![]() | #1 |
Senior - BHPian Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: World
Posts: 1,116
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| ![]() When launched in january , BEAT was one of the most anticipated hatchbacks of the year . It also turned out to be the game changer in terms of pricing , and made ford and VW rethink about pricing . Got thumbs up from auto fraternity for its looks , pricing , features and as a overall package . CHEVROLET promise adding icing to the cake. But in terms of sales , beat never took off . The sales have always been between 4500 initially to 2500 - 3000 off late . These are decent figures , but considering beat as a package , these are not great figures . Figo had a flying start and doing great , polo is in great demand . So whats going wrong with the BEAT ? |
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![]() | #2 | |
BANNED ![]() Join Date: Sep 2004 Location: NCR
Posts: 3,186
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A person spending 3.5-4 L today expects comfortable seating for 5 people, with reasonable boot space and airy interiors. Both Figo and new WagonR are good at it. The 3.5-4 L segment has much more demand for practical and non-flashy cars as against boy-racer types. | |
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![]() | #3 | |
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![]() | #4 |
Senior - BHPian ![]() | ![]() In my opinion, the Beat failed due to the following reasons. 1) No diesel engine 2) Underpowered petrol motor 3) F.E is not too great 4) Terrible bootspace, making it impractical as an only car. |
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![]() | #5 |
Senior - BHPian ![]() Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: Pune
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Infractions: 0/1 (5) | ![]() I guess GM is still not a favorite brand in India. That's the main reason behind it. Think of a customer who is in need of a car around 4 Lacs. He will only think of Maruti, Tata & Hyundai only as a first preference. If he is not satisfied then only he will turn to other brands which didn't happen many times. As customer is won by cars like Wagon R, Santro, i10, Vista etc. This is my thought ![]() |
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![]() | #6 |
BHPian Join Date: Oct 2009 Location: Chennai
Posts: 384
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| ![]() I think absence of diesel is a major reason. We are comparing sales of petrol and diesel together for other models or combination of two engine variants in the case of i10 with Beat sales. Once diesel beat is launched we will get a clearer picture. |
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![]() | #7 |
BHPian ![]() | ![]() I agree. A diesel variant can lift up sales a little. However, the reason the sales has fallen from around 4K levels to 2.5K levels is due to the impact of new Wagon R and Figo. |
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![]() | #8 | |
BHPian Join Date: Jul 2010 Location: Chennai
Posts: 171
Thanked: 115 Times
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Beat is for an independent, style conscious urban youth who likes to go places in his car. In a country with a rich family tradition, how many youths suit such a profile. Even, most youths will agree that buying a bike itself is difficult, since we are financially dependant on our parents at such an age (say going to college, early part of career). In the case of Figo, "Sandeep" (the profile as marketed by the Ford team) is in his late twenties, salaried, settled & likes to take his family around with him. How many of us honestly can relate to this profile. Iam among them (Yes, I have bought a Figo myself looking into the needs of my family as a whole) This is the reason why the Figo has clicked whereas Beat is struggling a little. | |
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![]() | #9 |
BHPian Join Date: Oct 2009 Location: Bangalore
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| ![]() We all know that practicality, VFM, after sales service and general approval sell vehicles in India. The Beat is a well engineered product, but, as previous comments have stated: 1. Isn't as practical (read: Spacious, Boot) as cars in the price range (Figo, i10, wagonR etc.) 2. GM's after sales still can't match Maruti and Hyundai's. 3. A slightly older buyer would not like the flashy looks (Preferring blander ones like the i10, Figo etc.) 4. The Resale value will be poorer than the Marutis and Hyundais. 5. The Figo really shook up the segment with its space and features for price. I guess it took away a lot of the Beat's potential customers. |
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![]() | #10 | |
Posts: n/a
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Normally 3.5-4 L segment buyers look for the low maintenance and cheap spare parts. Beat fails in both the front. And in India GM is not a favorite brand. And also it has very poor resale value, compare to Maruti, Hyundai and Tata. | |
![]() | #11 |
Senior - BHPian ![]() Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: Bangalore
Posts: 1,716
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| ![]() There was never a requirement for another petrol car which had to compete against the likes of Wagon R, i10, Swift and Ritz. The need was clearly for a diesel car to take on Swift. Spark was doing good job for GM, it could have been facelifted and Beat could have been released with diesel version. GM has lost the advantage, see what Ford has achieved with Figo. Better pull up the socks and take some bold decisions. |
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![]() | #12 |
BHPian Join Date: Jun 2010 Location: Bangalore
Posts: 28
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| ![]() IMO, the BEAT is not a family all rounder and it doesn't tick all the boxes for most first time car buyers. So sales for this car would never match up to the other all rounders like the Wagon R or new entrants Figo/Polo. The ideal buyer would be people looking for a second car in the garage for the wife or for those small runabouts in the city. How much volume exists in this market and is it a sustainable market? The all rounder in the Chevy stable is the Spark. This is where they need to focus their efforts on for volumes. But it is not going to be easy because the BEAT and Spark have different lineage and some standardization will be required across the two platforms. And they also need to improve their advertising to woo the mass market. At the moment the BEAT seems to target the youth 25/27 yr olds and SPARK advertising is almost non-existent. |
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Senior - BHPian Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: World
Posts: 1,116
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![]() | #14 |
Senior - BHPian ![]() | ![]() The only reason I didn't even consider Beat is the service network. There is no service centre anywhere near my home. So it is irrelevant to me how great the car is, if I have to take a day off every time I want to get it serviced. |
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![]() | #15 |
Senior - BHPian ![]() Join Date: Jan 2009 Location: Delhi - Kochi
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| ![]() Beat is not at all underpowered. ![]() ![]() We own both Beat and Figo. Cheers! Vinu |
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