Mercedes to enter into small car segment

For an Indian Customer Small car means something between INR                 4-6Lakhs.Mercedes will definitely sell their A-Klasse(but in very less volumes) as it is Technically very sound.If they can focus on localization of Components they will be able to sell more number of Units at a more Competitive Price.But if the A-Klasse is a CBU then only People who can afford for Mercs;Audis.BMWs;Jaguars;RR & Bentleys will buy it as a second or third car at home.As cost of small cars is also increasing slowly in INDIA (Honda Jazz) I think Mercedes must wait for some more time before they start this new segment of Small cars(Because the success of A-Klasse may drive Audi A2,A3,BMW-1Series & Mercedes B-klasse also in Indian market).

In Indian market conditions Small car doesnt refer to the size of the car but the price that ranges from Rs.2 lacs to may be around Rs.6 lacs. In that sense i dont think 16 lacs is a price for small car segment though Merc is a premium segment car. How about C100 or the lowest mid segment car thats available for 25-30 lacs isnt it priced close to this? Someone who wanted to spend 20 lacs will better go for this model. But success depends on the companies expectation.. if they target to sell 100 nos every month and achieve it then its success for them but obviously they wont be able to sell in volumes like the Alto. But for sure every product has customers may be it depends on the segment. May be someone having a BMW will get one for his wife who can use for casual purpose or executives owning a car 12-15 lacs may upgrade to this, or people who want to splurge and snob about will go for it. Someone looking for a car of budget 5-10 lacs will surely not change his decision to get this car cos its MERC. So there is a market for this car but volumes may not be great.

It is not about the success or failure but the brand value.....Mercedes is all about luxary cars and hence its brand value is maintained.

Its no doubt with the experience and the experties of all the years they could come with a really good car in this segment but the U.S.P. of this brand will be damaged. High profile people go for this car as it is positioned only in this category and if Mercedes start coming with small car segment as well then they might not go for this brand.

It is like leaving ur positioning ...like Rakhi Sawant...people watch her as they know she will be doing something odd which is not in the main stream but if tomorrow Rakhi becomes Tulsi then no one will watch her because her brand value is like that only

Every maker are trying to make small and cheaper cars according to the convenience of the people, moreover the price is the most imp part for consideration while purchasing any thing, so 16-20 lacks is out of range for every one except rich people.

who really needs a small car?... the middle class, and the upper middle class.

U have the alto, the punto,i10 etc...

i have 16-20lacs... i wud go for a verna and then buy a plot of LAND!!... value wud never decrease...remember, the middle class wud think thrice before spending, and spend very wisely. No branding wud affect them when u talk for 16lacs!!

consider thehigher class, so called brand loyals do exist for Merc..but

well the brand loyal customers already prevailing have sufficient buying capacity to go for the higher range models, and when presenting to their kids probably they might choose this.

but still that sector is very small in india.

the possiblity to succeed , less.

mridula i do not agree wuth you in this argument...as far small car's market is concerned the segment is mainly middle class...looking at price mercedes small cars i do not think middle class will effort to buy that car..and the loyal customer of mercedes is a very small segment of indian market...as we all know brand is not every thing..so just because it is mercedes it is not necessary  it will be successful

I agree there is a big open market for small car in India.Most of the small car buyers are upgrading from Motorcyles to car. In Indian population millionairs are less than 1%. Mercedes can sell maximum 3 digit figure per year for this price tag .They cannot get the considarable market share in this segment.

Small car is becoming one of the  essential one for the above middle class people, even though it is a tough job to cope up with the price tag of Mercedes.  

I dont think that mercedes will be successful in small car market unless it reduces the price tag. There is huge demand for small cars in India, because of relatively low price .And also most of the middleclass families in India prefer small cars because of low price. And once again rich people can only afford Mercedes....

I don't think so. It will be a colossal failure.

Why?
Because the Indian car buyer is a very good, well-informed judge of value for money. At Rs 16-20 lakhs, the Indian car buyer expects a D-level 3-box sedan with a 2 litre engine.

Skoda Laura 1.9 TDI costs Rs. 16.3 lakh.
Hyundai Sonata Transform costs Rs. 16.5 lakh.
Volkswagen Jetta TDI 1.9 costs Rs. 17 lakh.
Honda Accord 2.4 with Manual Gearbox costs Rs. 19.4 lakh.

Even the three-pointed star in a ring cannot sell a 2-box 4-wheeled scooter for Rs 16-20 lakhs, in India.

As Farah said being the largest buyers are in the middle income group, i think it won't be a huge success like small cars of Maruti, Hyundai etc and only very few will go to buy because of its brand name. Thanks Mridula