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Customer LoginsAudi, JLR, Mercedes-Benz rush to bring in petrol variants in India
The recent air pollution concerns that have affected sales of the diesel variants of premium cars and sports utility vehicles (SUVs) in India have resulted in Mercedes-Benz, Audi, and Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) work towards introducing gasoline (petrol) offerings, reports Press Trust of India (PTI). The gasoline variants of Mercedes-Benz models will be available from September, and Audi is likely to launch its gasoline variants by the first quarter of 2017. JLR has also started working on a similar strategy. Head of Audi India Joe King told PTI, "We are working on future investment plans but they needed to be reworked and the most immediate action was adopting the petrol strategy." The automaker is planning to introduce a gasoline version of its A6 sedan this week and said a gasoline variant of the Q7 SUV "isn't far away". Furthermore, the automaker expects sales of the gasoline variants to account for 30-35% of its overall sales by 2018, a steep jump from the 2-5% currently. Mercedes-Benz India's managing director and CEO, Roland Folger, also said, "We plan to offer petrol variants in all our products by September and give the customers an additional option to choose from."
Significance: In mid-August, India's Supreme Court lifted the conditional ban on registration of diesel vehicles in the National Capital Region (NCR), providing some relief to automakers. Nevertheless, Mercedes-Benz has already announced plans to equip its entire line-up with gasoline engines in India in line with changing consumer preference towards gasoline vehicles in the country. According to IHS Automotive, sales of Mercedes-Benz and Audi in India hit around 12,750 units and 11,175 units in 2015. By 2017, our forecasts estimate that Mercedes-Benz and Audi will sell 15,500 units and 14,650 units, respectively, in India.
About this article
The above article is from IHS Automotive Same-Day Analysis of automotive news, events and trends, and is a deliverable of the World Markets Automotive Service. The service averages thirty stories per day and also provides competitor and country intelligence. Get a free trial.