If you have a 20-year-old Ambassador or a Fiat in your garage and somehow missed the time, when it could have fetched you good money in sale, there is some good news.
Maruti Suzuki India, the country’s biggest carmaker, has relaxed the eligibility for cars that can be sold at any of its 280 True Value dealerships in the country. Till now, the company offered exchange price only for cars that are not more than 10 years old with a maximum mileage of 1 lakh kilometres.
Maruti will now accept any car of any age and will pay you a maximum of Rs 40,000 for the same, officials said. Estimates suggest around 25 lakh cars plying on the roads or rotting in the garages today, are more than 10 years old.
“We know there are lot of cars that are 15-20 years old that are not sold by their owners fearing that they will not get a price for them,” said Ravi Bhatia, general manager, sales support. “We want to tap into that segment of old Fiat, Ambassador, or even a Maruti 800 and offer them a new car.” “We determine the worst case scrap price for the car and add an exchange bonus or a replacement incentive into the package which can go up to Rs 40,000.”
The company has created a database of hundreds of scrap dealers across the country and invites them for an auction with a collection of around 100 cars. The scrap dealers then bid for the cars and are provided with a detailed technical condition report for each car.
Since its launch in October 2001, True Value has not only been a financially profitable venture, it has also helped the company retain its leadership in the car market. A majority of customers who are selling their old cars, ends up buying a new car from the company in return. Last year 1,00,000 cars were sold to True Value dealers of which 86,000 customers went in for the exchange scheme and bought a new car.
“There are double benefits of this scheme. Not only will we be able to stimulate the market, but also cleaning up the roads in the process by phasing out cars that consume more fuel and pollute more,” Bhatia said.
© HT Media