[GTO]

Opening post has been edited to include the following point:

Originally Posted by GTO

What you won't:

• Noticeably more expensive than the Maruti Ertiga

Also, price comparo added to the review:

[Vahanam]

Originally Posted by sivadas

Yes, Suzuki will definitely be tempted to reduce/remove the discounts.
And Honda really believes that their brand commands a premium over Suzuki! But in this case, they are going to face the realities once the initial enthusiasm dies down. I feel, Honda will also cut the price eventually.

If i were Suzuki, i wont remove the discounts soon. I will target every possible Mobilio customer with that extra cushion of discounts. With this strategy, i might kill Mobilio numbers. So why should i not be aggressive?

Honda cannot cut price or offer discounts in the near future. That would pronounce defeat and wrong pricing.

[Dry Ice]

Do they have any production capacity constraints? I mean with the City already doing quite well, how many Mobilio/month can they manage, realistically?

[Anand2712]

Originally Posted by Mahesh Prasad

I'm sorry Anand, but I disagree with you. As far as it was known, the Mobilio was touted to be a contender to the Ertiga, and I would have agreed with you if the Mobilio was based on the Jazz platform.

Sorry buddy but did Honda put out a poster comparing Mobilio's features to Ertiga. I might have missed it else don't believe anything if it is not from the horse's mouth.
Do not forget when Ertiga was launched at such low prices, people started thinking Innova was over-priced. I still see Innova selling in decent volumes. Same will happen for Honda.

[ajmat]

Rs 1 lakh premium over the Ertiga for bland bare interiors?

I'll take an Ertiga and a remap with them money left over

[GrammarNazi]

Originally Posted by Anand2712

I am not sure why everyone is criticizing the pricing of Honda. We all know that in the eyes of the Indian public Honda is considered a premium product (atleast over Suzuki)...

IMO A premium brand can be redeemed through only 1 factor.

Honda could've redeemed their premium through pricing IF their car was better, but since they've clearly compromised on the product, they should've kept prices at Ertiga levels to attract buyers.

Anyway, waiting for Initial Ownership reports(IF any Team-BHPian buys one) to know what made them choose Mobilio.

Originally Posted by Vahanam

If i were Suzuki, i wont remove the discounts soon. I will target every possible Mobilio customer with that extra cushion of discounts....

100% True. From a business perspective, they'd Nip it in the bud.

[RoadTiger]

Originally Posted by RoadTiger

While I think Honda has the edge with the Mobilio's engines and bootspace, with its lowgrade interiors, bad 3rd row seating, poor attention to build quality and the tinny-metal, it should be priced closer/ at-par with the Ertiga. I would hate to pay a premium over the Ertiga.

My guess is Honda may be playing the 'premium pricing' card till the launch and hope to positively surprise potential buyers with near-Ertiga pricing or at best a 10-20K premium.

Wow !! How wrong was I. This is shockingly bad pricing by Honda. Other than the H badge, slightly better engines and a slightly better boot, I cant see any significant practical advantages of the Mobilio over the Ertiga. On the other hand, the cost cutting is so glaringly evident on the inside that there is absolutely no feel good factor once one is seated inside.

This is deva ju. Reminds me of what Toyota did with the Etios at the launch. Hugely evident cost-cutting, shoddy interiors but unwilling to price at competitive prices.

However, Mobilio diesel will still sell, especially because folks may calculate the price difference of about 80-90 K may get recovered over 1 lakh kms of running, given the nearly 3-4 kpml difference in FE between Mobilio & Ertiga. And of course, SADLY, Honda loyalists will not mind a mindless premium for the H badge !!!!

Mod Note : Please avoid typing with excessive dots.........like................this.

Thanks

[dass]

Originally Posted by GTO

Noticeably more expensive than the Maruti Ertiga

Either Honda is expecting miracles or they have forgotten the Jazz story altogether with the success of Amaze and the City. They are killing a mediocre product at launch with their premium pricing. It would be interesting to see how many vehicles they do manage to sell, month on month.

