It’s raining discounts as carmakers chase buyers during festive season

The festive season is here and Maruti Suzuki, Hyundai, Tata Motors, Renault, Honda, Mahindra and Mahindra are all offering cash discounts, exchange bonuses, extended warranties, lower interest rates, free accessories and discounted annual maintenance contracts.

Most of these offers will last till the end of October. While some are in effect already, other offers will start from October 16, when a 40-day period, considered inauspicious as per a Hindu tradition, ends.

The four-month Indian festive season starts in August, and are marked by celebrations, ceremonies, get-togethers, and, of course, shopping. Dussehra and Navratri are celebrated in October.

Usually, the festive days generate 20-30 percent of annual sales for the auto industry.

Leading the pack is market leader Maruti Suzuki. It is offering schemes worth up to Rs 70,000 on models starting with the Alto 800, going up to the S-Cross. Compact SUV Brezza, which is feeling the heat of the Kia Sonet, offers a scheme whose benefits are worth Rs 45,000. Other best-sellers, Swift and Dzire, also have similar schemes. Wagon R and Celerio are offered with Rs 40,000 and Rs 50,000 benefits, respectively.

Hyundai is offering discounts ranging from Rs 25,000 to Rs 100,000 for all cars, except for its SUVs, including Venue and Creta.

The Elite i20, one of India’s best-selling premium hatchbacks, has benefits up to Rs 75,000. The Santro and the Grand i10 Nios have benefits of Rs 45,000 and Rs 25,000, respectively. Grand i10 has benefits of Rs 60,000. The newly launched Elantra carries the biggest offer of Rs 100,000.

Tata Motors, India’s third-largest passenger vehicle (PV) manufacturer, is offering much less discount than its peers. Despite the entry of the Sonet, Tata Motors is selling the Nexon with a benefit offer of Rs 15,000 on the diesel variant.

Tiago and Tigor are sold with benefits of Rs 25,000 and Rs 30,000, respectively. Harrier, the mid-size SUV, has a total benefit offer of Rs 65,000.

Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M), which has lost market share quite rapidly in the PV segment, is selling its products at significant discounts. Its best-selling SUV, Scorpio, carries a consumer-saving scheme of Rs 41,000, while the segment leader XUV500 has a benefit of Rs 56,760. M&M’s costliest model, Alturas G4, has a benefit offer of Rs 306,000. The newly launched

Thar does not carry any offer.

French car brand Renault is offering Rs 70,000 benefits on the recently updated Duster, along with an ‘Easy Care Package’ of three years or 50,000 km. Triber and Kwid have a benefit scheme of Rs 30,000 and Rs 40,000, respectively.

Facing tough competition, Honda, the manufacturer of the City sedan, is heavily pushing its products with new offers. The Amaze compact sedan has a benefit offer of up to Rs 47,000. The City has an offer of Rs 30,000 while the Jazz and WR-V have offers of Rs 40,000 each. The biggest offer of Rs 250,000 is on the recently launched Civic premium sedan.

Speaking to Moneycontrol, Tarun Garg, director (sales and marketing), Hyundai Motor India, said: “This is the time for festivals and there are several first-time car buyers visiting the showrooms. And they are looking for good values and affordable finance schemes. Bookings have been extremely good in October. We have seen 29 percent more booking than September and 19 percent more bookings than October last year for the first two weeks.”

Last year's festive period was a disappointment after increased cost of ownership dampened buyer sentiment. Hike in long-term insurance package, and price due to safety norms were some of the reasons why festive season sales were low last year.

Car sales till August were lower by nearly 50 percent, as per data shared by the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers. September marked the first year-on-year growth by the segment as manufacturers and their dealers stocked up inventory, anticipating robust retail demand.