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Saturday, October 5, 2024

Wagon R discontinued as rumors of Mehran ‘revamp’ surface

News Analysis |

Pak Suzuki has restrained its dealerships to take further bookings of its famous car, Suzuki Wagon R. The automaker has issued a notice to its dealerships telling them to halt the bookings of Wagon R starting from the 1st of February, 2018.

This is not a permanent decision. Pak Suzuki has only temporarily suspended the bookings. Furthermore, the bookings for the clientele who have already ordered cars will be followed through and their cars will be delivered to them as requested. But until further notice, customers will not be able to book the Suzuki Wagon R.

Suzuki has not offered any reasons. Auto commentators online have two explanations as to why Suzuki Pakistan decided to halt Wagon R bookings.

However, the same industry is also well positioned, compared to the other industries, to easily pass on the impact due to high demand of automobiles in the country.

The first is simply the number of orders the company has already taken. With the introduction of online cab hailing services Careem and Uber, the Wagon R was said to have been the favorite for consumers and vendors. So it is probable that Suzuki wishes to clear a heavy backlog. The second explanation is linked to Pak Suzuki trying to divert potential customers from Wagon R to its other hatchback, the Suzuki Cultus, which was released into the market last year in three makes. But owing to the significant price difference between both cars, this strategy to increase the sales of the Cultus might not actually work.

Read more : Honda follows Suzuki by introducing huge price hike

Also, the end of Suzuki Mehran era, which dominated the Pakistani middle class auto clientele, is just around the corner. For 30 years, Pakistani customers had one affordable and reliable car with little to no innovation whatsoever, the pop culture ‘Boss’ as the Mehran is fondly remembered. Now as per the reports, Pak Suzuki might soon end production of the Mehran and replace it with Alto altogether.

Suzuki has not offered any reasons. Auto commentators online have two explanations as to why Suzuki Pakistan decided to halt Wagon R bookings.

According to a local auto industry-specific publication, Pak Suzuki Mehran’s engine will be fitted into the new Alto. The new Alto variant will have a 796cc engine instead of a 660cc engine. Moreover, the new Alto might have a 5-speed manual. The possibilities for an Automatic transmission are slim.

Rumor has it that that Pak Suzuki has assembled a few units of this new car; reportedly 50 units. The units have been sent to be subjected to various types of testing. Once the testing is complete, Pak Suzuki will hopefully unveil this new car to the Pakistani market.

Pak Suzuki has not made any official announcement about the new variant yet, its engine, its design and its release date.

Recently Pak Suzuki increased prices of its vehicles in light of rupee depreciation against the dollar, Global Village Space reported. The Mehran’s VX model is now priced at Rs. 689,000 and its VXR variant costs Rs. 742,000. “The move was widely anticipated due to the recent rupee devaluation against the dollar,” commented a JS Research report on Monday.

For 30 years, Pakistani customers had one affordable and reliable car with little to no innovation whatsoever, the pop culture ‘Boss’ as the Mehran is fondly remembered.

“We believe the price increase will enable Pak Suzuki to pass on the impact of rising costs on to end consumers without any significant dent to volumes, given current high demand,” the report added. Perturbed with the widening current account deficit, the government finally allowed the rupee to lose its value by around 5% against the dollar last month.

Read more  : Suzuki launches automatic Cultus in Pakistan

The auto industry is especially sensitive to rupee depreciation because of its immense dependency on imported raw-material and parts that become expensive with the fall in the rupee’s value against major international currencies. However, the same industry is also well positioned, compared to the other industries, to easily pass on the impact due to high demand of automobiles in the country.