In August, India experienced some of the heaviest rain but it also rained launches from Maruti’s all-new Swift to Audi’s all-new A6. These launches, at a time when the auto sales are going through a slowdown, are targetting sales in the upcoming festive season in October and the diesel variants on offer aim at tapping the massive consumer swing towards diesel due to increasing petrol prices.
Market leader Maruti Suzuki sold 91,442 vehicles in August inclusive of 14,356 units for export, as against 104,791 vehicles in August 2010. The Alto continued to be its top-selling model with sales of 23,170 units followed by the Wagon R at 10,913 units. However, labour issues continued to dog the company and its Manesar plant in end-August, adversely impacting sales during the month. Maruti sold 7,511 units of the new Swift. The numbers will not please the company as the Swift is its key weapon against the Toyota Etios which has been on a roll. The Ritz brought in over 7,000 units for Maruti and is emerging as a favourite for some buyers.
Tata Motors reported sales at 16,829 units in July, a fall of 33.25 percent from 25,212 units in August 2010. Its Nano sales stood at 1,202 units, down 85 percent. The Indica range reported sales of 7,206 units, down four percent compared to August 2010 and the Indigo family recorded sales of 5,100 units, down 24 percent as compared to year-earlier sales. Sales of the Sumo, Safari and Aria grew by 15 percent to 3,321 units. The company launched a 4x2 version of the Aria to boost sales of the crossover that have not been really consistent since its launch in October last year. With the base 4x2 costing about Rs 1.60 lakh less than the 4x4 version, the company hopes to give the Aria sales a real leg up.
Meanwhile, Hyundai Motor India’s total August sales stood at 51,030 units against 50,633 units in August 2010. Domestic sales accounted for 26,677 units compared to 28,601units for the same month last year. ArvindSaxena, director - marketing and sales, HMIL, said: “The market continues to be tough with no signs of recovery in the immediate future. The rising fuel prices and interest rates have caused this sluggish trend.” Segment-wise cumulative sales for August 2011 were as follows: A2 segment (Santro, i10, i20) 43,687 units; A3 (Accent, Verna) 7,105 units; A5 (Sonata Transform) 12 units; and Santa Fe (SUV) 226 units.
Škoda Auto India sold 1,812 units in August 2011 as against 1,512 units in August 2010 while Volkswagen India, which launched the new Jetta, sold 5,634 units of its key models, the Polo and Vento. The Vento sold 3,019 units in the month and while it has been able to take on the City admirably, Honda’s recent price cuts have given the Japanese carmaker’s sales a shot in the arm.
General Motors India, which launched the diesel-powered Chevrolet Beat, saw sales increase 14 percent led by the overwhelming response to this diesel variant. The company sold 9,050 units in August 2011 against 7,941 units in August 2010. Model-wise, sales comprised 4,681 Chevrolet Beats, 1,924 Taveras, 1,301 Sparks, 667 Cruzes, 161 Optras, 203 Aveos and 113 Captivas.
Toyota Kirloskar Motor sold 11,693 units in August which included 2,710 Etios saloons and 2,824 Livas. A special edition of the Innova was also launched.
Ford India’s sales have increased 40 percent so far this year with sales of 80,332 wholesale and export vehicles from January to August 2011, compared to 57,303 units sold during the same period last year. It sold 8,914 combined wholesale and export units in August 2011. Sales of the Figo were 5,204 units, which is down from last year’s monthly average but this may be explained by the fact that with cars like the Toyota Liva and Beat, the Figo now has some real competition.
For Mahindra & Mahindra, the Verito continues to bring cheer with sales of 1,710 units in August 2011. The company’s domestic sales stood at 35,756 units as against 27,275 units during August 2010, up 31 percent. The Verito sold 801 units in August 2010. Rajesh Jejurikar, chief executive, Automotive Division, M&M, said: “We have been able to maintain a healthy growth of 30 percent despite increasing pressures.”
Nissan Motor India, which recently rolled out its 100,000th Micra in just over a year, sold 1,384 units in August comprising 1,345 Micras and the rest comprising other models. The company is now working on its all-new saloon Sunny unveiled last month and slated for an October launch. Nissan Motor India, which has an overall capacity of 400,000 units at full ramp up, will ultimately supply the Micra to over 100 countries across Africa, Middle East and Europe. In the meantime, it is working full throttle on its dealership network as it aims to have an 85 percent of the Indian market expanding the number of dealers from 35 to over 100, which is its biggest challenge.
Honda Siel Cars India (HSCI) reported a 25 percent growth in August 2011. The company reported 6,907 units in sales for August 2011 as against 5,518 units in August 2010, making it the highest ever numbers for the month. HSCI sold 5,819 Citys, registering a 35 percent growth from the 4,251 units sold in August 2010. Its other model run-up included sales of 600 Jazz hatchbacks, 330 Civics, 132 Accords and 26 CR-Vs.
In the luxury segment, Audi India sold 510 units in the month while BMW India sold 816 units. BMW India also launched two diesel versions of the X3 with the xDrive20d making its debut this month and the xDrive30d available in October. Audi, apart from the launch of the all-new A6, announced the availability of the Business Edition of the Q5 which will be cheaper than the regular model. Clearly, as with all launches, the aim is to leverage the upcoming festive season.
Two-wheelers buck sales slowdown
In the two-wheeler segment, Hero MotoCorp sold 503,654 units of its bikes, an 18.6 percent increase over 424,617 units sold in the year-earlier month. Anil Dua, senior vice-president, (marketing & sales), “August has been a memorable and exciting month for us. We created a new name, identity and positioning, and have begun to build the company’s new brand architecture.
While Bajaj Auto sold 338,054 units in the month as against 289,176 units in August 2010, an increase of 17 percent, India Yamaha Motor posted a growth of 32 percent in its domestic sales during August 2011 as compared to its sales in August last year. The company recorded sales of 29,934 units as compared to 22,683 units in August 2010. Roy Kurian, national business head, said: “We are very happy with our consistent sales growth this year built on account of our strong product portfolio and high customer confidence achieved through many of our marketing initiatives including the Yamaha Safe Riding Science and the R15 One Make Race Championship. We are focused on increasing our reach in Tier 2, Tier 3 cities and the rural areas, for which we are planning to set up 3S (Sales, Service & Spares) facilities in these areas. We are also hopeful that the upcoming festive season will help us further boost our sales.”
TVS Motor Company closed August 2011 with an increase of 14 percent in overall sales. Total two-wheeler sales grew by 14 percent with sales of 190,184 units in August 2011 in comparison with 167,109 units in August 2010. Scooter sales rose 28 percent with 52,253 units sold compared to 40,913 units recorded in August 2010. Motorcycle sales grew by 17 percent accounting for 77,726 units in August as against 66,574 units in the year-earlier month.
Mahindra Two Wheelers’ scooter sales for August 2011 stood at 15,120 units. Total cumulative sales from April to August 2011 were 60,348 units, a growth of 11 percent over the same period last year when sales totaled 54,388 units. “We continue to sustain our growth momentum for our scooter brands in many key markets,” said Anoop Mathur, president – Two Wheeler Sector. Cumulative sales for the company have crossed a landmark figure of 250,000, with both the Rodeo and Duro scooter brands having a franchise of more than 100,000 consumers across the country.
BRIAN DE SOUZA