[mrbaddy]

To be honest, I'm a bit surprised with the prices announced for the Bolt.

TATA have got slightly aggressive by pricing it so close to SWIFT as well as Zest. I would not call it overpriced, but mass market perception is all that matters.

Probably TML is in a fix or has very little room to work out the pricing gap, considering the Kite siblings that are going to launch later this year.

[perty]

Unlike what was offered with the Zest when it was launched, there is no mention anywhere of a 333 kind of offering for after sales support on the Bolt, so presumably that is not on the table either, which makes it less attractive IMO

[ACM]

They are more or less in the same price band. You want a swift get one, want grand i10 get it and if you want the Bold get it.

It's not all about pricing sometimes ( At least that is the hope)

If one wants a hatch one does not ho get a sedan just because it is only 25k more.

TATA though could / should have played safe and offered 25k off on the first 30000 units.

Time will tell. Wish them the best. Brand perception is hard to understand and yet easy to analyse afterwards.

[extreme_torque]

I think the pricing is a little too close for comfort to the Swift. The Swift although not as feature loaded as the Bolt does have few extras like true keyless entry, push button start and auto folding outside rear view mirror and they would matter when standing in showroom and comparing two cars. Even on merit, except for dubious safety, Swift has the Bolt covered when it comes to ride and handling, looks and most importantly brand equity. Bolt should have been priced atleast 25ks lesser in my opinion.

[Steeroid]

If this vehicle begins drawing in some numbers, all Maruti has to do is to offer a marginal discount in order to undercut it and therefore kill any competition.

Priced too close to the market leader for comfort.

[abhi29]

Zest, our car of the year, even after being such a good product combined with super aggressive pricing could hardly make a dent on numbers of ageing Dzire, for that matter even Amaze and Xcent seemed unaffected. The response hasn't been as per the expectations and can be called lukewarm at best.

Compared to Zest, Bolt has a lot more going against it , such as

- In terms of looks, it is very close to vista. Similarity is greater than in case of zest/manza. A non-enthusiast can easily mistake it for a vista.
- Rival Swift is not only way ahead in terms of acceptance, but is present in its refreshed avatar which is better value for money than previous models. Makes the job even tougher for the Bolt
- Crowd pulling standard stuff like alloys and projector head lamps which worked in favour of Zest are given a miss

It was very important for Bolt to be priced on similar lines as Zest to remain relevant against the competition. If this was a perception building exercise, i think they should have also considered that no good perception will be made if the product itself doesn't sell. This is no niche segment and they are no VW either.

IMO, an opportunity lost for Tata. As someone who has waited for months for this launch, I would have loved to see the Bolt giving others a run for their money, i still look forward for the same as I believe its a better overall product than any other offering in the segment.

And thanks to this pricing, Grand i10 has started looking VFM all of a sudden. Won't be surprised if it records better numbers in coming months.

[gauravdgr8]

Originally Posted by Steeroid

If this vehicle begins drawing in some numbers, all Maruti has to do is to offer a marginal discount in order to undercut it and therefore kill any competition.

Priced too close to the market leader for comfort.

Swift Petrol already has a 25k discount and a 10k exchange bonus. This has been going on since December and has continued in Jan too. Pricing for Bolt is too close the Zest.

The biggest question for the Diesel buyers would be: Why should I buy a 75BHP motor for 6.99, when I get a 90BHP for 7.3 lacs?

[itsashishsharma]

Dear teambhpians, let me remind you that safety is one big aspect that is important for us people. Bolt/Zest XMS offers ABS and 2 airbags. If you are in market with these two features as a must have, XMS is your best bet. HK ICE, height adjustable driver's seat, electrically adjustable ORVMs are icing on the cake.

[safari_lover]

So it's 50000 enquiries, 10000 test drive requests and 1500 bookings for the Bolt in the past three weeks. Question is how will it fare in the next three

Apparently, Tata Motors will be happy if they sell around 4K units per month. Not a tall task IMO.

source - http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/...w/45986167.cms

[Pyrotek]

With a difference of about 27,000 rupees between any variant of the Bolt and its corresponding Zest variant, I think it's fair to expect more people to book the Zest.

I would not be surprised if that is the strategy they're going for. Even the Dzire does outsell the Swift hatch many a time.

Coming to the Bolt vs. the Swift, you get ABS and airbags in the Bolt (XMS variant) for a mere 11k more than you'd pay for a Swift VXi. I'd buy the Bolt eyes closed. And so should any smart Indian consumer.

[Visran]

Originally Posted by safari_lover

source - http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/...w/45986167.cms

According this article Mr.Mayank claims that this car comes with the 9th gen ABS even before regulations are enforced. what is the difference between this ABS unit and the one found in it's competitor's?

[safari_lover]

Originally Posted by Visran

According this article Mr.Mayank claims that this car comes with the 9th gen ABS even before regulations are enforced. what is the difference between this ABS unit and the one found in it's competitor's?

There's no regulation for compulsory ABS on cars today. I think he means that.
Not sure if there's anything majorly different between the ABS systems on Bolt and its competitors.

[CrAzY dRiVeR]

Originally Posted by RSR

Let me be the first to predict this - a lot of potential customers who go to Tata showrooms to check out the Bolt may end up buying the Zest instead, considering the (relatively) very small price difference between the two.

Putting a small little fly in your soup
This was put up about two pages ago-

Originally Posted by CrAzY dRiVeR

I feel the bolt will only be in the shadow of the Zest and never in the limelight.

But then I was flamed left, right and centre that time. The whole thread seems to have taken a U-turn now once the prices have been released. Good job TATA Motors.

Originally Posted by safari_lover

So it's 50000 enquiries, 10000 test drive requests and 1500 bookings for the Bolt in the past three weeks. Question is how will it fare in the next three

Apparently, Tata Motors will be happy if they sell around 4K units per month. Not a tall task IMO.

Thats actually a tall task IMO. Zest with all its brilliance seems to be settling down around the 3.5k mark.

I'd stick my neck out and predict that the sales for the Bolt will settle down around the 1500 mark and nothing more. Moreover, it will be slowly slide to become a sales flop once the Kite sedan is released.

Tough pill to swallow I guess. Dont flame me just yet. I will be around in the coming months as well.

[400notout]

Originally Posted by CrAzY dRiVeR

Thats actually a tall task IMO. Zest will all its brilliance seems to be settling down around the 3.5k mark.

I'd stick my neck out and predict that the sales for the Bolt will settle down around the 1500 mark and nothing more. Moreover, it will be slowly slide to become a sales flop once the Kite sedan is released.

I too feel Tata have accepted that they can only sell 5000 pieces of Zest + Bolt a month. The pricing surely indicates that. Thats 50% lower than their expectations of 10k units a month from these two.

Surely the Zest might stay around longer but Bolts' sales might depend on the placement of the Kite twins.

To me, it feels that with the response of about 3-3.5k monthly units for zest, Tata doesn't think the Bolt will do any better. The Bolt XMS does seems VFM though.

[Motard_Blr]

Originally Posted by Visran

According this article Mr.Mayank claims that this car comes with the 9th gen ABS even before regulations are enforced. what is the difference between this ABS unit and the one found in it's competitor's?

According to Bosch, the differences between their 8th gen and 9th gen systems are in the size, weight, integration with other systems including ESP and maybe some improvements in pedal feel. None of the improvements listed appear to have any benefit to the user. The system cost is not listed but most likely the higher level of integration and various improvements have reduced the cost and this might be the only benefit to the consumer.

Ref.: http://www.bosch-mobility-solutions....ration9_de.pdf