'Maruti 800 has good demand in smaller markets'

Top carmaker Maruti Suzuki today said there was no plan to completely phase out its iconic Maruti 800 from the Indian market as it continued to have good demand.

Maruti 800 was phased out from 13 major cities, where Bharat Stage-IV (BS-IV) norms came into effect earlier this month.

“Although the car is not being sold in these 13 cities, it continues to have good demand in other markets. Besides, the rural segment is also growing fast,” Maruti Suzuki general manger, commercial business head (north) Rakesh Srivastava told Business Standard.

He said the company was selling almost 2,500 units of Maruti 800 per month pan India. The model was not upgraded to BS- IV norms due to cost factor, as it was estimated to have substantial cost add on and was not considered feasible.

The 13 cities, where BS-IV grade petrol and diesel had been mandatory, include Delhi/NCR, Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Pune, Surat, Ahmedabad, Kanpur, Agra, Solapur and Lucknow.

He replied in the negative when asked if the company was considering any other model for gradual phase out.Srivastava was in town to launch the refurbished Wagon R, which comes with a new transmission with cable type gearshift.