Maruti Alto 800 launched at Rs 2.44 lakh

Maruti Suzuki, India's largest car maker has launched its much awaited Alto 800 at Rs 2.44 lakh to 3.56 lakh ex showroom New Delhi for petrol and CNG variant. Available in an updated design package, the 2012 Alto 800 will be available in six trim levels including CNG versions.

 

Maruti Suzuki said, the company has already received bookings of over 10,000 units of Alto 800. 

 

The world's biggest-selling small car was revamped on Tuesday when Maruti Suzuki India Ltd launched a new version of its Alto model, clocking over 10,000 pre-orders as it tries to fend off rising competition in the entry-level car market. The existing Alto F8 will be discontinued while the K10 will not have the design changes seen on the new Alto 800.

The Alto 800 has a lot of changes under the hood. There is a new plastic intake system (the older one was aluminium), a new lighter crankshaft, a new cylinder head, new piston rings and a new gearbox. All this combined boosts the output to 48PS and 69Nm which is an 11 per cent increase from the previous model.

 

Maruti is also claiming a fuel economy of 22.7kmpl for the petrol powered variants and 30.46km/kg for the CNG ones. As far as safety is concerned, the Alto will be offered with an optional driver airbag in higher trims and ABS.

 

Since 1984, Maruti's entry-level models have outsold anything in India's car market, as millions of middle-class families and first-time owners in the developing country flocked to its Maruti 800 model and its successor, the Alto.

 

"Our engineering team has made many innovations to offer more space, improve driveability and safety to customers," Shinzo Nakanishi, Maruti's managing director, told reporters.

The new car's petrol model offers 15 percent greater fuel efficiency, he said. Maruti, controlled by Japan's Suzuki Motor, has had over 10,000 pre-orders for the Alto since bookings were opened in late September, Nakanishi added.

 

Cheap to buy and run, the Alto 800's two predecessors became instant best-sellers in a sector that Maruti Suzuki dominated until the late 1990s. As more automakers have muscled into the market, and more Indians had the cash for larger cars, its grip has slipped.

 

In the fiscal year that ended in March, Maruti sold over 310,000 Altos, making it the world's biggest selling small car. Indians bought 2.02 million cars that year. Sales of Maruti's entry-level models are down 21 percent so far in the current fiscal year, hit by rising competition from rivals such as Hyundai Motor Co's Eon and Tata Motors Nano model.

 

 

2012 Maruti Alto 800 prices (ex-Delhi)

Alto 800 Standard (Petrol): Rs 2.44 lakh

Alto 800 LX (Petrol): Rs 2.76 lakh

Alto 800 LXi (Petrol): Rs 2.99 lakh

Alto 800 Standard (CNG): Rs 3.19 lakh

Alto 800 LX (CNG): Rs 3.37 lakh

Alto 800 LXi (CNG): Rs 3.56 lakh

Domestic car sales hit record high in February

Car sales in India hit a record monthly high of 1.89 lakh units in February as customers advanced purchases in anticipation the government may hike excise duty in the Budget. Sales were also driven by rising disposable income with the middle-class , easy availability of loans, and a pick up in new product launches.

Car sales rose by 23% in February compared with a year earlier, data released by industry body Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM) showed Wednesday. The February sales number is higher than the record 1.84 lakh cars sold in January.

The Budget for 2011-12 , however, left excise duty unchanged at 10-22 % for different segments of cars, contrary to an expectation of a 2% hike. "Car prices have not increased much despite rise in global commodities prices like steel and rubber . Also, customers are enjoying flexible financing options. In future , however, we expect higher base of 2010 to moderate growth rate," SIAM Director General Vishnu Mathur said. Maruti Suzuki, the country's largest carmaker, reported 19.8% year-on-year growth in sales in February to 101,543 units.

