[shobhitk]

Originally Posted by Mr. Nobody

I feel Ritz should get a facelift as numbers are too bad. It is a solid car in all senses but i guess the rear looks put off a lot of people. Will this car be still available after this year or will it get discontinued ? Even in UK it seems to be on the way out.I was thinking of buying it this diwali but seems i will have to get a Swift or a i10. Don't wish to buy a Ritz and see it discontinued in a few months.

Ritz is a solid car. I bought Ritz ZDi exactly an year back and i can vouch for the fact that it is a very good car. As far as its much criticised 'boomerang' tail lights are concerned, it is a matter of personal like/dislike. It appears that just to ensure that the sale of Swift is not adversely affected, Maruti might not be willing to bring-in a rival to Swift by modifying the existing Ritz car. As Swift and Ritz share the same engine and the same platform they are virtually 2 sides of the same coin. Maruti has deliberately denied Ritz ZDi of climate control and other standard ZDi features which are part of Swift ZDi. Reverse parking sensors and camera, bluetooth connectivity, ORVM indicators/electronically foldable ORVMs and navigational assistance etc. are some of the features which should be added to Ritz ZDi. I agree with the suggestion that Maruti should give a face-lift to Ritz, the way many facelifts were given to Wagonr and Dzire.

Hyundai has done a great service to the people by giving Maruti a tough competition, which keeps Maruti and other car makers on their toes to give not only a good product but also a good after-sales service. Maruti garages are now more friendly to the car owners. Frequent followup by the call centers of Maruti ensure that the visit of car owners to the garage is really fruitful.

[Im_Abhisek]

Post deleted by the Team-BHP Support : Please do NOT post messages that add little or no informational value to the thread. We need your co-operation to maintain the quality of this forum.

Please read our rules before proceeding any further. We request you to post ONLY when you have something substantial to add to a discussion.

[ravradha]

Zest and Bolt are seeing consistent decrease in sales, or probably they have reached the stable selling numbers?



Most of the posts this month are ruing Tata's predicament. One can only hope that Tata has learnt the lesson and will bounce back, very soon.

Can you guess which of the following pie charts 1 and 2 correspond to 2015 and which to 2014?



1 - May, 2014
2 - May, 2015

Surprise! We see hatch gaining share amongst cars! Is this a starting of reversal in trend? More people moving from two wheelers to cars - preferring hatch? Or it's the lack of parking space? Or Its the economy ?

[vincyf1]

Whatever happened to Zest being the best car in its segment. Its a surprise to see these numbers on the downtrend. Its definitely a good car and the numbers doesn't justify its worth.

May be, the Tata branding is to be blamed here. This was the reason I couldn't get my family to even take a test drive of the Zest.

[RSR]

Thank you for sharing the sales numbers, charts and analysis, Aditya!

For some strange reason, I'm not able to rate the thread 5* as I get this weird message from the site:

http://www.team-bhp.com

A required field called <em>ipaddress</em> is missing or has an invalid value.

What could be the reason?

This is with Safari on the latest iOS version. Let me try with another browser to see if the rating button works.

Edit: I get exactly the same message on Chrome as well. It could be a problem with iOS itself.

-------

Ford's Figo and Fiesta+Classic see a shocking fall in offtake numbers to just 900 and 46 respectively.

I guess they have already shut down the Classic's production line, and those 46 units were new Fiestas making their way to dealerships.

Figo's production line also seems to be in ready-for-closure mode.

They have a lot riding on the new Figo Aspire compact sedan & its hatchback sibling now. If the twins succeed, Ford can cross the 10,000 units/month barrier easily.

[sachinayak]

Originally Posted by KMohanan

Also, when customers compare models, they examine the price difference along with many other parameters. I mean, comparison between the Nano Engine and the K10 engine, between the 4 year warranty and the 10 year warranty on the new AMT technology, between a 4 seater (Nano) and a 5 seater (Alto K10), between Tata and Maruti, between mileage of Nano AMT and ALTO K10 AMT (in spite of bigger engine), Image difference, life of the vehicle, resale value, and many more things.

...I am not blaming or criticizing Tata too much.

Honestly, your post sums up the problem with Tata Motors. No matter what they do, we will never be impressed or convinced. Their brand image has taken a big hit, which is very difficult for them to recover from.

We wanted them to price cars cheaper - they did it (at least with Zest/Nano).
We wanted them to provide new technology - they did it with Revotron, driving modes, AMT
We wanted them to provide features - they did it with HM infotainment, BT connectivity (in the Nano), creep modes in AMT etc.
We want them to provide warranty - they did it with fantastic warranty that matches or exceeds competition.
We want them to have cheap maintenance costs - they did it with an AMC scheme, the 3-3-3 offer etc.

