[gsurya]

I still have a Fiat Uno 1998 model & have no problems in getting it repaired or finding spares that are still cheaper than what I get for my 5 yr old Chevy Aveo from the dealer. Ford spares are even costlier but available. Worst is those of Skoda Octavia, exorbitant.

[honeybee]

I think once a model has been discontinued, the manufacturers are supposed to provide spares for about 10 more years. I don't know if there's a rule on it or it's a self-imposed policy.

However you must also factor in things such as whether the car has been imported into India. For direct imports, or CBUs (Completely Built Units), the spares need to be imported too, since there's no local manufacturing.

Today with the common platform madness displayed by most car manufacturers, most of the running parts should be interchangeable across different models of the same platform. If you are really worried about a specific model, you can always check out the auto parts shops to gauge which models still have spares available.

[rajeev k]

Hyundai has mentioned in their instruction manual that spare support will be available for 7 more years once a model is discontinued.

[Trust_In_Thrust]

I have a 2003 zen and there are many spares which are discontinued by Maruti .
Eg is Rear Dismter Switch , Fog Lamp switch etc.

[nitinbose]

Originally Posted by Trust_In_Thrust

I have a 2003 zen and there are many spares which are discontinued by Maruti .
Eg is Rear Dismter Switch , Fog Lamp switch etc.

Maruti & Toyota are exceptional - they have manufacturing plants in India and would never have problems in spares.

[Trust_In_Thrust]

Originally Posted by nitinbose

Maruti & Toyota are exceptional - they have manufacturing plants in India and would never have problems in spares.

It is a irony because that is way it should be for Maruti but alas it is not so good. The part i write cannot even be ordered by MASS to Maruti as in the system it just shows discontinued.

[nitinbose]

Originally Posted by Trust_In_Thrust

It is a irony because that is way it should be for Maruti but alas it is not so good. The part i write cannot even be ordered by MASS to Maruti as in the system it just shows discontinued.

I feel these may be sourced from the local autospares shops, right? I feel the same should be true for TATA vehicles.

[shanazbin]

Manufactures has to ensure the spares for every model which they have sold, some people will maintain their car very long as their own asset.

So we have to keep values for peoples mind and money.

[thoma]

Originally Posted by nitinbose

Maruti & Toyota are exceptional - they have manufacturing plants in India and would never have problems in spares.

Lot of parts are not manufactured by the automobile companies themselves, but localized from other vendors.

And, did you mean other manufacturers don't have plants in India!

[nitinbose]

I'm aware Maruti, Tata, Mahindra & Toyota have either manufacturing plants or local sources / raw materials using which they can manufacture the spares or have the spares readily available. I'm not sure of the other vehicles though, the very reason for this thread.

[thoma]

Originally Posted by nitinbose

I'm aware Maruti, Tata, Mahindra & Toyota have either manufacturing plants or local sources / raw materials using which they can manufacture the spares or have the spares readily available. I'm not sure of the other vehicles though, the very reason for this thread.

May be these wonderful threads will help you gain more perspective on others' manufacturing plants.

http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/indian...ors-plant.html
http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/indian...s-fiestas.html
http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/indian...legaon-mh.html

I agree that you have raised a valid question on spares and service support for discontinued models, on which even I'm concerned. But how is Maruti and Toyota alone different?

I had a Baleno and towards the 6th-7th year period of my ownership (i.e, ~5 years after the model was discontinued), I had been given non-availability of spares by the ASC. The minimum waiting period of 2 weeks were given for those that could be shipped. I was given that the Baleno's muffler is totally unavailable (at that time, do not know the situation now) so was the Zen's. This was because Baleno had been mostly using Suzuki Genuine Spares unlike others Maruti models. But lately, I find that we can source spares for the same parts from Indian companies. My Baleno was using the Alto's 02 sensor (fitted by the ASC) and Rane lower arms.

[saket77]

Good topic to come bumped up. I have had problems sourcing some spares for my 2002 Zen. It's never that any component cannot be ordered as of now, but they are not readily available. About 2 years back, my stationery car was banged in rear by a tractor, which needed the rear hatch to be replaced. This took sometime as the order for the rear hatch was placed with Maruti as it wasn't available with any of the MASS in our city. The thing took about 10 days and all this time, I hated to drive my car all around banged from behind.
Thankfully, many other parts like oil filters, wiper blades, motors, etc are shared by its younger sibling - Alto and can be had in a jiffy!

I am not sure but I think I read somewhere that manufacturers are bound to provide spares after at least 15 years after the date of the last car registered. Don't know how true is this?

[zenren]

Originally Posted by saket77

I am not sure but I think I read somewhere that manufacturers are bound to provide spares after at least 15 years after the date of the last car registered. Don't know how true is this?

AFAIK, spares should be provided by the manufacturer for period of 10 years from the date of manufacture of the last car, not date of registration. It can be on a made to order basis as well and need not be available off the shelf.

After this period, manufacturer need not support the discontinued model and would not accept orders for spares as well. After the 10 year period for original Zen expires, Zen owners might have to settle for the body parts from the version 2 that came with clear lens head lamps. Someone who still owns a pre-1997 Maruti 800 can confirm on the availability of body parts for their specific model post 2008.

[saket77]

Originally Posted by zenren

AFAIK, spares should be provided by the manufacturer for period of 10 years from the date of manufacture of the last car, not date of registration. It can be on a made to order basis as well and need not be available off the shelf.

After this period, manufacturer need not support the discontinued model and would not accept orders for spares as well. After the 10 year period for original Zen expires, Zen owners might have to settle for the body parts from the version 2 that came with clear lens head lamps. Someone who still owns a pre-1997 Maruti 800 can confirm on the availability of body parts for their specific model post 2008.

Thanks for the info. However, I am sure that most body panels of the type 2 zen would not fit the original Zen. The bonnet, rear hatch, bumpers, grille, fenders are quite different. However, the doors look identical to the old Zen. The instrument panel for type 2 is also different. Thankfully the internals were unchanged hence we can expect other parts to be available for a few years more.

One question- Once Maruti stops accepting orders for Zen parts, for how long they be sourced directly from auto-parts manufacturers? Like headlamps from Lumax, filters from purolator, etc? And what about body panels, if they need to be replaced, what is to be done?

Thanks,
Saket

[zenren]

Originally Posted by saket77

However, I am sure that most body panels of the type 2 zen would not fit the original Zen. The bonnet, rear hatch, bumpers, grille, fenders are quite different.

Agreed that they look different but if the mounting points are the same, then they are still compatible. Fenders/Headlights/bonnet/grille/bumper might not fit in the old model if we were to replace just one of them but if we are replacing all of them, it would fit. Same goes with the rear. If we are replacing the bumper, hatch and the pair of tail lamps, it might fit in the old Zen.

I've seen many odd looking early-mid 90s M800s with some parts replaced with those from newer models.

One question- Once Maruti stops accepting orders for Zen parts, for how long they be sourced directly from auto-parts manufacturers? Like headlamps from Lumax, filters from purolator, etc? And what about body panels, if they need to be replaced, what is to be done?

Parts manufacturers may or may not manufacture parts that are consumed on a regular basis depending on whether it would still be financially viable for them (would depend on the volumes that the model sold) to continue production. For rarely replaced parts, it is unlikely that they might continue making them since the unsold inventory would be a huge loss to them. From what I've heard, most spares manufacturers auction off the left over inventories as a whole after the 10 year period and the availability and distribution gets into the hands of who ever purchases them. The official prices would also be no longer applicable from then on, and are likely to be hiked if there is demand.