September 2009 Indian Car Sales Figures & Analysis

[vasudeva]

As of now, the usual monthly data that is posted is not yet available.

[achinthg]

Originally Posted by DAutobot

It would be interesting to see the breakup of petrol and diesel cars sold for both these models. It is my hunch that Ritz is continuing to get the bigger share of the petrol sales due to its excellent engine while the Swift still corners a bigger share of the diesel sales. And certainly the unusual design of the Ritz does not help.

I would also like to see the number of diesel Lineas, Vernas and Fiestas sold. Who is the leader in C segment diesels?

[mjothi]

Good to see the contributions from so many people. Good work guys.

I see more Marina in the Meru cabs now a days. May be they did not get any Logan after the initial buy?

And Jazz sold just 25% of the launch sales? Guess its all due to price. Will they gain back without discounts?

[schitre05]

Originally Posted by GTO

Hatchbacks:


• The Indica sisters - Old + new Vista - have registered a 15% YOY growth for a total of 9,858 cars. Space, diesel and VFM are the buzz words here. Though, at the risk of sounding like a broken record, the Vista would have performed far better if Tata had kept the Indica baggage / brand away from it.

I totally agree to your post here. I must admit its a complete VFM package, General public seem to be realising this fact now.
Yours truely might have a minute role to play for its numbers here in september.

• The Swift and the Ritz continue their lead in the 4.5 lakhs segment with 9,663 and 6,280 respective cars sold. We love the Swift, and how! It even outsells the Ritz which is a more modern car and has a far superior petrol engine! Question : How much does the Swift's eye catching design have to do with this?
OR I might ask how much does the Ritz's uncanny rear has to do with this?
.

My post in bold
cheers!

[rajdoll]

My few cents about the top sellers.
Alto, Wagon-R and Santro are being picked in loads by the taxi segment specially the first two. Most of the fiat padminis are being replaced by these. I see lot of them on mumbai streets. That is what explains their large sales numbers even at this stage of their life cycle and I think that will continue unless some image conscious private owners stop buying them.

[Gilead]

Originally Posted by achinthg

I would also like to see the number of diesel Lineas, Vernas and Fiestas sold. Who is the leader in C segment diesels?

I don't have hard data to back me up, but I guess the answer would be Fiesta.

[Sawyer]

Originally Posted by GTO

Oh, I'm eating my words and how. The Indian market is the most unpredictable in the world! Who would have imagined a 6 - 7 lakh hatchback selling 4000 units in a month!

Re the i 20, as someone that bought the 1.2 in July, sometimes I get it right! I assume that the 4000 are sales into the Indian market, and that does make it a remarkable success for Hyundai. I also suspect that 80% of that number would be the 1.2 petrol powered car. With the i cars, Hyundai design has come of age, out of the mickey mouse era. As has the fit and finish. And both cars run very well and unlike other cars that tend to do so only after running in, do so out of the box.

[GTO]

Originally Posted by xingamazon

Thats a clean an crisp review, having seen the figures is one part but waiting to see the review of yours is a real interesting wait.

THanks Xingamazon (tongue twister of a nick you got there!)

Originally Posted by DAutobot

It is my hunch that Ritz is continuing to get the bigger share of the petrol sales due to its excellent engine

Rumour mills insist that the petrol is outselling the diesel Ritz, hard as it is to believe. However, until we have hard numbers, this is all mere speculation.

Originally Posted by vasudeva

As of now, the usual monthly data that is posted is not yet available.

We eagerly look forward to your comments, Vasudeva.

Originally Posted by achinthg

I would also like to see the number of diesel Lineas, Vernas and Fiestas sold. Who is the leader in C segment diesels?

The diesels of each of these cars outsell the petrols (again, based on industry sources). Thus, the order would be Fiesta > Verna > Linea

Originally Posted by mjothi

I see more Marina in the Meru cabs now a days. May be they did not get any Logan after the initial buy?

The Indigo Marina sold a mere 68 units in September. This only reinforces the fact that Estates suffer from an image problem in India and simply won't sell. At the time of its launch, a good number of Indigo buyers opted for the Marina (all that additional space at only 20,000 more), but eventually, they realised that the looks get a thumbs down, air-con takes longer to cool, parking can be more difficult, how often do you need that boot space and resale dives.

