borrowed from Fiat, though reports suggest that Maruti is looking to introduce the 1.6-liter version of this engine in India soon.
The Ciaz has already been caught without any disguise, revealing an exterior design inspired by the concept and an interior vaguely similar to the Ertiga/Swift. For now, features such as ABS, dual front airbags, 16-inch alloy wheels, automatic climate control, steering integrated audio controls and rear AC vents are confirmed for the top-end variant of the car.
[Images from Auto.163.com]
