[romeomidhun]

Originally Posted by hybridpetrol

Areas Maruti could enter:
a) Now they have tasted some amount of success in C2 segment, can they experiment with a D1 segment sedan in their Nexa showroom? Something that is in the league of Corolla / Jetta / Octavia / Elantra.
b) SUVs have always been a strength of Mahindras in our country. Maruti has tested waters with a crossover S-Cross & the Vitara Brezza. They already have the Grand Vitara, which was a failure here. Now the market is looking for more SUVs now, can they try bigger SUVs - something like the Santa Fe, CR-V, Fortuner, Endeavour?
c) People love large MUVs for comfort - and apart from Innova there seems to be none. Can Maruti offer a larger MUV, alongside Ertiga, with dimensions as big as Innova?

a) Maruti tried their luck with Kizashi, but failed. And this is not a volume-selling segment. Won't be economical for Maruti, IMO.

b) Instead of trying in the 20L+ segment, they can try bringing in the international Vitara / Grand Brezza in the 10L - 15L category.

c) This is a real opportunity for Maruti - especially when Innova moved to a higher segment. And there are news that Suzuki is developing a bigger MUV.

[Ashdel]

Originally Posted by bluevolt

Out of all the sales figures, new launches, facelift and so on, what catches my attention is the sales figures of the WagonR.

The current car is 6 years old in terms of generation ( All new WagonR with K series was launched in April 2010), and yet with hardly any major cosmetic/mechanical upgrades, Maruti is selling almost 14000-15000 units of the car!

New cars may be coming and going. WagonR is enjoying its sheer presence in the market unaffected by anything.

One brilliant, practical car for anyone

And just to add on, due to the ongoing directions of Supreme Court to go for CNG only taxi's in Delhi NCR, I have got a confirmed news that on WagonR Lxi with company fitted CNG model, there is a waiting period of around 30 to 40 days.
Adding further numbers might be due to odd-even scheme, which may come anytime and also might be a permanent thing. People who have to buy cars during this time, when there is lot happening in Delhi NCR, WagonR seems to be a perfect fix.

[do-od-do]

Originally Posted by mukul32

Surprisingly, the Creta's numbers seem to have affected mostly by the lower-positioned Brezza. Maruti should be happy, shouldn't they?
[/i]

8193 from Mar-2016 to 7900 in Apr-2016 is definitely not a big fall for Creta. I believe Brezza is not a threat for Creta's astounding run till date. If you look at the price difference between top end variants of Creta and Brezza, its whopping 3 lacs (I'm not considering AT here as Brezza doesn't have it yet), which clearly distinguish demarcation of different segments.

Originally Posted by mukul32

The Dzire continues to own the segment time and again. [/i]

Dzire's downturn from 18k to 13k clearly suggests that Brezza is obvious choice of preference for all those who want to upgrade from Alto/WagonR/Swift and not Dezire anymore. This may be because of Brezza is a fresh car as against Dzire's aged design, which is also a too common sight on streets/parking lots. Is this a beginning of downfall of Dzire's era?

[volkman10]

Maruti Suzuki's new launches gives boost to its sales and leading in some segments while closing the gap in others.

Crossover S Cross is pitted against Hyundai's i20 Active

The Brezza clocked 7,832 units in April against 3,779 units of EcoSport

the Baleno, which is carrying a waiting period of nearly six months, sold 9,562 units higher than segment leader Elite i20, which clocked 9,400 units in the same month.

In other segments,

Multi utility vehicle Ertiga has closed the gap with segment leader Mahindra Bolero, while the mid-size sedan Ciaz is closing in on segment best-seller Honda City.

Pending bookings for Vitara Brezza stands at 50k while it is 55k for Baleno.

http://www.business-standard.com/art...1000932_1.html

[VRPAI]

Originally Posted by glenmz

Ford has built a much bettter Figo compared to the outgoing model almost to the extent of doing a Maruti / Hyundai; but it still sells less then the outgoing model!

The old figo had a lot more character than the present one to be honest. The build was great,the dynamics where brilliant ,the car felt solid, and it had a beautiful steering. It was a typical Ford and it was brilliant fun.

Now this new car is pretty powerful and got a goodish steering too compared to the competition. But it lost the "Ford" character, the same character that made everyone love Ford's. The few figo is basically very similar to a Maruthi and that's a shame because a person buying a Ford would want their cars to be build like how a Ford should be.

Sorry for going way OT BTW.

Just my two cents

[Asifgrkhan]

Originally Posted by romeomidhun

Half size? It is just 270mm (less than 1 feet) longer, but 10mm narrower than Brezza. Agree the difference in quality. But pricing a product 1-1.5L more than how it should be, doesn't make it "half size" bigger.

