Petrol hike is public transports gain

Published: Friday, Sep 23, 2011, 13:53 IST By Chaitra Devarhubli | Place: Ahmedabad | Agency: DNA

The recent hike in petrol price has forced commuters in the city to take public transport and avoid private transportation as far as possible. This has benefited the city's public transport system. The recent hike is the second price hike in four months. Now people are coughing up Rs71.2 per litre of petrol and feeling the pinch.While they are a worried lot, AMTS (Ahmedabad Municipal Transport Services) and BRTS (Bus Rapid Transit System) are happy as both services are witnessing a rise in their revenue. More people have started considering taking a bus to deal with petrol price hike. BRTS of Ahmedabad Janmarg Limited (AJL) witnessed a growth of 6.8% in its revenue just a few days after the price hike. As per the figures shared by an AJL official, the total number of passengers using BRTS was 1.39 lakh on Friday and this rose to 1.41 lakh by Monday thus indicating an increase of 2%. "On Thursday, AJL recorded an income of Rs8.16 lakh which rose to an amount of Rs8.72 lakh on Monday, indicating an increase of nearly Rs55,000," said the AJL official. AMTS officials shared some figures on the rise in revenue of AMTS and said, "In August we witnessed an average income of Rs24.5 lakh per day. Surprisingly, in the current month, we have been registering an income of Rs25 lakh per day on an average indicating a growth of 2%, all thanks to the petrol price hike." An Amdavadi who switched to BRTS said, "I commute to my office at Shivranjini daily from Naroda. Now I have changed my mode of transportation."

Biodiesel

The festive season is around which car will you buy?

Published: Saturday, Sep 3, 2011, 12:32 IST By Team DNA | Place: Pune | Agency: DNA

Theres a lot of excitement over the car market in the country today. Popular projections suggest that the booming auto sector will soon overtake the IT sector, as one of the frontranking growth segments of the economy. Last year, we saw a 30% growth in passenger vehicle sales and more than 2.5 million cars were sold according to SIAM- the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers. The low cost sub-compact group grew by 32.69% and not just the B-segment cars but

even the luxury-end limos registered very good demand.In 2010, we had 25 auto firms launching operations in India, so that sets the tone of whats happening in the country. If we are to look at the market from the buyers point of view, then theres a huge variety to choose from. But at the same time, there are concerns about the reach and quality of after-salesservice and rising fuel costs. Attractive mileage and whether to opt for diesel or petrol versions are also questions uppermost for buyers. Team DNA engaged leading auto dealers from Pune in an interesting conversation to share perspectives on whats happening in this segment. Speakers: Sunil Arlikatti,CEO, Deccan Honda (dealers for Honda) Shirish Kulkarni, CEO, J Director, DSK Toyota (dealers for Toyota) Kaushik Kothari, CEO, J MD, Crystal Honda (dealers for Honda) Jay Shah, Executive director, Vidyut Motors (dealers for Renault) Soumen Chaudhuri, CEO, J Williams (dealers for Mitsubishi Lancer & Pajero) Here are the excerpts: DNA: What is the mood of the market today in view of the hike in interest rates and rising fuel prices? What does the buyer want? Has the buyer become very demanding today? Jay Shah: We dealers faced a problem with the Indian market moving very fast and foreign technology coming very fast, but the customers are not maturing fast enough. The market is slowly beginning to mature with the entry of many players, whether you go from basic A segment to D segment or even further. Customers now know to some extent that they have to make choices within the same category of cars. This is an

improvement and makes our job easier. I feel in the print media, the columns on cars must talk about how to save money, rather than compare features of one model with the other. For example: how can one save money on insurance? Insurance can be discounted to 20%-30 %, if we have to cut-off the middleman. If we dealers also do insurance, we have to employ people for the service, have to ensure that you get the service and for this we will take some margin of commission. Shirish Kulkarni: There is a very big movement in the market but there is a need to educate customers. There are certain people who try to compare two models or two different manufacturers, without having much knowledge. For example, you cannot compare Etios with Honda City, but people do compare. On a macro level the manufacturers must look at educating customers on how various segments are divided. In India, nobody had explored the D segment until recently, which came in much later. Today customers have moved on to buying cars worth over the Rs3 crore tag. The market is shifting very quickly. Kaushik Kothari: As said rightly, the customer is becoming more and more demanding. Five or six years ago, we used to talk of very few features like air bag and integrated music system. Now all the safety features have even surpassed the expectations of customers that they had five years ago. Now the customer looks for something else. The customer is going to become more and more demanding as days go by. I think the market trend is going to be such for the next 20 years because India is a developing country. Soumen Chaudhuri: I feel there is an amazing trend in the market. Inspite of all sorts of financial crises around the world,