...unfortunately, we just want more. Hard luck Tata Motors.

BTW, I just traded my Manza for an Innova (just because I needed a larger vehicle for my family to travel together) and am speaking post a fantastic 4 year ownership of the poor man's rich car.

[pranjal1984]

Originally Posted by p'arth

Tata Zest/Bolt Performance - While Zest/Bolt have come out as very good products but the equivalent buying experience at a Tata dealership has not changed. These are the same old dealerships who used to sell indicas and other taxis and they met out the same socialist treatment to every buyer in the value chain.

Recently I went to a Tata dealership to check out the new Nano AMT. Things that pissed me off:
- There was no parking in front of it. All parking space was occupied by a zillion cars belonging to the dealer. No valet also. Had to park in a lane and walk for 5 mins.
- Once inside there is commotion all around. Too many people roaming around and some aimlessly.
- After few mins 1 lady comes and asks us about our requirement. We wanted to see the Nano AMT. She goes to call a sales advisor but no one is free.
- We decide to our self explore the Nano on display. But there is a waiting. Atleast 2 different families are inside the car already exploring every mm of it. Then there are kids sitting in the car fooling around with switches and refusing to come out.
- After a struggle we manage to get in. The display car is dirty - seats, the dash - everything has dirt marks. My wife is super pissed off.
- We looked around and every display car had the same 'aura' around it. We decided to leave. The sales advisor is still no where seen.

And we left without anyone noticing that a prospect has left unattended.

On other points, the tables and chairs were shabby, the showroom look and feel was mediocre, zero personalization and therefore the overall experience was a let down. How can Tata expect to sell a product like Zest that boasts of things like a Harman music system in such a buying experience centre?

A solution can be similar to Nexa. Tatas need to start premium dealerships for Zest and upcoming Hexa. Else who ll buy a 15 lac Hexa in a cab dealership environment? Anyhow I feel the number of Tata dealerships is very low and should be increased.

P.S. After this experience we went to a nearby Honda showroom, explored the City at ease, chit chatted with the advisor, were offered coffee and came back relaxed. There was no intention to buy the City though

I agree with you . We went for car shopping in June 2013 and when we entered the Tata Car showroom(Abhishek Motors, Guwahati), there were no sales advisors to be seen. After around 10 mins, one person came and enquired about our choice. There were no other family or buyers except a few guys checking on a Sumo. And worst of all, we were sweltering in the summer heat since the central AC failed it seems. We checked on the Nano, Vista and Safari and ended up buying a Volkswagen. It was another matter that we didn't check the maintenance bills of a German vehicle
I still have soft corner for TATA and their vehicles. And I like the Bolt and the Zest. I have a small request for TATA. Non performing old dealerships should be fired, ambience should be improved in line with their NEXT strategies and appoint new dealerships in Tier 2 and Tier 3 cities.

[IndiFuture]

Thanks for the figures.

I keep wondering what makes the Dzire tick with such domination. Probably, the competitors chose wrong base cars. The i10 Grand and Brio are at best junior members of the B2 family where the Swift is in fact a much better and bigger car, probably much closer to the Polo and i20 Elite. Zest could've given competition, had it not been a Tata, whose reputation lies shattered among the urban people. Heard that Tata is giving a big push in rural areas with a dealership a day target. Need to wait until then.
And of course Honda could change the game by upgrading its dashboard in Amaze based on the new SUV they promised (I so hope they also do the same with Mobilio, which otherwise truly deserves a Top 20 slot).
Finally, a car I'll watch out for is the sub-4m Polo sedan. Not sure if it can shake the leadership board, but surely it will be a car most aspirational.

EDIT: What happened to the Vento? Is that a typo?

[DCEite]

Originally Posted by IndiFuture

Thanks for the figures.

I keep wondering what makes the Dzire tick with such domination. Probably, the competitors chose wrong base cars. The i10 Grand and Brio are at best junior members of the B2 family where the Swift is in fact a much better and bigger car, probably much closer to the Polo and i20 Elite. Zest could've given competition, had it not been a Tata, whose reputation lies shattered among the urban people. Heard that Tata is giving a big push in rural areas with a dealership a day target. Need to wait until then.
And of course Honda could change the game by upgrading its dashboard in Amaze based on the new SUV they promised (I so hope they also do the same with Mobilio, which otherwise truly deserves a Top 20 slot).
Finally, a car I'll watch out for is the sub-4m Polo sedan. Not sure if it can shake the leadership board, but surely it will be a car most aspirational.

EDIT: What happened to the Vento? Is that a typo?

Errm... Sorry to burst your bubble but tere is nothing considerably "big" about DZire when compared to Xcent/Amaze/Zest. Infact Zest is more spacious than the DZire and Xcent, Amaze is not far behind. Xcent eats the DZire in boot space and equipment list, and its petrol engine is as fuel efficient, more refined too. Amaze eats the DZire in outright performance.

