The Hindu Business Line : Nissan SUV X-Trail sells over 100 units in two months

NISSAN's sports utility vehicle X-Trail has managed to sell over 100 vehicles within two months of its launch in the country and is now considering entering the luxury car segment late next year.

A Nissan official told Business Line that the sales were "almost as per expectations." The official said although the high price of the SUV was initially seen as a hindrance to sales, Nissan, to a large extent, had been able to overcome the problem because of its features.

The base variant of X-Trail - Comfort - is priced at around Rs 21 lakh and the premium variant - Elegance - is priced at around Rs 24 lakh. The vehicle is imported from Japan as a completely built unit (CBU) and has a 2.2-litre common rail diesel engine system with six-speed manual transmission delivering 136 horsepower.

X-Trail is the second most expensive SUV in the market after Mitsubishi Pajero whose fully loaded variant costs Rs 34 lakh. The Pajero saw sales of 60-65 vehicles in the April-August period.

The Nissan official said the sales have been achieved despite a low key advertising campaign so far. He said Nissan plans to step up the campaign soon.

He said, with the import duty being as high as 104 per cent, it was not possible to bring down the price of X-Trail. The southern market, the official said, had responded better than the others.

For the first 12 months, X-Trail expects to sell at least 500 vehicles. The sports utility vehicles in India, especially those that are fully imported, have seen a tepid response so far in the market. Nissan is understood to be looking at the possibility of launching a luxury model as a CBU late next year, though it has not firmed up the model. There are, however, no plans to launch a model in the B or C segments in the near future. A study is currently underway to understand the market better.

X-trail sold 1,40,000 units worldwide last year and is considered to be one of the most popular SUVs in the global market.

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