BS-III ban: Huge discounts being offered to clear inventory

The Supreme Court of India has issued a ban on the sale of BS-III compliant vehicles from April 1, 2017. However, vehicles that have been sold before the said date can be registered even after the deadline. This has prompted various manufacturers and dealers to offer huge discounts on their piled up inventories of BS-III vehicles in an attempt to reduce the expected losses.

The two-wheeler industry has been the most affected from the aforementioned sales ban. Official data from the Society of Indian Automotive Manufacturers (SIAM) reveals that out of the 8.24 lakh unsold BS-III vehicles, over 6.7 lakh are two-wheelers. As a result, most two-wheelers are now being offered at huge discounts.

While dealer discounts are varying from city to city, some manufacturers are offering uniform discounts across the country, for different models in their portfolio.

Honda is offering discounts of Rs. 20,000 on the NAVI, Rs. 13,500 on the Dio and Aviator and Rs. 14,500 on the Activa-i. The CB Shine is available at a discount of Rs. 18,300, while the Dream Yuga and Livo are being offered at a price cut of Rs. 18,500. In addition to these monitory benefits, some select Honda dealers are also offering a free NAVI scooter with the purchase of a CBR 150R or CBR 250R.

Hero MotoCorp is also offering discounts of Rs. 5,000 on the Splendor Pro and HF Deluxe, Rs. 7,500 on the Glamour and Super Splendor, and Rs. 12,500 on the Maestro Edge scooter. Meanwhile, the TVS Apache RTR 160 and Victor are available at a discount of Rs. 5,000, while the Apache RTR 200 and Jupiter can be bought at a discount of Rs. 10,000.

Premium manufacturers like Triumph and Ducati are also trying to clear their inventories by offering discounts of up to Rs. 3 lakh. Meanwhile, a few Harley-Davidson dealerships are offering discounts of up to Rs. 40,000 on the Street 750.

Source: Car and Bike