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Ignis will be offerent in an AT variant - CVT version and not AMT.

Ignis will be the first Maruti Suzuki vehicle to get the new steering wheel, new control switches(power window,etc) and a modern tablet along with a retro air-con controller.


http://www.autocarindia.com/auto-new...ow-402353.aspx

I feel it is fairly predictable.

S-Cross is far better built than any other product to use MGP spares, rides and handles very maturely and comes with a pretty vast host of features. It being the most expensive car in their line-up also does not need any argument as to why it is placed in NEXA dealerships.

Baleno is positioned as their biggest hatchback in the wide range of hatchbacks that the company produces. People looking for something more premium than the Swift, look toward the Baleno. With its host of features, brilliant design and range of colour options, it stands out from most of the Maruti pack and if any sub 10 lac maruti deserves to be in NEXA outlets, it would be the Baleno

Ignis while it may be cheap, it is not just a plastic clad version of a WagonR or Ritz. It is built all new ground up and styled to be a cute little mini SUV. That would obviously command a premium over whichever hatchback it is closest related to and based upon. Such purchases could be considered extravagant considering you will get the same (save for the features) in a Ritz. It is kinda like the A-Class or BMW 1 series or Mini Cooper. These are the smallest cars in the line-up but don't make as much sense as say a 3 series or C-Class and such purchases could be considered unnecessary if not extravagant making them fairly niche products that may not come with the same quality as other offerings but considering their positioning in relation to the rest of the line-up, command to be looked at as premium.

All these cars may not be truly premium to the extent in which you and I choose to use the word. BUT they are distinct enough from other products in the Maruti stable, to benefit from such marketing.

OT: I was skeptical initially but I feel the NEXA showrooms are really super swanky and as long as they pull their act together and stop abusing customer satisfaction when it comes to delivery and bookings, it ought to lift the brand's image to an extent.

OffTopic:

But its their last moment decision to put Baleno in Nexa than the regular MS route is what that has put us in doubt. It was the Vitara Brezza which was designed to sold via Nexa and not the Baleno then how come they swapped them at the last moment. Now if Brezza was sold through Nexa then peoppe will justify by saying it is the first compact SUV from MS with dual tone color options and having all creature comforts so its a premium product and bla bla bla. But then why its not sold via Nexa then?

So indeed as avdhesh mentioned I too feel Nexa strategy is confused.

Can you quote any officials on this or is it all just speculation read off of auto blogs? As far as I heard, the Baleno was always intended for sale through NEXA outlets. The fact is the Baleno is a global product and the Vitara Brezza is not. There is a clear distinction in which is the better (let's not use the word premium here) product The Baleno is quicker, handles better, drives smoother, has slightly better quality, is designed to look nicer inside-out, comes with a CVT option I could go on but you get the point. Vitara Brezza may be perceived as more premium than the Swift but not the Baleno. If one feels like they want to be wrecking their head over it and remaining confused, that is easily possible :) I am just attempting to make it clear. People are paid well to make these decisions and while they may not be the most talented guys out there, they are doing the best with what they've got and a pretty good job of sorting out products from the MS stable to be displayed at NEXA outlets. Certainly does not confuse me and it shouldn't confuse you either if you actually bother giving it a thought. Whether or not NEXA deserves to exist may be debatable but the strategy is fairly clear cut.

All are based on speculation, if you have experienced the Nexa experience, it is fairly premium( considering Maruti standards) including while servicing the treatment given to its customers.

Cars from Nexa will have a global backing in design and that is how it is perceived as of now. Cars you have now are ,
1. S Cross
2. Baleno
3. Ignis ( upcoming)
4. Vitara (rumored as upcoming)

Do you think Maruti will disclose these changes within their strategy officially with media? Its between them and their dealers only and fair to say that many dealers including mine here commented that due to low market response of SCross and to compensate its Nexa dealers those put up a huge infrastructure Maruti introduced Baleno via Nexa and priced it very competatively for the sake of increase in revenue for Nexa dealers.

And I thought we are having a healthy discussion here, no body is wrekking their head mate.


Exactly what I wish to say, the premium lies in the service and not exactly in their products. They can make any of their car come via Nexa route. Its not that those cars are designed this way that calls for the so called premium, its how they are sold.

