Maruti Suzuki’s Alto and S-Presso will now get two airbags as a standard fitment. With this, the prices have gone up by INR 1 lakh. The variants that used to come with a single airbag are now discontinued. Hence, the Std, Std(O), and LXI trim of the Alto will not be available. For the S-Presso, Maruti Suzuki has discontinued the STD and LXI trim. Alto’s starting price is now 1 lakh, costlier than before. Meanwhile, S-Presso saw a price hike of INR 14,000 for the base variant.
Safety is of paramount importance for road cars. In the recent few years, Indians have now become pretty conscious about the safety aspect of cars. Moreover, the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways is also taking necessary steps to improve the overall safety aspect of cars.
Recently, Union Minister of Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari confirmed that all the new cars in India would soon have six airbags as standard. This is a great move to enhance the safety of the occupants substantially. India ranks quite high in terms of fatalities caused due to road accidents. With the moves like these, the aim is to decrease the number of road fatalities in the country. The other side of this introduction is that the manufacturers will now price their cars on the higher side to adjust the cost of additional airbags.
Maruti Suzuki is not looking to join the EV movement anytime soon. As per reports, we could see the brand’s first EV by 2025, which is three years from now. In addition to this, the company feels that it might not price the vehicle under 10 lakh. The high cost of technology and batteries is one of the main reasons why EVs are slightly more expensive than their ICE counterparts. But, as we progress, it is predicted that the cost would go down, which in turn will help the manufacturers to price their products more aggressively.
Also Read: Maruti Suzuki says EV under INR 10 lakh is difficult.