[GTO]

As much as I love the Civic....I have to admit, the Altis made it look woefully overpriced! Actually, Honda has always gotten away with charging a fat premium in India from the start. And skimping on equipment. This 50K discount notwithstanding, competition will make Honda price their cars better in the future. They have to, since Civic sales are tumbling big time (13 month-on-month declines), the ANHC will never be able to match the sales success of the NHC and the CRV is taking a beating from the Captiva / Pajero / Endeavour / Outlander. They've also gotten away with offering inconsistent aftersales. Some Honda Dealers are simply hopeless!

Honda used to be the indisputed no.1 in these three segments.

[Dippy]

The Civic E hasnt taken off at all. The E model comes without most of the featurs you expect in a car of this price range. A friend of mine just bought an E Civic a month ago. The car does not have climate control or electronically retractable mirrorsand of course no alloys either. Even the hub caps look really cheap. Heck even the SX4 and Swift have climate control.

As for the CRV, it will be under threat once again since GM displayed their AT Captiva 4wd at the show. This might be one of the most awaited cars. An AT 4wd SUV in the upper segment. We might see a price cut in the CRV as well soon.

[Sahil]

I wouldn't really call this a discount its more like a price match with the Altis base model.
These cheap marketing gimmicks that Honda has done with the hybrid and now this, is really leaving a bad impression.

[Elito11]

Originally Posted by GTO

the ANHC will never be able to match the sales success of the NHC

Not sure i agree there GTO

ANHC is not even fully out yet, and who knows with recession looming Honda just might take the initial feedback seriosly and give ANHC better interiors (Its biggest weak area IMO).

Plus its looks better, has 118 BHP, AT, decent equipment levels and most importantly its the 'NEW HONDA'! (enuff for a lot of Indians )

Elito

P.S. - Sorry about going offtopic! and BTW this is so NOT a 'massive' discount. More like a long overdue price correction. And only on E?

[SkyWalker]

Originally Posted by Elito11

Not sure i agree there GTO

ANHC is not even fully out yet, and who knows with recession looming Honda just might take the initial feedback seriosly and give ANHC better interiors (Its biggest weak area IMO).

Plus its looks better, has 118 BHP, AT, decent equipment levels and most importantly its the 'NEW HONDA'! (enuff for a lot of Indians )

Not sure if i agree. Have you seen the sales of Civic over the last few months?

[csentil]

Drop the price of the model that sells the least. Isn't that a tried and tested tactic by most dealers.

And please lets not have another thread with Civic Vs Altis. :-) All Civic threads seem to be inflicted with this.

Honda has always commanded a premium because there was simply nobody to compete with them till recently. Corolla grew bit long in the tooth until they came out with the Altis.

As someone said, with declining sales, a new competitor and recession, Honda will drop prices. Corolla did the same a year back with very cheap models being available, so it ain't new.

One thing I don't understand is why should cars like Corolla and Civic strip down to basic models? Just to boost sales or its to undercut the market?

[GTO]

Originally Posted by Elito11

Not sure i agree there GTO

Amongst other reasons, it is over a lakh of rupees dearer! That itself takes it higher in what is already a price sensitive market. I love the ANHC, but don't think it will match the NHCs sales.

[CtrlAltDel]

Honda's finally getting off the high horse! this (hopefully) portends a 'nice' price for Jazz when its launched next year!

i only hope they dont go the GM way and announce discounts and price cuts for every religious occasion...

[sridharps]

Originally Posted by ImmortalZ

This is probably to clear stock so the 2009 car can be rolled in.

Honda dealers used to maintain their snobbish attitude and roll their eyes if a customer talked about discounts being offered by competitors.( i remember some real nasty remarks from a dealer a few months back when Corolla was offering massive discounts to phase out their model.)

This recent auto slump is forcing them to eat humble pie. I hope they take the cue and become a bit more customer friendly.
Anyway, I think Civic has well and truly lost it's snob value because of it's ubiquitous presence on the roads. It was a phenomenal sales run, while it lasted though. They massacred the Corolla, but it is even-stevens now.

[biju_kp]

Altis is anyway better than any models of Civic.
Honda has specialized in looting Indian customers

[X-Machine]

I would most cerainly term it as the 'Altis Effect'. The sort of goodies being offered on that car proves its VFM capability. Moreover, another factor that counts is that, Toyota is considered the leader world over as far as *** is concerned. Honda really need to buckle up, if they want to hold on to thier position.

P.s: A price cut was expected after the Altis launch, but come to think of it, its strange that Honda has got into the 'price-cut' gimmicks since just a year. Dont really remember Honda giving out discounts earlier.

[johy]

The Honda Dealer here in Siliguri has not heard of this discount. Well.

[ST7677]

Let's not get overboard here. Year end discounts and price revisions around budget are nothing new in Indian auto industry.

[Ym-enjn]

IMO the bigger competition is from second hand 'Civics'. Recently there have been lots of Civics in second hand car market and that too at very low prices. What will be the snob value of a car at 12 or 15 lakhs when its available for 6 to 8 lakhs. That is part of product cycle. But usually Honda comes outwith newer model before this stage comes. But here comes the Altis effect, it has shaken Hondas plans and strategies to the roots. Even their new planed offering would be low VFM in front of Altis as you can see with Civic sport(they thought Corolla will offer only body kit in India as it has done in other countries). Supposedly Civic Sports was times such to take care of Altis.

So now no other option but to close this model and offer a dashing new Civic in coming months. Always good for customers.

Give Honda some time to get out of Altis shock.

[Path_Finder]

This should be a combination of year end clearance of 2008 stocks and a price correction. Anyhow they sold less of E version – may be also they want to get rid of the stocks and say good bye to the E version. Ideally Honda should do that and then bring down the price of V.

BTW, I was misled by the thread title – this is not a massive reduction. Perhaps the thread starter did not consider the 8L reduction they did on the hybrid!