News Analysis |
For the third time this year alone, Indus Motor Company, the makers of Toyota cars in Pakistan, have increased their vehicle prices, the difference now ranging from Rs50,000 to Rs250,000.
Hardly two months prior, the company had raised prices in the range of Rs 10,000-Rs 20,000 in a balancing act against the depreciating rupee.
The company has increased prices of Corolla XLI and XLI AT by Rs50,000.The powerless windows and powerless traction XLI will now be sold at Rs1.94 million while XLI AT has crossed the Rs2-million mark and will be sold for Rs2.02 million.
Prices of Corolla GLI variants have been increased by Rs100,000. The price of Corolla Altis 1.6 has been increased by Rs100,000 while prices of Altis 1.8 MT and CVT have been increased by Rs150,000. Prices of Grande MT SR and Grande CVT SR have been increased by Rs150,000 and Rs135,000, respectively.
Read more: Indus Motor Company reported to recall Toyota Corolla vehicles yet again
Fortuner High crossed the Rs6-million mark after its price was jacked up by Rs250,000 and it will now be sold for Rs6.1 million. Fortuner Diesel will be sold at a price higher by Rs250,000. Prices of IMV variants have been increased in the range of Rs110,000 to Rs200,000.
Analysts comment that this increment comes in the light of the same pretext as before: Rupee depreciation. Earlier, the hottest selling of the Big Three, The Indus Motor Company (IMC), made an astonishing fourth recall of the Toyota Corolla vehicles in just 13 months. This cranked up the total recalls to 16,719 units, which is the highest number of recalls for any vehicle and brings a total of vehicles recalled to an approximate 38.82 percent of the total sales in the past year.
IMC informed buyers that the company is undertaking a special service campaign for 1,719 vehicles, of the model Toyota Corolla Altis 1.8L Grande, manufactured between August 2015 and March 2016, GVS earlier reported.
The above-mentioned cars are in compliance with international auto standards, equipped with Front Airbag Sensors.
Fortuner Diesel will be sold at a price higher by Rs250,000. Prices of IMV variants have been increased in the range of Rs110,000 to Rs200,000.
However, these airbags have been reported to possibly deteriorate overtime, losing their ability to deploy in an accident and unable to warn the driver with a blinking light before malfunctioning.
Keeping in mind the recent campaigns against the big three, a major portion illuminates the lack of safety measures in the locally manufactured overpriced vehicles.
Read more: Toyota Corolla most popular sedan in Pakistan despite tough competition
IMC produced and sold 42,992 and 43,190 units through July till April 2017 and 2018, as compared to 45,534 and 45,447 units in the same period, the previous year. Through 2016 to 2017, the total production and sales of Corolla stood at 52,874 and 52,676 units.
Pak Suzuki Motor Company also raised its car prices in the range of Rs 20,000 to Rs 30,000, marking the the third raise this fiscal year. The reason given by the Suzuki official for the third price increase in 2018 was the same as the other two of the Big three; the weakening Pakistani rupee. Previously, Suzuki had increased prices in January and March this year following rupee’s depreciation, GVS earlier reported.
In March this year, Pak Suzuki Motor Company (PSMC) had jacked up the already raised prices of its variants by up to Rs 50,000, effective from March 1st, 2018, which marked the second time the automaker had revised rates in an upward trajectory this year alone, before even hitting the second quarter. Hardly two months prior, the company had raised prices in the range of Rs 10,000-Rs 20,000 in a balancing act against the depreciating rupee.
Both of Suzuki Mehran’s variants, the VX and VXR are already costlier by Rs 20,000. The price of Mehran’s VX had gone up from Rs 689,000 to Rs 709,000, while Mehran’s VXR price increased from Rs 742,000 to Rs 762,000. The price of Suzuki Ravi had been increased by Rs 20,000 from Rs 706,000 to Rs 726,000. The price of Suzuki Bolan had increased by Rs 20,000 from Rs 764,000 to Rs 784,000. Suzuki Bolan Cargo’s price increased from Rs 730,000 to Rs 750,000.