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Old 21st February 2015, 00:27   #211
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Originally Posted by manson View Post
In a world where a rather wide range of finance products are easily available and extremely accessible, I would understand a company like VW to deploy capital and make more cars if their products were indeed a hit. A longer waiting period is not always an indicator of a company doing well.
In this case it possibly imples imply that the company does not intend to increase its production capacity by another manufacturing facility or even a work shift in order to produce for a a fractionally larger client base, as it is unsure if the excess quantity will be absorbed by its target market.



Considering I have not visited a VW facility in a very long time, I am going to have to take your word for it.
But if you look our monthly sales figure threads, I don't really see any significant change in volumes. Also, in your last post you mentioned VW was content / happy with their negligible sales volumes in India since it was doing well through its exports, and now you mentioned they have been taking active feedback in order to improve its sales? Catch 22?



Dealer expansion takes time, and when a company does not have the most well packaged products it only takes a little longer.



That would again be a step backwards, right? Fact is, if VW India was indeed doing well in India and their cars were a hit, this thread would not continue to carry the current title 'The way forward'

Manson, there is no catch22 or conflict in my views. I own a VW since 2011 and I have been watching every move of VW closely. They have been taking feedback and improving BUT marginally..mark these words. AND they seem to be content with this MARGINAL improvement and happy with the level which they have reached. It all depends on what is India's current and expected contribution % for worldwide VW business and the importance of the Indian domestic market.
They have probably realised that the majority of Indian consumers do not favor a high maintenance brand in the sub 10 lac segment.
They are doing very well with Audi in India if you see and quite aggressive at pricing too in that segment.
Do we see that kind of sales aggression with the flagship VW brand or Skoda?
The strategy as of now seems to be sustain not expand.

I am simply stating that VW is capable of doing much more for the flagship in India but is not because it's their strategy, investment plan call it whatever.
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Old 21st February 2015, 00:56   #212
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VW will create the wow factor once they introduce the polo 1.8 gti , from my experience in the GT tsi group, there will surely be buyers for the same ... With the right finance packages a la Merc
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Old 21st February 2015, 01:14   #213
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Re: Volkswagen India: The Way Forward

IMHO, VW needs to stop creating more variants of the Polo / Vento. While it'll please the enthusiast crowd, what really pulls in the sales is a sensible set of variants and not niche variants like a 1.8 TSi Polo/Vento etc.

From a product standpoint, I think VW needs to go into the CUV and MPV segments - hopefully built with enough common parts to share development and production costs and keep the price down to sensible levels. After all, VW is the absolute master of building multiple vehicles in different segments from a common platform / parts bin.

The CUV / MPV segment is less price sensitive and less crowded, so its likely VW can establish its credentials there and then look at other more competitive segments.
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Old 23rd February 2015, 15:20   #214
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Re: Volkswagen India: The Way Forward

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Originally Posted by Detroit-Dude View Post
Hyundai,Suzuki, Honda..when did they start selling hot hatches?!? Which cars of Hyundai,Honda and Maruti didn't have a test car? Come on let's not generalise this.
My point here is simple. If you have a killer product which can improve your premium brand proposition you need to let consumers experience and appreciate the same. Your distribution network should be enabled too.
VW is not doing it any of that very consistently and that is what I am trying to say.
Hyundai did not have the Grand i10 and xcent automatics, honda did not have Brio and amaze automatics and maruti did not have ritz and dzire automatics.

And I am not generalizing this. Just relating my experience in 3 cities, Delhi NCR, Chandigarh and Lucknow. it is the collection of individual experiences that makes the general observation. and would you believe it if i told you that just out of curiosity, although I had no intention to buy it, maruti dealer on golf course road Gurgaon did not have the Celerio AMT test drive. Talk about a better killer product.
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Old 23rd February 2015, 19:35   #215
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Re: Volkswagen India: The Way Forward

Quote:
Originally Posted by Detroit-Dude View Post
Manson, there is no catch22 or conflict in my views.
In one of your posts you mentioned VW India was content with their local volumes, and in another post you indicated they are taking feedback and trying to improve. Catch 22, no?

Quote:
Originally Posted by Detroit-Dude View Post
I own a VW since 2011 and I have been watching every move of VW closely. They have been taking feedback and improving BUT marginally..mark these words. AND they seem to be content with this MARGINAL improvement and happy with the level which they have reached.
VW India has lost almost 35% in sheer volume between January 2011 & January 2015, can you please highlight the improvements you are referring to?

