Cars get costlier in the festive season

IF THE rising cost of fuel was a bit of a bother and you were hoping to move towards newer economical options or a new car, be prepared for additional heartaches. Due to the depreciating value of the rupee and the international fuel price sky rocketing, manufacturers have hiked the price of cars. Maruti-Suzuki has increased the price of it cars by Rs 6,100 and not far behind is Mahindra that earlier this month announced an increase of Rs 30,000 for its passenger vehicles. Which means cars like the Swift, XUV 500, Scorpio, TUV 300 and KUV 100 will inevitably become more expensive. Similar is the case with other major manufacturers like Hyundai, Mercedes-Benz, Isuzu, Honda, Ford and Tata. Mercedes-Benz have also had to revise their prices up by four per cent and new prices will come into effect starting September 1. Commenting on the price rise Roland Folger, Mercedes-Benz India managing director and CEO said, “Considering the rapid depreciation of the rupee against the major currencies in last few days, we were left with fewer options, but to make some necessary price adjustments to our product range at the moment. A steady rise in input costs against the backdrop of an unfavourable forex rate and high inflationary cost together, have had a significant impact in the recent past.