"There was more demand in the market than what we could supply as we faced severe scarcity for our highrunning models like Alto and WagonR," a senior official from Maruti said. Hyundai sales grew 5.3%, while Tata Motors car sales grew 14% during the month. Two-wheeler sales in February grew 22% to a record 10.22 lakh units. The growth in the segment was primarily driven by market leader Hero Honda that posted 24% increase in sales to 4.62 lakh units last month. Sales of trucks and buses grew 11% in February to 64,057 units led by Tata Motors, Ashok Leyland , and Eicher Motors.

India's total domestic vehicle sales in the current fiscal year is expected to grow 26-27 % year-onyear , higher than SIAM's earlier estimate of 18%, said Mathur. However, rising interest rates on auto loans and spiraling global commodities prices, including crude oil, are concerns for the sector going forward.

Top 4 Best Selling Cars in India

Known devils are better than unknown angels. This thought seems to be very deeply embedded in the Indian car buyers mind. In spite of plenty of new car launches, the tried and tested old models like the Maruti Suzuki Alto, the M800, Hyundai Santro, Mahindra Bolero, Ford Ikon, Hyundai Accent and Tata Indica stay at the top as far as sales figures are considered. Even out of the top four highest-selling models in India, three are a decade old and two belong to Maruti Suzuki. In this article, lets have a look at the top 4 best selling models in India.

Maruti Suzuki Alto

It is very clear that the highest models in the country are still the cheapest cars. For Maruti Suzuki and for India, the Alto happens to be the best seller. A full-service car for so low a price attracts consumers. New cars with new features may have made their entry, but the basic technology made use of still remains the same.

Around 20,000 units of the Alto are sold every month. The impressive sales figures have prompted Maruti Suzuki to bring in a new-generation sibling for the model very soon, and together, the cars are expected to deliver sales of around 3,50,000 units a year.

Maruti Suzuki WagonR

Indias and Maruti Suzukis next best seller is another decade-old model, the WagonR. It has of course been refurbished very recently. The WagonR clocks sales of around 11,000-12,000 units every month. A vibrant yet safe package, the WagonR has been strapped with the best-in-class safety technology while its new peppy colours are full of novelty and vigour to keep you charged up and always ready to go. A reliable and fuel-efficient car, the WagonR suits the Indian car buyer just right.

Theres no doubt that Maruti Suzuki offers cars that are specially designed keeping in mind car buyers in India. Sales figures of Maruti Suzukis oldest model, the M800, prove this fact. In spite of the model being phased out of 13 cities after implementation of the new BS IV norms, it appears as quite a surprise that around 2,000 units of the M800 are still being sold every month. The car has a waiting list in markets like Srinagar in India.

Hyundai Santro

After the Alto and WagonR, the Hyundai Santro happens to be the next best seller. Its been twelve years since the models birth, but still sells nearly 7,000 units every month. If the combined sales of the Santro and the Hyundai i10 are taken into account, the duo clock around 20,000 units a month for the car maker. With the Santro displaying impressive sales numbers, it looks like Hyundai has no plans of phasing out the model despite its age.

Last year, the car was re-introduced into the Indian market with a few minor changes like beige interiors and an all-new grille. With this done, Hyundai will not be touching the Santros looks as of now. The car maker feels that the Santro has been selling real well and making changes would increase cost and lead to a subsequent price upgrade.

Tata Indica

The next best selling model in India is the Tata Indica. The car was first rolled out in 1998 and is of nearly the same age as the Hyundai Santro. Ever since its launch, this car has had modifications almost every year. The major changes, however, were done in 2001 with the launch of the Indica V2 and then in the year 2006 with the launch of the Indica V2 Xeta. Two years after that, in 2008 the Tata Indica Vista was born. Around 11,000 units of the Tata Indica roll out of dealerships every month and is Tata Motors largest selling car in India.

Analysts seem to be a little confused about this rather strange Indian phenomenon of old models going strong. It certainly is the credibility and affordability of the older models that works the magic in India.

