The country's largest car-maker, Maruti Suzuki, said there has been a 20-30 per cent decline in sales to Europe in 2010-11 so far due to the stoppage of scrappage schemes, a top company official said.
"Our sales have declined at least 20-30 per cent in Europe in 2010-11 due to the cancellation of scrappage schemes. We hope demand will once pick up and we will export more cars to Europe. Europe is a good market for us," Maruti Suzuki Managing Director and CEO Shinzo Nakanishi told reporters here.
Scrappage schemes are government budget programmes to promote the replacement of old vehicles with modern vehicles.
The company exported 1.2 lakh units to Europe in 2009-2010, Nakanishi said.
The company has launched a new generation WagonR, priced between Rs 3.38 lakh and Rs 3.97 lakh (ex-showrooom in Mumbai). The new WagonR is developed on the latest platform of the vehicle available in Japan. The car is powered by the BS-IV compliant 998cc K-series engine.
"Presently, we have localised the WagonR 80 per cent and we will localise it more in future. This car has been made with the K-series engines," he said.
"We have already rolled-out more than 3 lakh K-series engines and the K-series will play a vital role in Maruti Suzuki's strategy in consolidating its position in the automobile sector," Nakanishi said.
Maruti Suzuki now offers two variants of the K-series engines: the 998cc, three-cylinder K10B fitted in the A-star, Estilo and the new WagonR and a 1.2-litre, four-cylinder K12M petrol engine powering the Ritz, Swift and Swift Dzire.
