i10 replaces Santro as Hyundai's flagship brand

A little over two years after its launch, i10 has replaced Santro as Hyundai’s flagship brand in India. That’s because the average monthly sales of i10 have reached 12,000 a month against 7,000 of Santro

Hyundai’s Marketing Director Arvind Saxena says i10 has finally become the company’s flagship brand due to its sterling performance in calendar year 2009. i10 has exceeded Santro’s sales despite its higher price (Rs 3.35-5 lakh) compared to the latter’s Rs 3.2-3.6 lakh.

Analysts say i10 overtaking Santro is a sign that the Indian customer is moving on to bigger cars even in the budget segment. Maruti Suzuki found itself in a similar position a few years ago when Alto overtook 800 to become its largest selling car in India.

 

Saxena, however, doesn’t want to underplay Santro’s role. “Santro is also a very strong player in the Hyundai portfolio and still pulls in a large number of customers. We recently refurbished Santro and that has added to its appeal.”

Apart from its superior performance (i10 was adjudged the ‘Car of the Year’ by the prestigious ICOTY jury in 2008) due to the advanced 1.2 litre Kappa engine delivering greater operational efficiency in terms of both fuel consumption and emissions, a big credit for the car’s success goes to its aggressive and clever advertising.

Last year, it organised a customer event nicknamed the ‘Kappa Challenge’ - a unique concept to touch, feel, drive and experience i10 equipped with the Kappa engine for all its existing and potential customers. Set to prove the supremacy of Kappa engine, the ‘Kappa Challenge’ was organised in Delhi, Mumbai, Chandigarh, Kolkata, Pune, Lucknow, Ahmedabad, Hyderabad, Bangalore and Chennai.

In addition, to prove the reliability and performance of the i10, another unique event was organised when two cars were driven from Delhi to Paris by members of the media. The cars were driven for over 10,000 km in 17 days and across Europe. i10 performed it flawlessly and reached Paris without a hitch.

The company also attributes a lot of i10’s success to its brand ambassador Shahrukh Khan.What is interesting is that the superstar has stopped using Khan in Santro advertisements. Saxena would only say that the superstar was the perfect fit as a brand ambassador for i10.

Buoyed by its success, Hyundai also showcased an electric version for i10 at the Delhi Auto Expo last month. The i10 Electric offers dual recharging cycles and would take around five hours to be fully charged, which will enable the car to run for 160 km. Saxena says both i10 and Santro could co-exist as the latter is positioned as a value-for-money car that is ideal for a first time buyer, targeted at nuclear families. On the other hand, i10 is positioned as a performance car that is urban, stylish, sporty and targeted at the younger audience.