Gone are the days when people prefer to have a big car. The modern trend is to drive swiftly with compact cars. The year that's gone gave an ever-increasing number of car options to the Indian car buyers.
They could choose from a wider plethora and the good news is 2007 promises to unveil an even better fare.
Taking this fact in to consideration, Honda Siel Cars India plans to launch its compact car in the first quarter of 2009 and hopes to sell 40,000 units a year, according to component makers, who have been asked to submit bids for supplying parts.
Amazingly, Honda's ambition is to break into the segment which accounts for 70 per cent of the Indian market.
Have you ever wondered how Honda's compact car brands - a hatchback called the Jazz in Europe and Fit in Asia - are not available in India? “Every manufacturer works onfull and minor model changes, we can't comment on specifics,'' said NK Goila, vice-president at Honda.
The compact car will be preceded by the introduction of a new City sedan in 2008. The company expects to sell 60,000 units of the new vehicle a year, said the suppliers, who wished to remain unnamed. The City is the highest selling sedan in India at 40,000 cars a year.
Honda, which entered the Indian market in 1997, leads all the car segments in which it operates except the SUV segment. The company dominates the mid-sized, premium and executive segments with the City, Accord and the recently-launched Civic sedan.
It also prompted General Motors and Hyundai to work on smaller engines for their Chevrolet U-VA and Getz vehicles to avail the tax break.
Honda is building a factory for 50,000-units a year in Rajasthan where it plans to make the compact car. The car is likely to compete against the Maruti Swift, Chevrolet U-VA and Hyundai Getz in the premium hatchback segment. The Swift sells around 61,000 units a year while the Getz sells 15,000 units.
While Honda has 1.3 litre and 1.5 litre engines that could be put in the small car, it is also reportedly working on a 1.2 litre engine to avail the tax breaks given in last year's budget, component makers say.
But in its 10-year blueprint for India's automotive industry released in January, the Government reduced the car size to 3.8 metres, potentially derailing the investment plans of these car makers.
India is striving for introducing new models on the road to fulfill customer's need. A major renaissance is certain to take place in a couple of years.