Maruti Suzuki launched New Maruti Alto K10

Maruti Suzuki has launched its new version, Alto K-Series on the 4th August 2010 in India. The expected price of Alto K-Series is between Rs 3.00 lakh to Rs 3.40 lakh rupees. New Maruti Alto K10 is a new version of small car Alto. Improved mileage and powerful K-Series 1000cc Engine with attractive price are included in Alto K10. LXI & VXI are two variants of Alto K10, which will be available in six colors such as Sunlight Copper, Midnight Black, Fire Brick Red, Ecru Beige, Silky Silver and Superior White.












1-litre K10B engine, which has previously seen on the Maruti Suzuki A-Star, Estilo and the new WagonR, is will be the feature of Alto K10 car. Alto K10 became more powerful with the engine and this engine also offer it a class-beating fuel efficiency figure. For the light and zippy car, the company is claiming an ARAI approved figure of 20.2 kmpl. With new headlamps, a new radiator grille and revised interiors, which impart a sense of modernity to Maruti’s reputed people’s carrier, Alto K10 has also been suitably refreshed on the inside and the outside to distinguish it from its older sibling.

Except for the retuning of suspension and booster assisted braking system, there are not much mechanical changes. New Alto K10 engine is the new stuff but Maruti already uses it in A-star, Estilo and Wagon-R. 68PS of maximum power at 6200rpm and 90Nm of maximum torque at 3500rpm is produced by the K-series under the hood of Alto K10 produces. On the other side, because of the new engine, Alto k10 has gained just 50kgs. Effect is that, Alto K10 reaches 100kmphs in 13.3 seconds as opposed to 17.3 seconds by Alto.





Maruti Alto K10 Models:
* Maruti Alto k10 lxi
* Maruti Alto k10 Vxi

Features of Maruti Alto K10:
* K-series 1000cc engine
* Equipped with Fog light
* Speed meter along with RPM meter
* Attractive tale light
* Same color bumper
* Side new mirror
* Broad bonnet
* The new Alto is 125 mm longer than existing

Maruti Alto K10 Price in India –
Maruti Alto k10 lxi Price – Rs.3.1 lakh (approx)
Maruti Alto k10 Vxi Price – Rs.3.4 lakh (approx)

Maruti hikes prices by up to Rs7,500 across segments

The country's largest car maker Maruti Suzuki India raised the prices of all its models, expect Alto, by up to Rs7,500, citing a sharp increase in input costs.

The new prices are applicable with immediate effect, the company said.

"Due to a sharp increase in the input costs, Maruti Suzuki India has decided to pass on a part of this cost impact to customers," the company said in a statement.

The price revision, however, will not include its largest selling model Alto, it added.

"The approximate price revision on various models (Ex Showroom, Delhi) ranges between Rs2,000 and Rs7,500. The price increase ranges between 1% and 1.5%," the statement said.

The hike comes on a day when the company reported its best ever domestic monthly sales for July at 90,114 units, a 33.45% increase from 67,528 units in July 2009.

Maruti Suzuki India today reported 29.18% jump in its total sales, including exports, for July at 1,00,857 units. It had sold 78,074 units in the same month last year.

Maruti Suzuki’s New K-Series Wagon R To Be Launched On April 23

Maruti Suzuki India (MSIL) is all set to introduce a new version of its second-best-selling car, the WagonR. A Rs 290-core investment had been made by the company for the development of its new car which will hit roads through the dealers across India on April 23.

Though the New Maruti WagonR has not yet been displayed on any platform, but a handful group of journalists were given a sneak peek at the car by Maruti.

The K-series WagonR model shows more taller longer and spacious stance than its predecessor. It will feature the newly developed K-10B engine from the popular K-series engines which is also part of the Zen Estilo and the A-Star. The price for the new Maruti WagonR model is still not revealed, though it is expected to be slightly above the previous models price range of Rs 3.30 to 3.50 lakh. The vehicle will be sold in three variants – LX, LXI, VXI.

Mileage is expected to be around 18.9 kmpl under test conditions by MSIL. The car will be features a cable-type transmission, which makes gear-shifting an easier process. The new HVAC design also allows for superior cooling. MSIL will be obtaining 93% of the total car parts for the new WagonR locally, while the rest will be imported from Japan.

