Tata Motors to Pay Penalty for False Mileage Claim

In 2011, Tata Motors released an advertorial for its Indigo sedan, which claimed the car to be the most frugal sedan of the country with a fuel-efficiency claim of 25 kmpl. Based on the advertisement, Pradipta Kundu, a Kolkata resident bought a Tata Indigo. However, the car failed to stand true to the fuel efficiency figures claimed in the advertorial. In response to this, the disappointed customer asked Tata Motors to replace his car. Facing denial from the carmaker, Mr. Kundu moved to the district court to file a complaint against the manufacturer.

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The advertorial claimed Indigo as the most fuel-efficient car of the country.

Responding to the complainant’s concern National Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission charged Tata Motors of a false claim in the advertorial and asked the carmaker to refund a sum of Rs. 4.80 lakh (ex-showroom cost of the car) to the customer. NCDRC also ordered Tata Motors to compensate the owner with Rs. 2.00 lakhs and state consumer welfare fund with Rs. 1.50 lakh.

It is quite a common practice by automakers to claim unrealistically high fuel-efficiency figures for their products. These fuel-efficiency figures are calculated at ideal conditions with factos such as air resistance, road friction, tyre pressure, engine oil temperature and pressure, engine load, oxygen content in the air, and many other parameters unaccounted for. Getting all these considerations at their best-described values is not possible by any means. However, now governing authorities have made it compulsory for the automakers to indicate that the advertised fuel efficiency figures might differ from the real-world efficiency of the vehicle.

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The false claim in advertorial made Tata pay a compensation of Rs. 3.50 lakhs to a customer.

In a another news from the Indian carmaker, it has been revealed that it is working on developing a new petrol engine for its Harrier SUV. Watching at the recent trend of increasing demand for the petrol cars over their diesel counterparts, the carmaker has confirmed that it will finally introduce a petrol variant of its most modern SUV yet. The new unit will be based on the Nexon’s 1.2L Revotron turbo-petrol motor, but with an extra cylinder to displace 1500cc. The engine is also expected to feature a 48-volt mild-hybrid set up to improve the low-end grunt. With an expected launch this festive season, it would be interesting to have another competitor for the highly appreciated MG Hector.