SUV is car of choice for many first-time Indian buyers now
About a third of first-time car buyers in the Indian market now drive home an SUV compared to less than a tenth a decade ago, when hatchbacks ruled the country's roads, according to industry data. The share of additional and replacement buying in the category during this period has fallen to 69% from a whopping 92% in 2014.
«There is not only an increased preference for the body type, with the introduction of more compact models there is a price overlap between entry SUVs.
Entry SUVs accounted for 22% of sales in the overall market (in 2022-23), up from 1% in 2014,» said Shashank Srivastava, senior executive officer (marketing and sales) at market leader Maruti Suzuki. «This sharp shift in consumer preference has made the carmaker change gears and introduce a slew of models in the segment — Brezza, Grand Vitara, Fronx, Jimny — in the past one year to expand volumes and market share.»
While first-time buyers for compact SUVs like Hyundai Venue account for 40% of the sales of the model, the numbers for mid-sized vehicles such as Maruti Suzuki Grand Vitara and Hyundai Creta stand at 21% and 26% respectively.
The proportion of first-time buyers for Maruti Suzuki Brezza stands at 23%. The ratio is higher, at about 30%, for the newly launched Fronx.
The transformation of SUVs themselves — once known for their ruggedness and off-roading capabilities to vehicles more suited for city driving — has also triggered this shift in customer set in overall sales, senior industry executives and brand consultants told ET.
«SUVs represent a combination of stature and performance.
So much of car buying is about self-image — who you are, where you've reached. The higher road presence psychologically signals value,» said Santosh Desai, chief
. Read more on economictimes.indiatimes.com
