With the recently launched Mobilio MPV selling in good numbers, and the new Honda City leading the C2 sedan segment, Honda has now moved its focus to developing a new hatchback and a compact SUV for the Indian market. Both these cars are expected to hit the streets by 2017.
Both of these new cars, the hatchback and the compact SUV, will be based on the same GSP platform on which the Brio and Mobilio are based. The small car is expected to be in the price bracket of Rs. 4 lakh and will fight against the Hyundai i10, Chevrolet Beat, Maruti Wagon R, Maruti Celerio etc. The hatchback segment contributes to approximately 51% of the total car sales in India, and Honda wants a bigger piece of this pie now. The Brio, has not really managed to set the sales charts on fire and Honda now plans to go for the bigger picture here.
Another fast heating up segment is the sub-4 metre compact SUVs. The new compact SUV from Honda will rival the popular Ford EcoSport. Other manufacturers such as Maruti, Mahindra and Hyundai are also expected to launch a product in this segment in the coming years. But going by the Mobilio’s pricing, we have our doubts about how competitively the new SUV will be priced, given that the Mobilio itself is slightly overpriced compared to its arch rival even though it is based on the relatively cheaper Brio platform.
The strategy is clear; Honda wants to go all out in driving in more sales numbers, which it lost to competitors due to the lack of diesel engines. With the increase in the product range, Honda aims to capture a double digit market share in the Indian automotive sector.
Source – Economic Times