Deluge of Discounts

Domestic automakers are luring consumers with monsoon discounts. But such untimely concessions are a sign of rising inventory levels

- ASTHA ORIEL

AS YOU ENTER a Maruti Suzuki India Ltd (MSIL) dealership in West Delhi, you can’t help but notice pamphlets of the recently-launched Dream Series edition. The showroom also features special monsoon discounts of up to ₹1 lakh on select models. A similar scenario is found at Tata Motors and Mahindra & Mahindra showrooms, where discounts of up to ₹1.4 lakh are offered on some models like Tata Safari, Tata Harrier, and XUV700 amid increasing competition. Meanwhile, Honda is offering discounts of up to ₹96,000 on models such as Amaze, City, and Elevate. IPObound Hyundai Motor India is also offering discounts of up to ₹2 lakh.

Auto discounts typically surface during the festival season, which usually kicks off in September. While advantageous for customers, this early occurrence points to increased inventory for dealers.

“The higher the inventory levels, the more the discount,” says Manish Raj Singhania, President, Federation of Automobile Dealers Association (FADA).