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Carlos Ghosn

Murali Gopalan

Mumbai, Nov. 18 Mr Carlos Ghosn, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Renault-Nissan, is not too worried about the delay in the launch of the ultra-low cost car planned with Bajaj Auto.

The ULC car, as it is better known, was scheduled to debut in end-2011 but its entry date has since been set back to mid-2012.

“I think we need to do it right, which is more important than coming into the market six months late. If this car carries the potential we see in it, the delay is of little relevance. We need to ensure that quality is robust and this is not an issue given that Bajaj Auto has a reputation for delivering high quality, robust products,” Mr Ghosn told Business Line.

The ULC car has been planned as a three-way joint venture with Bajaj being the single largest partner with a 50 per cent stake with the Renault-Nissan combine sharing the balance equally.

Mr Ghosn said that the ULC car would reflect the competencies of the partners in this three-way alliance. “It is a frugal approach by somebody who has done very well in two- and three-wheelers allied to the competence and technology of two major carmakers,” he said.

From Mr Ghosn’s point of view, the fact that a timetable is now in motion for the eventual rollout is comforting. “The plan is ready now which is important. As everyone knows, five per cent is the plan and 95 per cent is the execution, which is better than having no plan at all,” he quipped.

In fact, since the time the project was announced nearly two years ago, reports have been doing the rounds of unresolved issues in branding and design. All that is passé now with the roles for each partner clearly outlined.

Terming it a “very promising project”, Mr Ghosn said the car was intended for other emerging markets too.

“We are not looking closely at them because we do not want to get our attention away from India, which is priority. Yet, we should not shut the door to using the vehicle as an entry price point in markets whose characteristics may not be very different from India’s,” he added.

The ULC car has been touted as the challenger to the Nano, the first mover in the people’s car segment. Tata Motors will have two lakh Nanos on the roads by the first half of 2011. The ULC car comes a year later which will give the Bajaj-Renault-Nissan trio time to study the market.

“Marketing intelligence is going to be very important in terms of what competitors are doing as well as the scorecard of some products which are ready and getting into this segment,” Mr Ghosn said.

Equally, he added, it was important to monitor the reaction of those customers who own “these kinds of cars” in parameters like fuel efficiency and pricing. “All this will help fine-tune our marketing strategy,” he said.

Mr Ghosn has constantly maintained that low-cost does not necessarily mean small since a car is “about leisure, carrying the family, goods etc where huge space is important”.

“I would not say the ULC car will be large but everything we do will be to ensure that we get as much space as possible because this is important for people in this category,” he said.

More Stories on : Cars | Outlook | Bajaj Auto Ltd

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