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Customer LoginsRenault India to launch more models in high-volume segments
Renault is planning to introduce more models in high-volume segments in India. In line with a growing consumer preference for the sport utility vehicle (SUV) body style, Renault's plan involves four new or next-generation SUVs in the next three years.
- Significance: Renault plans to launch several new models in India to capitalise on the lead offered by the recent success of the Kwid hatchback.
- Implications: Important among the new product launches will be the Kaptur SUV, the next-generation Koleos, and an as-yet-unnamed B-segment crossover.
- Outlook: Considering the automaker's solid product pipeline, we forecast its Indian sales volumes will grow steadily from nearly 122,900 units this year to 270,600 units in 2019.
Renault India plans to introduce new nameplates in India to consolidate its position following the success of the Duster sport utility vehicle (SUV) and the Kwid hatchback. In an interview with the Press Trust of India (PTI), Renault India Operations country CEO and managing director Sumit Sawhney indicated that the new launches will compete in high-volume segments. He told the PTI, "In India most of the cars - over 70% - are less than 4 metres. The weight of the mini segment where we have the Kwid is 25%. So, we have a large space to make our portfolio."
While the executive did not share specific details of Renault's upcoming cars in India, he stated that the French automaker is not interested in launching "me too" products. "Whatever car we want to bring, we want to bring volumes with that car. We won't bring a car just for the heck of bringing a car," said Sawhney, highlighting the differentiated approach Renault took with the Kwid nameplate. Despite competing with leaders Maruti Suzuki and Hyundai in the small-car segment, the A-segment hatchback has attracted strong volumes, thanks to its SUV-shape and competitive prices.
"When we started our journey in India we had a joint venture and we wanted to come back to India very fast, so we adopted a bridge strategy. It was on back of SKD [semi-knocked-down] products and cross-badging products. This was only done to immediately come back," said the executive, referring to the automaker's earlier strategy under which it launched the Scala sedan and the Pulse hatchback, both cross-badged products from alliance partner Nissan's stable. However, Sawhney added that the company is moving away from its earlier strategy towards a mainstream strategy.
Outlook and implications
Thanks to the solid demand for the Kwid hatchback, as well as continued support for the Duster SUV, Renault is the leading automaker this year in India in gaining market share. Despite the recent success of the Kwid A-segment hatchback, there is a clear transformation in buying behaviour in India from A-segment to B-segment vehicles. Although Sawhney did not offer concrete details about the new vehicles, his statements seem to acknowledge this shift in consumer preferences. This year, Maruti Suzuki launched the Vitara Brezza compact SUV, further adding to the shift.
IHS Automotive's sales forecasts indicate the automaker is indeed working on launching several models in the A- and B-segments in the next few years. The automaker's new strategy will not only bring new models in these segments but also prune the underperforming models carried forward under the earlier plan. As a result, we expect the Fluence sedan will not be part of Renault India's line-up next year, while the addition will be the Megane sedan, which is expected to be positioned between Honda's City and Civic. Also making its debut in the next calendar year will be the Kaptur SUV. The C-segment SUV will be joined by the next-generation Koleos, based on a common module family (CMF) modular platform.
While the subsequent year is expected to be a year of consolidation, we expect Renault to get busy again in 2019 with key launches of an A-segment van and a B-segment crossover - both models being based on the CMF-A architecture. The B-segment crossover is likely to rival Maruti Suzuki's Vitara Brezza and Hyundai's Carlino, which is also scheduled to debut in 2019. The year will also see the switchover of the next-generation Duster from the B0 platform to the CMF-B platform.
Considering the automaker's solid product pipeline, we forecast Renault India's sales volumes to grow steadily from nearly 122,900 units this year to 270,600 units in 2019.
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.