Saar: Prices are set to increase by up to 4 per cent. Why? No specific reason cited.

If you have been planning to purchase a BMW or MINI model in India, you should do so before the end of this year. That’s because come January 1, 2019, BMW and MINI models will get costlier. BMW India has announced that it will increase the prices of cars by up to 4 per cent. No particular reason for this step was cited in the official release.

Here’s what Vikram Pawah, who is the chairman of BMW Group India, said in the press release:

“BMW India remains at the forefront of the luxury car market, offering ‘Sheer Driving Pleasure’ through its aspirational products and unmatched levels of customer centricity. From 1 January 2019, BMW India will increase the prices of its cars by up to 4%. BMW India will continue to present an extremely attractive value to its customers through pioneering products, best-in-class service experience and comprehensive financial solutions and offers from BMW India Financial Services.”

The decision to hike the prices could be the result of several economic factors such as increased freight charges, weakening rupee and the hiked fuel prices. One of the most common reasons behind increasing prices of products is to offset the increased input costs. But we can only speculate on what triggered BMW Group India to make this decision.

Earlier this month, BMW India launched the M2 Competition. A few days before that happened, the company introduced its online sales channel which can be used to browse, choose, customise and purchase cars. Next year, the German carmaker is expected to land three SUVs, the X2, X4 and the X7, the new Z4 and the new 3 Series, which received a Plug-in Hybrid variant this month. BMW India currently has 44 authorised dealerships across India. The company will be investing to expand its footprint by opening more touchpoints and will fight for the top spot in the list of luxury carmakers in India.