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Old 8th May 2017, 10:17   #46
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Re: April 2017 : Indian Car Sales Figures & Analysis

There is no surprise on the strong hold of MSIL in India. It is a well thought out strategy which has been put into action.

- The company is not happy with just 1 or 2 odd cars per segment, they have ensured that come what may within B1, B2 and C1 segment, the offerings of cars and their trims should be able to provide nearly 3 digit combination

Alto - 2.66 to 4.39 Lac (2 petrol engines 800 and k10 along with multiple trims and AMT)
Omni - 2.86 Lac (Synonymous of Maruti's presence in India)
Eeco - 3.50 to 4.54 Lac (1 petrol engine and multiple trims)
WagonR - 4.11 to 5.64 Lac (Same as above with TC - Sting Ray included)
Celerio - 4.24 to 5.50 Lac (Same as above with AMT, negating diesel, which has been pulled out)
Ignis - 4.59 to 7.80 Lac (2 engine options, both frugal performers, AMT)
Swift - 5.01 to 7.77 Lac (Same as above with TC instead of AMT)
Baleno 5.28 to 8.69 Lac (Same as above with CVT instead of TC)
Dzire 5.59 to 8.89 Lac (Same as Swift)
Gypsy 6.62 to 6.78 Lac (The Enfield Bullet of MSIL Stable)
Ertiga 6.75 to 9.89 Lac (Two engines, multiple trims, people mover)
Brezza 7.57 to 10.12 Lac (1 engine, multiple trims, feature rich)

Look at the spectrum covered - a company that has the capability to cater 100% of middle income group right from a product offered at about 2.5 Lac going up to 10 Lac. Either a trim changes or a car changes at every 20k addition, what else a customer can ask for.

To top it further, an established resale entity (Maruti True Value) for complete peace of mind and obviously if they are catering to 50%+ of the buyers in India, they are truly omnipresent across the country; the SBI of Indian Automobiles.

The customer experience is not bad, even if you take your old workhorse Maruti 800 to the service center. They have rather enriched it with NEXA for people expecting something more !

Availability of parts in open market - Most certainly !
Repairs possible at FNG - Why not, most of your FNG experts actually learnt car repairing on a Maruti Product
Control over behavior of dealers - Yes, in place and quite stringent; do you have the option of getting your car serviced by Maruti (the CoCo experience) - yes Maruti Service Master, the no-nonsense outlet for getting service and repairs, though one has to book and wait for a service slot for a week, but one of my acquaintances who is "Service Master" loyalist has always admired it.

Now if this has resulted in a bias of people towards Maruti, it is well deserved !

They are playing "Smart" and they are playing "Hard". They are hitting the competition where it hurts them most. 50%+ market share is no joke !

Last edited by i74js : 8th May 2017 at 10:21.
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Old 8th May 2017, 13:13   #47
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Re: April 2017 : Indian Car Sales Figures & Analysis

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Originally Posted by i74js View Post
There is no surprise on the strong hold of MSIL in India. It is a well thought out strategy which has been put into action.
Could not agree more with you. Maruti Suzuki has been in the Indian market for a long time now and have an absolute grip on the Indian mindset regarding cars (mileage, highly affordable cars, cheaper maintenance etc). They giving so many options in various car categories only goes on to show their ability to cater to each and every category of the Indian car buyer and making sure that every person who buys a car does at least consider a Maruti (because of so many options across various price bands).

I do not think any other car manufacturer will be able to do what MSIL have done in the Indian market. I had thought that maybe Hyundai could do what MSIL have done (considering they being in the Indian market for some time now) but that does not seem remotely likely as Hyundai have targeted specific category customers and they plan to stick to that category.
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Old 8th May 2017, 13:23   #48
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Re: April 2017 : Indian Car Sales Figures & Analysis

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Originally Posted by jessie007 View Post
Appreciate the effort. Graph for B1 segment (Wagon R, etc) is missing
Added to the concerned post. Thanks.
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Old 8th May 2017, 14:41   #49
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Re: April 2017 : Indian Car Sales Figures & Analysis

Once again MSIL crosses 50% market share. Phew! With new Dzire and Swift ready to be launched, the party has just started. However, i think it is a worrying sign for Industry. One dominant player is not good for anyone except the player himself. Others need business and sales to be in the market and if the dry spell continues, they may quit and that would be bad for the customer.

