Updated - Jeep Meridian Gets A Big Price Drop Of More Than Rs. 2.0 Lakh! | V3Cars

07 April 2023
By Mahesh Yadav
0

Update (Apr 11, 2023): Jeep recently reached out and informed us that the discounted prices were only applicable till March 31, 2023. Since we recorded the prices of the Meridian from Jeep’s official India website well into the first week of April, we expected it to hold true. We request you to disregard this article about the price change.

Here are the latest prices of the Meridian as of April 11, 2023:

JEEP MERIDIAN EX-SHOWROOM PRICE
Limited Diesel 2WD Manual	Rs. 30,10,000
Limited Diesel 2WD Automatic	Rs. 32,00,000
Limited (O) Diesel 2WD Manual	Rs. 32,95,000
Limited (O) Diesel 2WD Automatic	Rs. 34,85,000
Limited (O) Diesel 4WD Automatic	Rs. 37,50,000

Jeep recently dropped the prices of their Meridian SUV by more than Rs. 2.0 lakh for the base variant. Is this a sign of softening demand? Should you expect more price corrections and discounts going forward? Here’s what I think.

Here are the updated April 2023 prices of the Jeep Meridian diesel variants:

JEEP MERIDIAN 2.0L TURBO DIESEL APRIL 2023 OLD VS NEW PRICES
Variant	Old Price	Difference	New Price	% Change
Limited Manual	Rs. 30,10,000	-Rs. 2,35,000	Rs. 27,75,000	-7.81
Limited (O) Manual	Rs. 32,60,000	Rs. 35,000	Rs. 32,95,000	1.07
Limited Automatic	Rs. 32,00,000	No change	Rs. 32,00,000	0.00
Limited (O) Automatic	Rs. 34,50,000	Rs. 35,000	Rs. 34,85,000	1.01
Limited (O) 4WD Automatic	Rs. 37,15,000	Rs. 35,000	Rs. 37,50,000	0.94

As you can see, the prices of all Meridian diesel variants went up by up to Rs. 35,000. This is a price increase of around 1.0%. Only the base variant got a substantial price drop of Rs. 2.35 lakh, which is Rs. 7.81% correction.

Also Read: Toyota Innova Hycross Petrol Variants Explained - Which One To Buy

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V3Cars Insight

Carmakers often hike the prices to keep up with the inflation and maximise their profit margins. With every blow of a price change, they have to deal with the demand drop, which they manage with some discounts. Gradually, these discounts fade away to normalise the ex-showroom price as the standard. If there’s strong demand even after the price change, then there are obviously no discounts.

If you keep a close eye on the auto industry, you might also know that the starting price of the vehicle usually works to attract buyers. Once they show up to the dealership, the sales people often recommend a higher, more feature-rich variant by offering one or more of the following:

Quicker delivery with higher variants
Better discounts
Demonstrating better perceived value

For the Jeep Meridian, the base variant’s price drop will help the SUV once again get some traction and make it to the buyers’ shortlist. Although, if you are only interested in the diesel engine or a higher variant, then this price drop means nothing for you as a buyer. The fact that the diesel variants got a price hike of more than 1.0% suggests that the demand is still strong.

The Problem With Dealer/Manufacturer Discounts

If you are interested in the Meridian petrol’s base variant, then a price drop is far better than a discount. Let’s say you get a discount of Rs. 1.0 lakh on a Rs. 21.0 lakh car. You’ll still have to pay for insurance on the entire Rs. 21.0 lakh rupees. Similarly, you’ll have to pay a higher registration fee and road taxes because of the higher ex-showroom price. Dropping the price altogether works best for the car buyers as it cuts down the cascading effect of the taxes and saves you enough to get a few full tanks of fuel.

Should You Expect Price Drops In The Auto Sector?

For now, the demand is holding strong as the Meridian didn’t get a consistent price drop. Only the base variant’s prices went down while other variants saw a price hike.

If the demand were weakening, we’d have seen a price drop across the board. At least we would have not seen a price increase for higher variants. You shouldn't expect other cars to start witnessing a price correction any time soon.

Also Read: Maruti Suzuki Inform Exchange About 0.8% Weighted Price Hike - Opinion

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