Vicky.in Blog

Dzire Tour will be the name of the taxi-spec version of Maruti’s Swift Dzire model. It will be available in both petrol and diesel variants. The ex-showroom prices of the petrol and diesel variants of the Dzire Tour are Rs.4.88 lakhs and Rs.5.91 lakhs respectively. The sales of the Dzire Tour will commence from April 2012 and it will be sold only to taxi and fleet operators. The Dzire Tour features

i) Black-coloured front and rear bumpers, outside rear-view mirrors and door handles

ii) AC and power steering steel wheels

Showing its response to the annual budget hike, the Indian subsidiary of Mercedes Benz has declared that it will hike its product prices by up to Rs.3 lakhs.

The petrol cars with engine capacity of 1,200 cc and diesel cars with engine capacity of 1,500 cc and with length longer than four metres, the excise duty has been hiked form 22 percent to 24 percent. Likewise, the excise duty of the cars holding engine capacity more than 2000cc is now 27 percent and not 22 percent.

Regarding this hike, Mr.Suhas Kadlaskar, the Director (Corporate Affairs and HR) of Mercedes Benz India reported that the Budget is very disappointing for them. They were hoping for some reduction in taxes for large vehicles instead of hiking it further. He said that the premium car makers usually bring in advanced technology in to the country and this step will be very counter productive.

Kadlaskar also added that they are going to pass on the additional burden to customers. They have not decided the exact amount yet, but on an average it will vary between Rs.2 lakhs and Rs.3 lakhs.

Similarly for fully imported vehicles with FOB value more than $40,000, the basic customs duty has been increased from 60 percent to 75 percent which will result in the price hike of Maruti Kizashi, BMW X5, X6, 7-Series, Mercedes SUVs, Volvo cars, Honda CR-V, Nissan X-trail and Toyota Camry.

Volkswagen has launched the new IPL edition of its Polo and Vento models. Some of the selected variants of the two models will be available in the IPL trim also without any modification in its price. The sales of the IPL edition cars of VW will commence form April 2012.

Mr. Neeraj Garg, Member of board and Director, Volkswagen Passenger Cars said, “Last year we launched our first action model the Vento IPL Edition and there on introduced the Breeze models of both the Polo and the Vento. The immense response we received towards these special editions has prompted us to continue with the IPL Editions and this time with both our popular car lines-the Polo and the Vento”.

In the IPL edition, the rear seat passengers are offered with an interactive multimedia entertainment system with navigation and social networking options. The additional features of the IPL edition include

i) Dual tone leatherette seat covers

ii) Special floor mats

iii) Door sill design

iv) IPL branding on the boot

Honda has launched its new CBR150R model at a price of Rs.1.16 lakhs. The bookings and production of the bike has also started simultaneously by the company. The bike will be available at the showrooms all over the country by this month end.

The two available variants of CBR150R are Standard and Deluxe. Honda offers the bike with a 149.4cc, four-stroke, single- cylinder engine mated to a six-speed gearbox which develops a peak power of 18bhp.

CBR150R Standard:

i) Priced at Rs.1,16,385 (Ex-showroom, Delhi)

ii) Available in two colour combinations namely Black with Pearl Sunbeam White and Sports Red with Pearl Sunbeam White

CBR150R Deluxe:

i) Priced at Rs.1,17,385 (Ex-showroom, Delhi)

ii) The two available colour combinations are Black with Candy Palm Green and Vibrant Orange with Pearl Sunbeam White.

A new seven-seat variant of Outlander has been launched by Mitsubishi. The only difference between the five-seater and the seven-seater is the additional thin jump seat which can accommodate two more passengers and it can also be folded. As like the other variants of Outlander, the seven-seater variant is also powered by the 2.4-litre petrol engine featuring an all-alloy twin-cam 4-cylinder. The engine churns out a maximum power of 167bhp and a peak torque of 23kgm and is mated to a six-speed CVT box. It is to be priced aggressively in the range of more than Rs.21 lakhs.

Bajaj, India’s leading two-wheeler manufacturer is in a plan to stop the production of its Pulsar 180 DTSi model. This major decision by Bajaj has not yet confirmed but it seems that the decision will be undertaken by the company inorder to enhance the sales of its recently launched Pulsar 200NS model. Sources informed that the most likely victim for the Pulsar 200NS will be the 180 DTSi and hence Bajaj moves to the option of stopping the Pulsar 180 DTSi. Its hightime for Pulsar 180 to give way for Pulsar 200NS.

Ford has offered new base variants for both the petrol and diesel versions of its mid-sized sedan Fiesta. The new base variant of Fiesta Petrol has been christened the Ambiente and is launched at a price of Rs.7.23 lakhs. Similarly, for the diesel version, Style will be its base variant whose price is Rs.8.99 lakhs (Ex, Delhi).

Mr. Michael Boneham, Ford India President and Managing Director said, “The company is trying to respond to changing market dynamics and the evolving needs of its customers in India”.

The major competitors of Fiesta Ambiente will be Honda City and Hyundai Verna. The Ambiente variant of Fiesta features ABS with EBD, central locking, guide-me-home headlamp, turn indicators on ORVM, driver airbag, power mirrors, tilt steering, 100% foldable rear seats.

Likewise, the Style variant of Fiesta Diesel gets fog lamps, leather wrapped steering wheel, automatic climate control, cruise control, audio control on steering wheel, audio system with 6-speakers and Aux-in. The Powershift Automatic Style features additional leather seats.

A new variant of Vento Diesel has been launched by Volkswagen christened the Comfortline at a price of Rs.8.56 lakhs (Ex-showroom, Maharashtra). The comfortline is a mid-level variant of Vento Diesel and will be placed between the Trendline and Highline variants. The new variant features

i) Front and rear fog lights

ii) Height adjustable driver seat

iii) A radio with CD, MP3 player

iv) Body coloured exterior door handles and mirrors

v) A rear center arm rest

vi) Electrically adjustable outside rear mirror