Cars and bikes are set to become dearer from the New Year with most of the companies, including market leaders Maruti, Hyundai, Hero Honda and Bajaj, saying they will raise prices to offset higher input costs.

With an eye on nursing bruised margins and also push up sluggish December sales, most of the companies have announced increasing prices from January.

Maruti, the country's biggest carmaker, has already informed its dealers that it will raise prices across the model range by up to Rs 12,000 from next month.

The company, which had last raised prices in August this year due to increase in freight and input costs, has decided to go in for another revision. However, it has not disclosed the exact quantum of price increase each model will attract.

On the other hand, Hyundai India has also cited similar reasons for its decision. "The margins have been under pressure and, thus, we have decided to go in for a price revision from New Year," Vice-President Arvind Saxena said.

The company will be raising prices by around two per cent across models, including the flagship 'Santro'.

Japanese car major Honda will also be raising prices of its models like 'City', 'Civic' and 'Accord' by 1.5-2 per cent. Other carmakers like Toyota and Skoda have also indicated they will be increasing prices from January.

On the two-wheeler side, both market leaders Hero Honda and Bajaj have said they will be increasing prices in a range of Rs 500-1,000 from the New Year.