MSIL currently only has plans to market the petrol version of the new model. The new Maruti WagonR also has the basic qualities of the previous version, which has sold more than 8.5 lakh units since its launch in 1999. The company hopes to retain the position and in fact do better with with the launch of its new model.

Hyundai to launch 800 cc car both for India and export markets

Hyundai Motor India Limited (HTML) is planning to launch its 800 cc small car by 2011-12. The wholly owned subsidiary of Hyundai Motors Company is taking this step foreseeing the demand for small cars which is likely to touch 2 million units in India by the time this car gets to launch here. The Hyundai 800 cc cars will be both for Indian market and exports markets.


But the company made a clear remark that it had no intentions to give a competition to Nano as it does not have the capacity to manufacture Rs. 1 lakh car.


Hyundai is planning to undertake the production of this new 800 cc variant on the tunes of Maruti 800 and is supposed to hit the market with an affordable range. Hyundai is the largest seller of the small car


segment. Its current best seller is i10 but Hyundai plans to offer a car at a price tag lower than i10 this time.


“We hope to bring our smaller car than Santro, which will be an 800 cc vehicle, by 2011,” said H S Lheem, Managing Director Hyundai Motors India. He, however, did not divulge details like price range of the car. The car is aimed to hit not only the Indian domestic market but the company also plans to cater to the export market as well. The design of the car will be prepared in Korea.


The research and development work has already started at R&D centers at Hyderabad and Namyam (Korea). The company however has not revealed much about the product specification but there are anticipations that this car would be a petrol variant with 800 cc engine. These units have the capacity to manufacture 20,000 units per month and 600,000 units per year. HMIL has also promised a preview of its i20 car in the hatch back segment with a code name PB at the Paris Auto Tariff Show on October 2.


Hyundai is probably impressed by what Maruti 800 did to the Indian small car segment. Maruti Udyog happens to be the only company that boasts of having a monopoly in the small car segment in India. Hyundai’s new 800 cc car is bound to face tough competition from Maruti’s Alto, Maruti 800 and Spark. The company aims to take forward this sensation by launching yet another affordable small car, looking at the growing market of small cars in India.

Nissan may set up new plant for small car

Japan's Nissan Motors may set up a new plant in India to manufacture an entry-level car that it plans to roll out at the Rs 2.5 lakh price point through a joint venture. 

Kiminobu Tokuyama, MD and CEO of Nissan India, said the company expected "very large" volumes from the new car that would be pitched in the Maruti Alto category. Hinduja group company Ashok Leyland, Nissan's India partner for light commercial vehicles, is one of the companies the Japanese auto major is in talks for the JV. 

Tokuyama refused to identify the other companies Nissan was talking to and said "details are being worked on." 

Nissan has multiple partnerships in India and will launch the Micra compact from its Chennai factory in July. While it has partnered group company Renault for the manufacturing set-up at Chennai, it will sell cars in a marketing and distribution tie-up with Hover Automotive India. The company has also partnered Renault and Indian two-wheeler major Bajaj Auto for a ultra-low cost (ULC) car, while tieing up with Ashok Leyland for LCVs. 

The new entry-level car, that the company will position between its ULC and the Micra, will be yet another partnership for the company. Tokuyama said since the model would be in the heart of the Indian car market that accounts for the majority of sales, targeted volumes are likely to be substantial, thus requiring a new manufacturing facility. 

"A different manufacturing base for this is one of the alternatives," he said, indicating that the car may not be manufactured at its Chennai factory. "As we finalise our strategy for the entry-level car, we will work out the best options." Nissan-Renault's Chennai factory has annual capacity of 4 lakh unit that is expected to be used by both the companies equally for their products. Nissan plans to use the location for making the Micra compact; a new sedan that it plans to roll in by 2011; a multi-purpose vehicle; LCV and one more model. 

Hover is expanding the retail network as Nissan expands its portfolio. It has ten dealerships and hopes to expand this to 80 by 2013, by when it hopes to have a 9 models, including 4 imported.