Precisely my point here; blogs are useful for spy pics and a bit of news maybe but their opinions hold little to no relevance. NEXA employees themselves are not highly educated individuals for the most part and their speculation must also be taken with a pinch of salt. As Volkman and I have explained, it is easy to see which products deserve to be in NEXA outlets. We can argue endlessly but I feel I have made already made my point and there is nothing left to say.


Like I mentioned earlier: it is not just how they are sold but how their are positioned. Also being Global products sold in the EU regions has a huge part to play as well.

Sorry trying to keep the discussion healthy enough ergo my elaborate explanation. If you disagree with my explanation or feel like it makes no sense, we can proceed with the discussion.

To end this discussion, what I am and others saying isn't based on some blog's report or something which I read on other website. It was told to me by my RM when the Baleno was launched.
And I don't think their education levels are worth of any consideration here and relevant.

Have you ignored the aspect of positioning and global EU products that I mentioned? Do you truly believe NEXA outlets would have been setup just to sell one car? Even if the S-Cross sold well, I don't think so. Your RM has probably never interacted with higher up officials to be stating things with such confidence. They just speak good english are courteous and are suited-up. For the most part that is it. I have had RMs wrongly explain the functioning of several features to me does that mean I will believe them? We ought to ask ourselves how we know what we know and think more rationally about these things.

Do you think a sub 4 metre product which is built from a higher up car can be a global product save for the Ecosport. Brezza was designed as a sub 4 metre to take on our excise duty benefits and the competition.
Also I don't understand if it is mentioned anywhere that it has to be a global product to come via Nexa. Any official word on this?

Never mentioned so.

Well sometimes you have to go by the word. I don't care to what higher up he communicates or listens but I was just stating what I heard.

All I meant to say Nexa is just about a premium buying experience and you too agree to it but then you bring about the context of EU or non EU product and say that Baleno handles better (which it doesn't if I compare it even with a Swift), drives smoother (I suppose you meant NVH), has slightly better quality (Really?) and the discussion goes on and on....

--------------------------------
So lets agree to disagree.

It's called a trend buddy and it is not hard to see.

Then you agree that some more cars ought to be added to NEXA dealerships right? If my reasoning for the cars that deserve to be and are placed in NEXA outlets does not agree well with you, then which ones would you pick and why?

When it comes to such matters, I'd consider it silly to do so.

Yes but you also need some logic behind what is offered through their outlets. Again, like I said earlier already, considering the products sold by the company, one can argue the existence of NEXA itself. However, the strategy behind products endorsed by the brand is nothing too hard to understand. It is certainly more beneficial in terms of the service and sales experience provided and while the cars may not be downright preimum, they are distinct enough from the rest of the offerings and I would not go so far as to call it confusing

Seriously mate? You're going to resort to nitpicking here? Does the larger picture and all the other advantages combined hold no value to you? Let us refrain from childish arguments like but the swift handles better.

Sit in a Brezza feel the comfort of the seats and quality of the plastics and compare them with the Baleno. You won't catch me making up anything :) I can even quote reviews and auto-journalists on this.

Alright.

Any new car can be added to NEXA. Period. But they will understandably won't add a Alto or WagonR. One can not hold a fight against Maruti as to why it is not in regular MS showrooms. Yes, the RMs will be in a suit with an Ipad in their hand to greet you with a smile on their face, which is what NEXA is all about.
Emphasise on the bold words.
And when you hear that other RMs of other Nexa dealers in other cities are talking the same that Baleno was a last minute decision to come via NEXA then you try to believe such things.


Not nitpicking, was just quoting what you said.

To tell you the truth I haven't sit inside a Brezza but have driven Baleno and could not understand the quality of plastics which you are saying. They are definitely inferior than even a Swift. Seats are just like the Swift and body panels feels even fragile than the Swift which too are fragile in the first place.

:thumbs up

In my opinion, this is a retrofitting / defending of strategy after it has been put into motion. We are trying to make a case for these cars being there when it’s an open secret that it's wrong. Segment wise demarcation was never the strategy of NEXA when launched.

- S-Cross: Agreed. Period.
- Baleno: I am iffy on this one. I personally didn't find it more premium than the Brezza.
- Ignis: Now you are redefining premium and hence there's no point in commenting on this. Ignis is cheap (cheaper than a lot of other Maruti cars) and that's it.

