New Delhi, May 25 :    New Delhi, May 25:  Car makers, withering in the heat of competition, sluggish demand and poor margins, have started raising prices in a desperate bid to steer their way out of trouble. The latest to do so is Ford India which raised the price of its mid-size Ikon model by a modest 1.8 per cent. The new prices come into effect from June 1. Announcing the price revision, Randy Shockley, Ford India's vice-president for marketing, sales and service, said, 'With an increased focus on cost efficiencies and improved resource management, we have been able to minimise the price realignment and restrict the increase to 1.8 per cent.' The Ford Ikon 1.3 CLXI (petrol engine) will now be priced at Rs 5,05,088 in Calcutta for its cheapest, manual steering version. The 1.3 EXI petrol version will be priced at Rs 5,57,297 and 1.6ZXI petrol at Rs 6,17,173 (without fog lamps). The 1.8ZXI diesel will now be priced at Rs 6,83,032 (without fog lamps). 'It is also significant to note that the Ford Ikon bought under finance schemes will not be affected as the revised prices will only lead to a nominal increase in the EMIs,' Shockley added. The latest round of car price hikes was triggered by big brother Maruti Udyog which raised the prices of its small car offerings by around 15 per cent and it mid-size Esteem by around 1.5 per cent. The Union budget's bid to cut automobile prices with a heavy dose of excise rebate seems to be falling by the wayside, especially after car sales fell 7.4 per cent last year at 5.9 lakh units from 6.38 lakh units in 1999-2000. In view of developments such as the weakening rupee and increased raw material and freight costs, an overall price hike in the automobiles industry is inevitable. Ford India claimed that its customers will continue to benefit from excise duty reductions; the Josh machines will still cost significantly less compared with pre-budget prices. With over 38,000 Ford Ikons sold since launch in November 1999, the Ford Ikon continues to be the segment leader with a 25 per cent market share. Ford India had improved its performance from 8023 units sold during financial year 1999-2000 as against 17,922 units sold during the same period in 2000-01. The company which has invested about Rs 1,700 crore at its plant in Chennai. Ford has set a target of exporting Rs 20 crore worth of CKD kits during calendar 2000 and Rs 165 crore worth of equipment during calendar 2001. The company is also planning to expand its dealer network from 55 to 65 over a period of one year.