It was actually Half "a" size. That "a" makes a world of difference. The length difference between the Creta and Santa Fe is 420mm (4690, 4270) while the Santa Fe is two sizes (or segments) bigger.

270mm is a huge size difference in cars the nearabouts of 4000mm.

Agree that the 4.2m Vitara should have been brought and if you look at UK pricing, it is actually cheaper than the S-Cross. That would probably have taken the fight directly to the Hyundai but as usual you can put the blame of this 4m design decision to the amazing minds in our elected governments who believe in such nonsensical legislation. I really dont know how much congestion is removed by saving 6-12 inches but it sure as hell is leading to forced ugly designs and the resulting damage to our eyeballs is irreplaceable.

[nim_peter]

If Honda can replace the ugly chrome at the front with a mesh grill, it will increase the sale by 2-3% or even more. Looking at the new launches with less chrome, it looks like the chrome fever has died.

[do-od-do]

Originally Posted by nim_peter

If Honda can replace the ugly chrome at the front with a mesh grill, it will increase the sale by 2-3% or even more. Looking at the new launches with less chrome, it looks like the chrome fever has died.

I understand how much we Indians like chrome garnished accessories, be its alloys, mirrors or even key-chains. But I agree that I never had good taste for thick chrome slat thrown in City/Mobilio/BRV or even in Brezza. Rather that elegant but bold grill design in EcoSport/Aspire/Creta's front facia - attracts more to me which I believe reflects a distinct character to their overall appeal.

[Shiv_1984]

I may not have an as educated automotive mindset as other members here but I am surprised to see this Figo twins bashing for no reason. What are we crying for ?

1. Steering being too light ?
2. Bad on road manners ?
3. Not as expected Built Quality ?
4. Less features ?
5. Pricing or VFM ?

Let's take the best seller from the segment. The SWIFT. Can anyone vouch for SWIFT being better on any of the above 5 points than FIGO hatch ? I bet not. Grand i10 doesnt hold a candle in front of Figo except the slightly better features list and interior quality.

Now, lets talk about Figo. It looks smart, built as per the competition, diesel engine is best among the lot and petrol is not a heart breaker either, pretty satisfactory feature list, reasonably well built interiors, extreme VFM and most important of all, SAFETY. Comparing to the old FIGO is really a give and take situation where the car has improved on some fronts and missed on the rest.

So, IMO, the sole reason for Figo twins not doing good is because
competition is against Hyundai and Maruti who has better brand value and penetration within the country.

I observed this bashing with Jazz when it was launched but then I don't intend to defend Jazz here even though being a competent product purely because Honda has been here for long and doing the same mistake with the same product second time and that too royally, cannot be pardoned. The deserve this.

To summarize, Figo twins are excellent products and do they deserve better numbers? Hell Yes. Sorry for going O.T but couldn't hold myself anymore.

Cheers.. Shiv

[romeomidhun]

Originally Posted by Shiv_1984

1. Steering being too light ?
2. Bad on road manners ?
3. Not as expected Built Quality ?
4. Less features ?
5. Pricing or VFM ?

Can anyone vouch for SWIFT being better on any of the above 5 points than FIGO hatch ?

I can. Categorically. For points 1 and 2.
Other 3? Let Figo take the crown.

Originally Posted by Shiv_1984

So, IMO, the sole reason for Figo twins not doing good is because
competition is against Hyundai and Maruti who has better brand value and penetration within the country.

If that was the only reason:

i. How come the gen-I Figo sold around 5K units per month? Penetration of Maruti and Hyundai at that time was lesser than now. Or has something happened in-between that tarnished Ford's image?
ii. How come Ecosport sells a decent 3-4K units even now?
iii. How come Kwid got 1L+ bookings?

Make a product that stands out in the crowd. You can sell it. Kwid is the best example.
Or market a product which don't have too many competition. You can sell it. Omni is an example.

[Shiv_1984]

Originally Posted by romeomidhun

I can. Categorically. For points 1 and 2.
Other 3? Let Figo take the crown.

Respect your decision and would also disagree. Figo drives as good as a SWIFT if not better and steering I am not too sure but my brother who owns a swift told it feels the same after TDing the Figo. But, I don't want to argue as when the decisions are supported by logic, they make sense. To each his own.

Originally Posted by romeomidhun

If that was the only reason, how come the gen-I Figo sold round 5K units per month? Penetration of Maruti and Hyundai at that time was lesser than now.
How come Ecosport sells a decent 3-4K units even now?

Well, not to offend you but I guess you are a bit ignorant here. Old gen Figo was sold because it was a strong and probably only contender to Swift even in the urban market and the later had huge waiting periods and Figo had its own positives in an otherwise dull B segment. Peopl who wanted to upgrade from Wagon Rs, Altos and 800s didnt have too may diesel options like today. Petrol figo was always a dud and would remain till the excellent K12s and IVtecs rule.

