Maruti Suzuki Flexes New Lines as Capacity Targets 3.65 Million Units by FY31

Q: Will the sudden 153 percent surge in small car sales derail Maruti's ambitious strategy to launch seven new SUVs?

No. The jump in small-car sales is unlikely to derail Maruti Suzuki’s plan to launch seven new SUVs; if anything, it strengthens the logic for its flexible-capacity strategy. The 153.7% year-on-year surge in the mini segment in April 2026 looks dramatic, but it comes off a weak base and follows a major GST cut on small cars from September 2025. Maruti’s own data show a broader recovery rather than a permanent shift away from SUVs: small-car sales rose 17% in the second half of FY26 and 35% in the first quarter of FY27, while utility vehicles also kept growing strongly. In May 2026, Maruti’s UV sales were up 44.4%, and in June they rose 28.7%. That matters because India’s passenger-vehicle market is still SUV-led. Maruti’s management has explicitly said it wants to deepen its presence in that fast-growing segment with seven new SUVs over five to six years, even as it reassesses growth targets because small cars are recovering faster than expected. The key safeguard is manufacturing flexibility. Bhargava said all new lines will be able to switch between platforms and models as demand changes. Combined with expanding capacity at Kharkhoda, Hansalpur and the planned Sanand plant, Maruti expects installed capacity to rise to 2.9 million units by FY27 and 3.65 million by FY31. So the risk is not that small cars cancel the SUV push. The real challenge is execution: Maruti must balance both segments without repeating the capacity mismatch that left it with 1.9 lakh pending bookings.

1 articles · Updated · Autocar Professional · Aug 9

Maruti Suzuki said all new production lines will be built to switch between platforms and models, aiming to respond faster as demand swings between small cars and SUVs.
1.9 lakh pending bookings at end-March 2026 exposed capacity mismatches after the company had shifted output toward SUVs during a slump in small-car demand.
35% growth in small-car sales in the first quarter of FY2027 suggests the strategy is already helping, while overall sales rose 38% against 28% industry growth.
2.9 million units of installed capacity are planned by FY2027 and 3.65 million by FY2031, backed by new lines at Kharkhoda and Hansalpur and a Rs 35,000 crore Sanand project.
The expansion is designed to give India’s largest carmaker more freedom to rebalance production as consumer demand keeps shifting across segments.