Dream machines paint small towns red

From Guntur to Ahmedabad, buyers are picking up high-end BMWs, Rolls Royces and even the Porsche, says Brian de Souza

The roads may be terrible and the traffic jams frustrating, but Indians have taken enthusiastically to fast, luxury cars. What is more, most of the buyers are coming from the smaller towns rather than Mumbai or Delhi. From Guntur to Bellary to Ahmedabad, buyers are picking up high-end Audis, BMWs, Rolls Royces and the current favourite among luxury car-enthusiasts, the Porsche.

Three years after Porsche set up its first dealership in India, it has sold 300 cars and is now selling 5 cars a month. Others are not far behind— Rolls-Royce has delivered 5 cars this year while Mercedes Benz sold over 100 S-class in March at Rs70 lakh, a piece. BMW sold 251 7 series cars last year.

Last December, Rolls-Royce launched its Phantom Drophead Coupe, one of only 80 that have been rolled out of its factory at Goodwood in the UK last year.

At around 19 ft and weighing 2.5 tonnes, this Drophead has a 6,750 cc engine under the hood and can go up to 100 km per hour in less than six seconds.

Dealers in Mumbai were cagey about giving out details, but many first-time buyers in India today are motivated by their passion for cars. Take Amit Patel, MD of Sintex, “I am passionate about engines and mechanics. I will buy a high-end luxury car as I like riding mechanically advanced engines.” Ahmedabad has emerged as a major centre of luxury cars. Patel’s company has placed an order for a Porsche Cayenne at almost Rs 80 lakh. A major real estate developer has reportedly placed an order for Rs 3.5 crore white Rolls Royce with emblems of gold. In all, there are nearly 100 luxury cars in the city and the number is steadily growing.

Car importer Javed Desai said, “Amdavadis are known to take offhand decisions when it comes to buying cars. They hardly take time to decide what car they want to buy. As compared to Delhi and Mumbai, it is easier to convince clients here”.

Buying a car may be an impetuous decision, but getting it takes time-up to three months after placing the order. The buyer has to choose from among several hundreds of options that can range from minute aspects of the car’s interiors such as the stitch on the floor carpeting to the kind of wheel rims. “We have several face-to face meetings with the customer to understand his profile” says a dealer.

For the Indian buyer, the one aspect that he has to compromise is speed. It’s not possible to race one’s dream machine on Indian roads. Moreover, with shorter ground clearance that these cars have, the driver has to be extremely careful. “But we have found Indian buyers are ready to sacrifice the practical aspect for the glamour,” says the dealer.

Shekhar Patel, MD of an Ahmedabad based real estate company who rides around in a Mercedes S class says bad roads are not a problem for chauffer driven cars. “I spend after high-end cars for luxury. One always wants to move onto the next level after reaching a position. It’s same with the cars.”
                    
d_brian@dnaindia.net