The only thing that goes in favour of DZire is that its a "Maruti" and the competetion has atleast one engine variant that does not fair well (the Diesels on Xcent and Amaze and the Petrol on the TATA) when compared with the DZire. Whereas both the engine variants of DZire offer decent performance and fuel efficiency. But i again re-iterate, overall an Xcent or an Amaze is a better product than DZire. But these are not Marutis. Hope you ge the point.

[audioholic]

Originally Posted by ravradha

Surprise! We see hatch gaining share amongst cars! Is this a starting of reversal in trend? More people moving from two wheelers to cars - preferring hatch? Or it's the lack of parking space? Or Its the economy ?

IMO, it would have been better if the hatch category was split into the segments separately at least B and A instead of putting them as a whole number. Since the hatchback numbers are big and MSIL taking most of the cut in that, its difficult to infer anything from a small shift. Its just a small drop of 1% from sedans and 2% from the SUVs. Also, the hatch market is full of offerings lately. MSIL has 5 offerings and Hyundai 4, of which most do good numbers. Hence, the categorisation needs to be reworked a bit to see the actual movement of people either towards entry level hatchbacks, or premium hatchbacks etc

[IndiFuture]

Originally Posted by DCEite

Errm... Sorry to burst your bubble but tere is nothing considerably "big" about DZire when compared to Xcent/Amaze/Zest. Infact Zest is more spacious than the DZire and Xcent, Amaze is not far behind. Xcent eats the DZire in boot space and equipment list, and its petrol engine is as fuel efficient, more refined too. Amaze eats the DZire in outright performance.

I understand what you are trying to say, but that's precisely my point. I'm no way saying that the other cars aren't good. I was in fact comparing the base cars. But nevertheless, even in the sedan comparo, what the Amaze lacks is the premiumness in interiors thanks to lending from the Brio, which is a sub-segment below the Swift, you agree or not. And even though the Xcent may be a better car and bigger in boot space, it looks like a toy thanks to adding a boot to a car that is a replacement of a replacement for Santro in Europe. I don't have the width-specifics, but any kid can tell the Swift "looks" a whole lot wider than the Xcent.
If just a bigger boot would be a deal breaker, the Chevrolet Sail would have sold in lakhs. And if bigger boot was the main preference, I would go for a bigger sedan, some of which aren't that expensive (Sail, Etios, Verito, etc).
Of course Dzire sells more because its a Maruti. But look at the numbers of Dzire and then add up all competitors, and let me know if they are more. I bet hardly, if they are at all. Such domination isn't possible just by the badge, that too in C segment. Ask Ciaz, and it will tell you.

PS: No offence, but if you read my post again, you'll notice that I've mentioned that Zest is the only probable competition for Dzire, but is losing out just because of the Tata badge (at least that's what I understood when I wrote it, pardon me if my English hasn't really lived up). So not sure why you had to burst my bubble.

[ramzsys]

Polo had a 0-4% interest scheme running for a while- remember, the 1.5 diesel came only in september 2014, and there wasn't any offers(except the 2014 stock clearance).

Rural India slumping and it reflects in Bolero's sales too.

Although Toyota has only 1 car in the top selling list, it is making huge margins in it. Innova owners are high-milers and with a 6 month service interval keeps the dealers happy too.

[CarNerd]

Instead of publishing the car sales figure on a monthly basis, it would be appropriate to have it every 6 months or every quarter at the minimum. That will show a broader picture of the sales trend.

[Carophilic]

You know while dissing the Dzire, people very conveniently forget its ride, handling and FE capabilities. Members, pls do not consider general paying public as fools who blindly buy a Maruti. The Dzire package consists of the MJD, low kerb weight, high FE, decent levels of tech, not too unattractive looks and superb ride and handling. Praise the Xcent / Zest as much as you like. They just are not the complete package.

[sachinayak]

Originally Posted by Carophilic

The Dzire package consists of the MJD, low kerb weight, high FE, decent levels of tech, not too unattractive looks and superb ride and handling. Praise the Xcent / Zest as much as you like. They just are not the complete package.

The Zest MJD has offers the same engine, much higher levels of tech and features, great FE (same engine afterall), good looks, and balanced ride/handling. Yes, the kerb weight is more but then does it matter to the end buyer. BTW, Zest offers AMT in its Diesel avatar which the DZire "still" does not.

The only thing missing ("in terms of a complete package") is the Maruti Suzuki tag. (...and having a Tata Motors tag is the nail on the coffin).

Not denying that the DZire is a good car (must be, if it sells so well), but honestly, if both cars were offered by the same manufacturer would you realize the accuracy of the statement = "Zest is not a complete package".