Honda Cars India is spending INR32bn (US$600m) on its Indian operations, increasing its total investments in the country to INR59.9bn.
The planned investment will take place over the next five to 10 years with an urgency and energy rarely seen in Honda’s Indian operations in the past, a media report said.
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Honda CEO Takanobu Ito told Wards Auto: “We have now reached the stage of going on an offensive.”
Ito wants to double Honda’s global volume to 6m vehicles a year by 2017 with about 50% of sales in emerging markets like China, India, Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand.
The Brio premium compact [designed specially for emerging markets – ed] and Jazz (Fit) hatchback will play a vital role in its Indian comeback market over the next five years. The automaker plans to diversify the two platforms and offer a complete range of models based on them. Honda will also produce its first Indian diesel engine at its plant in Tapukara, Rajasthan.
The Brio platform will be used for a new entry level sedan using the Indian-built, 1.5-litre, diesel. The company plans to widen the Brio and Jazz lines to offer hatchback, sedan, CUV and multipurpose variants, with petrol and diesel engines. Honda will not produce diesel versions of existing models, though.
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By GlobalDataHonda India saw its market share decline to 1.6% from 3.2% as sales fell to 47,548 units from 62,337 between 2009 and 2011. During that time, the company did not adapt to fast-changing customer preferences for smaller, more affordable vehicles and diesel engines.
