In a preview event held in New Delhi on December 15, 2016, Maruti Suzuki has showcased the Ignis. This product will be retailed as the first car for a young buyer by the company and bookings would start through the online Nexa website in the first week of January. Here is a complete lowdown on the engine and transmission specifications, features and launch date.
Engine and Transmission
There will be two engine options in the Maruti Suzuki Ignis which have been witnessed doing duty in other Maruti Suzuki cars. The petrol variants will come with the 1.2 litre K-Series petrol and the diesel versions will have the 1.3 litre DDiS engines under the bonnet. Unlike the speculations made before the preview, the compact crossover will have AMT (Automated Manual Transmission) on the higher trims of both engine options.
The company decided to go for an AMT instead of a CVT (Continously Variable Transmission) to keep costs in check without affecting fuel efficiency. Both powertrain options will adhere to the BS6 (Bharat Stage 6) norms that will be applicable by April 2020.
Exteriors and Interiors
Maruti Suzuki will offer the Ignis with LED projector headlamps and LED DRLs (Daytime Running Lamps), the former being a first for the company. Along with this, chrome inserts and fog lamps will be a part of the package on the higher variants at the front. The rear of the Ignis will be offered with a clearlens tail lamp unit with reflectors and a black cladding on the rear bumper.
Another feature that the Ignis will come with is a black coloured alloy wheel to accentuate the sporty character as per Maruti Suzuki. These will be 15-inch units with 175/55 section tyres. The lower variants will also have the same tyre size sans the alloy wheel which would instead have a black steel rim.
For a sporty appeal on the inside, Maruti Suzuki Ignis will have a cockpit inspired layout with toggle switches for front and rear demister and other necessary controls
Customisation Options and Equipment
Keeping in focus the young buyer in mind, Maruti Suzuki will offer the Ignis with exterior and interior colour and customisation options. On the outside, customers can opt for company installed wraps in different design and inside they can choose select components like the centre console, dashboard lining, door handles to match the exterior colour of the car.
The higher variants of the Maruti Suzuki Ignis will be offered with a 7-inch touchscreen infotainment system with Apple CarPlay and mirror link support. For the first time, Maruti will also introduce Android Auto for smartphones in the infotainment system that also supports navigation through an SD card. The top end will have to have steering mounted audio and phone controls.
Safety
As per the policy followed by Maruti Suzuki for cars sold through Nexa dealerships, all versions of the Ignis will be offered with ISOFIX child restraint, ABS (Anti-lock Braking System) and front dual airbags as standard. The Ignis achieved 5 stars in the Euro NCAP tests and despite based on a light platform, the compact car has better torsional rigidity.
Launch Date and Expected Price
Maruti Suzuki has confirmed that the Ignis will make its official debut in India on January 13, 2017 with bookings of the compact car starting in the first week of January 2017. The company will accept only online bookings of the Ignis through the official Nexa website.
We expect the Ignis to be priced between Rs 5.5 lakh and Rs 7.5 lakh, ex-showroom Delhi.
