[joslicx]

Originally Posted by VeyronSuperSprt

You are contradicting yourself here, so please read the posts again. And comprehend.

There is no contradiction. I think you didnt get the point there. The SRK thing was a sarcasm! What I have written there is Hyundai sells cars as it makes cars that people want here. SRK has nothing to do with selling their cars.

If Fiat wants to sell cars in India it has to make cars that people in India want. S10 was not a car like that. It was a terrible gas guzzler. There aren't enough people who buy cars like that (at least at that time when it was launched there weren't very many.) People who still wanted it badly enough bought it nevertheless. Those who didn't and blame SRT's signature for their indecision are just making excuses. What has a signature got to do with selling a car?? Is it a useful feature in the car???

The grande Punto is one of my favorite small car. Will I buy it if I was in the market for a small premium car? Not really. Fiat has to find out why I wouldn't still buy it despite it being a car I like. If they can find out why people still dont buy their cars despite liking them and take measures to correct them, that would be a start. Its a long road for Fiat.

[prakash_ajp]

Originally Posted by joslicx

People who still wanted it badly enough bought it nevertheless. Those who didn't and blame SRT's signature for their indecision are just making excuses. What has a signature got to do with selling a car?? Is it a useful feature in the car???

That's the way the endorsements work, don't they? If they don't help, why would companies spend crores to sign up someone like SRK or SRT? It plays in the minds of people. SRT won't make your car fuel efficient. But he will help people remember the name Fiat. The set of people you are talking about form a very small percentage of the car buyers. The rest, who are a majority by large, simply don't bother to know the cars better.

Originally Posted by joslicx

The grande Punto is one of my favorite small car. Will I buy it if I was in the market for a small premium car? Not really. Fiat has to find out why I wouldn't still buy it despite it being a car I like. If they can find out why people still dont buy their cars despite liking them and take measures to correct them, that would be a start. Its a long road for Fiat.

Just out of curiosity, why wouldn't you buy a GP? I am sorry if already mentioned in your previous posts.

[amit]

Originally Posted by joslicx

If Fiat wants to sell cars in India it has to make cars that people in India want. S10 was not a car like that. It was a terrible gas guzzler.

I owned a S10 from October 2003 to June 2009. It was NOT a gas guzzler at all. Post the S10, I have owned the SX4 & ANHC A/T and all cars have been driven on the same roads. The 'gas guzzler' S10 , the 16 inch wheeled SX4 & the widely acknowledged mileage champion ANHC with the spindly tyres all return almost the same mileage. What I fail to understand is why xx.xx kmpl is considered gas guzzler for a S10 while the same xx.xx kmpl is great mileage for a SX4 or City? Is it because the S10 was a hatch while the others are sedans? Or is it because the S10 was priced at 6.xx lakhs while the SX4 retails for 8.xx & the City for 10.xx?

As for the Sachin signatures, it's very easy to sit in 2012 and comment on how Micheal Schumacher signatures would be more releavant. Let's not forget, the S10 was sold in 2002, how many people knew who MS is back then? How many people outside of TBHP and metro cities even today know who MS is and how many know who Sachin Tendulkar is? No company sells cars for TBHP members only. While MS signatures would surely be more releavant on a car, they would surely not be releavant in India in 2002. They aren't, even today, in 2012.

[coolboy007]

I am not sure if it would good or bad for FIAT but i would have loved if they had also separated the service centres along with distribution network, not because of service. TASS are now providing good service but are mostly out of spare parts, something as common as brake pads also are missing while Tata cars have all ready spares.

Many members here used to quote that Tata sales people try selling Manza and Indica to those interested in Linea and Puntos, have no knowledge of Fiat products and Fiat is being given a step motherly treatment. Now people are not liking the fact that Fiat has parted ways with tata.

Every one can never be satisfied, there would always be a difference in opinion, infact how much worse can it get? They sold 1000 cars last month, with their own sales network, may be it drops down to 400-600 but the risk reward ratio is in their favour, Fiat has nothing much to lose in this move, i for one would prefer walking into a Fiat exclusive showroom than a Tata one where am forced into having a test drive of tata products.

Originally Posted by huntrz

I am surprised to know that there are people willing to put money in their dealerships which will practically be sitting idle for 2 years. It will be interesting to know where from does FIAT recruit people at its managerial positions.