Maruti won't be sweating anytime soon. Expect few more special editions to be launched.

[Motormania]

Just trying to understand why would a typical customer prefer a Mobilio over the Ertiga or similar vehicle?!

1) Its a Honda (very strong brand pull)
2) Better, edgier design (subjective)
3) Powerful engine
4) Slightly better interior space and airy feel

What could instantly turn off a prospective buyer?

1) Interiors
2) Build quality (if at all the customer looks closely enough)

The battle will be interesting!

[Turbokick]

Originally Posted by Vahanam

If i were Suzuki, i wont remove the discounts soon. I will target every possible Mobilio customer with that extra cushion of discounts. With this strategy, i might kill Mobilio numbers. So why should i not be aggressive?

Honda cannot cut price or offer discounts in the near future. That would pronounce defeat and wrong pricing.

Agreed. Suzuki should continue to provide the lucrative discounts and highlight them as high as possible. Remember if a product fails to sell well initially will have very little chance to bounce back even after a price cut. So it should all out attack from suzuki.

[Fornax]

From someone who is not price sensitive, but overtly sensitive to safety, I cannot help but give more marks to the Mobilio. I am in the market for a MPV that fits my parking lot and is safe for my kids to be in the last row. I caught two key mentions in the launch
1. Rigid (or strong) rear impact zones
2. Brief video of the rear crash test at 50 kmph.

Knowing that a rear crash test was carried out, and (hopefully) feedback / corrections undertaken is, at the very least, good to know.

Lastly my thoughts on why the rear design of Mobilio makes it a (slightly) safer proposition in comparision to Ertiga is attached as a crude photo-analysis

PS: I know absolutely no-one from Honda and have owned a SX4 for the last 4.5 years.

[scopriobharath]

I am in no way going to buy the Mobilio be it RS or V-RS

Ertiga anyday is better looking and better priced. The mobilio will not do as much sale as Ertiga. People will buy Ertiga. Honda will still make profit as the cost is high, which means profit per unit sold is higher than Ertiga. Cost of manufacturing is less and features are lesser too but price is higher than the Ertiga.

Prices will not go down, but sales will. Profts will be healthy for Honda.

- GTO mentions in the review that honda would price the Jazz "sensibly". Is this honda's demonstration of sensibility for mobilio?

[KedarB]

Originally Posted by RoadTiger

However, Mobilio diesel will still sell ... especially because folks may calculate the price difference of about 80-90 K may get recovered over 1 lakh kms of running, given the nearly 3-4 kpml difference in FE between Mobilio & Ertiga. And of course, SADLY, Honda loyalists will not mind a mindless premium for the H badge !!!!

@RoadTiger, I dont think the real world difference in FE is going to be 3 4 KMPL between the diesel Mobilio and Ertiga. I believe, at most, it might be around 1-2 KMPL, or even less if the same driver is driving the two cars, sensibly. Do the DZire and Amaze real world mileage figures have such a huge difference? maybe the owners can confirm.

A little OT: Somehow I am finding it difficult to trust the ARAI figures now a days and think we should take them with a pinch of salt. The new diesel Fiesta is rated at 25.something now, up from 20 or 21 something. And the reason was better aerodynamics (Please let me know if my understanding is wrong here). Does that make such a huge difference? Sometimes I think car makers have learned trick or two to cheat the ARAI testing by observing how the tests are conducted (Kind of like how Samsung is accused of cheating on the benchmark test tools)

[theMAG]

Great review Rush.

Looking at the cost cutting alone, I would personally prefer the Ertiga, which is a class act by comparison- and not feel resentful at the prospect of my quality considerations forcefully underestimated by the manufacturer.

Very disappointing from Honda.

[rajesh1868]

As a potential Ertiga customer who was expecting competitive pricing from Mobilio so that Ertiga might have provided more discount, I am disappointed