Ever since the announcement of Nano (Rs1 lakh car) hit the stands, speculations on Maruthi Suzuki nano’s rival have started. Earlier this year few newspapers reported that Maruti is secretly making a car to rival Nano under the codename “Under A”. The Under A is said to be powered by a 660cc engine. But on the day itself Maruti Suzuki denied the report saying. Maruti Suzuki said that the project “Under A” mentioned in those reports refers perhaps to the “A Under”, the earlier code name for the A-Star model. Maruti Suzuki also said that it has no plans to foray into the Nano’s segment.
But again rediff.com reports that Maruti plans a strip down version of its 800 model. The rediff report further says that the stripped-down car of 800 will cost Rs 1.2-1.5 lakh (ex-showroom, New Delhi) making it about Rs 75,000 cheaper than the existing price tag. The report claims cites a banker as its source and the banker says that the report is authentic. “Even today the margin on the Maruti 800 is Rs 23,000-35,000. Cutting the price of a stripped-down version will not be a big challenge,” the banker justifies his claim.