The scheme offered by MUL's joint venture with the countrywide finance -- Maruti Countrywide -- is targeted at attracting middle-class salaried segment, company sources said.

MUL, which accounts for a staggering 83 per cent share in the country's car market, is confident that seven-year long repayment scheme would give it a definite boost in the medium and small cities, sources said.

Under the scheme, Maruti Countrywide would finance up to 70 per cent of the cost of the car and accordingly a consumer would have to shell over only about Rs 2800 monthly for availing the maximum credit for the popular brand Maruti 800.

Because of the longest repayment period of seven years offered by the company, the monthly instalment works out to be lowest as compared to the existing finance schemes offered by other finance companies, company sources claimed.

Under the seven years finance scheme, monthly instalment for Zen model would be about Rs 4499, sources said. The company has also started a 100 per cent loan scheme under which buyers could drive home a brand new Maruti 800 cc car by paying just Rs 6632. Rest of the amount is payable in three years long monthly instalments.

The 100 per cent finance scheme launched by the Maruti Countrywide is quite expensive for Maruti Zen as instalment comes at Rs 10,500 per month for a period of three years.

Though the total loan becomes quite expensive under the seven-year finance scheme as buyers pay about Rs 1 lakh extra on for 800 cc model during the seven-year period, low easy monthly instalments (EMI) is a good driving force for attracting people to opt for this scheme, sources claimed.

Normally other loan schemes available for car purchase are for a maximum period of five years, sources added.

Growing competition among the various finance companies has forced Maruti Countrywide them to make the loan approval process more simple and fast. They claim to process application papers in five minutes and loan approval is granted within 12 working hours.

The loan procedure is simple for salaried class but it takes time to get the application forms of business class processed, sources added.