Look across the spectrum and except MSIL, Hyundai and Toyota, no one is riding the market with good sales and profits. Hyundai is having solid market share for i10, i20 and creta in the respective segment while Toyota is milking in the UV segment. Mahindra, Tata, Honda are surviving with one or two models giving them bread and butter and rest of the players are up there in the list as chart entities.

Just as 50% market share for MSIL is not desirable, absolute dominance is bad in UV segment. Industry needs more equitable distribution of sales.

Is there a market characteristic which defines such dominance if we keep aside factors like the efforts made by the companies themselves, good service and network, cheap after sales and parts etc. Is there an element of risk aversion in our consumer mindset and they prefer going by the reference more than on anything else?
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Old 8th May 2017, 14:46   #50
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Re: April 2017 : Indian Car Sales Figures & Analysis

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Originally Posted by Dr.Naren View Post
Maruti Suzuki is the clear leader and nobody can understand the Indian market like Maruti
Note- Sorry for the long post and a bit off topic:

As per a typical management lesson, there are three dimensions of a business. Product Excellence, Operational Excellence and Customer Intimacy. Given the nature of a market, a market player has to excel in it's core dimension and be on-par in other two. Being sub-par will lead to poor performance. And of course, the 'on-par' level keep rising with time.

The one thing that Maruti understands that maybe other OEMs dont (or if they do, cannot achieve) is that the core dimension of Indian Auto Market is not the product, its the customer intimacy. Selling cars in India is more about customer reach, friendliness and trust than anything else.

Hardly any OEM comes close to Maruti when it comes to customer experience. In my family, we have purchased two Marutis and one Hyundai over the past 10 years. Also, I have been witness to several purchases of different cars by different people all across India. I repeat, nothing has come close to Maruti experience (I'm considering mass market cars only).

Sample this:
When I was buying my Celerio, the dealership (Popular Maruti, Chennai. Salesmen Names: Issac, Prabhakar) was punctual with pre-discussed follow ups and at the same time did not bother me with un-solicited multiple calls from multiple salesmen. They were also very patient and courteous during our interactions. I took two test drives. One at the showroom and one at my house a week later on the day I booked my car. The salesman came home with the test car and ended-up spending nearly 3 hours (I had a few other things going on that day) with my family. My dad took a test drive too. Discounts were built into the quote to arrive at desired on-road price without much haggling.

A few days later, I was provided and pick up and drop from my office to their yard (~40 km to-and-fro) to see and inspect the vehicle. I was also shown the form-22 upon request. Soon after the loan formalities were completed smoothly and overall there were no surprises. Finally, the car was delivered on the discussed date and time (9:30 AM in broad daylight) with all pre-delivery processes being followed. The T-BHP PDI sheet was of course used . The dealership had even arranged for the temple Vaadhiyaar (Priest) to be there early morning and do the pooja. Delivery picture was immediately printed and put in a card-board frame and given with a box of chocolates (they were actually good and unique, not eclairs and alpenlibes). All papers were in order. Demo was given. A checklist was filled in my presence. All across, I got timely follow-up calls from Maruti HQ (call centre) to ensure that purchase process was being followed well and was asked to fill a detailed survey form and mail it back.

Overall, I have never come across any dealership going to these lengths to sell a sub-6 lakh car. Even the first service was done smoothly (although I was charged 75/- for a crappy glass cleaning job that I didn't ask for). My father and a friend had similar experiences with other dealers when they bought and serviced their Marutis. Of course, this is because of Maruti's clout and relationships with dealers. They are given stiff targets and there are rewards/penalties (cannot disclose).

Having stated the above, one cannot argue that Maruti's products are very well-balanced and their mfg operations are very well managed. In fact, they have been constantly adapting to changing customer needs/demands, right from the time they launched swift to recent successes in Ciaz and Brezza segments.

