The recent hike in the price of diesel by Rs 5 per liter has raised doubts about the future of diesel cars in India and their feasibility in case of a further hike in price of the diesel fuel. While the Rs 5 per liter jump has already met with speculations that diesel cars can no longer be tagged as more cost effective than petrol cars, there are voices in the industry that state otherwise and are still rooting for diesel car supremacy.
Mr. Michael Boneham President and Managing Director Ford India is among those who believe that the Indian customers will stick with diesel cars even after the steep price hike on diesel. He stated that the petrol fuel is still about Rs 20 per liter more expensive than the diesel fuel which translates into a lower running cost for diesel powered cars in comparison to petrol cars.
Commenting on the ratio of diesel to petrol car sales, Mr. Boneham stated that unless the diesel fuel witnesses a significant reduction in government subsidy, the diesel to petrol car ratio will stay around 80:20. He added that Ford India is equipped to handle a swing back to petrol cars if such a situation does arise due to diesel price hike.