Mercedes Benz India plans to regain top spot in the Indian luxury car market with measures including extending its model range.
The company was displaced to second by BMW in the last few years.
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“We will regain the top position by bringing in ‘game changers’. We are planning to further extend our product portfolio in India,” Mercedes Benz India MD and CEO Peter Honegg told just-auto on the sidelines of the M-class media launch in New Delhi.
“We hope to be back on top by 2020.” He added: “We do not have a model in the sub-INR2.5m (US$46,300) segment, which is among the major reasons we’ve fallen behind.”
The company sold 7,430 units in 2011 and 5,819 units in 2010.
The third generation M-Class, assembled locally from CKD kits, will compete with the Audi Q5 and BMW X5. The redesigned line is offered with two specifications with the premium version a limited edition of only 100 units. The automaker sold 1,500 units of previous generations here.
Of those, 300 were sold in 2010 and about 500 in 2011. “SUVs account for about 10% of annual sales in India,” Honegg said.
“Though we have become number two, we continue to increase volume in India and are seeing double digit growth.”
Double digit growth is expected again this year and the new B-class will be launched later, possibly followed by the A-class.
The company sold 2,150 units in the first quarter of 2012.
