© Maruti Suzuki India may be a developing market for cars, but with its population of over billion people it's probably not very surprising that the Ertiga, even though it's a 7-seater crossover (actually a B-segment 5+2-seater, but still...) has sold 150 thousand examples to date. Apart from Germany perhaps, there are probably no markets in Europe where single models would sell in comparable numbers, let alone 7-seaters. So it must be true everything's relative after all...
© Maruti SuzukiIt's practical rather than exciting, but isn't it what you need from a family car? CNG makes it even more practicalThe limited edition (pardon, Limited Edition) Ertiga stands out thanks to a chrome grill, spoilers, stickers, decals and a plush interior. While few would be tempted with such „extras” in Europe unless we were back in 1994, Indian buyers have yet to learn to become more demanding when it comes to cars. Although, with a price at 740 thousand rupees (roughly 12200 US dollars), there would be queues of eager buyers even in Europe. After all, Dacia is popular in France, Germany or the UK, too.
Of course the Ertiga won't come to Europe, at least not without being adapted to comply to the Old Continent's safety and emissions standards. This in turn would surely make the price of the final product much less appealing. There's a reason why the Tata Nano, the cheapest car in the world, hasn't come to Europe so far – all the required tests and approval procedures would result in its not being cheapest anymore. On the other hand, CNG should help Indian cars comply to the Euro emission standards.
Do Indian buyers choose CNG over petrol for environmental reasons? Not necessarily (we'd say they choose lower running costs provided by the cheaper fuel), but CNG-powered cars spit out fewer harmful particles into the atmosphere nonetheless. We wish the Ertiga another 150 thousand examples sold, preferably for most part CNG-powered ones.
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