Luxury car makers eye double-digit growth

German auto majors Mercedes-Benz, Audi and BMW have launched 10 cars in first 5 months of this year, plan another 30

Luxury car makers Audi, Mercedes-Benz, and BMW are confident of a strong revival in demand.

The first five months of this year saw 10 launches by the German trio, led by Mercedes-Benz, five, and Audi, four. The rest of 2015 will see another 30 launches by the three companies in the price range of Rs 30 lakh to Rs 1.5 crore.

The car makers are hoping to clock double digit growth this year, beating the low trend of the earlier two years. In 2014, sales of Audi, Mercedes-Benz, BMW, and Jaguar Land Rover grew 5.05 per cent to 30,723 vehicles year-on-year. In 2013, the sales of the four companies grew 4.78 per cent to 29,245 vehicles year-on-year.

On the sidelines of the launch of the Rs 1.4-crore RS 7 Sportback, Joe King, the head of Audi India, said, "We have a busy year, with 10 launches, which is like one every month, also in some new segments and new body styles. There should be strong double-digit growth for us this year."

Audi will launch the Q3 and Q7 sport utility vehicles (SUVs) and one more in the segment later in the year, which will be part of the six launches planned for remaining 2015.

Audi's confidence comes from that the company launched only one product last year, the A3 in the under-Rs 30-lakh segment, which is also a volume-generating segment. Also, the new Q3, which is Audi’s entry-level SUV, is expected to generate volumes.

Audi closed last year with sales of 10,851 vehicles, higher than Mercedes-Benz’s at 10,201 and BMW’s at 6,812. But, in the first quarter of this year, Mercedes beat all with sales of 3,556 vehicles against Audi’s 3,181.

Mercedes will be looking to extend this lead during the rest of the year and has lined up 10 launches. The company has launched five vehicles in 2015, including the new E Class Cabriolet and the CLS 250CDI. Mercedes said it logged sales growth of 49 per cent in April.

Eberhard Kern, managing director and chief executive officer, Mercedes-Benz India, said, "With our ’15 in 15’ strategy, we have planned one of the most intensive product offensives for the Indian market.”

“Of the 15 new products planned, we have launched five in the first quarter and have 10 new models lined up for the remaining three quarters, along with 15 new dealership inaugurations. We have committed to double digit growth and we will achieve that," he added.

BMW, which is struggling to regain its footing in India after having lost market share to its two rivals, will be launching 15 products until December, of which one model has already been launched.

Though the company, which has a plant in Chennai, declined to provide sales targets for the year, it has promised four models under the premium 'M' brand. In all, BMW will have four new products, five facelifts and six refreshments and upgrades.