Maruti A-Star to be called Pixo & new Alto globally

It’s a new car but will have three different names. For the first time in the Indian automobile history, the same car—made in India—will don three different badges in the global market. Maruti Suzuki, manufacturer of the car, will brand it A-Star in India.

The same car will be contract-manufactured by Maruti for Nissan Motors and called Pixo. And it will be the new Alto for Suzuki Motor Corporation in Europe.

The car will be manufactured exclusively by Maruti Suzuki’s plant at Manesar in Haryana and will be unveiled by both companies at the Paris Motor Show next month at their respective pavilions.

Both Nissan Pixo and Suzuki Alto will compete against Toyota Aygo in the international market while it will be pitted against Hyundai i10, Fiat Palio and Tata Motors Indica Vista in the premium small-car segment in India.

An MSI spokesperson refused to comment and said: “A-Star has nothing to do with Alto, which will continue to be the flagship model of Maruti Suzuki in India. It is a totally different segment.”

Carmakers offer gifts and gold to lure customers

It’s raining gold in the car market. Fighting sluggish market conditions, carmakers are offering diamonds sets, gold coins & chains, silver plates and MP3 music systems to lure customers into their showrooms before the festive season.

Traditionally, festive season has meant free insurance covers and auto accessories for buyers. However, this time around, carmakers such as Hyundai Motors and Ford India are offering precious metals to attract female customers and new buyers. Hyundai Motor India (HMI) is offering a free gold coin with its entire range (except i10 AT and Getz 1.5L CRDi) and an MP3 player with the Verna sedan range and the 1.1L & 1.3L Getz hatchback cars.

HMI managing director HS Lheem said: “We are offering these gifts as part of our successful decade-long operations in India. Besides, with these valuable offerings, we’re making Hyundai products very attractive for our customers.”

While Ford Motors India, which recently gave a facelift to Fiesta, is now offering Tanishq diamonds worth Rs 20,000 with every Fiesta. It has also started special offers including cash incentives for corporate and public sector buyers.

Car sales have nosedived in the past two months after a three year-long growth drive. While sales grew 3% in July, August saw a 1.71% dip year-on-year. To fight the slowdown, other companies are taking different routes to tap the market. Maruti Suzuki India has launched special incentives to attract over 25.4 lakh employees from the insurance, banking and retail sector with additional discounts of Rs 17,000 on SX4, Rs 5,000 on M800 & Alto, Wagon R, Estilo and Rs 4,500 on Swift (petrol version).

“It is a tough time and we are concentrating on non-core markets. Banks, financial institutions and insurance companies make up a big market, but still remain tapped. We are directly giving cash discounts to customers in place of tangibles,” a senior executive of Maruti said.

American auto major General Motor has also followed the similar path offering huge cash discounts. The highest cash rebate of Rs 58,000 comes on the Spark compact car, followed by Rs 46,000 on Tavera multi-utility vehicles. Other pre-Diwali offers include Rs 28,000 discount on Optra Magnum sedan along with a 4-5% interest waiver on all loan deals.

Honda Siel Cars India (HSCI) has plunged into the discount market for the first time and has waived 50% insurance premium on its popular City and Civic sedans, besides offering comprehensive warranty and service packages to the customers.

Not competing with Nano: Maruti Suzuki

Automobile major Maruti Suzuki India today said the company has no plans to enter the Nano car segment or become a competitor to the existing player.

"Maruti has always been in small car segment and we have always concentrated on that category of up to 1200 cc cars. But Nano is something which is a totally different segment and we are not venturing or competing in that segment," Maruti Suzuki India Chairman and MD R C Bhargava told reporters on the sidelines of the 48th SIAM Annual convention here.

On being asked about the decline in the sale of small cars and four-wheelers, Bhargava said that such kind of temporary downslide has been faced by the industry earlier.

"It won't take the industry long to recover and the market to stabilise. Certain external factors like rise in crude oil prices, the sub-prime crisis and

inflationary pressure has hurt the auto industry just like any other industry and if the oil price stabilises the entire affect will mitigate," Bhargava said.

