SUVs get ready to hit the campaign trail
NEW DELHI: Auto makers, such as Ford, Mahindra and Mahindra (M&M) and Tata Motors, have started restocking their dealers with sports utility vehicles (SUVs) anticipating huge demand during the upcoming general elections. SUVs find ready demand from politicians due to their performance as an all-terrain vehicle and capacity to travel in rural areas during election campaigns and rallies.
Ford Endeavour, Mahindra Scorpio and Tata Safari are some of the favourite vehicles of Indian politicians, say marketing executives of auto companies. At the entry level, Scorpio, Safari and Toyota Innova form the bulk of demand from the political class.
Toyota Kirloskar Motor deputy MD (sales) Sandeep Singh said: “Elections bring good business for us with high demand coming from bigger states such as Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Tamil Nadu and Madhya Pradesh. We will be building up stocks of Innovas to meet the high demand during elections.”
Among the recently launched SUVs, BMW X3 & X5, Mercedes-Benz M Class, Volkswagen Touareg and Toyota Prado, which cost over Rs 45 lakh each, are expected to find ready buyers for the next three months, say auto dealers.
In the past two years, mid-segment SUVs have also found a key market among politicians during the various assembly elections. These cars which carry sub-Rs 22-lakh price tags include Honda CRV, Mitsubishi Outlander and GM Captiva.
Auto sales in February were at an all-time high as price reduction following the cut in excise duty helped improve customer sentiment. The automobile industry is now looking at elections as another opportunity to increase sales. Although, SUVs constitute just 9% of the overall auto market, they bring higher profit margins for auto firms.
“Elections bring huge opportunity for us as the entire political campaigning is carried out in smaller towns and rural areas on SUVs, a segment where we are strong. We are already getting bulk orders from political parties and candidates, and production has been tuned to meet the increased demand,” said a senior executive with M&M.
Utility vehicles, such as Force Motors’s Trax & Traveller; Tata Motors’s Sumo, Winger and ACE Magic; M&M’s Commander, Maxx and Marshal; Maruti Omni, Gypsy and Versa, which carry a large number of passengers, are sold in high numbers during an election year.