[nvn]

Prices have increased across all the variants. With highest seem to be at the lower variants. Also now there is a price difference between 1.4T petrol and Diesel variants. Will have to see if Carens will still be considered VFM as that was it's USP. If other manufacturers follow suit maybe it still is.

[jthomas]

Originally Posted by nvn

Prices have increased across all the variants. With highest seem to be at the lower variants. Also now there is a price difference between 1.4T petrol and Diesel variants. Will have to see if Carens will still be considered VFM as that was it's USP. If other manufacturers follow suit maybe it still is.

Now Prestige plus 1.4 DCT seems VFM as that has the least price hike. From 14.59 to 14.79 lakhs. The difference between top end automatic and this variant is 2.7 lakhs. For those looking at petrol automatic, prestige plus seems more value for money.

Diesel AT price hike may see some cancellation. I have booked Diesel AT 7 seater and contemplating whether to change to 1.4DCT prestige plus.

[rajeevyes]

Really disappointed with the price hike. That too within 6 weeks of launch, did not offer any price protection, held up production of lower variants, no transparency in allocation at dealer level. On top of this Epitome Kia, Yelahanka, bangalore, made false promises of early delivery and I happily exchanged my existing car like a fool.
Now thinking if I should cancel my booking.

[nvn]

Originally Posted by rajeevyes

Really disappointed with the price hike. That too within 6 weeks of launch, did not offer any price protection, held up production of lower variants, no transparency in allocation at dealer level. On top of this Epitome Kia, Yelahanka, bangalore, made false promises of early delivery and I happily exchanged my existing car like a fool.
Now thinking if I should cancel my booking.

Yes, for sure it's frustrating. Especially with leaving it to dealers to decide on allocation. But then again what other options are available in the current market conditions?

Originally Posted by jthomas

Now Prestige plus 1.4 DCT seems VFM as that has the least price hike. From 14.59 to 14.79 lakhs. The difference between top end automatic and this variant is 2.7 lakhs. For those looking at petrol automatic, prestige plus seems more value for money.

Diesel AT price hike may see some cancellation. I have booked Diesel AT 7 seater and contemplating whether to change to 1.4DCT prestige plus.

For me personally, I wanted to avoid DCT due to issues reported in (older) this setup. If not for that one reason, DCT seems a better option


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[ptaneja]

Can someone please help with exact price difference for 1.4Turbo Petrol Prestige Plus Manual as compared to original price ?
Booking docket has the updated price now - need to know how much it has actually incremented.

[furyrider]

Originally Posted by ptaneja

Can someone please help with exact price difference for 1.4Turbo Petrol Prestige Plus Manual as compared to original price ?
Booking docket has the updated price now - need to know how much it has actually incremented.

The old price was 13,49,900 INR ex-showroom. The difference is 40k for turbo petrol and 60k for diesel now.

[ptaneja]

Originally Posted by furyrider

The old price was 13,49,900 INR ex-showroom. The difference is 40k for turbo petrol and 60k for diesel now.

Thanks man !
So it would be 40K + minor difference in RTO + minor difference in Insurance = approx 45k to 50k.

Over stretching my budget...
That too when I am not even sure if they will deliver in this quarter or stretch it to next for another price revision.

[Knightrider]

The top-end Luxury Plus 7 seater DCT now costs 50k more at Rs.17.49L. This will take the on-road price to more than 20L in many states.

But is there any other 7 seater automatic car with sunroof having any variant costing less than or equal to 20L?

The closest variants of Hector Plus, XUV 700, Safari with 7 seats, auto and sunroof are still minimum 2-3L more I believe.

[84.monsoon]

It’s not at all fair or ethical of Kia to raise prices so soon after lunch, plus offer no price protection to those who booked earlier. There are people here who have sold their current cars to the same dealer and waiting for the Carens based on the price points at launch. Creating an artificial and inaccurate price perception through heavy advertising during pre launch and launch phase, only to yank the carpet from under future customers within weeks and that too after throttling delivery of attractively priced lower variants, is a greedy and sure shot way to ruin brand equity and perception.

Heck, I don’t think even one unit of the premium variant car has been delivered at 8.99 lakhs anywhere in India! How can it be anything but fraud, when Kia woos potential customers of the Ertiga facelift, claiming to launch the car at this price? It is an anti-competitive and unfair practice that should be sanctioned by the appropriate authorities including Consumer Protection and Competition commission.

