Union Budget 2012-13 Archives

Following the hike in excise duty proposed in Union Budget 2012-13, several automakers were compelled to offer steeper prices on their models. On the other hand, several car launches were delayed, eyeing a possibility of re-pricing the vehicles. One such anticipated launch was of the Mercedes Benz ML350 CDI. Debuted at the 2012 Auto Expo in Delhi, the SUV was scheduled for an April launch, which is now slated for May 15 in New Delhi.

The first batch of Mercedes Benz ML350 SUVs will be bought to the shore via CBU unit, inviting an excise duty of 75 percent. However, the assembly will commence at Chakan facility in Maharashtra from September 2012, which will certainly shrink the aggressive excise duty attracting more potential customers.

Power for the new ML class will be drawn from a 3.0-litre V6 diesel unit that thumps out 258 bhp peak power and 620 Nm peak torque. Transmission option is Merc’s brilliant 7G-tronic transmission that can pull the SUV from 0-100 kmph in 7.4 seconds, while boasting a 224 kmph top speed, which is as stunning for an SUV.

For the later phase, Mercedes could also offer a smaller and more fuel-efficient, 2.2-litre diesel motor. In the market, the Mercedes Benz ML350 CDI will go up against premium class SUVs like the Audi Q5 and BMW X3. Watch out this space for the official launch.

It is nightmare for the auto industry, with excise duty on cars of size and shape to rise. According to the recent revise in excise duty for automobiles, the Union budget set a hike of 2 percent on small cars. This pushes the current excise duty from current 10 percent to 12 percent.

We had made speculations of price hike on C-Segment cars and SUVs, but with the new decision on Union Budget, the revised excise duty will cause the small cars to fetch higher price tag. Regarding the speculated revised duty on diesel, Maruti Suzuki, Honda and Mahindra & Mahindra had already displayed refute and announced their intention of passing the hike in duty to its customers. However, there has been no official announcement from any manufacturers as yet.

According the Union Budget 2012-13, which concluded on 16 March, the excise duty of 22 percent has been raised to 24 percent, causing drastic effect on the prices of sedans, luxury cars, SUVs and MPVs that are longer than 4 meters in length. There has been no announcement on increased duty of diesel cars for the Union budget 2012-13.

Tag: Union Budget 2012-13

2012 Mercedes ML350 CDI launch scheduled for May 15

Union Budget revised duty causes Small cars to get expensive