Maruti Suzuki bets on flex fuel as India seeks more than EVs

No single technology can solve India’s energy and emissions challenge, Maruti Suzuki India Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer Hisashi Takeuchi said as the country’s largest carmaker launched the WagonR flex fuel, India’s first flex-fuel passenger vehicle.

“I am happy that the government is encouraging all clean technologies. This direction is very important because India’s challenge is large, and no single technology can solve it alone,” Takeuchi said at the launch.

The company said the vehicle, launched on the eve of World Environment Day, is aligned with India’s energy security and sustainability goals and can run on any blend of ethanol and petrol from E20 to E100.

The WagonR Flex Fuel was unveiled in New Delhi in the presence of Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari and Petroleum and Natural Gas Minister Hardeep Singh Puri.

“At Maruti Suzuki, we are committed to offer cars with multiple technologies and fuels,” Takeuchi said. “The company is introducing BEVs, Hybrids, CNG/CBG and ethanol flex-fuel vehicles to meet India’s twin goals of reducing oil import and carbon emissions.”

Maruti Suzuki shares rose after the announcement, gaining as much as 1.57% in intraday trading on Thursday to ₹13,260 apiece on the BSE.

The launch gives Maruti another clean-mobility pathway beyond battery-electric vehicles, in line with its long-standing argument that India’s passenger vehicle transition cannot rely on a single powertrain.

The company said flex-fuel vehicles can help reduce oil imports, lower carbon emissions and local air pollution, while increasing domestic value addition and farmer incomes.

The vehicle has been engineered for ethanol-blended fuel compatibility and comes with advanced electronic control unit calibration that can adapt to ethanol blends between E20 and E100, Maruti said.

The car is compatible with E100 fuel as defined under IS17821:2022, but is homologated with E85 because the Central Motor Vehicle Rules define flex fuel as E20 to E85.

Gadkari said ethanol and other biofuels are important for reducing India’s crude oil dependence and strengthening the rural economy.

Flex-fuel vehicles can create sustainable demand for ethanol and benefit farmers, industry and the environment, he said in the statement.

Puri said India’s ethanol program had turned farmers from “annadatas” to “urjadatas,” while supporting energy security.

Flex-fuel vehicles, he said, can reduce crude oil import dependence, save foreign exchange, lower emissions and create new opportunities for rural prosperity.

The launch comes as India prepares for higher ethanol blends in transport fuels.

India had in April  proposed changes to vehicle rules to allow higher ethanol-blended fuels, including E85 and E100, after achieving its E20 ethanol-blending target in 2025.

The policy push is significant for Maruti, which dominates India’s small-car market and has built a large CNG portfolio.

The WagonR has also previously been used by the company to introduce alternative fuel variants, including CNG and LPG, Maruti said.

Still, flex-fuel adoption will depend on the wider ecosystem. Takeuchi said ethanol as a fuel remains in its early stages in India and that Maruti, as market leader, sees a responsibility to help make “India Go Flex.”