Today’s your last chance to buy a Maruti 800

If you live in Delhi, or 12 other leading cities of India, and would like to possess a new Maruti 800, you better buy one today, reports Sumant Banerji.

If you live in Delhi, or 12 other leading cities of India, and would like to possess a new Maruti 800, you better buy one today.

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From Thursday new Bharat IV emission norms come into force in Delhi/NCR, Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai, Pune, Ahmedabad, Surat, Kanpur, Agra, Hyderabad and Bangalore. In a conscious bid to phase out the model, Maruti 800's manufacturer, Maruti Suzuki India has chosen not to upgrade its engine to meet the new norms.

Instead it will stop selling the Maruti 800 in these cities, though the vehicle will available elsewhere in the country for a little longer.

Launched in December 1983, the Maruti 800 revolutionised India's automobile industry, discovering a vast untapped market, soon leaving its competitors then — the Premier Padmini and the Ambassador — way behind in popularity. Till 2006, when it was replaced by another Maruti Suzuki brand, the Alto, it remained the country's bestselling car..

“The Maruti 800 laid the solid foundation on which the company currently stands,” said R C Bhargava, chairman, Maruti Suzuki India Ltd. “Frugal engineering that the 800 was the first to employ, is now being adopted by car makers around the world.”