Forced by mounting commodity costs, automaker Mahindra and Mahindra said it has raised prices across all its vehicles by 1.5-2 per cent. The immediate impact will range from Rs 7,000-15,000 on different models, Dr Pawan Goenka, President (Automotive and Farm Sector), said.

This is the second price increase that the company has done this year. In January, it had increased prices by about 1.5 per cent. Mahindra has the Scorpio, the Bolero and the Logan among others under its portfolio besides a slew of three-wheeler commercial vehicles.

The rising cost of steel, rubber and other inputs has forced Indian car makers, including Maruti Suzuki and Tata Motors, to raise prices in recent months.

Japan effect

Asked if the Japanese earthquake and tsunami had an impact on auto component supply, Dr Goenka said it expects vehicle production at South Korea's Ssangyong Motor Co to be hit in April due to lower supply of parts from Japan.

“We expect some impact on Ssangyong (production) in April. I can't say how much. “We can't look at alternate sources because we source engine blocks from Japan,” he said. Dr Goenka was also recently appointed the Chairman of Ssangyong. Mahindra owns a 70.03 per cent stake in Ssangyong.

He said that the sales performance in March this year had been the best in 40 months for Ssangyong.

Dr Goenka further said that the refreshed Logan compact sedan will be out within this fiscal and the hatchback version will follow.

Related Topics
comment COMMENT NOW