Last Updated: January 23, 2024, 08:50 IST
Maruti Suzuki Reintroduces Mild Hybrid Tech In Top-Spec Manual Trims Of Brezza. (Image: News18.com)
Maruti Suzuki surprises with a U-turn, reintroducing mild hybrid tech in top-end Brezza variants boosting its appeal in a competitive Indian SUV market.
Maruti Suzuki has recently taken a shocking U-turn by reintroducing the mild hybrid technology on the top-end variants of the Brezza compact SUV.
Earlier in July last year, the automotive giants made some modifications to the features list of Brezza. That is when Suzuki discarded the smart hybrid technology from the manual trims (MTs) of the SUV, as reported by Cartoq.
Several safety features were also removed from the CNG variants but seatbelt reminders were introduced for all passengers. However, the company continued to offer the mild hybrid technology in the automatic variants of the Brezza.
Maruti Suzuki has now once again added the fuel-saving feature to the top-tier ZXi and ZXi+ manual variants of Brezza, which has a starting price of roughly Rs 11 lakh (ex-showroom) in India. The sub-four-meter SUV gets the power from a four-cylinder mild-hybrid K15C petrol engine. It is capable of producing a maximum power of 103.1 bhp at 6,000 rpm and a peak torque of 136.8 Nm at 4,400 rpm.
It is paired with a five-speed manual gearbox. Apart from offering features like torque assist functions and idle start/stop, the mild hybrid technology enables the engine to regenerate the brake energy and contribute to enhancing fuel efficiency.
Upon the addition of the smart hybrid tech, the fuel economy of Brezza’s manual variants is claimed to have reached 19.89 kmpl, thanks to the K series Dual Jet Dual VVT mill. The ZXi and ZXi+ manual trims now have a higher fuel efficiency of 2.51 kmpl than the non-smart variants like Lxi and VXi MT.
The automatic trims of Brezza– Vxi, ZXi and ZXi+ AT, which come with the smart mild hybrid technology offer a fuel economy of 19.80 kmpl, while the CNG versions are claimed to have a mileage of 25.51 km per kg. The CNG models are equipped with the same 1.5L gasoline engine, which can deliver 88 bhp of power and 121.5 Nm of peak torque.
Keeping aside the top-performing engine, the other notable features of the Maruti Suzuki Brezza include a 360-degree camera system, Arkamys-sourced audio, wireless smartphone charging, six airbags, a single-pane sunroof, a Head-Up Display (HUD) and nine-inch SmartPlay Pro+ touchscreen infotainment system featuring wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto connectivity.
Maruti Suzuki’s decision to reintroduce the mild hybrid tech will no doubt increase the appeal of Brezza, which currently faces competition from other compact SUVs like Nissan Magnite, Mahindra XUV300, Renault Kiger, Tata Punch, Tata Nexon and Hyundai Venue in the Indian market.