Maruti Suzuki cars to get costlier by up to 4% from April

Maruti Suzuki India Ltd on Monday said it has planned to increase the prices of its cars from April 2025 owing to rising input costs and operational expenses. The price increase is expected to be up to 4% and will vary depending on the model.

“While the company continuously strives to optimise costs and minimise the impact on its customers, some portion of the increased cost may need to be passed on to the market,” India’s largest carmaker said in a regulatory filing.

The planned price hike is expected to further push up costs for entry-level cars, which have witnessed de-growth over the past two years.

In an interview with Fortune India earlier this year, Maruti Suzuki managing director and CEO Hisashi Takeuchi said the carmaker plans to launch sub-compact sport utility vehicles (SUVs) to tap first-time car buyers who are moving away from small hatchbacks to entry-level SUVs.

“We see the shift from small cars to sub-compact SUVs. SUVs have become very popular. Right now, we have Brezza, Fronx in the sub-four-metre segment and Grand Vitara in 4.3 metre and Jimny (off-roader). We will launch one more SUVs not only in these segments but sub-compact segment and bigger segments,” Takeuchi told Fortune India.

Compact SUVs, which are less than 4 metres in length, account for a lion’s share of SUV sales in India. The segment witnessed sales of 12.3 lakh units in calendar year 2024, accounting for 30% of India’s car market. Within this segment, sub-compact SUVs, which are less than 3,900 mm in length, are growing fast so much so that Tata Motors’ sub-compact SUV Punch became India’s top-selling car in 2024. Around 60% owners of Tata Punch are first-time car buyers.

Domestic sales of cars in the mini segment — which Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers classifies as entry-level hatchbacks up to 3.6 metres in length and one litre engine displacement — fell 40% from 2,52,409 units in FY23 to 1,52,262 in FY24. Sales in this segment have halved since FY20. The biggest reason is price increases far exceeding salary hikes during and after the pandemic, according to experts.

Maruti’s Takeuchi is hopeful of a revival in small car sales. As income levels go up, there will again be demand for small cars, he said. “People will still need small cars. We are following new regulations on safety and emissions at a much faster pace than the European countries, which means production cost is going up. Therefore, some first-time buyers are finding it difficult to buy small cars. Cost is increasing at a much faster pace than household incomes. Now, we don’t expect so many new regulations. The pace of cost increase is slowing down,” the Maruti Suzuki MD said.