He added that the upcoming festive season would lead to increase in sale of small cars.

"The festive season has always been a good one for the industry as sales tend to go up and we expect the same to happen this year as well," he said.

He refused to accept that sales of Maruti Suzuki cars in India has declined drastically.

"Maruti 800 and Alto are from the same segment and taken together the sales of the two cars have not declined significantly," he said.

Regarding the Singur controversy, Bhargava said one such case would not make much of a difference "it is very necessary for an important state like West Bengal to have industries. It is a pity that they did not go for the Singur project and we hope that the issue will be sorted out."

New car sales strategy from Maruti-Suzuki

In the wake of decline in car sales owing to rising inflation, Maruti Suzuki Motors is now amending its marketing strategies. It is working out many plans to increase the car sales and has tied up with different car dealers across the country.

Car Sales in India is witnessing a dip and the reason is rising inflation. The competition to position strongly in the Indian car market segment is getting very tough.

During this period of high inflation, Indian auto leader, Maruti Suzuki Motors is amending its marketing strategies. The company is turning to 15-20-year-old cars to drive new car sales.

The company is working out many plans to increase the car sales and has tied up with different car dealers across the country. And as a part of the strategy, the car dealers have been asked to dispose old cars that they get in exchange of new cars.

The company is also providing an exchange discount of about Rs 40,000.

The old car will be placed for occasion to scrap car dealers. The company feels that this bidding of old cars will benefit their pre-owned car business popularly known as True Value.

The exchange offer has churned out positive results in Maruti car sales. The sales figure revealed a hike of 12 per cent to 20 per cent, resulting in promotion of entry level car models like Alto.

Maruti is now completely relaying on the ‘old for new exchange’ scheme for the sales. May be we would soon see other car makers joining the race.

Indian A-Star is Suzuki's new Alto for the world

News of the fifth generation Suzuki Alto is out, and surprise, it is naught but the A-Star, designed by Maruti Suzuki and seen in its concept form earlier this year at the Auto Expo in Delhi. The car is scheduled for launch in Europe and India in October 2008, and we expect it to fortify Maruti Suzuki's dominance of the small car space in India even further, besides putting plush minis like the Hyundai i10 squarely in its gunsight.

There is an interesting Indian connection to the story apart from the design as well. The new car will be made exclusively in India for export to the rest of the world. Nissan's strong interest in the project has already reaped its benefits - a deal with Maruti is in place under which the Indian company will make 50,000 units of this car, which will be sold badged as a Nissan in its international markets.

What will it run on?

The new Alto will sport a spanking new 1-litre, all aluminum three-cylinder power plant. The new engine will make about 60PS of power, and its light structure will make it more frugal and also much cleaner to adhere to international standards. Sources are not ruling out another version of the car with a 1.2-litre engine (soon to be seen in the Suzuki Splash), which will give it even more firepower against the similarly powered Hyundai i10 Kappa.

Car-mania continues despite inflation

HYUNDAI Motor India Ltd (HMIL) on Monday reported a34 per cent increase in domestic car sales during June at 21,881 units while the country’s largest car maker Maruti Suzuki recorded a flat growth of 0.7 per cent selling 56,411 units during the month. SUV maker Mahindra &Mahindra (M& M), which markets diesel- run vehicles, recorded an eight per cent growth during the month. Hyundai did well with its i10 and Santro, while Maruti Suzuki notched up a high growth of 48 per cent in the A3 segment with its Swift Dzire and Sx4 models, selling as many as 5,807 units during the month, compared to 3,923 units in June last year. Inclusive of exports, Maruti Suzuki India Ltd reported a slightly higher growth of 2.22 per cent rise in total vehicle sales during June at 61,247 units, compared to 59,917 units in the same month last year.

