Porsche Panamera may hit Indian roads by Sep 2009

Panamera, the new car from Porsche is likely to roll out in India by Sep 2009, after making its European debut in late summer 2009. Sources say that that Precision Car India (its sole importer in the country) has already ordered 50 units of Panamera.

The new Porsche Panamera comes with a wide range of features quite unparalleled in the premium segment. Among all the characteristics typical of a genuine Porsche the extra-low and sleek coupe silhouette, that offers ample space inside for four passengers and variable loading space for luggage.

The Panamera also proudly boasts of power units offering a high standard of fuel efficiency and low exhaust emission without compromising on performance. All power units featured in the Panamera are modern V-engines with either six or eight cylinders covering a power range from 300 - 500 bhp and featuring Direct Fuel Injection. The new car will be priced above. Rs. 86 lakh for the Indian market.

Porsche India, which sold 168 units last year, has set a target of 250 units in the current year.

Source: http://news.infibeam.com/blog/news/2009/02/07/porsche_panamera_may_hit_indian_roads_by_sep_2009.html

BMW India to grow dealership network

German luxury carmaker BMW plans to introduce four new models in India in 2009. According to Peter Kronschnabl, president, BMW India, the company would introduce its latest BMW 3 Series as well as its new 7 Series luxury saloon cars in the first quarter of 2009.

BMW would also launch the X6 sport utility vehicle in the third quarter of the year. The company also plans to increase its dealership network in Tier II cities in India after raising its sales target for the country. It has chalked out an extensive dealer development strategy to support its plan for multiplying its annual sales volume.

As part of its expansion plan, the company has announced the opening of Platino Classic, its dealership in Kochi, Kerala, last month. With this new dealership, BMW now has 12 dealers across the country including Bird Automotive (Gurgaon, NCR), Deutschen Motoren (New Delhi); Navnit Motors (Mumbai), Infinity Cars (South Mumbai); Krishna Automobiles (Chandigarh); Navnit Motors (Bangalore), Delta Motors (Hyderabad), Kun Exclusive (Chennai), Bavaria Motors (Pune), OSL Prestige (Kolkata), Parsoli Motors (Ahmedabad) and Platino Classic (Kochi) .

BMW India will further strengthen the network by expanding into Ludhiana, Bhubaneshwar, Jaipur and Coimbatore by the end of 2009. Its dealerships display the 3 Series range (325i, 320i and 320d, 320d Highline) and 5 Series (525i, 530i, 520d, 530d and 530d Highline) that are produced at the BMW plant in Chennai. Among the fully imported models on display are the 6 Series (650i Coupé and 650i Convertible), 7 Series (740Li, 750Li, 760Li and 730Ld), X3 (X3 2.0 d) and the X5 (X5 3.0d and X5 4.8i).

The company, which sold 1,397 cars in calendar year 2007, raised its sales target in India by 40 per cent to 2,800 cars for the year ended December 2008. During the 11 months ended November 2008, BMW had already sold 2,705 cars in India making it quite likely to exceed the target.

Soruce:http://autocarpro.in/contents/NewsDetails.aspx?NewsID=459

Luxury car buyers get the best rates

DELHI: Need a Rs 2-lakh loan to buy an Alto? You may have to pay up to 14% interest on the loan while your boss who’s buying a Mercedes E-Class may be charged just 6%. Incredible it may sound, Indian buyers of small cars are paying much higher interest rates compared with the well-heeled who can afford the beauties on wheels.

Faced with a severe slump in sales, companies that make luxury cars, such as BMW, Mercedes-Benz, Porsche, Volvo, Skoda and Audi, are offering low interest packages of 6-7% to lure customers. Loans for these cars used to attract interest rates of up to 15% just three months ago. However, loans for small and mid-size cars continue to attract 12-15% interest rates. The low interest rates lead to a difference of up to Rs 8,000 in monthly payouts on a Rs 18-lakh loan.

Sales of luxury cars were down by 34% to 379 vehicles in November compared with 571 vehicles in November last year while the drop for all passenger cars was much lower at 19% to 83,059 vehicles.

Companies no longer believe that demand for niche cars is immune to interest rate changes. They are resorting to all means to tide over the demand slump and clinch targeted annual sales. “We are also feeling the impact of the financial crisis. Customers are wary of new purchases. We have doled out special finance packages with our financial partner Reliance Capital to lower the cost for prospective customers,” Porsche Cars India MD Rod Wallace said.

Carmakers, faced with declining sales, are also doling out huge discounts. Mercedes-Benz is clearing the stocks of its E-Class sedan, which costs up to Rs 40 lakh, by offering a Rs 8-lakh rebate, as the company intends to launch a new E-class model. This is besides a 3% finance payout option for customers.

BMW has also taken similar steps through its preferred financier ICICI Bank. “The slump in the past two months has been steep though we will achieve sales of 2,800 cars in 2008. We have launched several innovative schemes to increase footfall in our showrooms,” said BMW India president Peter Kronschbabl.

Analysts say lower EMIs make a perceptible change in the luxury car segment. “These offers help increase sales tally. About 10% of the customers are swayed by fall in the cost of finance. And banks are more confident to finance the purchase of luxury cars,” said Mumbai-based consultancy Booz & Company director Vikas Sehgal.

Source: http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/articleshow/3859181.cms

BMW Achieves 100 Per Cent Growth in Car Sales

Date & Place 18/12/2008 The Times of India

Luxury Car maker, BMW India Private Ltd, has achieved 100 per cent growth in its car sales this year, a top official of the company said. With its product range, BMW India aims to deliver 2800 vehicles to customers in India in 2008 and have already retailed 2703 cars till November, BMW India President Peter Kronschnabi, told reporters here.

In 2007, 1387 cars had been sold. But the growth is likely to dip next year due to recession, he said. The car maker plans to strengthen its dealer network by stepping into tier II markets of Ludhiana, Bhubaneshwar, Jaipur and Coimbatore by 2009 end, he said after inaugurating BMW's first showroom in Kerala at Kochi.

Presently, 12 dealers represent BMW in the Indian market. Asked if recession will impact sales in India, he said in the BMW's global car market, Indian market was lesser affected. In the last calendar year 4300 cars were sold in the luxury segment and this year 7000 cars have been sold and BMW's market share was 39 per cent, he said.


There were no plans on slashing prices, he said. The BMW's Chennai plant has a production capacity of 3000 units per year on a single shift basis, he said. Asked if production capacity was likely to be increased, he said 'we have a possibility of further enlarging production if market requires'.

There are no plans to export from India, he said adding the company first has to fully establish itself in the country.