Compare this to other OEMs' dealerships' behaviour which ranges from lathargic to snooty depending on volumes. There are several dissatisfied Honda, VW, Skoda owners despite the great machines they own. Mahindra's customer attention seems to be good but their cars are known to have constant niggles.

Other OEMs have a long way to go to manage what Maruti has.
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Old 8th May 2017, 15:28   #51
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Re: April 2017 : Indian Car Sales Figures & Analysis

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Originally Posted by cityslicker86 View Post
... was punctual with pre-discussed follow ups and at the same time did not bother me with un-solicited multiple calls from multiple salesmen. They were also very patient and courteous during our interactions. I took two test drives. One at the showroom and one at my house a week later on the day I booked my car.
I think the experience is subjective and varies by individual & dealership.

In my case, we took a TD of Brezza and immediately told the SA that we didn't like the vehicle. Despite that, the SA called me multiple times to meet him. A couple of days later he told me that we must meet him to respond to a survey that the Company necessarily requires off every customer/ SA. He must have called 3-4 times for this exclusively.

In another instance, a MSL dealer refused to honor the exchange value of my FIL's car saying he had removed the HU despite the valuer's document clearly stating that the value was without the HU.

Point being, MSL has done a lot of things right but consistency of dealership experience is still lacking.
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Old 8th May 2017, 15:56   #52
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Re: April 2017 : Indian Car Sales Figures & Analysis

Looking at the sales numbers I can only conclude one thing. No matter how good a car is in any aspect, it either needs to be a Maruti or a Toyota to sell. Just to quote an example or two, even if Tata offered the same XT variant of the Hexa at 15L OTR and Crysta costed 30L for the ZX trim, the sales figures would not have been any different from what it is now. Fortuner will sell as good as ever even if costs 55L one or two years down the line. I would not be surprised if the waiting time for Brezza hits 2 years. Such is our market.
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Old 8th May 2017, 18:33   #53
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Re: April 2017 : Indian Car Sales Figures & Analysis

Giving three cents since every one seems to be doing that.

Everyone seems to be believing that buyers want only VFM products. I don't agree. Majority of the people want to buy a reliable product at reasonable price. Reliability comes in:
1. Reliability in the product (no unscheduled runs to the service center)
2. Reliability in the after-sales service (trust that any issue will be fixed without causing a heartbreak)

To some extent, cost of scheduled service and some common repair parts influence the decision too.

The above two reliability are somewhat interdependent. If one makes a completely unreliable product, it becomes difficult for the servicing department to satisfy the customers as the issue will keep recurring. People don't mind a one-off issue if it gets fixed permanently. Otherwise, a lot of time and money is wasted and people get fed up.

Maruti cars are not the best cars. But they have built the above two reliability points over time. Please don't tell me that Indian buyers didn't try new products. Any good product should be able to sell by itself - if not initially, at least over time. Give me a good product that didn't succeed over time. Of course, if there are two good comparable products available at different prices, one will buy the cheaper one.
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Old 10th May 2017, 22:33   #54
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Re: April 2017 : Indian Car Sales Figures & Analysis

VW Polo is the largest selling sub compact hatch globally with Suzuki Swift coming second in Q1 2017.

April 2017 : Indian Car Sales Figures & Analysis-capture.jpg

Link

Last edited by volkman10 : 10th May 2017 at 22:34.
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Old 11th May 2017, 12:07   #55
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Re: April 2017 : Indian Car Sales Figures & Analysis

I am just commenting on VFM which has come up many times in discussion of products and sales. In India we have broadly three types of customers for cars. I still call them cars not autos! The first is the large number who buy cars for the first time or upgrade from a second hand car. For them it is definitely only VFM and sometimes just price. These customers will opt for the name that is most talked about in the market - in our case Maruti (not Suzuki). Then there are those who have bought cars before and are replacing or upgrading. Most of them know what they want and the younger one's are not afraid to experiment with a new snazzy looking model from one of the brands with better reputations. There is a VFM proposition here too. However, these customers will be willing to shell out extra for something that catches their eye or fancy. The last type are the aspirational or status types who want a Merc, Audi, BMW, Jaguar etc. There is little place for VFM except for the aspirational ones who might compromise if their intended purchase is outside their budget - we are now talking about tens of lacs. Surprisingly, I have heard this type of customer also ask 'Diesel hai', 'Kitna deti hai' which has led to several famous adverts by Maruti Suzuki.

