[DCEite]

So it seems its not just India where its so popular..

Originally Posted by http://www.tradingmarkets.com/.site/news/Stock%20News/1737497/

Minicars dominated a ranking of domestic models by sales in the first six months of the year, according to data released Friday by an industry group, with SUZUKI MOTOR CORP.'s (TSE:7269) WagonR clinching the top spot for the fifth year running. Six of the top 10 cars had engine displacements of 660cc or less -- the threshold for minicars -- including the second-ranked Move from DAIHATSU MOTOR CO. (TSE:7262).

Originally Posted by http://www.japancorp.net/Article.Asp?Art_ID=18937

Suzuki Motor Corp.'s <7269> Wagon R minivehicle was the best-selling vehicle in Japan in the first six months of 2008, industry data showed Friday.

The Wagon R captured the top slot for the fifth straight year on a first-half basis, according to the data compiled by the Japan Automobile Dealers Association and the Japan Mini Vehicles Association. Its sales totaled 113,999 units in January-June, down 6.5 pct from a year before.

Including the Wagon R, six of the 10 best-selling models were minivehicles, an indication that fuel-efficient automobiles continued to be popular on the back of soaring fuel prices.

Daihatsu Motor Co.'s <7262> Move minivehicle ranked second with sales of 98,324 units.

Honda Motor Co.'s <7267> Fit subcompact car came third with sales of 98,013 units as a fully remodeled version of the vehicle, which was launched last October, continued to enjoy brisk demand.

Toyota Motor Corp.'s <7203> Crown luxury sedan, which underwent a full model changeover in February, was the only model that ranked in the top 10 list among vehicles with engine displacements of over 2,000 c.c. The Crown came ninth with sales of 48,066 units.

In June alone, the Wagon R topped the list with sales of 17,027 units, staying in the No. 1 spot for six months in a row. Coming on the heels were Daihatsu's Tanto minivehicle with sales of 15,525 units and Honda's Fit with 14,702 units.

[bhp1]

Oh yes wagon r is a practical car & sells in good numbers elsewhere in world.

[aaggoswami]

Great, Great news..

The Wagon R is the best-selling of 58 models in Japan's Kei class; in 2008 Suzuki expects to produce its three-millionth Wagon R.

This was the car the knocked Toyota Corolla from the tag of Highest selling car in Japan for the first time.

After Fit was launched, it took over from Wagon R and Corolla.
Then during the last two years, Suzuki's Kei car sales came down and Daihatsu took over from Suzuki as Japan's largest maker of small cars.

Suzuki clearly said it was now more focusing on other segments in other car market. SX4, Swift, Splash and Grand Vitara are part of these.

But the recent increase in crude prices also could have contirbuted to high sales. However, Suzuki has lost the tag on largest manufacturer of Kei cars.

One question: Does this figure include the Wagon R's sold under cross badging. I think Suzuki supplies Wagon R to more than one manufacturer.

Originally Posted by bhp1

Oh yes wagon r is a practical car & sells in good numbers elsewhere in world.

Not in Europe. However, Splash, Waogn R's replacement is doing well. In fact, Opel Agila made more sales than Wagon R+.



EDIT: Thanks DCEite for putting this up.

[bhp1]

Wagon -r did do good in europe too, though european market is looks sensitive , so may be a little less.

[sumeethaldankar]

Hi,
here's a list of the best selling cars in the world from wikipedia.It features some of our Indian legends like the good old Amby and the Premier Padmini.
What's intresting to note is the Wagon R has sold more in nos (2,500,000) then the M 800 has(2,400,000).

List of bestselling vehicle nameplates - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

[Rahulkool]

yeah there was a competition from maruti when wagon r was launched, question was which is the japan's largest car, iirc i won a tshirt + some game in that hehe .....

[YC.BALENO.CHD]

Now does not this car look quite cool and very different from our version?

[vnabhi]

Originally Posted by YC.BALENO.CHD

Now does not this car look quite cool and very different from our version?

