BackWorst selling car models of 2015-16
An intensifying competition in the car market and a maturing buyer base is only making survival difficult
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Mumbai: With average monthly sales hovering in the 100-500 range, each one of these car models is caught in a downward spiral, showing no signs of revival in the short to medium term. Intensifying competition and a maturing buyer base is only making their survival more difficult. These models came with huge expectations at launch, and are now collectively riding the road to nowhere.
Chevrolet Cruze and Sail U-VA: Sales of the two models have dropped 33% and 62%, respectively, as compared to the year-ago period. In the year ended March, General Motors sold 935 units of the Cruze and 1,635 units of Sail U-VA. The cars continue to be plagued by patchy after-sales service, low resale value and strong competition. Attempts by the company to revive its flagging fortunes have evoked little response. If anything, a steep price cut by as much ₹ 86,000 on the Cruze in January only reaffirms the company’s waning confidence. Not to forget, this came barely a month after the introduction of the refreshed version.
Fiat Punto Evo, Avventura and Linea: With a monthly average of less than 150 units for the Linea and less than 600 for the Punto and Avventura, the road ahead for Fiat-badged models in India looks uncertain. Fiat, at present, is without a dealership in Mumbai as all three dealers shut operations. Despite an impressive build quality and styling, the fate of these models in India has been besieged by Fiat’s string of failures on the sales and service front.
Honda Brio and Mobilio: Monthly average sales for both models is now less than 700 units and has seen a steep fall in the last 12 months from the year-ago period—30% and 73% for Brio and Mobilio, respectively. The Mobilio numbers are a larger disappointment because in the first eight months of its launch in July 2014, Honda sold 27,532 units of the multi-purpose vehicle (MPV), while in all of the current fiscal it managed just 8,063 units. By the company’s own admission, it misread the segment. MPVs are largely the choice of commercial fleet operators, and Honda has limited experience in the segment.
Mahindra Verito and Vibe: Even though a monthly sales average of less than 300 units a month is not impressive by any standards, the duo is showing some signs of a recovery—volumes of the two have inched up by 15% in the 11 months to February, led by the company putting in greater effort to push them in the cab-aggregator market.
Nissan Sunny: Its monthly sales hover at less than 200 units and the performance looks bleak when compared to the previous year’s volumes. Nissan sold 2,338 units of the model in 2015-16, a drop of 55% compared to 2014-15. The Sunny, despite its stylish features and roomy interiors, failed to draw buyers into the showroom. Strong competition from Maruti Dzire, Honda Amaze and Hyundai Verna, which win hands down in terms of service and maintenance costs, was its undoing.
Renault Pulse and Scala: Sales of the duo never really took off in the Indian market. Clearly, with sales averaging less than 100 units for the Scala, and less than 200 units a month for the Pulse, the models have failed to withstand the onslaught of rival models and don’t top Renault’s priority list. Compared to last year, sales of the two have dipped—26% for the Pulse and 45% for the Scala in 2015-16. They have been non-performers for the local arm of the French car maker that was riding on the success of the Duster earlier and is now banking on the Kwid.
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