While discounts even to the tune of 15% of the car price has become a reality in this subdued market two models have managed drive away with a robust consumer response.
Mahindra & Mahindra's compact utility vehicle Quanto, which is a down-sized version of the Xylo and the all-new compact car Alto 800 from Maruti Suzuki continue to defy the prevailing trends in the market.
The domestic car market of India has grew by just 3% in the period April-October this year at 1,082,431 units as compared to 1,052,560 units. This is a far cry from the growth of 9-12% predicted for the year forcing companies to dole out huge discounts to liquidate stocks.
With bookings of over 35,000 units the new Alto 800 in less than a month after it was launch in mid-October, is now one of the fastest selling passenger vehicles in recent times.
The car positioned as a replacement to the earlier generation Alto is increasingly promoted by Maruti Suzuki, India's biggest car maker. Maruti also sells the Alto K10 in India with a bigger and more powerful engine.
Further the Delhi-based company is sitting on an order pile of 125,000 units of the premium hatchback Swift and compact sedan Swift DZire. Both cars are available in petrol and diesel versions while the Alto is available only in petrol and CNG forms.
Meanwhile, Mumbai-based Mahindra & Mahindra has garnered bookings of over 10,000 units of the Quanto in under two months of launch. The compact seven seater is one of the smallest utility vehicles on sale in India.
With increased demand Mahindra & Mahindra is forced to enhance production capacity of the Quanto at its plant in Nashik. The price range of the Quanto starts from Rs. 5.82 lakh to Rs 7.36 lakh (Ex showroom Thane).
Pravin Shah, Chief Executive - Automotive Division, Mahindra & Mahindra said, “We are delighted that the Quanto has received over 10,000 bookings in a span of 2 months and we are thankful to our customers for this overwhelming response. We are confident of meeting the demand for the Quanto and are in the process of ramping up our production capacity at Nashik towards the same”.