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Originally Posted by Detroit-Dude View Post
It all depends on what is India's current and expected contribution % for worldwide VW business and the importance of the Indian domestic market.
I would state it the other way around, if VW continues its past ways, very soon VW will be of negligible importance to the Indian automotive scene. In today's aggressive market it is the buyer who defines the preferences, and not the manufacturer.

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Originally Posted by Detroit-Dude View Post
They have probably realised that the majority of Indian consumers do not favor a high maintenance brand in the sub 10 lac segment.
Nobody favors a high maintenance anything. If the expensive Germans, or even the Brits sell in India, it is only because there is no other reliable, cheap to maintain option that brings the persona and driving experience of the German trio. Some who do not care about the snob value and only care about the rear bench and mindless maintenance go buy a Toyota Camry

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Originally Posted by Detroit-Dude View Post
They are doing very well with Audi in India if you see and quite aggressive at pricing too in that segment.
To correct you, the Audi range is far from priced aggressively, in most cases it is at par with the Mercedes and BMW counterparts. Its the sales team (read heavy discounting) which is aggressive.

Quote:
Originally Posted by Detroit-Dude View Post
Do we see that kind of sales aggression with the flagship VW brand or Skoda?
Do you remember the audio device slid inside the Times of India at the time when Vento was launched? Remember the company shelving their trademark VW logo for a full fledged Volkswagen name plate? Remember the back to back Das Auto advertising campaign? And you're saying VW did not try? They put way too much muscle into advertising and whatever was left came in packaged into their sales & after sales service staff. Heavy advertising, mediocre product package & terrible after sales service even with all that VW money behind the brand can only get you this far!

Quote:
Originally Posted by Detroit-Dude View Post
The strategy as of now seems to be sustain not expand.
Any official press release / article with regards to your above statement? Or is this just your perception?

Quote:
Originally Posted by Detroit-Dude View Post
I am simply stating that VW is capable of doing much more for the flagship in India
It surely is capable of achieving a lot more than is has, but fact is that whatever (half baked efforts) they have tried in the recent past has failed to move the cars from showroom floors. Heck, they took ages to even introduce their exist range of engines & transmission, that my friend was far from being aggressive. Its more like VW waited for numbers to get as thin as they get before they introduced the higher tune full sized engines.

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Originally Posted by Detroit-Dude View Post
but is not because it's their strategy, investment plan call it whatever.
Any official press release / article with regards to your above statement?
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Old 23rd February 2015, 20:30   #216
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Re: Volkswagen India: The Way Forward

The fact that some members found it easier and cheaper to import parts from Europe, after paying duty and shipping raises some questions. It points to how big a gap there is in their processes. Why can't parts be made available to us at EU rates (+ whatever duty)? And if members can do R&D and import it quicker and cheaper than them, then can't they do better with the higher volume and scale at which a company functions?
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Old 12th March 2015, 12:40   #217
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Re: Volkswagen India: The Way Forward

Looks like VW is getting more serious on business in India. That's a really good news for all of us. It seems they are going to take lot of actions, interesting for sure.

"Volkswagen, Europe's top carmaker, is fixing its India strategy to turn around operations after posting lower sales in each of the past three years.

The plans include introduction of new models, giving more incentives to dealers and improving after-sales services to address some of the main complaints it has been facing. The automaker is also looking at reducing cost, such as through using more locally-sourced components and tightening sales and marketing operations, to make its cars more affordable in India's price-sensitive market.To utilise capacity at the Pune plant even as it works on the turnaround, Volkswagen (VW) has increased exports from India.

According to people with knowledge of the matter, the initial part of Volkswagen's mid-term strategy includes getting the fundamentals of sales and service in place and eradicating the perception of it being a high-cost brand."

Making dealers happy is core of this strategy. With sales volume taking a knock, a number of VW dealers were bleeding and in order to sustain, some of them resorted to overcharging on spares and services, raising complaints about its after-sales operations and giving it the tag of an expensive-to-maintain car.

Volkswagen now offers as much as 10-12% of a car's value as commission and incentives to dealers, compared with 5-6% gross margin previously. The norm in the mass market is 3-5%.

"We have worked intensively with our dealer network and have rejuvenated them (dealers)," Michael Mayer, the newly appointed director for Volkswagen brand in India, told ET. "You cannot do a car business without having profitable dealers who are satisfied and performing. We have worked on it and there is still some distance to go."

Read more at
http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/...w/46534907.cms
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Old 12th March 2015, 13:27   #218
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Re: Volkswagen India: The Way Forward

Quote:
Originally Posted by aniketi View Post
Looks like VW is getting more serious on business in India. That's a really good news for all of us. It seems they are going to take lot of actions, interesting for sure.

