Diesel Cars Could Soon Become More Expensive

The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways has recommended raising taxes on diesel cars by 2 per cent

Rules and regulations related to the registration of new cars are expected to witness another change in the coming months. The latest proposal from the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways states that the taxes on diesel-powered vehicles should be hiked by 2 per cent. The move is aimed at curbing the sale of diesel-powered vehicles.

While the debate around the toxicity levels of diesel cars will take its own sweet time to conclude, buyers need to watch out for the additional expenditure they could incur. Usually, a new diesel car is priced at a premium of at least Rs 1 lakh over the corresponding petrol variant. Let’s take the example of three different segment of cars to understand this trend. Also Read: BMW’s Petrol Cars Now Come With BS6 Engines In India

While the diesel variant of the Swift costs exactly Rs 1 lakh more than the petrol, the difference steadily climbs to Rs 1.92 lakh for the Skoda Octavia’s diesel variant. Not only the price, the servicing and maintenance of diesel-powered vehicles is also dearer than petrol-powered ones.

If the Ministry’s suggestions are accepted, the price of a Swift VDi will most likely go up by over Rs 13,000, while the Octavia will become dearer by Rs 40,000. So if you’re still looking to add a diesel engine-equipped car to your garage, now would be the right time to go ahead with your decision. Moreover, the prices of diesel cars are bound to increase (in the range of Rs 50,000 to Rs 70,000 for smaller cars) once the BSVI norms are implemented from April, 2020. Petrol cars (in the mass market), on the other hand, will see prices go up by around Rs 10,000 to Rs 20,000 only once the BSVI norms come into play. Related: Delhi-NCT Shifts To Cleaner BS6 Petrol, Diesel Today