Mahindra and Mahindra did a stellar thing here by offering price protection to the people who booked early for both the new Thar and the XUV700, no matter when the delivery happens. Proud to say these are the days when Indian businesses are setting the tone on fair and ethical business practises that are well ahead of companies from other parts the world!

[rajeevyes]

Originally Posted by 84.monsoon

It’s not very fair or ethical of Kia to raise prices so soon after lunch, plus offer no price protection to those who booked earlier. There are people here who have sold their current cars to the same dealer and waiting for the Carens based on the price points at launch. Creating an artificial and inaccurate price perception through heavy advertising during pre launch and launch phase, only to yank the carpet from under future customers is a greedy and sure shot way to ruin brand equity and perception.

I am one of those guys who exchanged my old car with them, booked on Feb 15th itself and still waiting for delivery. Now this news of price hike within 45 days of launch is shocking. Even those who pre-booked also will not get price protection. Also no transparency in vehicle allocation from dealers. I am regretting now to have booked a Kia vehicle.

[mahesh_sn]

I am in two minds now whether to continue with my booking for Luxury plus Diesel AT variant which sees a 75k price hike and will cost 21.5L now. To be brutally honest, Carens is VFM only till Prestige plus variant which is what I was keen to book in the beginning. But, having read DCT horror stories and with my intention to keep car for 7-8 years at least, I stretched my budget to top end diesel AT. But I don't see any other equivalent or better option in the same ballpark. Desirable variants of Harrier/Safari and XUV700 are at least 2 lac dearer. Tough choice ahead.

[Knightrider]

Originally Posted by mahesh_sn

But I don't see any other equivalent or better option in the same ballpark. Desirable variants of Harrier/Safari and XUV700 are at least 2 lac dearer. Tough choice ahead.

That's right. Kia very well knew that there is still a price gap between Carens top-end variants and competitor's equivalent variants, even after the price hike. They used it to their advantage. I was not expecting such a huge hike for top-end variants at least.

Really tough to decide whether to go ahead with the booking or cancel and look for other options. But are there any?

[furyrider]

Originally Posted by mahesh_sn

But I don't see any other equivalent or better option in the same ballpark. Desirable variants of Harrier/Safari and XUV700 are at least 2 lac dearer. Tough choice ahead.

This is exactly why Kia has increased the price in less than 2 months. They know that there is a void between the Ertiga/XL6 and the XUV 7OO/Harrier twins. For someone who is looking for a 6/7-seater in the 10-20 lakh price bracket, there are extremely limited options. Mahindra killed the Marazzo themselves with no AT and only one choice of fuel. Hyundai went big with Alcazar and failed. Kia was smart enough to position it's product to cover a wide variety of price points. Until we have a solid competitor in this space, Kia will continue to milk the customers as they please.

Looking at the dispatch numbers for February, I assume Kia has must've sold around 10,000 units for the introductory price. I really wish this move backfires for Kia. A 60-70k price hike is totally not justified that too within 2 months of announcing prices.

[NAVREVV]

Originally Posted by furyrider

Looking at the dispatch numbers for February, I assume Kia has must've sold around 10,000 units for the introductory price.

Look over at FB group, there are so many reporting cancellations and move will surely backfire. Out of 10,000 dispatches, these will 99% be prestige variants and not the base or the top end trims that have witnessed exorbitant price increase while the variant which is in most demand I.e Prestige DCT has seen very less hike compared to others. I thought the price hike for Diesel AT would at max be 25-30k (That’s what the SA told me) but INR 75,000 is just too much to swallow hence I cancelled right away. This is sure-shot way to kill your brand image.

[praveenkkr]

Originally Posted by furyrider

Carens price hiked by 40-60k across all variants

Kia, please tell that this is an April fool prank

Had booked Prestige Plus DCT before launch. But changed to Diesel AT after price announcement, though it was out of my budget.
What a mistake it turned out to be.
I've also sold my car (luckily not to Kia dealer) and already facing hardships to commute.

Now, Diesel AT increased by 70K ex-showroom which can be effectively 1L increase in on-road price.

Time to cancel the booking and wait for XL6 launch, which is scheduled to happen by end of this month.

XL 6 Launch

I would not buy Carens as I feel that this kind of practice shouldn't be encouraged.
Though it wouldn't make much difference, at least I don't want to have the feeling of being cheated.