The automaker is also looking at reducing cost, such as through using more locally-sourced components and tightening sales and marketing operations, to make its cars more affordable in India's price-sensitive market.
I don't see cost of cars as a major concern. Both the Polo and Vento are well priced when compared to the competition. Although initially they skimped on features, the models on sale today are almost well loaded as the competition.

Spare costs and dealer attitudes are definitely something they should work on. It is well known that service is the area where most dealers across brands make their money. For a low selling brand like VW, dealers will definitely be more aggressive in attempting to push up spares, service and labor costs. Hopefully this plan of compensating the dealer better for sales will result in some improvement in the after sales space.

I am sure they are making good money through the export business from India, so they should be able to absorb any additional cost burden if it helps improve their image in the Indian market.

Only point to note is that in India it is very difficult to change a perception once it is set. So it is a long road ahead.
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Old 12th March 2015, 13:31   #219
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Re: Volkswagen India: The Way Forward

I'll be happy if they achieve what they have set out to do. I esp. look forward to them implementing this part:
Quote:
VW will shortly put up prices of all spare parts on its website and the copy of all service bills will flow into the company's system to check overcharging by dealers. It is currently in the process of identifying non-performing dealers and is prepared to expel those who are defaulting on the new guidelines, said an executive, who didn't want to be named.
Good carrot and stick approach to increase their sales margins but placing better controls on overcharging for service. It's high time they did this.
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Old 12th March 2015, 15:12   #220
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Re: Volkswagen India: The Way Forward

It would be a very good move for all VW owners (like me) and prospective owners if they really achieve and implement the things they are saying.
It is high time they act fast on service issues and cost of ownership.
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Old 13th March 2015, 02:15   #221
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Re: Volkswagen India: The Way Forward

Glad to hear the news about the spare parts pricing transparency. It would be great if they can bring in a few more of their models. As a Vento owner, I can't say enough of how much I love the car. I'd definitely upgrade to another VW if things indeed do look up in terms of service.
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Old 13th March 2015, 11:39   #222
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Re: Volkswagen India: The Way Forward

Dealers seem to be taking initiative for existing customers as well, last to last week my dealer VW Motinagar called offering couple movie tickets for the movie "Dum Laga ke Haisha" for PVR Naraina, which I had to decline due to examination dates of my daughter.

This week they have mailed a free car wash coupon which can be availed by appointment at their workshop.

Seems they are willing to make "happy" customers, may be "satisfied" customers is also next on the cards.

Quality of vehicles is really good. Fit, finish and features are all up-notch from the current market standards.

After enjoying my Polo, and as per current available models in market from other manufactures, I am not able to find a suitable substitute in case I wish to change this car.

Last edited by mishraak : 13th March 2015 at 11:48. Reason: added text
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Old 13th March 2015, 17:20   #223
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Re: Volkswagen India: The Way Forward

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Originally Posted by mishraak View Post
Dealers seem to be taking initiative for existing customers as well, last to last week my dealer VW Motinagar called offering couple movie tickets for the movie "Dum Laga ke Haisha" for PVR Naraina, which I had to decline due to examination dates of my daughter.
.
Hello BHPian

In chennai we are so unfortunate to have offers like movie tickets. Anyways its a good initiative by VW. Hoping dealers in chennai watch this thread and send some coupons / tickets to my address.
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Old 17th April 2015, 13:45   #224
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Re: Volkswagen India: The Way Forward

Came across this article today. Seems VW is hoping to get onto the Make in India bandwagon.

Full article here

http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/...w/46954561.cms

Seems like a good step for the brand as more manufacturing will lead to greater localisation and lower prices for spares, etc. It may help to shed the expensive to maintain tag of the brand.

Also it may help the brand introduce more models/ variants into local market as well if they already start manufacturing them here for export market.

However, all of this may take time. Hope this is some indication that VW has finally started taking the Indian market a bit more seriously.
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Old 17th April 2015, 14:37   #225
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Originally Posted by vivekz View Post
Came across this article today. Seems VW is hoping to get onto the Make in India bandwagon.

Full article here

http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/...w/46954561.cms

Seems like a good step for the brand as more manufacturing will lead to greater localisation and lower prices for spares, etc. It may help to shed the expensive to maintain tag of the brand.

Also it may help the brand introduce more models/ variants into local market as well if they already start manufacturing them here for export market.

However, all of this may take time. Hope this is some indication that VW has finally started taking the Indian market a bit more seriously.
Hope that they pass on the benefit of localization to the customer by offering more features and personalization options.
Maybe even do the unthinkable and lower their prices a bit. 😯
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