And Jazz sold just 25% of the launch sales? Guess its all due to price. Will they gain back without discounts?

All due to its price, yes. Nope, Honda cannot gain it back without discounts. Sure, they can load it up with more equipment but even then, it needs to be priced 1.25 - 1.5 lakhs lesser.

Originally Posted by schitre05

I totally agree to your post here. I must admit its a complete VFM package, General public seem to be realising this fact now.Yours truely might have a minute role to play for its numbers here in september.

Hey, the Indica sisters have always been strong sellers. Congrats on your new car BTW.

OR I might ask how much does the Ritz's uncanny rear has to do with this?

Good one, got me there. Yes, the Ritz weird derrière could be as much a put off, as the Swifts looks are a turn on. But the Santro & NHC did prove that the Indian market really does not care about a products looks.

Originally Posted by rajdoll

Alto, Wagon-R and Santro are being picked in loads by the taxi segment specially the first two.

Applies to the Indicas too.

I assume that the 4000 are sales into the Indian market

Yup, Indian sales only.

and that does make it a remarkable success for Hyundai.

You bet! This is probably one of the few premium Hyundais that has really sold. The i20 really took off after the Jazz was launched. Probably the Jazz' price suddenly makes the i20 look like phenomenal value?

[achinthg]

Are these numbers the cars delivered in a month or the cars booked in a month? The reason I am asking this is when I visited Prerana (Tata dealer) to pick my RC book I was told they delivered very few Lineas this month (due to production delays) though they have booked a lot of Lineas this month.

[rajdoll]

Originally Posted by GTO

Applies to the Indicas too.

I don't see many black/yellow Indica taxis but more outstation or tourist type cabs, but Alto/Wagon-R are the new favorites for local cabs though not sure about the other cities. But yes commercial angle is helping these cars to generate good numbers.

[Sawyer]

Originally Posted by GTO

You bet! This is probably one of the few premium Hyundais that has really sold. The i20 really took off after the Jazz was launched. Probably the Jazz' price suddenly makes the i20 look like phenomenal value?

I think that a lot of people waited until they checked out what the Jazz, Ritz and Punto had to offer before deciding on the i 20 - I know that I did. And I guess the i 20 sales have benefited by word of mouth about its features and plus points, and that takes some time to cumulate, before snowballing. Also, if you look at the Magna 1.2 version, it is pretty close to the Ritx ZXI in pricing, and an attractive proposition at that price.
So why did the Getz fail?! In many ways, it was a better engineered/built car than the Swift. Rattle free, to start.

[Sawyer]

Originally Posted by GTO

Truly. Like I posted, the Linea may be a mid-level C segment sedan, but the Punto is a premium hatch. Ironical as it may sound, the Punto needs better interior fit / finish than the Linea does.

Very insightful statement, and one that Fiat India/Italy have probably completely lost sight of. Now that you mention it, it is obvious, but it takes mentioning to be that.

[lancer_rit]

Originally Posted by Gilead

GTO, I suppose you meant 2000 a month? Regarding the phenomenal sales of the i20, I sort of remember you saying at the time of the launch that the price left no room for a diesel and that price cuts and discounts are inevitable. You will have to take back your words now.

Well, I was one of the minority in the i20 threads, who felt the i20 would sell well and provide class leading features including safety (so higher value at higher price). Also, Hyundai will price the diesel and larger petrol engine similar to the i10 stunts they pulled. Didn't expect the 1.4 petrol to come with the AT though - I am guessing it may not be much better than 1.2 manual with that 4-speed AT :-(

[romeomidhun]

Originally Posted by Sawyer

So why did the Getz fail?! In many ways, it was a better engineered/built car than the Swift. Rattle free, to start.

In India, inorder for a car to be a success, it should have a brand image, character or mileage. Getz lacks all of these.

[ported_head]

Didn't they stop production for the petrol Swift? It said somewhere on the forum that only Glam models were being sold. Has the petrol production been revived? Or was it something that didn't happen?