An increasing number of buyers are priortising fuel mileage over unneeded extra horse power

Kathmandu

There’s no denying that most of the car buyers are still a parsimonious bunch: ‘Kati mileage dinchha? (How much mileage does the car give?)’ is one of the first questions the buyers have. And why wouldn’t they? With recurring petrol shortage in the country, stretching the fuel is high on people’s mind.

“Mileage matters and it should. With good mileage comes great savings, both in terms of fuel costs and vehicle maintenance,” shared Pravaran Mahat, a development communication expert who looks at mileage when buying cars. He opined that now there are more options for buyers. “Indian cars are cheaper, but considering all aspects — finishing, performance, after service, et cetera, I lean more towards Hyundai and Ford. The Hyundai Eon that I currently own is a nifty car for Kathmandu; it’s easy on the wallet every time we refuel, and cheap on maintenance. So was my Ford Figo earlier,” he said.

On the other hand, Gaurav Pahari questioned, “What is the point of buying a luxurious car in a country where you witness fuel crisis every now and then?” The actor and an automobile enthusiast shared that he believes mileage is the first and foremost factor to consider while purchasing a car. “Currently I am setting my eyes on the new models from Maruti Suzuki as I believe they provide the best mileage,” he stated.

Citing that Suzuki has the reputation of being the most fuel-efficient cars across all range, Karan Chaudhary, Managing director at CG Motocorp, authorised distributor of Maruti Suzuki said their latest models — Brezza and Baleno have been highly successful. “Baleno offers petrol mileage of 21.4 KMPL and for Brezza its 24.3 KMPL. Brezza has racked more than 700 units booking in the first 20 days of launch,” he revealed. Furthermore, he shared they currently have an easy auto loan scheme with down payment starting from 30 per cent with on-the-spot finance at interest rate starting from 8.99 per cent (depending on car model). “The fuel shortage has direct correlation with automobile business leading to steep decline in sales,” shared Chaudhary.

According to him, last year’s economic blockade saw the automobile industry’s sales decline by more than 60 per cent.

Hemant Purnaik, Country Manager at Tata Nepal claimed that Tiago, Bolt and Zest are the best fuel mileage cars from Tata. According to Puranik, the mileage for Tiago (Petrol) is 23 KMPL, 17 KMPL for Bolt (Petrol) and 23 KMPL for Bolt (Diesel) and Zest (Diesel). “Apart from mileage Tiago, Bolt and Zest come with attractive features like Multi-mode of driving, Harman infotainment system, 9th Gen ABS system, best in class warranty of four years et cetera,” he shared, adding that as per January 2017’s statistics, Tata is ranked the number three player in Nepal’s automobile industry.

Furthermore, he disclosed that there is a special scheme on these models — customers can get a low rate of interest of 5.49 per cent or pure gold with the car, depending on the model one chooses.

Similarly Sharad Dhungel, Head of Honda Car Sales operation Honda, claimed, “Honda Brio is one of the best fuel mileage cars. We have sold more than 400 units so far.” According to him, it gives mileage of 18 to 20 KMPL. “We are giving an attractive cash discount, one year road tax, accessories et cetera,” he said.