Waiting lists on cars: Will you wait 10 months for yours?

With the rising demand and low interest rates on auto loans, compact SUVs are not the only cars burdened with the long waiting periods. Hatchbacks and small cars such as the Maruti Suzuki Alto, as well as some premium hatches like the Hyundai i20, have waiting periods in the range of 1-10 months.

According to a report in The Times of India, the rising demand for cars may have been one factor, but the decadal low auto loan rates have been another major deciding factor.

Maruti Suzuki, for example, has a waiting period of three-four weeks for its smaller cars such as the Alto and the Swift, but the waiting period goes up to six-eight weeks for cars such as the Ertiga, says the report. The manufacturer has been operating at peak capacity ever since October 2020 and had to shut down between December 27 to January 3 to undergo maintenance.

Hyundai, on the other, has a waiting list lasting around two-three months. Ganesh Mani, Hyundai Motor India Director (Production) said that they had to almost double the production capacity of the Hyundai Creta. “We have doubled Creta production from 340 units a day to 640 units in the last six months,” Mani told TOI.