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New and old vehicle prices up by lakhs
Car importers and dealers are to increase prices of vehicles from tomorrow with the increase of taxes on imported cars and vans by the Government, The Sunday Times was told.

Car dealers said that the prices of cars and vans would be increased from tomorrow in line with the new tax structure introduced by the Government last Friday. Ramanayake Automobiles's Imports manager Hiran Cooray said that with the new tax, the price of a small car would go up from about Rs. 600,000 to Rs. 800,000, while in the case of bigger cars, the price might go up by as much as half a million rupees.

Finance Ministry officials said the tax on small cars and vans had been increased by a minimum of 20 percent while the tax on bigger luxury vehicles would be much higher.

However, this increase will not be applicable to motorcycles, trishaws and vehicles used for the transportation of goods and people. The Ministry in a communique on Friday said the new tax was intended to reduce fuel consumption, save foreign exchange and prepare the country for the fuel crisis ahead.

An official said the new tax would be imposed on a three-tier basis in contrast to the earlier scheme where a 25 percent tax was imposed on all vehicles. According to the new structure, vehicles with an engine capacity below 1,500cc will be subjected to a tax of 30 percent while vehicles with a capacity of between 1,500 and 2,500cc will carry a 40 percent tax. For vehicles with an engine capacity over 2,500cc the tax will be a staggering 115 percent.

The depreciation table used for valuation of motor vehicles has also been amended to discourage the import of reconditioned vehicles. Accordingly, the price of a six-month old vehicle will be equal to the price of a brand new vehicle with the tax on one-year-old vehicles going up by five percent.

A Toyota Lanka (Pvt) Ltd. official said the price of Toyota Double Cab would go up from Rs. 4 million to Rs. 5.3 million and that of a Prado from Rs. 6.5 million to Rs. 7 million.

An official of Autoland said that the price of a Nissan Sunny would go up by Rs. 500,000 and the price of a Nissan March by Rs. 200,000. An official of Chandra Motors said the price of reconditioned Toyota Townace would increase from Rs. 500,000 to 600,000 while the price of a Toyota Corrolla AE100 would go up from Rs. 800,000 to 900,000. Dealers said there would be a substantial increase in the prices of spare parts also

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