Depreciation in the value of rupee has affected every field, the automobile industry being no exception. This industry had already been in its worse condition in the past and the falling value of rupee has just added to the downfall. Uptil now, the newspapers were flooded with schemes and discounts on car prices but the coming festive season might see an increment in the car rates. It is speculated that the prices of two wheelers as well as four wheelers might get increased by around 5 per cent.
Due to the growing inflation, a lot of auto makers have brought a hike in the prices while some are still contemplating over the idea. The growing input and manufacturing costs have risen to such an extent that these automobile firms are not left with any other option than to hike prices. Auto makers like Skoda Auto, Ford, Volkswagen and a few Japanese companies like Honda and Toyota have already announced the increment in their price list. Honda's latest offering to the market, the entry level sedan Amaze is sold in the range of Rs. 5,05,000 and Rs. 7,69,640 as per the variant and features. However, the company increased its prices due to obvious reasons. The company's successful petrol SUV, Honda CRV may also witness a hike in its cost though the officials feel that this won't affect the sales of the cars.
"So far we are not seeing that impact. This month (September) is better than last month for us," said Jnaneswar Sen, Sr. Vice President of Sales & Marketing of Honda. If analysts are to be believed, the sales might probably fall due to the rise in cost because the whole of nation is facing the wrath of the depreciation in the value of rupee. General Motors is going to increase costs on all its models in the range of Rs. 2000 to Rs. 10,000 by Oct 1, 2013. It sells the Chevrolet series that also includes the sub-compact hatchback, Spark and the multi purpose vehicle, Enjoy. Tata Motors is hiking price by one per cent to 1.5 per cent on both, its commercial and passenger vehicles. Mercedes-Benz also raised prices on its entire range by 4.5 per cent.
A hike of 2 to 3 per cent is expected in the models manufactured by Skoda whereas Ford Fiesta would see a marginal hike. Ford EcoSport, the popular and successful model of the firm would witness the maximum price rise of Rs. 50,000. Toyota Motors would also be increasing the price of their models, Etios, Etios Liva, Innova and Corolla Altis. The prices would be incremented by about 1.5 per cent. A hike of Rs. 4,500 to Rs. 8,600 would be seen in Etios Liva that currently sells in the range of Rs. 4.46 to Rs. 6.59 lakh.
Etios Liva, would be more expensive by Rs. 4,500 to Rs. 8,600 from its current price range of Rs. 4.46 to Rs. 6.59 lakh. Etios is expected to become costlier by Rs. 4,000 to Rs. 8,000 and Innova will become costlier by Rs. 7000 to Rs. 11,000. Corolla Altis, an immensely popular sedan by the firm will see a hike of Rs. 11,000 to Rs. 24,000 from the present rate of Rs. 11.74 lakh to Rs. 15.89 lakh. Maruti Suzuki and Hyundai do not have the plans to hike prices as of now. A spokesperson from Maruti Suzuki said that their CBU imports are quite low so they are still looking for dollar improvement. The companies are keeping their fingers crossed and are hoping that the rise in price doesn't affect the sales this festive season.
