Osamu Suzuki, chairman of Suzuki Motor Corporation, is on a three-day visit to India to attend the annual general meeting of Maruti Suzuki India being held on September 2. However, this time his major focus would be on the development of the K-Series engine that is expected to be rolled out next month from the company’s power train plant coming up in Gurgaon.
“Maruti is betting big on the K-Series or the next generation engine which will be used in A-Star, company’s strategic model for the European market. Since Europe is a key market for Suzuki’s operations globally, the Suzuki chief is expected to closely monitor the progress in development of the new engine as well as evaluate and analyze the overall progress of the power train plant,” says a source.
“The new engine, that will come up in 1.0 lite and 1.2 litre petrol version as well as 1.3 litre diesel engine, will also be used for the company’s next upcoming global model Splash that will be launched next year,” he says, adding that the Japanese auto giant is vying for a strong foothold in the European markets with its soon to be launched A-Star. The new engine plant, coming up at the Gurgaon plant of Maruti Suzuki, is a part of the company’s Rs 9,000 crore investment in India. In next three years, K series engines will replace current engines in many other existing Maruti models.