No, Range Rover Won’t Get Cheaper By 50% In India

He and I have discussed the options at length, and the taxation they are exposed to. 

So, when the India-UK Free Trade Agreement came to be earlier this month, a Range Rover at Innova money seemed like a reality. What we awaited was the fineprint of the trade deal. Then, during its earnings call last evening, Tata Motors popped the bubble.

No, Range Rover cars won’t get cheaper in India due to the FTA, as they are already made here in Chakan near Pune, Tata Motors Group CFO PB Balaji said during the fourth-quarter earnings call last night. Those SUVs—Range Rover Evoque, Velar and Sport—are actually manufactured in India with some imported components.

He and I have discussed the options at length, and the taxation they are exposed to. 

So, when the India-UK Free Trade Agreement came to be earlier this month, a Range Rover at Innova money seemed like a reality. What we awaited was the fineprint of the trade deal. Then, during its earnings call last evening, Tata Motors popped the bubble.

No, Range Rover cars won’t get cheaper in India due to the FTA, as they are already made here in Chakan near Pune, Tata Motors Group CFO PB Balaji said during the fourth-quarter earnings call last night. Those SUVs—Range Rover Evoque, Velar and Sport—are actually manufactured in India with some imported components.

While the level of localisation couldn’t be ascertained immediately, we have asked Tata Motors for the details. 

The India-UK FTA proposes to lower auto tariffs to 10% from more than 100%. In India, fully built luxury cars attract an import tax of up to 70-110%, while completely knocked down cars are taxed at 16.5%.

Range Rover prices in India start from Rs 69 lakh and go up to Rs 4 crore. About 6,200-odd units were sold last year. Additionally, Tata Motors has no plans to move manufacturing of the Land Rover Defender and Discovery from Slovakia to the UK to make the most of the FTA as their volumes are minimal in India—less than 1,000 units, I’m told. Essentially, no Defender at Fortuner money then.

Also, Mercedes-Benz and BMW India have indicated that the India-UK FTA won’t affect prices of their luxury cars either, but they are still awaiting a fineprint.

Clearly, the joy/idea of getting a Range Rover at under Rs 50 lakh was short-lived. Until that happens, we’ll make do with a Harrier built on a Land Rover chassis.

Hero MotoCorp: India’s largest two-wheeler maker had a record-setting fiscal amid eroding profitability. Net profit rose 16% year-on-year to Rs 4,610 crore, on the back of revenue that increased 9% to Rs 40,756 crore. A total of 58.99 lakh units were sold in FY25.

Ather Energy: The Bengaluru-based EV maker, which recently listed on the stock market, has cut its losses and grown revenue by a third in its march towards profitability.

TVS Motor: The Chennai-based automaker expects the growth momentum in two-wheeler sales to sustain in FY26, due to income tax relief, government’s spending on infrastructure and expectations of a normal monsoon.

On May 14, Stirling Moss recorded a famous victory at the Monaco Grand Prix, driving a Lotus against Ferrari’s “sharknose” cars.

Moss set pole against the odds, but there were doubters even as took lead. The Scuderia’s trio of Richie Ginther, Phil Hill and Wolfgang von Trips all tried in vain to catch Moss. He churned out one qualifying-style lap after another, all the way to the chequered flag. The race is remembered as one of Moss’ finest.

That’s all from us this week. Watch this space for more. Read more at ndtvprofit.com/auto

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