Of course there are many sub-categories in each group and many overlaps. If there weren't selling cars would be a breeze. In India it most certainly isn't easy to seel cars. Some of the experiences of Team-bhp members are live examples of 6-7 visits and many TDs before DDay.
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Old 12th May 2017, 00:49   #56
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Re: April 2017 : Indian Car Sales Figures & Analysis

Quote:
Originally Posted by Nonstop-driver View Post
Point being, MSL has done a lot of things right but consistency of dealership experience is still lacking.
Hi,

They have a system to take care of this aspect. All you need to do it send an email with your concern to their generic email contact@maruti.co.in.

I have used this couple of times and issue was resolved in 3 calendar days from the time I sent email.

In one instance workshop manager himself came to our house to close the issue and take feedback. I only have experience with Maruti and VW but response time from Maruti is way better than VW.

Regards.
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Old 12th May 2017, 20:47   #57
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Re: April 2017 : Indian Car Sales Figures & Analysis

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Originally Posted by varunswnt View Post


This actually will set a negative trend in our market where Global players will only look at us from colored lens (cheap VFM preferring market, fuel conscious market). We can clearly see this trend already with Renault's Kwid (Redi-go is a cousin), Ford's Figo twins, Honda's Brio cousins, VW's Ameo (Cheaper Vento making actual Vento expensive). Look at the pricing trend going northwards with each update and passing year. If Maruti is going to absolutely dominate each segment then others are left to explore only remaining segments (read Elite i20 and Creta), sooner Maruti will even catch them and zoom ahead (read Baleno and Brezza). Soon Dzire will start costing near 10 lakhs for top end variants, mind you its still a compact sedan and not an upgrade from hatchback and still people will flock to Maruti.

We are only left with limited option in our market and that is a sad thing. VW is thinking of not bringing international POLO in India rather tweak current POLO with new covers for us, isn't it bad thing for us. Renault not even thinking to bring their own cars rather bring Dacia cars. Honda didn't consider India worthy enough to bring HR-V coz' we won't be able to afford it. Toyota not even considering competing in other segments. Tata trying so hard and still not able to garner much attention from customers.

In which direction is market actually going, has almost everyone bowed out of the competition?

Just my opinion.
You said it !!!

This is how the Indian market is evolving! It's a herd mentality & nothing else!
Although i must admit Maruti UL have earned the bragging rights on the back of consistency & reasonable, hassle free after sales service. I have nothing against that.

Most of the engines used by MUL even in their new hot selling vehicles are 1.3 mjd (National Engine, tuned variably i suppose) Fiat engines.Whereas Fiat itself is in doldrums, Fiat vehicles with the same engine are not selling one bit.

We are talking about encroaching & dominating different segments, but same engine ?.. You may call the super successfull Vitara Breeza a SUV but it's still a 1.3 mjd. You can also look at the super duper Baleno, it's the same.

Indian consumer wants to look at the Maruti Badge & possess one, period ! All those Indian consumers wanting to upgrade from Two wheelers to Four wheelers, it's only Maruti. The consumer here is not ready to venture really & goes for safety first !

People need safety in buying, it's not the road safety, it's the money safety.

Hence, however hard Globally topping companies may try, they are far from understanding the Indian car consumer.

One can forget about the International best selling brands to be launched here, there are no takers. Fiat launched the beautiful Abarth & the Abarth Punto & the Abarth Aventurra with insanely powerful but cheaper engines, yet no takers & people go "gung ho" over the RS Baleno at half the power!

Hyundai had somehow earlier found a chink in the armour of MUL, Figuratively speaking. And they played wholeheartedly! They gave the best of the features in their vehicles without demanding & without asking for more money & were pretty successful at that & still are in a way! ( They are however grappling with Verna at the moment) But even Hyundai are seemed to have reached a sort of a ceiling & look a little tired playing the herd game of the Marutis'.

