Maruti strikes back at rivals as small car debate intensifies
New Delhi: Maruti Suzuki on Monday renewed its stance on policy support for small cars, urging the government to continue relaxations for these vehicles in the next phase of Corporate Average Fuel Efficiency (Cafe 3) norms. The automaker argued that most global markets offer structural relief for compact cars, although many domestic and foreign automakers have a opposing view.
In a virtual press conference, Maruti’s leadership said the company is committed to reviving the small car segment even as it expands its sports utility vehicle (SUV) lineup, pointing out that major markets from China and Europe to Korea, Japan and the US are using weight or footprint-based relaxations in efficiency frameworks.
“More than 90% of the world automobile market provides structured relief for small cars,” said Rahul Bharti, senior manager, corporate affairs, Maruti.
The rift has widened further ahead of the Cafe 3 norms, which are expected to come into effect from April 2027, as industry discussions in the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (Siam) failed to form a united stance.
Maruti’s statement came days later Reuters Hyundai said Tata Motors and Mahindra have written to the government to oppose weight-based lightweighting in the next version of the Cafe 3 norms.
According to a draft published on September 25, the government plans to provide additional benefits in the final emissions calculation if an automaker has models weighing less than 909 kg.
Arguing his case, Bharti said, “China does it at about 1090 kg; Europe actually relaxes targets below 1115 kg; Korea is at 1100 kg; Japan follows a continuous parabolic curve where the target delta keeps decreasing with weight. USA does it in an area of 41 square feet…Are they (other original equipment manufacturers) saying that the policy makers of all these countries in Europe, USA, China, Korea, Japan are all making arbitrary decisions?”
He said Maruti knows that it bears the responsibility of being the market leader in dealing with all automobile segments. “While some companies may want to tap only high-demand segments, it is Maruti Suzuki’s responsibility to take care of all segments,” Bharti said at the press conference.
According to the norms, automakers are required to increase the efficiency of their portfolios by reducing the average emissions of their models.
Industry divide is widening
During discussions in Siam, the country’s leading auto lobby, automakers could not agree on aid for small cars and did not send the government a concrete proposal for help on this issue.
Shailesh Chandra, chief executive and managing director of Tata Motors Passenger Vehicles Ltd. and chairman of Siam, argued on November 14 that weight-based exemptions undermine progress towards cleaner technologies and do not address safety concerns. He urged policymakers to avoid such relaxations and adhere to the definition of small car under the goods and services tax (GST) regime, which classifies cars less than 4 meters long as small cars.
He said that no small car meets high-level safety tests and it would not be good to force manufacturers to produce such vehicles by reducing emission norms.
On weight maths, Bharti said the 3 gram advantage provided by the government in the final calculation of norms is a very small advantage for small cars and added that small cars may be phased out in future if the targets under Cafe 3 are not fair.
