Alloy wheel shortage delays top-end Ertiga

 If you plan to buy the top-end Maruti Ertiga diesel, you may have to wait till March 2013, roughly nine months from now. The top-end ZDi is the most sought-after Ertiga variant and accounts for roughly 50 percent of total sales. According to a company source, Maruti had estimated demand for the ZDi to be around 20 percent of the total mix. 

Maruti is facing difficulty ramping up production for the top-end Ertiga variants mainly because of a shortage of alloy wheels. These alloys, which are standard fitment only on the ZXi (top-end petrol) and ZDi models, are imported from Thailand where Maruti's sole supplier is unable to cope with the sudden spike in demand. Even for the petrol Ertiga, the ZXi has a waiting period of 10-12 weeks. The LXi and VXi variants are available almost off the shelf, but depending on the colour, you might have to wait for around two weeks.   

The waiting period of the lesser diesel variants – the VDi and the LDi – is four months and one month respectively. Apart from alloy wheels, the ZDi has additional features like driver seat height adjustment, rear defogger and wash wipe, and two airbags over the VDi. However, if it’s only alloy wheels you want, you can fit them on the VDi from Maruti’s accessories division – a set of five alloys costs Rs 21,000 approximately.  

Dealers say that since the price gap between the mid- and top-end variant is Rs 80,000 approximately, many buyers are opting for the top-end variant. On the cheaper Swift, the gap between the Z and the V variants is around Rs 1 lakh.