Long live the king though! I am not a basher! Just my thought as a petrohead !
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Old 13th May 2017, 11:46   #58
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Re: April 2017 : Indian Car Sales Figures & Analysis

Maruti Suzuki
There's no denying that the 'Maruti Suzuki' badge ensures a reasonable amount of sales even to a mediocre product. BUT you also can't deny that they have been launching some really great cars.

Over the last 3-4 years, they've had a slew of new launches (Ciaz, S-Cross, Baleno, Brezza, Ignis). The whole NEXA scheme shows their effort towards establishing themselves as more than just a maker of small, cheap cars. Almost all their cars are at the top of the respective segments. Even the aging Swift is still a great package for the price.

The market has given them a hard time when they made mistakes, case in point - the crude Celerio Diesel. But they know how to own up to their mistakes. When they announced a price cut on the S-Cross, they offered incentives to existing owners. Did you see Honda do the same for the previous gen Jazz? Their position as the market leader is well deserved.

They have been improving their overall quality levels too. There's still a long way to go though, my friend's year old Baleno has already started rattling.

Hyundai
Hyundai too has been launching new cars at a high frequency, but in terms of sales they are dependent on their three star cars - Grand i10, i20, Creta. The Tucson is struggling and the Elantra is beaten by the Corolla. But have to appreciate their consistency in delivering quality products. Even the cheap Eon has great interior quality.

Mahindra
They're​ riding on the aging Scorpio and XUV500. The newer launches are nothing to write home about, both in terms of competency or sales.

Honda
Since the City and Jazz, Honda hasn't launched a single product which is not a mashup of an existing product (not counting the niche Accord Hybrid). Compare that with Maruti or Hyundai and you'll understand why they are #1 and #2. The City is still doing well despite the high price and tough competition. The WR-V brings in some numbers, but only time will tell if that's sustainable. The Mobilio, BR-V and Brio did good numbers in their initial days too. Their whole product lineup needs a revamp. Where's the HR-V and Civic?

Toyota
Toyota has every reason to be happy. The Corolla, Innova and Fortuner are at the top of their segments. The Camry is doing pretty okay and even the cut price Etios family is doing decent numbers. They're laughing all the way to the bank.

Tata
Tiago, Tigor and Hexa are doing decent numbers despite the negative perception about the brand. They are slowly yet steadily walking on the path to recovery.

Ford
The EcoSport maintaining its numbers despite the Vitara Brezza speaks about the competency of the product. Still, they need to work on their marketing. The Endeavour though doing decently well deserves netter numbers. As always, they are still a one trick pony.

The Indian customers do not want cheap cars. They want value. Toyota (Etios), Honda (Brio family) and Datsun failed due to this very reason. The Creta and Innova succeeded despite being overpriced because they offer value. Similarly, the Kwid succeeded because it brought something new to the table.

The formula is clear, if you want to compete with Maruti, launch a competent, high quality product. The market will bite.

Last edited by Aaron:) : 13th May 2017 at 11:53.
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Old 13th May 2017, 22:56   #59
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Re: April 2017 : Indian Car Sales Figures & Analysis

Folks,

I don't think the Indian car market is as low as being in a position of accepting sugar-coated pills. We have definitely made progress.

Aren't we an evolving market that is free to express, ask and settle for what suits us as a geography, what suits our interests and affordability and reject what doesn't fit the bill!?

Hope some of these points will make us all feel better...
Quote:
Originally Posted by varunswnt View Post
This actually will set a negative trend in our market where Global players will only look at us from colored lens (cheap VFM preferring market, fuel conscious market).
...
In which direction is market actually going, has almost everyone bowed out of the competition?
I sincerely believe that this shouldn't be setting any downward trends.
  • Many a global player is yet to hit the sweet spot - cost-cut, sans-features models are not VFM, and the efforts most of them made to emulate Maruti Suzuki were on these lines. Look at Mobilio, Etios and Sail cars to name a few.
  • And then look at Renault - aren't they making strides ? and pretty good ones at that. Logan got them into the market, they were quick to realize that M&M will not take them far, so they set out on their own. Duster - bang!, Kwid - bang! and look at the market response!
  • Hyundai has established itself in less than 20 years in India like there is no tomorrow.
Maruti and Hyundai are kept on tenterhooks - they haven't been complacent, and they won't be allowed to!