Wow, that sure looks hot!

Why don't they give our WagonR a face-lift?IMO, the grill of the Duo has spoilt the look. The model before which had a horizontal chrome strip looked better.

[hillram]

The front grill looks awesome.May this is the differentiator which makes it sell the most in Japan :-)

[DCEite]

Originally Posted by vnabhi

Wow, that sure looks hot!

Why don't they give our WagonR a face-lift?IMO, the grill of the Duo has spoilt the look. The model before which had a horizontal chrome strip looked better.

Originally Posted by hillram

The front grill looks awesome.May this is the differentiator which makes it sell the most in Japan :-)

Even with the ugly grill of Indian wagonR, its still the second largest selling car here.

[vnabhi]

Originally Posted by DCEite

Even with the ugly grill of Indian wagonR, its still the second largest selling car here.

IMO, that's because the i10 is eating into the Santro's sales. The i10 looks and feels much better than the Santro. On the other hand, the sales of A Star and Estillo are not eating into the Waggie's sales, perhaps because they look dumber (no offence to owners)

[paragsachania]

Originally Posted by vnabhi

IMO, that's because the i10 is eating into the Santro's sales. The i10 looks and feels much better than the Santro. On the other hand, the sales of A Star and Estillo are not eating into the Waggie's sales, perhaps because they look dumber (no offence to owners)

Yes,
i10 ate into Santro and now i20 is eating into the Getz - All because, there was a remarkable difference in the design as well as Handling of the cars, buyers opted for the latter.

Wagon-R for long has remained one practical choice (No matter what "Critics" have to say) and it is not just selling due to its popularity. despite of its not-so-good looks, there are buyers who would actually think and act to buy this car and those who've owned it have no regrets apart from smaller bits which is the case with all the other cars.

People have complained about its handling at higher speeds but C'mon, think Practical, its a Tall boy with a completely infriendly aerodynamics bu wonderfully utilized space inside. You cannot expect this to perform like a Sedan when you know its limitations.

Even with these negatives, it still continues to give other cars a run for their money!!

[Gagan.js]

No matter what, the WagonR sold in India is horrible.

It is disappointing that such an ugly car can do high volumes. I hope other companies don't get on the same bandwagon.

[vinod_nookala]

Originally Posted by Gagan.js

No matter what, the WagonR sold in India is horrible.

It is disappointing that such an ugly car can do high volumes. I hope other companies don't get on the same bandwagon.

Wagon R is ugly no doubt, and ugly for many! But look, all the gorgeous looking cars are not hot sellers. Wagon R has probably the least number of problems in maruti stable and hence can be termed as the most reliable car.

Top three things what an average buyer wants and wagon r has it-

1. Price
2. Fuel efficiency
3. Comfort
4. Maintenance

Styling to many is very important. If wagon R is making its way out then the positives must outweigh the negatives. So many millions buying Wagon R are not fools for sure

p.s- Upgrades are always welcome!! Urge maruti not to keep selling the car with minor facelifts.

[YC.BALENO.CHD]

Originally Posted by Gagan.js

No matter what, the WagonR sold in India is horrible.

It is disappointing that such an ugly car can do high volumes. I hope other companies don't get on the same bandwagon.

In that case, all the fiats would had been the best-sellers. They all look beautiful, but when it comes to cars its the overall appeal that attracts the buyers, and not just the looks.
And looks being highly subjective, there may be a section who really likes those tall boy looks, so atleast on looks people should avoid bashing here. Its actually an honest design, purposeful and simple, its a tallboy and it does not pretend to be something else, and then we have the new sedans like NHC, SX4 which are a cross between hatches and MUVs, so in that context wagonR's design theme may not be appealing but its a well thought design and yes, atleast to me both the present version and the last one looked better than present and pre-facelift version of the Santros, and as I said that looks are subjective, let me add that its my view and may not be correct so I wont do any bashing in this regard.