Launches its S80 sedan and XC90 SUV
NEW DELHI: A refrigerator, LCD screens, Dolby Surround sound with 12 speakers … if you think we are referring to a living room, you’re dead wrong. These are only some of the features luxury car brands such as Volvo have begun to offer in India.
The Swedish car maker has launched its S80 sedan and XC90 SUV in India with a host of features which luxury car buyers are slowly getting used to.
But all of this — including a free two-year full-service guarantee — come for a price. A huge one at that.
The base diesel version of S80 comes for Rs 38 lakh whereas the two petrol versions cost Rs 39 lakh and Rs 44 lakh respectively (ex-showroom Delhi).
For the SUV, price tags are Rs 44 lakh (diesel), Rs 45 lakh and Rs 52 lakh respectively for the two petrol versions.
Paul de Voijs, managing director, Volvo Cars India, said his company was in India for three years, testing the market and then its cars on the roads. The company finally decided to take the plunge since the luxury car market is projected to more than double in the next two years in the country.
At present, luxury marquees such as BMW, Audi, Mercedes — together — sell 3,500-4,000 units of cars which are priced more than Rs 25 lakh each year.
But will Volvo, which is a Ford Motor Group company, set up a completely knocked down (CKD) assembly plant in India just like BMW has done to lower costs?
Voijs said that this issue would be evaluated only next year.
For now, the company has established three dealerships in Delhi, Mumbai and Chandigarh which will sell and service the cars. If there is demand for other cars from the Volvo stable, these would also be gradually introduced in India.
