Renault India Private Limited (RIPL), the Indian subdivision of the French automobile major Renault S.A., will increase the price of its most popular offering, the Sports Utility Vehicle (SUV) Duster by up to Rs. 40,000 from October 1, 2012. The company has cited fluctuations in foreign exchange and the ever increasing costs of raw materials being the prime reasons for the reported hike.
The French auto maker introduced the Duster compact SUV in the Indian auto market in July 2012, with a base price of Rs. 7.19 lacs for petrol model and Rs. 7.99 lacs for diesel variant, as the ex-showroom prices in New Delhi.
In an official statement, RIPL said, “The price for Duster petrol variant will see a price increase by Rs. 30,000 whereas the Duster diesel will see a price hike by Rs. 40,000.” The Indian masses accepted the Duster with great affection and the compact SUV notched up a whopping 20,000 bookings, since its launch in July 2012.
Speaking on the latest cost-hike development from the company's stable, Marc Nassif, Managing Director (MD), RIPL said, “Facing an increase in raw material prices and instability in foreign exchange, factors which are beyond our control, we had to increase the retail price of Renault Duster.” According to Nassif, RIPL is leaving no stone unturned in ensuring quick deliveries of the Duster to its Indian customers, besides in order to accommodate the sky high demand for the car, the company has switched its production capacity up by three shifts.
Reportedly, the French auto major will not hike the introductory price of the Duster SUV, for all the Indian buyers who had booked the car before the end of August 2012. Renault-Nissan, the global Joint Venture (JV) partnership between the Franco-Japanese auto majors, operates their manufacturing operations from the Orgadam facility near Chennai and the Duster is also assembled at the same plant.
Currently, the waiting time frame between booking and delivery of the Duster could exceed four and a half months, and still the popular SUV is luring the buyers towards the Renault showrooms. It will be interesting to see how the Duster price hike is received by Indian audience, as the arrival of another compact SUV from the stables of Mahindra in September 2012, has fired up the segment. Both the vehicles are competing against each other in the small SUV segment making the Indian car enthusiasts confused over the different options available.
![Renault Duster [2020-2022]](https://imgd-ct.aeplcdn.com/160x89/n/cw/ec/47028/duster-exterior-right-front-three-quarter-4.jpeg?q=80 "Renault Duster [2020-2022]")
