[pmbabu]

Originally Posted by arin_12

This is good for consumer pocket. All the MNC car company does business in India with a higher Margin. So there should some competitor to have a challenge.

That's true. But did you notice another funny stuff? There were many who felt i20 was overpriced and it may not do well. Well, not only is it doing well (2.5K cars of premium hatchback is certainly good, given where Fusion/Fabia are), with the launch of Jazz, i20 became VFM suddenly! And guess what, the margins that H makes did not change

[deepakhon]

Originally Posted by pmbabu

Sorry, but going by history, this is tough to believe!

I do not know where VP has got this information, but even going by the history, it can happen! Just look at what they did to Civic Hybrid.

Jazz is overpriced for what it is offering, and the straight H will have to correct it pretty soon, and I hope they do it for the sake of the competition.

[CarsPG]

Originally Posted by VahanPujari

And the latest news is Honda is now giving discounts on ANHC from 30K to 1.50 Lacs. Think about those who have bought ANHC between 1st Apr'09 to 30th Jun'09 when the prices were hiked

Wow this will make it sell like hot cakes! Rs. 1.5 Lacs on a Rs. 10 Lacs car is amazing. The S MT was approx Rs. 9.6 Lacs OTR, Pune so now it will sell for Rs. 8.1 Lacs!!!!! I think the SX4, Dzire, etc will take a beating in July!

Gotta love competition

[Technocrat]

Just look at what they did to Civic Hybrid.

What they did with Civic Hybrid was a hype & marketing exercise, nobody could actually buy a Civic Hybrid at those prices.

Read more Here

[CarsPG]

Originally Posted by Technocrat

What they did with Civic Hybrid was a hype & marketing exercise, nobody could actually but a Civic Hybrid at those prices.

Agreed! I went to the dealer in Pune the day the prices were announced. I even took a test drive. I told them I wanted to book it right away but they didn't have the prices. I pretty much called them every day for more than a week. Finally they told me all the cars were sold out. I asked him how all the cars were sold out when he couldn't even get the prices and he said that Pune didn't get any and that they were sold elsewhere!

I think I remember reading some one buying all (most) of them in a block deal using export incentives to get them duty free and hence Honda wouldn't have to eat the loss!

[shrinivasap]

Is this news true? My uncle is almost decided to book ANHC and i just had a conversation with Magnum Honda, Bangalore but i was told that no such discounts. i also called Whitefield Honda and Dakshin Honda here to cross check and i was given them same response.

If this is really true, i would ask my uncle to wait for couple of weeks...

[pmbabu]

Originally Posted by ashwinpak

Called up the dealer here. It is true. But not applicable to all corporates, but a select few, and my company is not in the list. And it is valid until July 31st.

Originally Posted by shrinivasap

Is this news true? My uncle is almost decided to book ANHC and i just had a conversation with Magnum Honda, Bangalore but i was told that no such discounts. i also called Whitefield Honda and Dakshin Honda here to cross check and i was given them same response.

If this is really true, i would ask my uncle to wait for couple of weeks...

ashwinpak, it will do good if you can name the dealer/ sales person for the benefit of others

dakshin honda. ask for corp sales/prabhudev.

gave me a list of companies, that mainly comprised of banks.

Originally Posted by pmbabu

ashwinpak, it will do good if you can name the dealer/ sales person for the benefit of others

[drkunaldas]

Originally Posted by VahanPujari

And the latest news is Honda is now giving discounts on ANHC from 30K to 1.50 Lacs. Think about those who have bought ANHC between 1st Apr'09 to 30th Jun'09 when the prices were hiked

i am planning a honda city (SMT) by july 15th. this is news to me. can someone confirm this in NCR region. i have talked to alot of dealers but none have mentioned this. if this is true then its hurray.
should wait a little more to get the real pic.

[evo]

I`m very surprised at the number of Jazz`s sold.

What surprises me more, is that out of the few Jazz`s that I`ve seen, most of them have bling bling alloys and other stuff which would make an already overpriced car even more expensive.

[w 12]

Skoda Auto, which has began its operations in less than a decade, has managed to secure the No. 1 position for sales in C+ and D Segments during June 2009, ahead of all other car manufacturers in these segments in India, as nearly 737 units of Octavia and 212 units of Laura were sold during the month. It is to be mentioned that the C+ segment in India comprises of cars such as the Honda Civic, Toyota Altis, Škoda Octavia, Škoda Laura, Chevrolet Optra, Volkswagen Jetta and Mitsubishi Cedia and D segment in India includes the Hyundai Sonata Transform, Honda Accord, Škoda Superb, Toyota Camry, Volkswagen Passat and Nissan Teana.

Skoda Auto India sells 737 units of Octavia & 212 units of Laura in June'09 *-*WheelsUnplugged Automobile Industry News


May be Not many TBhpians were able to persuade aam janata not to by skodas this month !!

[hell_rider]

Originally Posted by w 12

May be Not many TBhpians were able to persuade aam janata not to by skodas this month !!

never underestimate the value of snob appeal and the willingness of people to shell out big bucks for it. the entire luxury goods industry (not just cars) sustains on that.

[GTO]

Originally Posted by w 12

May be Not many TBhpians were able to persuade aam janata not to by skodas this month !!

I certainly do not appreciate the sarcasm in that statement. But since you brought it up, let's ponder over this :

1. If Skoda is able to increase their volumes, excellent. However, I would advise them not to celebrate just yet. Any new launch - in this case the facelift Laura + new engines - enjoys an initial surge. We'll know the real story only after 3 - 6 months. Out of curiousity, how has the Fabia done?

2. Skoda's after-sales is a BIG problem, it is a nuisance and one of the biggest turn-offs for potential customers. This is a fact and there aren't any two sides to it.

3. Never under estimate the power of an owner driven community, or user generated content. Speak to any management gurus, they'll only be too happy to tell you more about it. Our role is strictly to highlight the facts, separate the good from the bad organisations. 2.0 lakh views of a thread where a company has blatantly cheated customers is enough to make a difference between "what is" and "could have been". It is the end customer + user who makes for the word on the street, whether good or bad, and in India, reputation / word of mouth is EVERYTHING.

[diffsoft]

@ w12: Team BHP did not embark upon the course of convincing aam janta to give up Skoda. In fact those with bad A*S*S continue to talk well about the car.

However it cannot be denied that Skoda's image and sales have been dented. Their sales volume for the first 5 months dropped by 45%, Fabia - their most affordable car was the lowest in its segment of premium hatch - i20 outselling by close to 10 times.

I am surprised that in June (as reported by you) the new Laura sold only about as much as what the Accord did (205 - from the web). I would be curious to know why so much of Octavia sold and to whom. A detailed analysis can be made based on what numbers we get from all car makers not just Skoda.

I can attribute no better reason than greater awareness of poor A*S*S* for lower sales in the first 5 months across segments, despite such hectic launches (new Laura, new Superb).

[shrinivasap]

+1 GTO.

I would analyse like this:

Had they improved on their A.S.S, their sales would have been better. Team BHP never said that Skoda has bad product. Issue mainly discussed here is the A.S.S and cost of maintenance.

If they are happy with one month sales and committed continue their existing below average support, it is just like committing suicide.