[GTO]

Originally Posted by JollyPope

Ford has not sold a SINGLE fiesta for the last 6 months

Originally Posted by ToyotaFan

Ford stopped the new fiesta production in 2014 to concentrate on Ford ecosport. So that's not surprising. But no all new fiesta's delivered last month is a bit surprising. Let's hope it can get some good numbers for some days.

Vid6639 pointed it out and we found it hard to believe too.

Apparently, Ford has (unfortunately) started combining sales numbers of the old + new Fiesta (just as Tata does with the Indica + Vista and Indigo + Manza).

[santoshr]

Interesting to see Honda City sell 7000 units on an average since December. It would be interesting to know how many of those are Diesel Vs Petrol.

Skoda Yeti is turning out to be a dud I see.

[Prafful_Rathod]

What i understand from a source in Honda is that the city sale diesel to petrol is about 55% : 45%. Though initially they started billing only with diesel in January, the petrol share has moved up slowly.

[vineshpikale]

I wonder where stats regarding sales of Petrol and Diesel versions of various cars would be available. In Goa petrol and diesel are almost evenly priced. Plus with the phased increase in the diesel prices it's always a question as to whether the torquey/efficient diesels rule or the light stress free petrols.

Also, it's always been my thought that sale of certain brands such as Skoda are predominantly diesel. Stats for diesel and petrol sales would give some insight into that.

[thesilentone]

Honda gave some fluidic touches to the City and it is a runaway success. Toyota Altis has added some bling to the exterior and lo and behold, it sells 922 units. The fluidic Hyundais are still doing brisk business. So looks like Indians prefer cars that "show off". Unfortunately the same logic didn't hold good for the new Linea. How will it be for the new Punto? Only time will tell. As in Asterix comics, "we Indians are crazy".

[arnabchak]

Originally Posted by santoshr

Skoda Yeti is turning out to be a dud I see.

Skoda Yeti was always a dud. It has never seen a good sales month, the month of its launch included.

It was a neither here nor there SUV having low aspirational value, a beleaguered Skoda badge and a perceivable high maintenance cost.

On the positive, it is supposed to be a workhorse with a great driveable engine under its hood.

[nkghai]

Dear Aditya
Compliments to the team for an excellent compilation and analysis.This is one report which is most eagerly awaited by me every month.
Its fascinating to see how different models fare at launch and after some time sustenance becomes an issue. Most new product attract buyers but very few maintain the trend.
Honda had so far shown sustenance with new City and Amaze where sales seem to stabilise. Mobilio should be a good challenger in its field and eagerly await the sales figures.
Hyundai Elantra maintains its dominance in D1 segment despite other launches.
Also with host of new launches/upgrades scheduled this year during festival time , things surely are going to get hotter.
keep up the good work.

[romeomidhun]

Originally Posted by nkghai

Hyundai Elantra maintains its dominance in D1 segment despite other launches.

Elantra (313) maintains its dominance? Beaten thoroughly by Corolla (922)!

[nkghai]

Very correctly pointed out romeomidhun .
But these is second month sales figure after clocking around 500 last month. What I mean is that after the initial euphoria of very high sales figures in the first few months, when the sales stabilize, that is the true indicator. There are a host of cases of big bang launches which just fizzle after a few months.
As of date Elantra holds good at around 300-350 per month through out the year. No drop even with Corolla coming in in last two months. So is this extra space being created or somewhere there is a drop. Interesting times ahead.

[jessie007]

Originally Posted by romeomidhun

Elantra (313) maintains its dominance? Beaten thoroughly by Corolla (922)!

Originally Posted by nkghai

Very correctly pointed out romeomidhun .
But these is second month sales figure after clocking around 500 last month. What I mean is that after the initial euphoria of very high sales figures in the first few months, when the sales stabilize, that is the true indicator. There are a host of cases of big bang launches which just fizzle after a few months.
As of date Elantra holds good at around 300-350 per month through out the year. No drop even with Corolla coming in in last two months. So is this extra space being created or somewhere there is a drop. Interesting times ahead.

Toyota has built a credibility with transporters. No transporter touches Hyundai's, especially their sedans. So sales to taxi transport sector must be contributing significantly to corolla's overall sales.

[nkghai]

Originally Posted by jessie007

Toyota has built a credibility with transporters. No transporter touches Hyundai's, especially their sedans. So sales to taxi transport sector must be contributing significantly to corolla's overall sales.

agree with you. For a chauffeur driven vehicle it finds a lot of acceptability in this space. But I am sure Toyota would like owners also to buy this car. So I feel that is where the real challenge lies.

[Dieseltuned]

Wagon R touching new heights is a proof of the practicality of the vehicle.

It is a study to see that 'xcent' and 'amaze' which were supposed to be competition for the 'DZire' are just around the half way mark compared to the sales of 'DZire'.

Maruti remains the Emporer of Indian Car market

[sadsack]

Originally Posted by JoseVijay

Yes, Tata should introduce Bolt and Zest quickly to bolster their sales. I guess these two cars will be a game changer for Tata Motors.

I think Tata is managing its strategy with the Zest and the Bolt rather poorly. It is taking too long to launch the cars and after having seen them from this years Auto Expo onwards, they are beginning to get into a time warp in the minds of the people who feel that these cars have been around a long time. The number of pictures and stories that are doing the rounds on various internet based auto websites is providing an overkill of pictures of these cars. The more one sees the pictures, the more they are beginning to look like a facelift of the Indica Vista. The silhouette after all is the same. My feeling is that they will not do well. The first Indica did well since Tata was successful in hiding it from the public eye. This time the opposite is happening.

