Maruti Suzuki has confirmed about launching its own strong hybrid powertrain for future low and mid-level hybrid electric vehicles, according to Autocar India. However, for its hybrid high-end SUVs, Toyota, a global partner of Suzuki, will be supplying the powertrains.
Maruti’s first HEV powertrain is set to debut on the Z12E engine that powers the Swift. The Z12E unit, combined with the strong hybrid powertrain, will debut on the Fronx facelift that’s coming next year. The next-gen Baleno to be launched in the near future will also benefit from this model.
Maruti’s HEV powertrain is being speculated to be significantly different from Toyota’s series parallel hybrid system, in terms of price. Maruti’s HEV powertrain, according to AutoCar India, shall be cheaper than the Toyota series. In this system, which is also called the “range extender”, the petrol powerplant works only as a generator. This implies that instead of directly moving the vehicle, the system produces electricity to power an electric motor that, in turn, drives the wheels.
Such a similar technology has been previously used by Nissan in some of its models like the Note hatchback. The company also sells the Innova Hycross-based Invicto, which comes with the same petrol-hybrid powertrain that will also power an all-new three-row SUV based on the Grand Vitara. Maruti Suzuki will be unveiling three types of hybrid setups in its lineup from 2025.
Once Maruti introduces its in-house HEV powertrain, it will have several powertrain options in the form of pure petrol, petrol mild hybrid, petrol strong hybrid (series), petrol strong hybrid (Toyota supplied), petrol-CNG and pure EV across its line-up of cars, SUVs and MPVs.