I don't think that's happening yet. Pl check the NEXA thread for some of the customer experiences.

I agree – it’s just marketing strategy for inconspicuous parts like the gimmicky MID!

It might be speculation but if you read the relevant threads and read Maruti's annual report, you will find hints of it being true. Maruti was banking on S-Cross having a massive impact and when that didn't happen, they went into fire-fighting mode.


Sir, you are missing the Swift here which is the trump card for Suzuki in EU. By this logic, the new Swift next year should be launched in NEXA but I honestly don’t see that happening. Also, Ciaz, Ertiga etc are sold in plenty in SE Asia so then are we defining global as EU?

Agreed - so then any car could be plonked into NEXA. You have summarized my thoughts perfectly. It's not the product but only service which in my opinion is wrong from an automobile manufacturer. In this industry, I believe that the car should be the defining factor.

Agreed – better way out. Let’s revisit this after 9-12 months!

Would definitely make more sense to add the NEXA experience to regular Maruti showrooms. However if one needs to slowly build up a premium image, they ought be very selective about what is displayed at NEXA outlets and what is not.

Yup I don't care two hoots if RMs across dealerships have gossiped and have the same story. Just as I don't give a damn when all salesmen have wrongly explained how ESP functions and what its purpose is across brands and vehicles. Fact is when the news of the Baleno broke out itself, everyone was confident it would sell through NEXA. Nothing last minute about adding more than one car to a dealership. It is kind of an obvious act.

Trying to argue with a single irrelevant point that the Swift handles better and ignoring the host of other benefits that I had mentioned, cannot be misconstrued as merely quoting me.

Never said anything about the gauge of sheet metal used. Just referred to the quality of interiors being better than that of the Brezza.

Like I mentioned earlier, global products with a distinction in positioning are endorsed via Nexa. If you feel S-Cross ought to be the only car on display, then sure. It does hold truer to the premium sense but makes little to no financial sense and does not serve the purpose to slowly uplift the brand's image. Does not take a genius to see what is happening is all I am saying.


Precisely why I said they need to pull their socks up. My own friends have had to endure a couple of shoddy bookings through NEXA outlets.

Hahahahaha it might seem pretty to analyze it as such but the truth is you cannot setup a whole chain of dealerships to sell only one product. Even if the S-Cross was a sales success, do you think that would have prompted them to launch a reworked Kizashi or Grand Vitara? No, the brand Suzuki made its intentions on what products it plans to develop and sell, pretty clear. Now Maruti is merely trying to uplift their cheap car image. Unless they launch a sleuth of new cars with fresh styling and features like Hyundai did when it dropped the Santro and began working on sunroof i10, i20, Verna, Elantra etc., they need to go the NEXA way considering Maruti is happily selling cheap barebones cars like the Omni, Alto, overpriced Swift, Ertiga etc. Financially speaking it would be unnecessary to setup a whole different brand for these products like Nissan did with Datsun so they are doing something midway with NEXA and that means that they have to carefully pick the products they choose to position as premium yet steadily broaden the range to gradually uplift the brand's image. Why particular products, get chosen to be displayed at NEXA outlets I have already attempted to point out their distinguishing factors. Add marketing and the service and sales experience and that is all you need. The "fire-fighting" mode you spoke about, is displayed in their wise decision to make sure there are no loose ends and price the products more attractively compared to what they did when they got too ambitious with S-Cross and its launch pricing.

No need for Sir. I ought to be the one calling you Sir :D Swift is an old dated product. While it may be a global one, the one we have in India cannot compete with NEXA offerings in terms of features. If NEXA fails to adopt the all new 2017/18 Swift I'd be surprised but that we can only leave to speculation for now. SE Asia is notorious for having several half baked rehashed models. The standards of R&D and product focus and distinction required to sell in the EU is in a different league compared to SE Asia. The Ciaz never truly succeeded the SX4 sedan IMO with its poor chassis dynamics it would have been absolutely trashed in first world markets like the UK.

All I am trying to point out, is that there is a difference between the cars endorsed by NEXA and the other Marutis. I have outlined it fairly well in my opinion. Whether or not they are truly premium is debatable and I'd probably say not. That said, I don't find NEXAs strategy too confusing here. Perhaps I could be the only one.