India’s romance with SUVs is on the rise and automakers are driving the relationship, having launched 36 such models in the past five years. Such is the craze for SUVs right now, wait times for some of the most popular models are dragging on for more than two years, and new orders are still pouring in. Car buyers are now willing to spend more on their personal mode of transportation and prefer premium variants equipped with features like sunroofs and connected technologies.
In India, where hatchbacks once dominated the sales charts, low- and mid-size sport utility vehicles (SUVs) are growing in popularity, leading to more and more products being launched in the near future. segment. “The SUV segment has seen massive growth over the past few years. The SUV segment’s contribution, which accounts for about 19% of the industry as a whole, has now grown to 40% between 2021-22 and we see it.” developing further”. Maruti Suzuki Senior Managing Director (Sales and Marketing) Shashank Srivastava of India told PTI.
One of the reasons driving this segment’s growth, he added, is that customers prefer cars with a taller stance and better visibility on the road. With this increase in demand, the entry-level SUV segment became the largest segment in the domestic passenger car market last fiscal year, surpassing the premium hatchback segment that has dominated the market since 2011. .
Out of a total of 30,680,000 units last year, the market share of low-end SUVs stood at 6.52 lakh units. It is also not surprising that the largest number of models launched in the past 5 years in the entire passenger car segment are in the small and mid-range SUV segment.
“In addition, new millennials are preferring to buy premium versions equipped with a number of comfort and convenience features. Preference for feature-packed cars has increased from 17% in the last decade. 2016-17 to 24% in 2021-22. .
Studies show that spending will increase further now and people are willing to spend more, he said.
Tata Motors Passenger Cars CEO Shailesh Chandra said the distinctive design, evolving lifestyles, the shift from public transport to private vehicles as a result of the pandemic, and the growing awareness of Safety and convenience features are some of the factors driving growth in the passenger vehicle market. .
“Today’s customers know exactly what they want and we’re constantly trying to give them the same through our range, refreshed in a short period of time, be it completely new feature, variant or product,” he said.
Chandra says the company’s strong comeback in fiscal year 21, regaining third place in volume and becoming a challenging brand, is due to a range of new, developed cars and SUVs. after in-depth market research and understanding the growing needs of customers. .
Kia India Sales manager Myung-Sik Sohn said the growing demand for SUVs by Indian customers clearly shows a strong preference for stylish, bold vehicles with a tall stance. He added: “We launched Carens earlier this year and have sold over 30,000 units in less than five months.
Another trend the company is observing is more and more customers buying the highest-end variants of the car, Sohn noted. “In fact, 47% of all Kias sold in India are top jewelry items and this shows that today’s customers ask for nothing but the best.” Customers today want connected features in their cars, and Kia now has more than 20,000 connected cars on India’s roads with an activation rate of 97%, Sohn said.
Furthermore, modern digitally savvy customers are increasingly looking for the entire experience of owning a vehicle with minimal physical contact, he added.
Atul Sood, Vice President of Strategic Sales and Marketing at Toyota Kirloskar Motor, said that rapid urbanization and economic development are driving demand for SUVs. He pointed out that quite a few models are already available in the segment to meet demand, thus making SUVs one of the most powerful models in the car market today.
Sood notes that new product launches and product refreshes always bring excitement and increased interest to customers. “We at Toyota received positive feedback for all of our new offerings, including the new Camry Hybrid and the new Glanza,” he said.