When we can have Hyosung dealerships, a company which sells 611 bikes a year and they are surviving, i see no reason to doubt that Fiat wont get dealers. They atleast sell 13-14k cars a year and there are much more takers for a good hatchback like Punto than for a sportsbike which costs as much as a Figo and maintenance costs a bomb.

Renault has how many products? They too have dealers my friend

[satish_appasani]

Can understand the thoughts going through the minds of Fiat owners. I owned at Palio 1.9D from 2004 to 2010. Even when Fiat was transitioning to Tata-Fiat, situation was almost same.

[SkyWalker]

Originally Posted by amit

I owned a S10 from October 2003 to June 2009. It was NOT a gas guzzler at all. Post the S10, I have owned the SX4 & ANHC A/T and all cars have been driven on the same roads. The 'gas guzzler' S10 , the 16 inch wheeled SX4 & the widely acknowledged mileage champion ANHC with the spindly tyres all return almost the same mileage.

Having owned both a Palio 1.2 (for 8 years) and an ANHC myself, I can say that's not true in my case. Palio used to give me a mileage of ~10 in city, and 11 in best case. ANHC gives me a mileage of ~12 in city, 13 being the best case. On an average ANHC gives at least 2 kmpl more.

I am guessing you are comparing a manual Palio with an automatic ANHC. Not a fair comparison. Mine is a MT ANHC.

[lohithrao]

People love to "assume", give a fuel efficient car to a bad driver he will make it a guzzler too. also driving a car with so much power one needs to be easy on the pedal.

My Adventure had given me about 16 on highway and consistently got about 10 in city, got similar numbers even on my OHC...

Originally Posted by amit

I owned a S10 from October 2003 to June 2009. It was NOT a gas guzzler at all. Post the S10, I have owned the SX4 & ANHC A/T and all cars have been driven on the same roads. The 'gas guzzler' S10 , the 16 inch wheeled ......
.

[NutsNBolts]

As has been already mentioned, this agreement was to come up for renewal in 2012 and this is to be the year when the reigns of Tata group will be relinquished by Mr Ratan Tata. By all accounts, the JV between Tata and Fiat was based upon personal rapport between Mr Ratan Tata and Sergio Merchionne. No news yet on how is it between Mr Mistry and Merchionne. Goin by Fastlove's post, I guess next two years Fiat is going to work only upon the A.S.S network with a few make overs thrown in. 2014 will be a crucial year which will tell whether or not Fiat can survive in India. Till then everything is conjectural IMHO.

[F150]

Originally Posted by NutsNBolts

As has been already mentioned, this agreement was to come up for renewal in 2012 and this is to be the year when the reigns of Tata group will be relinquished by Mr Ratan Tata. By all accounts, the JV between Tata and Fiat was based upon personal rapport between Mr Ratan Tata and Sergio Merchionne. No news yet on how is it between Mr Mistry and Merchionne. Goin by Fastlove's post, I guess next two years Fiat is going to work only upon the A.S.S network with a few make overs thrown in. 2014 will be a crucial year which will tell whether or not Fiat can survive in India. Till then everything is conjectural IMHO.

When all the manufacturers are competing fiercely to grab market share, fiat is making plans for 2014.
Are they trying to emulate the chinese economic surge, when they closed themselves from the outside world.

[VeyronSuperSprt]

Originally Posted by joslicx

There is no contradiction. I think you didnt get the point there. The SRK thing was a sarcasm!

Thanks for the clarification joslicx. Just something to remember – our forum is a team and we need to remember this to continue elevating the forum to higher levels. When we use sarcasm and direct it at other team members, we exhibit lower internal standards to the outside world (manufacturers, distributors, service centres etc who can read all posts) and thus reduce the stature that has been painfully gained over several years. There are several forums outside of TBHP in the automotive domain where standards are not maintained either in communication or in any other area whilst this is not the case with TBHP and it is this differentiating strength that helps TBHP command respect in the outside world. So let us continue to add to this strength and not reduce from it by our actions.

On the point of signatures, we need to realize that everybody has a viewpoint and we need to respect their views even though ours may be different – there are those who will agree that Michael Schumacher’s signature is valuable and there are those who would like Sachin Tendulkars signature and maybe there are those who couldn’t care less whose signature it was. Having bought a Baleno in 2000 the GTX did interest me, and I did know a lot of enthusiasts who were interested in the S10 and though they loved cars they didn’t care at all for cricket and in the eyes of these people the signature had the same value as a cricket bat autographed by Narain Karthikeyan or David Beckham. Now there will be those who have a different point of view, but what we need to realise is that it takes all sorts to make the world as it does to make automotive enthusiasts / buyers and there will be differing opinions on signatures as there are on cars, accessories, tyres, service quality etc, It is not that someone is right or wrong - it is just that they have an opinion that works for them (makes them happier to have that opinion) and maybe your opinion is that signatures do not have any value on cars. What we need to realise, accept and respect is that there will be others who have a different point of view.

