Maruti Suzuki Vitara Brezza — Petrol Variant To Be Launched By May 2017

According to reports, the Vitara Brezza petrol will be launched in the country in April or May of 2017. That's almost a year after the diesel model went on sale in India.

As per the sources, the Vitara Brezza petrol version will be powered by a 1.5-litre four-cylinder mill which is also rumoured to be used in the S-Cross and the Ciaz next year.

But with the bigger petrol mill, Vitara Brezza may miss out on the ‘small car' tax slab in India. As the engine capacity up to 1.2-litre take advantage of small car tax in the country. So not much of a price difference can be expected compared to the current diesel variant.

The secondary engine option for the petrol variant will be the locally manufactured 1-litre Boosterjet three-cylinder engine. This engine will be making its debut in the coming months with the launch the Baleno RS model.

The 1-litre petrol unit from Maruti Suzuki will be a straight rival for the Ford Ecosport's Ecoboost engine. Sources also state that Maruti Suzuki has rejected the use of 1.2-litre K-Series petrol engine in the compact SUV.

No matter which engine the petrol variant of the Vitara Brezza uses, it will be mated to a five-speed manual transmission as standard. Earlier Suzuki had already showcased the automatic version at the Indonesian Auto Show in August.

Due to the narrowing price gap between the diesel and petrol price and the diminishing demand for the small capacity diesel engines, the introduction of the petrol variant is a smart move from Maruti Suzuki.

With the launch of the Vitara Brezza petrol, it will widen the appeal of the Maruti's best-selling compact SUV in India as the model gears up for its overseas sale.