India’s leading carmaker, Maruti Suzuki had launched its model Swift on May 25, 2005 extending its product portfolio in the compact car segment. The car has been successful and has been performed well in the last five years.
Swift which will turn five on Tuesday has sold more than 4, 50, 000 units since its launch in the country. It is the most successful car from the company since the Alto. Its main rival Hyundai Getz is nearing a stoppage in production while Swift went through an engine upgrade earlier this year.
Swift is the most expensive car in the compact segment from the company and has outsold A star, Estilo, M800 and Ritz. The customers still wait for about 1-4 months for both petrol and diesel version of the car.
The premium compact segment is getting increasingly competitive with the new launches such as Volkswagen Polo and the yet to launched Toyota Etios.
Swift has also done well in foreign markets. It was the top selling car in Denmark in 2006 and its demand was double the target in the first year in Japan. In the home market, the company set an initial target of 50,000 units but was able to 61,200 units in the year.
Swift has become the fastest in India to cross the 3-lakh sales after achieving the sales of 1.16 lakh units last year.
IV Rao, managing executive officer (engineering), Maruti Suzuki India said, “Swift was a watershed as it changed our and Suzuki’s styling and philosophy forever.”
“Earlier we made traditional and conventional designs. Swift brought in real innovation in looks and performance. What gives extra delight is that it was the first global car where Indian engineers worked with their Japanese counterparts,” he added.
