Maruti introduces new hygiene norms for dealerships amid Covid-19 pandemic

The country's largest carmaker Maruti Suzuki India (MSI) on Wednesday said it has put in place a comprehensive standard operating procedure (SoP) for its dealerships across the country amid Covid-19 pandemic.

The process ensures highest level of hygiene and sanitisation across all its showrooms for the safety of its customers and employees, MSI said in a statement. The Covid-19 SoP designed by the company encapsulates all the facets of customer interactions, MSI said.

From the time a customer walks into the showroom till the final delivery of the vehicle, all processes have been scientifically studied, it added.

After the implementation of these SoPs, and based on approvals from state governments, company dealerships have started to open and deliver the cars to waiting customers, it added.

"All our dealerships have put in place steps to ensure complete safety, hygiene and sanitisation of all touchpoints," MSI Managing Director and CEO Kenichi Ayukawa said.

The auto major said it now offers the door-step delivery of cars. Besides, the dealerships will carry out complete sterilisation of the test-drive vehicles, it added.

MSI currently has around 3,080 dealerships across 1,960 cities and towns in the country.

Auto major Maruti Suzuki slashes prices of select car models by Rs 5000

International News
The country's largest car maker Maruti Suzuki India on Wednesday reduced the prices of select models by Rs 5,000 (on ex-showroom prices).
These models include all variants of Alto 800, Alto K10, Swift Diesel, Celerio, Baleno Diesel, Ignis, Dzire Diesel, Tour S Diesel, Vitara Brezza and S-Cross, MSI said in a statement.
These models are priced in the range of Rs 2.93 lakh and Rs 11.49 lakh.
The new prices will be applicable from today across the country.
This reduction of price will be over and above the current promotional offers for the company's vehicle range, it added.
The company said it is optimistic that the price reduction will bring down the cost of acquisition, especially for the entry-level customers. "This announcement around the festive season will help boost customer sentiment and revive the market to create demand," MSI said.

The company's price reduction comes days after the government cut corporate tax last week with an aim to help industry overcome slowdown.

Auto stocks slide on report GST Council unlikely to back tax cut for sector

International News

Shares of automobile companies, including auto ancillary firms, traded lower on Wednesday on report that the goods and services tax (GST) panel is unlikely to approve lowering the tax for the sector this week, as a study has warned of major revenue losses.
According to this Reuters report, a government study, attached to the agenda of a September 20 GST panel meeting, has said the total annual revenue loss could be as much as Rs 50,000 crore ($6.95 billion), if the panel decided to lower tax rates for the auto sector to 18 per cent from 28 per cent.
Another report by The Economic Times said the government body blamed the current liquidity crisis and troubles of non-bank lenders for the woes of the automobile sector.
Meanwhile, state officials in Kerala, Punjab and West Bengal say they are also opposed to any cut in tax rates in the autos sector, or even consumer goods, because of lacklustre tax collections this fiscal year.
Consequently, the Nifty Auto index dipped nearly 1 per cent on Wednesday as compared to a flat benchmark index Nifty50. Among individual stocks, Hero MotoCorp, Escorts Limited, Tata Motors, and Bosch dipped in the range of 1-2 per cent. Maruti Suzuki India slip 2.3 per cent while Ashok Leyland was down as much as 4.2 per cent on the National Stock Exchange (NSE).
The automobile industry has been facing challenges since past three quarters in terms of additional burden of new insurance policy, constraints on loan disbursement from financial institutions and higher axle load norm impacting commercial vehicle (CV) sales, say experts.

 The sector has pushed for a lowering of tax rates at the September 20 GST panel meeting, in a bid to revive vehicle demand.

Hero MotoCorp shuts plants from Aug 15-18, says market situation to blame

Company News

India's largest two-wheeler maker, Hero MotoCorp has decided to close its manufacturing facilities for three days. The reasons stated are annual holiday and due to the prevailing market condition. After car makers announced plant closures for a few days, Hero will be the first two-wheeler maker to officially announce a temporary stop in production.
The company stated that production planning is a matter of advance monitoring of market dynamics and prudent demand forecasting. This helps us to plan our production well in advance, thereby enabling us to stay flexible, both in terms of volumes and production schedules, it said."In line with this trend, our manufacturing facilities will be closed from August 15 to 18. While this has been part of the annual holiday calendar on account of Independence Day, Raksha Bandhan and the weekend, it also partly reflects the prevailing market demand scenario," said the company in an announcement to the NSE.
Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M) has already announced the closure of its plants for 8-14 days in July-September. Similarly, Tata Motors has announced closure for eight days, Maruti Suzuki for three days, Toyota Kirloskar also for eight days, Ashok Leyland for nine days, Bosch for 10 days, Jamna Auto for 20, and Wabco for 19, according to reports.
While Hero MotoCorp has five plants in India, the construction of its sixth manufacturing facility, at Sricity in Andhra Pradesh's Chittoor district, has reached an advanced stage. It will have an annual installed capacity of 1.8 million units. Once this facility is completed, it will take the company's total installed capacity to around 11 million units.

 The company reported sales of 535,810 units in July 2019, slipping 21 per cent from the same month a year ago, when the two-wheeler manufacturer had reported overall sales volumes of 679,862 units...Read More

Hyundai Motor India to take on Maruti Suzuki with 'connected' cars

Company News

Hyundai Motor India, the second-largest carmaker in the country, will soon join market leader Maruti Suzuki in the contest for the emerging ‘connected car’ segment. The Korean manufacturer’s local arm is to launch its first such vehicle, the Hyundai Venue, in May.

A compact SUV, the Venue has been developed to meet Indian driving conditions and to address the limitations that come along. Below 4 metres in length, the vehicle is to be pitched against Maruti’s Vitara Brezza, Mahindra & Mahindra’s (M&M’s) TUV 300 and Ford’s EcoSport.

It will come with nearly 10 features developed specifically for the local market, the company said, apart from 23 standard ones such as auto crash notification, emergency assistance and auto diagnosis. The India-specific features address driving behaviour, vehicle tracking and geo-fencing.

Ji Hong Baek, managing director of Hyundai Motor India Engineering, the company’s R&D centre, says the Venue has been developed on core technology owned by Hyundai globally.

Maruti, M&M

Major carmakers in the country are loading barrels for the coming battle in the field. Maruti Suzuki has already launched, as an optional feature for all its models sold through its Nexa, the ‘Suzuki Connect’. Starting mid-2018, a bunch of connected features can be added in its models like the Ignis, Ciaz, Baleno and S-Cross for Rs 9,999.


 Developed in India, the Suzuki Connect operates much like the promised Hyundai Venue. Both firms have taken the globally-tested path of connecting their cars through a SIM, the data stored in local cloud...Read More