Quote:
Originally Posted by Hickstead View Post
This adamant one sided domination of Maruti in India might effect the future of our car market very badly.
...
May be in near future, buyers might run out of choices and they have to settle with only a Maruti product in India.
Adamant - might be a strong word:
  • B2 Segment Hatch - untapped - Enter the Swift - every other manufacturer follows
  • Compact Sedan - Tata taps it, doesn't get it great - Enter the Dzire - every other manufacturer follows
  • Compact MPV - untapped - Enter the Ertiga - a few other manufacturers follow
  • Compact SUV - untapped - Enter the Brezza - pretty soon, we'll see a few other manufacturers follow
  • 1000cc variants of 800cc cars, AMT launch, small diesel - the market leader knows a thing or 2 about what works and what doesn't.
Today India buys 10K+ copies each of Grand i10, i20, Creta, around 6K-8K copies of Innova, City, Bolero, Kwid, around 4K copies of Ecosport, Xcent, Amaze, Scorpio, Tiago - month after month - not a single Maruti here - be assured - competition is on!

Quote:
Originally Posted by wilful View Post
This viewpoint seems to be a valid one.
I fear we are already stereotyped by the global players as a cheap, VFM, interested only in FE and shiny frills market.
...
We will see more India specific VFM models from everyone in the coming days.
I hope these dark forebodings are proven wrong though.
Stereotyping could be good, at times. Remember, while the Chinese market showed to the world how to make cheap cars, it is the Indian market that led to the realization of VFM cars - these are affordable, adequately featured and not really cheap!

I have seen the Ssangyong Rexton and at 25+ lakhs it looks quite out-dated and in comparison the Indian market gave the XUV 500 to the world that is more than contemporary and retails under 20L OTR.

Quote:
Originally Posted by Nagesh Bhatt View Post
You said it !!!

This is how the Indian market is evolving! It's a herd mentality & nothing else!
Can we spare a thought here?
  • Grand i10, Elite i20, Scorpio, City, Kwid, Creta, Duster, Innova (and now Crsyta, the price keeps going north and so does the monthly sales) etc. should have hardly made an impact if herd-mentality was on top!
Quote:
Originally Posted by romeomidhun View Post
A comment out of frustration? Are you saying that the Indian customers are setting a wrong model here?
To continue what romeomidhun highlighted:
  • Let us give credit when it is due!
  • Fiat and Tata started their journeys in India shortly after Maruti did. Strategy and focus has made a lot of difference!
  • HM and PAL were in the know-how when Maruti launched the 800. See how the tables have turned!
Let us not forget - it is our market that saw the Santro, the Swift, the Nano, the XUV500 - all legends - and each one has been from a different manufacturer!

Thanks,
C_
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Old 14th May 2017, 07:26   #60
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Re: April 2017 : Indian Car Sales Figures & Analysis

Quote:
Originally Posted by Coolman View Post
Folks,
[*]Many a global player is yet to hit the sweet spot - [b]cost-cut, sans-features models are not VFM


Stereotyping could be good, at times. Remember, while the Chinese market showed to the world how to make cheap cars, it is the Indian market that led to the realization of VFM cars - these are affordable, adequately featured and not really cheap!
Can we spare a thought here?
  • Grand i10, Elite i20, Scorpio, City, Kwid, Creta, Duster, Innova (and now Crsyta, the price keeps going north and so does the monthly sales) etc. should have hardly made an impact if herd-mentality was on top!
Thanks,
C_
Good points every one of them.
However, my concerns are not totally focused on the dominance of Maruti and Hyundai. It is more on the de-specced, 'not really cheap' nature of the offerings here. Like the aforementioned Duster, with the 'smaller for India airbag', the stucturally enhanced Kwid for the Brazillian market, the same case with the Ecosport for Europe and so on.
The Indian market does pay top dollar for these and should realistically expect similarly featured vehicles in our market but for the lax regulatory regime in place here and to a lesser extent the largely uniformed nature of the market.
Here's hoping that things change for the better.

Last edited by wilful : 14th May 2017 at 07:43.
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