Riding high on the success of the City sedan, Honda Cars India is all set to make its debut in the multi-utility passenger market with the launch of the Mobilio in India in July this year. Based on the Brio platform, the Mobilio is a 7-seater MPV that could revive the sluggish MPV segment and bring volumes to Honda. While the MPV segment is primarily dominated by the Toyota Innova, the Mobilio will be competing against the Maruti Suzuki Ertiga in the segment in terms of pricing.
Both the Honda Mobilio and the Maruti Ertiga will be competing in a segment that generates around 1.5 lakh units per annum. While the MPVs are targeted at large families, the Ertiga has been largely favoured by tourist operators as well. However Honda’s primary target will be families. Both the vehicles come with a 7-seater layout; but it is the Mobilio that is expected to offer more leg space, especially at the third row. The overall fit and finish on the Mobilio will also be much better than the Ertiga.
In terms of engine options too, it is the Honda Mobilio that wins by a wide margin. The Mobilio will be powered by the 1.5-litre i-VTEC petrol and the 1.5-litre i-DTEC diesel engine options from City sedan, while the Ertiga is powered by the 1.4-litre K-Series petrol motor and the 1.3-litre DDiS diesel engine. The i-DTEC engine has also proven itself to be very frugal and we expect the same on the Mobilio as well.
With the Mobilio clearly having an edge over the Ertiga, the success of the MPV boils down to Honda’s pricing strategy. While we do expect the Mobilio to be aggressively priced, it is highly unlikely that the Mobilio will undercut the Ertiga. But with an array of features on offer, Honda could surely sweeten the deal for MPV buyers that are looking for a viable alternative against the Ertiga in the segment. Prices for the Ertiga diesel start at Rs. 7.22 lakhs (ex-showroom, Delhi) and we could see the Mobilio priced at a marginal premium. Checkout our first impressions of the Honda Mobilio HERE.
