WILL AUDI OVERTAKE BMW INDIA’S SALES ON THE BACK OF THE Q3 CROSSOVER?

It’s quite literally a battle royale with all three German luxury car makers, Audi, BMW and Mercedes Benz locked in a tussle for sales supremacy in the fast growing Indian luxury automobile market. While Mercedes Benz has been the oldest of the lot, doing business in the country for well over a decade now, new entrants BMW and Audi have pipped the three pointed star brand to third place. Well, Audi has just edged past Mercedes Benz for the first three months of 2012, with BMW still managing to lead the field, but by just a whisker.

 

To give you a perspective, BMW India sold 2,369 units while Audi managed 2,269 units with Mercedes Benz making up the rear with 2,130 units, for the first 3 months of 2012. Now, Audi India has a very interesting launch lined up for June 2012, which is when the Q3 crossover will be the latest addition to the Teuton brand’s luxury crossover line up. The Q3 will be an extremely important launch for Audi and here’s exactly why. The product will be the German luxury car brand’s least priced offering, aimed at attracting a brand new set of younger buyers. However, the 2012 Audi Q3 is expected to be priced over the BMW X1 crossover.

This apart, Audi has been a class leader in the Indian luxury SUV space, and the Q3′s role would be to further improve the marketshare. Being an entry level product, the Q3 could bring in plenty of volumes, and might as well be the product that tilts BMW India’s applecart. More so, since the sales of luxury SUVs in India has been very strong considering that these rugged vehicles are better suited to the rough and tumble of Indian roads, than the high end sedans, whose ground clearance can often become an issue when the going gets bumpy.