you see a robust Indian automobile market with a steady growth. I think India is set to become the biggest market after China. We have the buying power, we have the numbers. What I see in metros like Pune today is a sudden demand for high-end cars and SUVs, which is good. However, the Indian customer or the masses will always go for mid-segments or small cars because we are very conservative in our upbringing. We dont go and spend on something we cant afford. I feel, the mid-segment and small cars will be our future. DNA: The concept of brand loyalty has changed. What is really happening in the market? Which segment is growing very fast? Jay: Loyalty for Maruti has diluted because so many entrants are coming in their forte of small cars. At the same time, Maruti has its loyalty because they have such a big range and if someone wants to change, they have an option to choose within the Maruti family itself.Honda and Toyota are in India for a long time. So any new entrant has to have that matching quality as well as something more to offer. When there are so many new options for customers, they are willing to try; they wouldnt have tried if brand loyalty was so predominant. DNA: What about hatchback segment? Kaushik: The hatchback segment has just entered as two years is not a very big time period. The B+ segment is definitely increasing because of greater urbanisation, greater demand and convenience. In fact, the latest trend is that automatics are selling very well.If you compare any of the developed markets, the Jazz better known as Pit in the US is one of the hottest selling models in the hatchback segment in the US, even in Dubai for that matter. These are priced higher than the City in developed countries. The reason being that the Jazz is completely an urban car in terms of space. In terms of engine it carries the same engine worldwide except in India where it is

1.2-litre engine and that is the reason the Jazz was priced at Rs8 lakh initially. It was carrying all the elements of Honda and with lot of parts and components that were imported at that point of time. Now with the localisation a price correction has been done. So I think the Jazz is a brilliant car and now with the new price tag, it would not have to look back.
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Shirish: India is developing into a market like the US, where in a family of four, you have four cars and the fifth car is for the family dog. This is happening because the economy is growing so fast. The IT and the real estate sector have grown so rapidly that corporate level people like managers getting a package of Rs50,000 to Rs60,000 a month, can easily afford a car worth Rs8 or 10 lakh. DNA: How is your brand positioning in the market and which are your best selling models? Shirish: Toyota has a very strong positioning in the market. Since its been around for 11 long years, they have established their reputation on quality and customer satisfaction. Brand positioning for Toyota is extremely strong andpeople have recognised it as a good brand. When Toyota Qualis was introduced in India, Toyota made it very clear that one has to drive the vehicle in order to know why they have got the vehicle into India. Innova has been making history. We have a waiting period of eight months for Innova. It has been a bestseller for a very long time. Toyota Etios is also picking up very well and now we have the petrol version, already out for both Etios and Etios Liva. Etios and Etios Liva have also shown a very steady growth. Jay: Renault is one of the oldest car makers in the world. Even though it is in alliance with Nissan worldwide, in India, Renault and Nissan have come separately. Their technology for suspension, for interiors, for travel comfort and reliability is their USP. Within the next 18 months they will be coming with five models in petrol and diesel. It has a range right from Rs4 lakh to over Rs25 lakh. They are here to catch up with everybody. Kaushik: Honda City has been our hottest selling model. This car has spoken for itself all throughout. It has won nine consecutive awards and is the only one with this distinction. Secondly if you compare any Honda product, Honda in itself looks at driveability, reliability and quality. Honda will never compromise on these three factors and its products rank high on space, low maintenance and high fuel efficiency which are important for customers. Honda is definitely ahead of its time in terms of technology and quality. Sunil: Ive been with Honda for 12 years and Deccan Hondas spread over the city has been commendable. We used to sell 25 cars a year in 2000. I then had six sales consultants and I was the manager;today, I have four managers and 45 sales consultants and I am the CEO. So the spread of our showrooms in the city speaks for Hondas strength as a brand. Soumen: At J Williams and Company, we have been associated with Hindustan Motors for the last 60 years. So, from Landmaster to Ambassador, to now Mitsubishi, that is a relationship that our owner, Mr Irani does not want to break under any circumstances. There have been ups and downs. Mitsubishi as a product is wonderful as it is a Japanese product. Apart from being fuel-efficient, it is low cost on maintenance, and high quality structure.Pajero is very popular and is a brand that is yet to catch up in the market. We launched Outlander two years ago and are coming with Pajero Sports this year. DNA: Finally, what is the average car buyer looking for in terms of fuel efficiency, style and design? What factors should one consider before going in for a purchase? Kaushik: My advice to customers looking for a vehicle below Rs10 lakh, and while deciding between the petrol and diesel versions is to consider the approximate driving mileage in an entire year. If it is more then 40,000 km in a year, then it makes sense to go for a diesel car. The initial cost of procuring a diesel car is higher than a petrol car. Cost of maintenance of a petrol car is lower than a diesel car. You get a higher resale value for a petrol car than a diesel car. When it comes to maintenance, one must remember that Japanese cars are low on maintenance. Such cars have a high resale value. Shirish: Look at the brand, look at the history of the brand and look at how they have been placed worldwide. One must also look at how they tackle their problems and how they have managed to overcome them. In my experience whatever 60-year history Toyota has, it has never faced a large issue like the other manufacturers. Their competency level in the cars is high, which is why they are a single brand and rank number one in volume sales. If you have a good dealer in your territory, who will assure that he will give you good after sales service, you should buy any model from him. Jay: In terms of deciding between diesel and petrol, the pragmatic thing to do is to consider your daily running. If is it 40,000 km per year, which is about 100 km a day, then go for a diesel version. From resale point of view, you can put a gas kit on a petrol car, so a buyer has the option to put CNG or LPG, whereas you cant do that in a diesel car. The resale value forpetrol car is better.