Coming to ecosport, it had a first mover advantage and urban masses were waiting for something like this. It was a runaway success. Now we have competition in that segment too and the new ecosport numbers will tell you the fact.

This was the last comment I made on this topic as I dont intend to make this thread as "Figo twins Vs the rest". But, I stand by what I said.

Cheers.. Shiv

[romeomidhun]

Originally Posted by Shiv_1984

Old gen Figo was sold because it was a strong and probably only contender to Swift even in the urban market and the later had huge waiting periods and Figo had its own positives in an otherwise dull B segment. Peopl who wanted to upgrade from Wagon Rs, Altos and 800s didnt have too may diesel options like today. Petrol figo was always a dud and would remain till the excellent K12s and IVtecs rule.

Coming to ecosport, it had a first mover advantage and urban masses were waiting for something like this. It was a runaway success. Now we have competition in that segment too and the new ecosport numbers will tell you the fact.

You are contradicting yourself, and supporting my points! Thanks.

Earlier you said it is the brand value and penetration of competition that works against Figo. Now you are saying that Gen-I Figo and Ecosport had not much competition, so they became success.

IMO, brand value and penetration is just one factor of success. There are lot of other reasons. Others like looks, space, power, comfort, FE, maintenance cost, easy access to spares, service, good supporting staff, etc also exist. And of-course, as you also said, the lack of competition.

[Shiv_1984]

Originally Posted by romeomidhun

You are contradicting yourself, and supporting my points! Thanks.

Earlier you said it is the brand value and penetration of competition that works against Figo. Now you are saying that Gen-I Figo and Ecosport had not much competition, so they became success.

IMO, brand value and penetration is just one factor of success. There are lot of other reasons. Others like looks, space, power, comfort, FE, maintenance cost, easy access to spares, service, good supporting staff, etc also exist. And of-course, as you also said, the lack of competition.

Well, I am forced to make one last (I promise) comment here.
Neither I am contradicting myself nor I am supporting you. The intention is not to be against you or for that matter anyone but to make my point clear.

coming to your point.

Earlier you said it is the brand value and penetration of competition that works against Figo. Now you are saying that Gen-I Figo and Ecosport had not much competition, so they became success.


You are comparing apples and oranges here. There is a huge difference between how mass market saw the old Figo and new Figo. To my understanding, majority of those who couldn't own a swift diesel went for Figo, that doesn't mean figo was a bad car, it simply means the Car they wanted was not accessible so go for the next available option even if that would mean taking risks with a new car and an untested brand. A risky business I would say but more of a compulsion than a desire.

The new figo was ditched because no one faced that kind of an issue as it was earlier, considering plenty of options today in the market, so what ultimately they did is to stay within their brands and that's Maruti and Hyundai. So, someone who wanted to buy one of these hatches went either with Ritz, Swift, Baleno Or Grand i10 or elite i20. They don't have to look on the other side.

Ask yourself a question. Do you think only Maruti and Hyundai make good cars and other don't ? Then why other cars don't sell.

IMO, brand value and penetration is just one factor of success. There are lot of other reasons. Others like looks, space, power, comfort, FE, maintenance cost, easy access to spares, service, good supporting staff, etc also exist. And of-course, as you also said, the lack of competition.

Totally agree but when you don't have the brand value and you don't have the reach as your competition, you are not competing at all. So no question of after sales, customer service etc comes into picture. AFA in cities like Bangalore, Pune or Mumbai is concerned, I don't see much perceptible difference between a Ford after sales or a Maruti, albiet maruti being slightly better but ford isn't so bad either to let maruti grab all the brownie points.


I rest my case here. I agree to disagree.

Cheers... Shiv

[Ehsank78]

Originally Posted by nim_peter

If Honda can replace the ugly chrome at the front with a mesh grill, it will increase the sale by 2-3% or even more. Looking at the new launches with less chrome, it looks like the chrome fever has died.

I read somewhere that Honda is considering selling Mobilio in the Taxi market to increase sales.

Will Honda follow Toyota?

[nim_peter]

Originally Posted by Ehsank78

I read somewhere that Honda is considering selling Mobilio in the Taxi market to increase sales.

Will Honda follow Toyota?

When was the last time automobile manufacturers rolled out a car just for cabs? Indicab? I think that is still an unexplored segment and if what you say is true, it may work. Just change the name to Mobicab and we'll have a 7 seater cab and BRV, a 7 seater passenger car. Can the honda 1.5 diesel match the workhorses like the renault 1.5, Fiat 1.3 or the mahindra mhawk?