Originally Posted by deetjohn

'GO' is no go considering the segment that is in.

When Carlos Ghosn spoke about the Nano and said that it was a sound concept and the failure in the market place was due to bad marketing, I thought that he know what he was saying. But the conception and sales of the Go clearly point to a total lack of understanding of the Indian consumer's mindset. The D and A trim models in the Datsun range are superfluous; nobody is buying them. The T trim sells a bit, but not having a CD player etc. is one way to lose out. Honda has also learnt that and has put it back in the new City. Ghosn should distinguish between frugal engineering and frugal build of cars. A product can be frugally engineered but it shouldn't look obviously so, at least to the Indian consumer.

Originally Posted by wheeledsoul

I believe Tata is heading in the right direction by introducing the Revotron range of petrol engines. A little Tata IMO, had always caught the pulse of the people, it was catering to (though they missed the intricacies, which is an other story). Almost all of it's launches were revolutions in our market, be it the Sierra, Sumo, Safari, Indica or the compact sedan (they started it all).

I wish I could share your enthusiasm. Advertising an engine does not really pull in sales, something that Bajaj Auto learnt long ago. They thought that they could advertise Dts-i and Dtss-i and also three spark plugs and four valves and all that jazz. The Pulsar's hardly sell now. That is why Bajaj has been overtaken by TVS as well. And I don't think TVS was even trying to beat Bajaj in sales terms. Honda sells very ordinary but extremely reliable products and that is the key to success. The Revotron engine is not going to pull customers into show rooms in hordes, of that we can be sure. It is obvious that Tata does not have its fingers on the customer's pulse and that is why they are going down and down. The Sierra, Sumo, Safari, Indigo CS were all the first timers like you say, but when the competition came they have all suffered. The Indica was the exception till recently.

Originally Posted by shinuak

Every time I see this thread, apart from going through my favorite models and manufacturers I also keep an eye on how Tata Nano is faring. I think Tata should do a rethink on their strategy and come up with a model having some more juice in the entry level segment.

I also keep a look out for the Nano figures. I have one and I love it. And every month when I see the Nano sales figures I feel dejected. At the height of the negative publicity that Nano was receiving for its tendency to catch fire, Tata did not communicate directly with its customers and reassure them. They did not talk to prospective customers through newspaper advertisements. There was no marketing from Tata's side and a whole lot of negative marketing from various websites and its competitors. And when finally Tata woke up to the necessity of marketing it was so groggy and confused that it did all kinds of stupid things in the name of marketing. That was it for the Nano. The fact that it even sells those numbers despite the negative publicity and Tata's trash marketing is because of the soundness of the product. Tata's trip to the basement is not over yet. It still have a few levels and given what the company is doing (or sometimes not doing) it is going to go down further.

Datsun is off to a false start; time for introspection and course correction. If it is done now it may have hope. Otherwise it is a one way to ticket to nowhere. Renault, Skoda, VW, Nissan, even Toyota (except for the Innova and if that falls then Toyota will have problems).....all the best; they need it.

[Dieseltuned]

Originally Posted by for_cars1

The Wagon R (newer version launched in 2010 onwards) is an absolute gem of a vehicle, based on personal experience.
Contrary to appearances, the new Wagon R is a completely new vehicle designed from ground up on a new platform and shares nothing with the older Wagon R (the three window version).

High seating works well for elderly folks, the boxy shape makes way for a very spacious and airy cabin with good all round visibility, seats are ergonomic and more comfortable compared to similar Hyundai vehicle class and the K-Series engine is zippy, torquey , extremely good to drive and very fuel efficient too. Build quality is good too, the doors feel sturdy (has thicker sheet metal guage) and it doesn't feel tinny like the previous version.

The Indian consumers are smart and have realized its value, no wonder it is selling like hot cakes.

+1 to that.

After 2 years of ownership, i think i am in a position to list down some +ves of my ride ::

1. Interior is very spacious. Just had been inside an ecosport yesterday and instantly felt the lack of space inside and with black interiors it was claustrophobic. I can sit 3 adults in the back row of the Wagon R but after my yesterday's ride, i doubt the Ecosports capability to do so. Ecosport was one of my contenders for the upgrade but now it is dropped like a rock.

2. The high seating and wide opening doors are a big plus for elderly folks at home. they dont have to bend and enter the car.

3. The plastic quality is also great. I know people talk oodles about poor MSIL plastic quality, but mine have survived 2 years without a single issue. maybe good maintainance plays a part here.

4. THe a/c is bone chiller and does its job more than satisfactorily

5. The inbuild nippon sound system is way above mark and doles out great music quality.

6. The Wagon R Vxi come with some great features like 'auto lock (at speed of ~20)' , Rear defoggers and rear wipers (they are a boon in Bombay rains). Additionally you get all 4 power windows in the Vxi.

7. The boot space though less than the older Wagon r models is still sufficient to carry 4-5 medium sized bags.

8. The plastics used on the outside for e.g on the RVMs is also great. mine have been hit 4 times in bumper to bumper traffic and they have survived without a crack.

9. As stated in quote above the built quality is also great at this price point and if required an optional ABS VXi can also be ordered.


all in all a great practical package if you discount the looks but trust me after 2 years i have fell in love with the blue eyed boy

So makes up for a sensible choice.

[echo77]

WagonR has been the practical package right from the start. Even I was not convinced of its looks initially, but grew to like it. I have the 3-window 2005 version, done 140K+ and still going strong. A friend who has the same version has done 200K+ over 10 years.

I think MIL should just put large, wider tyres and some cladding and call it "the original indian mini-suv" and it will surely put Ford/EcoSport out of business