Why cant we get a nice compact Diesel SUV/Crossover in the price range of Rs 4-7 Lacs

[diwakarmuthu]

Shankar, exactly the same grouse, I had before I stretched myself for the Scorpio. I personally fell the Gypsy is the most under-rated vehicle in the country today. If Suzuki had kept with times, it would have given a boost to a new segment that can look for city as well as off-road vehicles in the similar product range. The Bolero to me can be a stripped to a 4x4 vehicle at about 6 lakhs, but the cost is running high these days.

Off late I have been hearing about Ford, Renault and Nissan contemplating the Mini-SUV segment (or so they christened), but still in discussions

[rjalihal]

Like what most have said, for this price range the Bolero is the finest SUV/MUV available. On the flip side, it is a bit too harsh to drive and not refined on city roads. Its better for use in farms/ off road I guess.

[Zero Cool]

A new refreshed Gypsy with slightly more modern looks and the 1.3mjd engine might just do wonderfully well and bring in good sales too if priced around 7l.

[vishnana]

iam surprised , nobody had said about Renault DUSTER ( H79 code named internally and built in Renault Nissan plant in Chennai ), which is coming in 2012 end with a target price range of 6-7 Lakhs .

This seems to be a good budget SUV / Cross over , please see below

[shankar.balan]

Dacia Duster actually - re-badged Renault for INdia
This vehicle has been mentioned on other threads dealing with similar subjects

Will be a good vehicle undoubtedly
Hope it comes with 4WD standard!
Wonder how it is going to be in comparison to the Renault Koleos!

Originally Posted by vishnana

iam surprised , nobody had said about Renault DUSTER ( H79 code named internally and built in Renault Nissan plant in Chennai ), which is coming in 2012 end with a target price range of 6-7 Lakhs .

This seems to be a good budget SUV / Cross over , please see below

[amtak]

I think September/October's ACI confirmed that Duster is no longer being considered for India. Instead Renault will be bringing only Koleos/Fluence.

Thanks!

[vishnana]

Originally Posted by amtak

I think September/October's ACI confirmed that Duster is no longer being considered for India. Instead Renault will be bringing only Koleos/Fluence.

Thanks!

i read it some where about the fluence/koleos launch in 2011 and about the renault badged dacia duster some time in 2012 . Personally i will be disappointed if it is not coming to india , as it looks to be a great budget SUV .

[patil]

Why such small suvs with good safety and luxury features are not available in India. Weather India does not have market for such vehicles or the manufacturers are not willing to consider them for India.

What I have seen from the stragegy of the automobile manufacturers in India is that they always come with bigger vehicles first and later introduce small vehicles. For instance Nissan first came with X trail and Teana and later introduced the Micra. Similarly Volkswagen came with Tourge and Passat and later came the Polo. BMW is coming with X 1 after X 5 and X 3.

Considering the Indian scenario and the road conditions it is very difficult to commute from point A to point B in a hatchback or a sedan. You always tend to encounter a good lot of bad patches of roads wherein you will either scrape your underbelly of the car or damage the underbody, wheels, suspension etc. So compact suvs with equippment like the i20 or the punto with high ground clearence and car like handling capabalities under Rs. 10 lakhs should sell in good numbers and many premium hatchback and entry level sedan buyers will prefer the compact suvs.

Will the auto companies understand the situation and start offering compact suvs to the Indian middle class in the near future. Is there any better way of making the auto companies understand this fact.

[teamveevee]

Originally Posted by patil

What I have seen from the stragegy of the automobile manufacturers in India is that they always come with bigger vehicles first and later introduce small vehicles..

Bigger vehicles are mostly CKD/SKD and can be braught to maket faster. Price is not a criteria for prospecitive customers of this segment. But when it comes to smaller vehicles, price will be major factor and hence the manufacturer need to have more local content to keep the price in check. That takes time, years, if not months. During this time, the bigger vehicles give the company brand recognition and help to setup the service networks and other logistics in place.
I totally agree we need smaller SUVs. Mahindra will be bringing out one probably next year. But i have not seen any announcements from TML on this yet. With its association with Chrysler, probably Fiat could bring Jeep Wrangler to indian market. If priced competitively i am sure Indian folks will love to have a Jeep.

[DicKy]

Don't know if it had been told earlier, why not the Toyota Rush,cousin of the Daihatsu Terios? Not the cute and loaded JDM version but the ASEAN 7 seater one.
Only problem is only petrol engine option. But if euro spec Corolla diesel engine in the bigger Corolla, and Prado engine in the Fortuner for India, why not plonk a diesel engine?

[DicKy]

The price, even if Toyota goes the Fortuner way, won't even cross 10 lac, but Toyota can still price it under 8 lacs. They would die of meeting demands if they launch this!!!

[gshanky]

VW could launch stripped down Tiguan through Maruti Suzuki to keep the prices low. That would be a great option.

Even better if Maruti were to re-design the gypsy with a diesel engine.

IMO the most likely dominant player(s) would be M&M and TATA with new launches in the next two years.

[teamveevee]

Originally Posted by gshanky

IMO the most likely dominant player(s) would be M&M and TATA with new launches in the next two years.

TML is yet to announce a small SUV......

[gshanky]

Originally Posted by teamveevee

TML is yet to announce a small SUV......

That is true in so many words. However, they do have plans for a new version of TATA Sumo (non-grande) and that falls in the price point. Since they also have plans for new Sumo Grande, I assume that Sumo will not compete with grande in terms of being a 7 seater..

However I could also be completely wrong.

[raj_5004]

Personally i think the Rush (not GTO!) looks better than the fortuner.