Due to the noticeable increase in discounts by authorised dealers, potential used car buyers as well as sellers have been making every possible effort to strike deals before the beneficial scheme comes to its end.
As a result of the sharp boost in used car sales, the last phase of 2011 has considerably increased the profit margins for car dealers across the country, especially Ahmedabad. Buyers in the city have given a strong push to the demand and eventually the sales of used cars that witnessed a growth of 30 to 50 per cent during December as against November 2011.
Sandeep Kumar, Chief Executive Officer, Manan Autolink, Maruti Division, said that from day one of December, the dealerships have witnessed significant rise in the sales of used cars. He said that as compared to the 300 used cars that were sold in November, the month of December saw a hike of 30 per cent. "Overall, we have been offering discounts in the range of Rs 20,000 to Rs 50,000 depending on models and registration period," added Kumar.
Planet Hyundai, the Ahmedabad-based dealer for Hyundai Motors India Limited also recorded a jump of 54 per cent in used car sales. "Dealer discounts have been low in 2011. Add to that, there has been a buzz in the market that dealer discounts may go down further in January. This has resulted in buyers rushing in for last minute purchases of used cars. On our part, we have been offering rebates of around Rs 15,000-20,000 for used cars," said Rajesh Pathak, General Manager, Planet Hyundai.
Manan Autolink has also been providing buyers with discounts of up to Rs. 30,000 on WagonR that happens to be the highest selling model in used car category in Ahmedabad.
Dealers across the city said that the diesel-engined used cars have been more in demand as against the petrol variants. Thus, even when the whole of 2011 saw car makers struggling to absorb the blows of slowdown in the economy, the overall end for this tough year seems to be satisfactory.
