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Reader Comments for
Subscribe to this threadIndia's Tata Motors looking at plastic parts for new small car
(Page 1 of 1)
Janardhan @ Jul 24th 2006 10:53AM
I seriously have my reservations about how well the $2500 car will fare in India. I think this is a sort of a retrograde step. With the ease with which car loans are available in India and rising incomes, people seem to be graduating directly from two wheelers to bigger, safer cars. (I don't think a Rs. 1 lakh plastic car can ever be safe, even in the city!!)
Evidence for this is that the Maruti Suzuki 800 (the cheapest car available in India today - about $5000) has been topping the monthly sales numbers for about 10 years (selling about 16,000 units a month). However, since last year things have changed a lot, and the Maruti Suzuki Alto (which is anywhere between 25 to 50% costlier than the 800) has started to lead the numbers game. Biting at the heels of the Alto are also cars like the Hyundai Santro, the Wagon R, and not so far behind the absolutely amazing Maruti Suzuki Swift.
What I'm trying to say that the Indian car buyer (even the first timer) has definitely come of age and is much more exacting in terms of currency of model, safety, features like power windows, air conditioning etc., and brand image.
Even in the two wheeler segment (bikes) the trend is steadily moving towards bigger engine capacities, and luxury features like alloy wheels even on entry level bikes. So much so that the second largest motorbike manufacturer in India, Bajaj has decided to completely pull out of the 100cc entry level segment and concentrate more on 150cc and above bikes. (They recently launched the Bajaj Pulsar 225 cc DTS-FI bike with digital instruments, alloy wheels, fuel injection et al)
A lot of folks will be familiar with the failure of the Reva Electric car in India, which is of similar dimensions as what the Tata car is expected to have. Well of course the Reva costs more than the 800, but still factors like safety and brand image assume pretty high priority for entry level car buyers in India these days. That's why a lot of us have stayed away from the Reva.
I am proud to be an Indian, and really hope that the Tata car will be a success, but I can't help having my doubts...