The best B Segment car in India

     It is no doubt that everyone will agree that Maruti Swift is the best B Segment car in India. We have a question on it. Why does Swift is the best B Segment in car in India. There are more than one answer.

     The Maruti Swift compared to its competitors namely Polo, Micra, i20 is priced lesser. The other most advantage of Swift is that it is a Maruti. Being a Maruti it is easier to service your car with much cheaper spare part price. 

     

     The design of the Swift is so fresh, it will go on selling like hot cakes for another 5 years. The only disadvantage of Swift is its rear seats. The rear seats are cramped and you will find hard to get in and get out if the front seats are pushed even little behind. Suzuki has worked on it and has developed an all new Swift which is wider and has good leg room for rear passengers.

     The million dollar question arises now? Does Maruti launch the all new Swift along the the existing Swift. We see many cars in India being continued along with its last generation model. We at Automobile Planet feel, Maruti is in big confusion perhaps the biggest confusion it has faced in its history. 

     If Maruti launch the new Swift along with the old generation one, it has to price the new Swift above the current Swift. This would make the new Swift come into Micra, Polo and i20 category which we feel are over priced. If the new Swift replace the current one, Maruti will lose the customer base who have showed great interest in the present Swift. It is indeed a tricky situation which Maruti has to sort it out cleverly. We feel Maruti has been good at strategies and would come out with good solution in regards to its one of the best cars Swift. 

Continue Reading | comments (3)

Chevrolet Spark diesel could change the face of the game

     Couple of days back, the Chevrolet boss of India has hinted about Spark diesel to be launched in India soon with a new 1.0L TCDi diesel engine. Chevrolet might price the diesel Spark little higher than the petrol one. This makes the Spark to be the first car in the segment with a diesel option.


     A diesel car at the price of Rs. 3 lakh+ could change the face of the Indian car market. The cheapest diesel currently available in India is priced above Rs. 5 lakh. Car buyers are increasingly worried about the running cost, thanks to the petrol price hike. A person buying a car with budget of Rs. 3 lakh will definitely think about spending another 50K and go for a diesel car. The smaller three diesel engine from General Motors will give good average as well.

 Chevrolet might face a problem of Spark eating the share of the Beat which will also be available with the same diesel engine. Smart pricing and positioning of the cars might change the fortunes of the American auto major.

Continue Reading | comments (1)

A new kid on the block - SX4 diesel, watchout

     The SX4 diesel might be a late entry into the Indian mid-size diesel segemet, but the car promises to ruin the party of Ventos, Manzas, Lineas and ofcouse the Vernas. The Fiat sourced 1.3L multijet diesel engine with Turbo, which the Suzuki calls it as DDiS seams to give better performance than the Linea. Fiat might be kicking itself for transfering the technology of 1.3L multijet diesel engine to Suzuki. This is not the first time Suzuki has bullied the Fiat, even the engine in Swift which is same as that of the Punto, delivers better performance and mileage than the later, thanks to light weight and value engineering from the Japanese.

     The sales of SX4 had sky-dived in the recent past, that was manily due to the lack of diesel option. The SX4 which the company calls as 'Men are Back' indeed lives upto the proverb with is ruggedness and high ground clearance. The large wheels and high ground clearance gobbles the potholes like a devil.

      

     With the launch of SX4, not only the diesel rivals such as Vento, Linea, Manza and Verna are concerned, the bench marker in the segment, Honda City will also face the heat because of the pricing. With the price of Rs. 7.74 lakh for the base variant which goes up to Rs. 8.60 lakh for the top end one (All prices ex-showroom New Delhi), a great chunk of Indian customers will opt for SX4 and since being a Maruti is an advantage.

      The other car which the SX4 will closely compete is the Etios, but by the time Toyota would launch the Etios the SX4 diesel would have dominated the segment. What you say???

Continue Reading | comments

Will Volkswagen & Suzuki share dealerships in India?

     With VW buying Suzuki’s 19.9% share it can be speculated that both the companies could share their dealerships in India like Tata and Fiat.

     Tata and Fiat got into a JV couple of years ago. With the JV, Tatas got the technology from the Fiat and in turn Fiat which lacked the sales and service in India got a channel to sell and service their cars in a better way. Fiat though makes world class cars, could not make a big intact in India from past 10 to 15 years due of lack of its after sales services. Now with the JV, Fiat has sold a substantial number of its newly launched cars Grande Punto and Linea.

     This could set a great example for VW and Suzuki. Suzuki has a vast dealership network in India and VW is relatively new here. Setting up of good number of dealerships will consume both time and substantial cost. So it could be better for VW to share the dealerships with Suzuki. Suzuki can in turn get the diesel technology which it lacks in its portfolio. This could to be a win-win situation for both the companies if the JV is worked out well.

VW and Suzuki tie up story

     German and Europe’s largest carmaker Volkswagen bought 19.9% stake in the Japanese third largest carmaker Suzuki couple of weeks ago by purchasing shares of Suzuki worth $ 2.5 billion. Suzuki had its strength in small cars and for Volkswagen to become the world’s largest carmaker its needs small cars in its portfolio.

     On the other hand Suzuki will be benefited from VW’s diesel engines and sell its cars in Europe from which the company gets 57% of its revenue. Of $2.5 billion dollars, Suzuki will use half of the money to clear its debts and invest in development of next generation technology like electric, hybrid, low emission and low cost vehicles as well.

     One country which will be greatly affected from VW and Suzuki tie up will be India. Global makers are eying Indian market and are expecting their growth here for next decade. With the two company joining hands, both will be benefited in what could be the higly competitive automobile market in the world for sure in coming days.

Continue Reading | comments