Movers & Shakers
April is usually a mediocre month, as most car purchases are preponed to the month of March to avail of maximum depreciation benefits & protection from the post-budget excise duty hikes. We also see some correction in inventories at the dealer levels around this time. Where the total market size was between 2,40,000 – 2,80,000 for the January – March 2012 period, April saw a massive dip to 2,18,000 only.
We had predicted last month that UVs (SUVs & MUVs combined) will overtake sedans soon. Well, that prediction has proven right, with UVs now accounting for a 23% share of the market (compared to 20% for sedans).
• We have a new no.1 in the market, and that’s the Maruti Swift! This is a rare time that a car other than the Maruti 800 or Alto has laid claim to the numero uno spot in the last 2 decades. There’s nothing new about the Swift touching 20K units, it’s done that for the last 3 months. What I’m intrigued with is the Alto’s fall to 18K dispatches. That’s about ½ of what the entry-level hatchback has managed each month of the last quarter. My best guess is, an extra-ordinary event (production hit, line maintenance, supply issue etc.) is at play here. The Dzire also records an especially strong month with sales at the 15,000 mark. It seems that the market just cannot get enough of Maruti’s new compact sedan. No doubt, it’s got far more comfort, refinement and quality than the outgoing car (small boot aside). Petrol prices don’t affect the Omni’s popularity amongst commercial operators at all. 5,400 copies of the Ertiga have been shipped out in April, and this number could only go higher considering the VFM pricing of Maruti’s new 7 seater. Expectedly, the Ertiga has completely cannibalised the more-expensive (and very mediocre) SX4. No one in the market seems to want the A-Star, Estilo, Grand Vitara or Kizashi.
• The Eon remains Hyundai’s best-selling car for the 3rd month in a row. The hatchback is slowly & steadily making inroads into the entry-level segment, outselling all competitors (800, Spark, Indica, Nano) except for the Alto. Hyundai’s C-segment weapon, the Verna, had its best ever month with a stunning 6,251 sales! I’m sure this kind of market performance has left the competitors surprised, and stuff to learn from as well. The face-lifted i20 climbs up the premium hatchback ladder with 7,500 sales, though the older i20 was also a frequent visitor to the 7-8k mark. The i10 is facing a lot of heat due to petrol-only engine options. Santro is clearly giving way to the Eon. New Sonata is unable to make any noticeably impact in the segment, and even the Santa Fe doesn’t seem capable of maintaining initial momentum.
• A completely forgettable month for Tata. While most competitors went up on the year-on-year rankings, Tata took a massive step back. Overall, Tata is only 2,600 units ahead of Mahindra. The Nano isn’t able to hold on to the 10,000 mark, and slips down to 8K. Remember, the break-even point for this li’l hatch is 20,000 sales / month. The Indica & Vista record their lowest number in 6 months, and have managed about 3,000 each. The Indigo & Manza shipments have dropped to 40% from the February & March levels, and 30% of January 2012. We can safely predict that the Indigo / Manza have sold merely 1,800 units each. The well-priced Sumo Gold variant leads to reasonable demand for the UV. On the other hand, it’s clear that the Aria is going absolutely nowhere with the current pricing. Its direct competitors just sold 50 – 100 times more (the XUV & Innova). You just wonder what Tata was thinking when they signed off on the outrageous launch price of this otherwise competent MUV....a market failure if I ever saw one!
• The outdated Bolero retains its popularity, as well as the title of the best selling UV in India. The XUV500 & Scorpio have a bright, sunny April too. On the flip side, it’s becoming increasingly evident that the Xylo’s facelift improvements have no effect on its competitors.
• A mixed bag of a month for Toyota. The Japanese giant has mass market aspirations from the Liva & Etios which record their worst month in 6. The Liva, especially, put up an incredibly poor show. On the other hand, the Innova, Fortuner & Corolla remain “reliable” cash cows for the company. No imports for the Camry at the moment; local assembly & delivery will start later in 2012.
• Chevrolet needs to wake up & smell the coffee. While the Beat & Tavera put in respectable performances, its list of market duds is only getting longer. The Spark is slowly joining the Aveo, UVA and Optra on the back bench. Let’s not forget that the Spark was till recently a consistent 3,000 / month performer. The Cruze also isn’t getting the marketing support it should, and is performing at a 30% lower-than-optimal level for the last 6 months.
• Not much action over at Ford. The Figo has a reasonable run, nearly touching 6,000 units, while the Endeavour also records a noticeable spike in demand. On the other hand, the new Fiesta (a victim of over-pricing) sells a mere 227 units. That’s even lower than the other failed sedan, the Fiat Linea!
• The Brio sells 3,600 copies. Decent, but not up to the mark when you consider the sheer competence & VFM pricing of the product. The City continues with its unpredictable dance, this time dropping to ~2,000 units. The Jazz has its best month in history @ 1,300 despatches, but it pales in comparison to the Hyundai i20’s market performance. The Accord, Civic and CRV record a forgettable month. Honda needs a complete overhaul of its India strategy and fast. Right now, it’s looking rather direction-less.
• Only the Polo brought some good news for VW in April. The Vento, at the receiving end of sibling rivalry (from the cheaper & identical Rapid), sees its poorest month ever at only 1,949 dispatches. Doesn’t look like the recently launched mid-variant had much of an impact. The Jetta & Passat have a sub-par run as well.
• Nissan’s star performer, the Sunny, inexplicably drops 50% from the March 2012 level. The diesel variant led to the Sunny becoming a strong performer in the C-sedan segment, and Nissan’s going to have to learn how to maintain the momentum. Status quo for the Micra.
• The Rapid outsells the Vento, by however slim a margin. We’ll have to wait & watch on the impact of the Superb’s new well-priced variant. However, the Laura is clearly facing the heat, while the repositioned Fabia is fast losing favour with the market. No doubt, the ridiculously priced Fabia Scout isn’t going anywhere either. Compact SUV Yeti appears to be looking for the bottom of the pit, with the Tata Aria for company. VW group sales have overall taken a beating, and the company is said to be very concerned about this situation.
• At the back of the pack are Fiat, Renault & HM-Mitsubishi. Not much to report here, except for the new Pajero Sport outselling all other Mitsubishis combined.
3rd May 2012, 13:50
(36)
Thanks
!!!!
