The year 2014 saw the arrival of lots of new models and innovative cars that kept the competition tight in the auto segment. However, there were a lot of cars that were discontinued and a lot of them happened to be the legendary ones that had been around for a long time and have managed to be one of the best selling vehicles in their segment. The auto manufacturing sector is evolving faster than ever and therefore, companies are also reviving their business strategy accordingly which has led to downfall of a lot of our favourite models.
Let us look into the cars which were phased-out in 2014:
1. Maruti 800
Maruti 800 was the quintessential middle class car for every Indian. Every working person had aspired to reach to a point where he or she could afford a Maruti 800. In fact anyone who has grown up in the 90s can safely say that their first car would have been Maruti 800. It was early in the year, on January 18 that the production of this car was stopped completing 30 years since its launch in 1993. With proud 2.4 million owners of this legendary car, Maruti 800 will go down as one of the most important milestones in the Indian auto manufacturing history.
2. Hindustan Ambassador
Another sad exit in 2014 was for Hindustan Ambassador that had been the most recognizable Indian car since the beginning of the Indian auto manufacturing business. Hindustan Ambassador is by far the longest produced car in the Indian auto manufacturing segment and that is what makes its exit one of the sad ones. With 1.8 million units sold, Hindustan Ambassador was the most dominant car in India till Maruti 800 came into the picture in the 80s and started turning things around. With Auto brands from outside coming in India, Hindustan Ambassador was no longer the choice for young India with the global brands introducing cutting edge designs and technology. However, in the latter years, Hindustan Ambassador did became a symbol for politicians and bureaucrats having a red beacon on the top and a driver to take them around. The company ran out of funds and was unable to produce more of this iconic car but we hope that the Government of India will do something to rescue the firm.
3. Maruti Suzuki Zen Estilo and A-star
Zen is another name that has been a favourite among the Indian audience since the 90s and with Maruti Suzuki Zen Estilo out of the pictures, the final nail in the coffin for the Zen series was put. Zen was one the most highest selling hatchback in the 90s and did a decent job in the early 2000s as well but its subsequent lacklustre years led to the downfall. The change in design did not work either with Zen Estilo that could not produce the same results of earlier Zen models. With Celerio taking over, we do not see the revival of Zen series in the coming time.
4. Maruti Suzuki SX4
Another Maruti on the list is the Maruti Suzuki SX4. Although the model started off well with popular tag lines targeting men, the company never regained lost ground after Hyundai Verna came on to the scene taking a significant market share. The lack of popularity for this sedan led to its downfall and opened ways for sedan Ciaz. However, the Indian auto manufacturing firm will be back with SX4 Cross in the coming year.
5. Nissan X-Trail and 370Z
With these two high end cars, the competitive pricing was the real reason for their downfall as the rupee fell in the market coupling with high tax duty on the Japanese carmaker making survival difficult for these cars. X-Trail SUV could sell just 156 units till 2012 whereas the subsequent year were even worse with just 7 units sold sealing the fate of the model.