In the A2 segment, comprising Alto, Zen Estillo, Wagon R and Swift, the company registered a marginal growth of 0.3 per cent at 37,767 units, against 37,646 units in the same month last year. Its M800 model recorded 13.73 per Maruti Suzuki’s sales grew 48 per cent year- on- year cent decline at 5,361 units in June, compared to 6,214 units during the corresponding month last year. Exports during the month stood at 4,836 units compared to 3,917 units in the same month last year, up 23.5 per cent. Hyundai’s overall sales, including exports, were up 45.3 per cent at 40,182 units during June compared to 27,653 units in the same month a year ago, said a company statement. Its exports for the month rose to 18,301 units, against 11,318 units during the same month of the previous year. HMIL sold 33,859 units of hatchbacks Santro, Getz and i10, 6,272 units of Accent and Verna, 47 units of Sonata Embera and four units of its SUV Tucson in June. “At a time when the industry is already under tremendous pressure because of higher interest rates, rise in fuel costs and rising inflation, it is indeed heartening to see that Hyundai products continue to be an affordable and attractive buy for most car buyers,’’ the company’s vice- president Arvind Saxena said.

The company’s i10 has done well and it has sold over 1,00,000 units in less than six months since its launch, he added. Mahindra &Mahindra said its domestic sales in June went up by 8.17 per cent to 18,179 units, against 16,805 units it sold in the same month last year. Its total sales, including exports, grew 8.78 per cent to 19,371 vehicles, compared to 17,807 units in the corresponding period last year, the company said in a statement.

Hyundai too raising car prices as input costs mount

HYUNDAI Motor India Ltd ( HMIL), the Indian arm of the Korean automobile maker, on Wednesday said it would raise the prices of its products by up to two per cent from the first week of June.



“There has been an increase in the input costs and we have been absorbing it for a while. The situation now is such that we have to pass some parts of it to the consumers,” Hyundai Motor India Ltd senior vice president marketing and sales Arvind Saxena said. He said the company will hike the prices of its various models by up to two per cent. “The price increase will come into effect from the first week of June,” he added.

Hyundai currently sells hatchback models Santro, i10, Getz along with sedans Accent, Verna, Sonata Embera in the country. The companys move to hike prices follows rival Maruti Suzuki India Ltd ( MSIL), which last week hiked prices across various models by between Rs 1,000 and Rs 18,000.

Maruti had hiked the prices of all its petrol variants — the hatchback Swift, sedan SX4 and the Gypsy — by Rs 9,000, while the price of the diesel version of Swift was raised by Rs 15,000. It had also increased the price of all variants of Zen Estilo and WagonR LPG by Rs 1,000 and of Alto and M800 by Rs 1,500.

Prices of all variants of Omni and WagonR Petrol were hiked by Rs 2,000 and that of multi- utility vehicle (MUV) Versa by Rs 8,000. Earlier, in January, Hyundai Motor India had raised the prices of all its models by between two to three per cent.

Maruti hikes prices of its models as input costs rise

INDIA'S largest car maker Maruti Suzuki India Ltd, on Monday raised prices of most of its models to offset the rising cost of inputs such as steel.

The price hike ranges from Rs 1,000 on the Zen Estilo and Wagon R hatchback to Rs 18,000 on its sedan Swift Dzire. The company had launched the Swift Dzire sedan with an introductory price ranging from Rs 4.49 lakh to Rs 6 lakh across different variants, which has now been withdrawn, a Maruti dealer said.

Maruti has also hiked the prices of all petrol variants of hatchback Swift, SX4 and Gypsy by Rs 9,000, while the price of the diesel version of Swift has been raised by Rs 15,000. It has also increased the price of all variants of Zen Estilo and WagonR LPG by Rs 1,000 and of Alto and M800 by Rs 1,500.

Prices of all variants of Omni and WagonR Petrol have also been hiked by Rs 2,000 and that of multi- utility vehicle Versa by Rs 8,000. The price increases, which spared the Grand Vitara SUV, came into effect at the weekend, he said.

Maruti's managing director, Shinzo Nakanishi, had said in April that the car maker was negotiating with steel companies on new contracts, for which it faced up to a 40 per cent price increase. Earlier, Maruti had cut prices of some of its models, after the government reduced excise duty on small cars.