Lamborghini sees high import duty affecting sales in India

Italian car maker opens dealership in Bengaluru, its third in India

Italian super-luxury sports car maker Lamborghini on Tuesday said a high import duty ranging up to 167 per cent was a major deterrent for selling its cars in India. As a result, the company expects its sales to be lower than the last year’s level in India this year.

“We sold 22 cars in India last year — a growth of 29 per cent over the sales of 2012. We do not expect better sales this year due to very high amount of import duty in the country, which is as high as 167 per cent,” Stephan Winkelmann, President and chief executive officer, Automobili Lamborghini S.p.A said.

He said the company would be comfortable if the import duty is capped at 2011 levels, when it was 60 per cent. “We are too small a player in India to ask the government to bring down the import duty. It is up to the industry to seek duty concessions collectively,” he said.

Another reason for lower sales in India this year, according to him, is due to late launch of new model Huracan. It expects to improve its sales in the country next year.

The Volkswagen-owned brand opened its third dealership in India at Bengaluru on Tuesday. It already has dealerships at Mumbai and Delhi. The company has sold 94 units in the country till date. It has sold three cars from its Bengaluru outlet during the soft launch, he said. Lamborghini is also considering the possibility of launching its sport utility vehicle in India by 2018, Winkelmann added.

“India is a huge market and holds immense potential for selling luxury sports cars. Lamborghini being the early entrant in the market, we want to retain our edge over others. There is high awareness about the brand here, but sales are low. We need to convert it into sales through various campaigns,” Winkelmann added.

With the launch of a new model, Huracan, the company expects to perform better in the year to come. The model is priced at Rs 3.43 crore (ex-showroom, Delhi) and Rs 3.49 crore (ex-showroom, Bengaluru). The company has just commenced delivery of the new car in India, a company executive said.

The company expects to register in excess of 20 per cent growth in its global sales during 2014. In 2013, it sold 2,121 units globally, of which United States contributes a maximum of around 24 per cent, he added.