All the best !

[swathyd]

Fiat should concentrate on it s' strong holds , that is down south . In south India fiat is considered as a good brand . People understands its qualities , like engine , handling , ride , safety etc . But in north India it is mostly avoided due to the brand factor .

Kerala , Tamilnadu has got more number of potential customers . And even these states have certain areas where it is accepted than in other areas . For e g Thiruvananthapuram , kollam , alappuzha , thrissur dists in kerala . Where as malabar region in kerala has nt got such customer base for Fiat , owing to the brand factor . Opening fiat exclusive showrooms in any of these locations will be beneficial for fiat rather than trying to open at kochi .

They should consolidate on their strongholds , which will help them to lay down a strong foundation . In Tamilnadu and other states also they may follow this simple but effective strategy . A fiat spa which sells parts directly to the customers will be welcomed by the customers at these places .

[StarrySky]

Originally Posted by swathyd

Opening fiat exclusive showrooms in any of these locations will be beneficial for fiat rather than trying to open at kochi.

I think Kochi is one of the strongest markets for Fiat in Kerala. There are a LOT of Puntos/Lineas on the road here. And I mean a LOT. I can really see a big difference between now and when I bought my Punto almost 20 months back.

[swathyd]

Originally Posted by StarrySky

I think Kochi is one of the strongest markets for Fiat in Kerala. There are a LOT of Puntos/Lineas on the road here. And I mean a LOT. I can really see a big difference between now and when I bought my Punto almost 20 months back.

People has got little respect for Fiat in kochi , especially the younger generation . Any how my intention was to point out the strategy they should adapt to move out of this whirlpool . Let Fiat decide based on the volumes they generate at different places .

[shortbread]

Originally Posted by swathyd

People has got little respect for Fiat in kochi , especially the younger generation .

Kochi is a good case study of how Fiat struggled in India.

The distribution for Fiat in Kerala and most of S.India was bestowed upon TVS, one of India's biggest A.S.S providers. It wasn't a group that Fiat chose on purpose but inherited from the Premier days.

Their customer service standards were appalling and reeked of Govt. office attitude. The A.S.S were filled with senior mechanics from Premier days and they trained a generation of younger ones in both attitude and mannerism. It was as if they had to answer to no one and had all the time in the world.

Speak of their sales and the approach was similar. Fiat invested huge amounts of money in their Palio turn around, a freshened up model, huge advertising, additional production capacity, Tendulkar, a Ferrari for him etc..etc...

They also launched one of the best diesel hatches in India, Palio with a creamy 1.9 NA diesel (remember those days the only option one had was an Indica V2 or a Zen with a misfit diesel and a waiting period worthy of birthing a child). My cousin and I walked into the showroom almost confirmed buying one despite being one of the more expensive options.

We saw what we wanted despite a dull showroom near Kaloor, a salesmen who knew Faff all about any form of transport and an offer of free floor mats. A test drive was asked for, he went outside and told us one wasn't available because the TD car was stuck between three other stock cars. I asked him was that difficult to move, he mumbled, went away and came back saying not today.

My cousin went away and bought an Indica V2 after a month long waiting period.

Fiat realised how this post Premier dealers were costing them finally. They negotiated with another major Kerala auto group Popular Auto. Once TVS knew this they threatened they will withdraw all connections with Fiat including A.S.S. I also believe a pan India union of Fiat dealers sent similar threats to the company.

Fiat's only saving grace came from Tata. RS motors might not be giving the service standards to Kochi customers compared to say Honda but its way way better than TVS.

Now it seems that's gone as well, after all these issues one cant blame Kochi customers for losing faith in Fiat!!

[NutsNBolts]

Originally Posted by F150

When all the manufacturers are competing fiercely to grab market share, fiat is making plans for 2014.
Are they trying to emulate the chinese economic surge, when they closed themselves from the outside world.

So is anything wrong in that? When you know your sales are negligible and that you need to stay in a market, where is the scope to "grab the market share"? Agreed their plans have not worked out so far, but they haven't stopped trying. Can you clarify "close themselves from the outside world" thing?