Tata Motors passenger vehicles unit sees double digit growth this fiscal

Buoyed by the launch of four new models over the past 16 months and looking ahead to the festive season with optimism, Tata Motors expects to see strong double digit growth in the passenger vehicles segment during 2017-18.

The automotive major, which closed the last fiscal with domestic sales of about 1.52 lakh units, expects to see the number crossing the 2 lakh mark, backed by the recent launch of its compact sports utility vehicle Nexon, possibly achieving over 30 per cent growth.

Mayank Pareek, President, Passenger Vehicles Business Unit, Tata Motors Ltd, said, “We are upbeat on the business during the year and expect to grow faster than the industry growth rate of 8-10 per cent. We have managed to consistently achieve growth over the past five quarters and are hopeful to sustain this trend.”

Last year, while the industry registered a growth of 9 per cent, Tata Motors saw a growth of 22 per cent. This year, thus far, while the industry was up by 8 per cent, we have grown by about 11 per cent, he said.

Speaking on the sidelines of the launch of Nexon here on Monday, Pareek, said, “Our focus is to introduce products that not only enhance the brand but simultaneously align well with the rising aspirations of customer segments. As part of the aggressive turnaround strategy, we have renewed focus on filling in product gaps and tapping the white spaces that emerge.”

“From six platforms, we have brought them down to two versatile platforms, which are modular and enable us to develop not just hatchbacks, both big and small, but sedans, SUVs and vans,” he said.

“With the launch of the new compact SUV, we now have a presence across 71 per cent of the country's automotive market. Our aim is to cover 95 per cent of the market by 2020 by launching new cars, including bigger hatchbacks, bigger sedans and plug several other gaps. This will help us address much bigger market,' he explained.

“The launch of new products is crucial for the automotive sector as the lifecycle of vehicles has now come down significantly to 6-8 years. Car buyers want latest and new offerings and are willing to spend money for quality products,” he said.

The automotive industry is passing through a phase of consolidation due to changes in the taxation structure as also likely changes that could come up in the future, which include New Safety Norms by 2019 and BS VI norms by April 2020.

He said the company was in the process of increasing its network of dealerships to over 1,200 by 2020.

Mentioning the need to offer a digital and virtual platform for car buyers, he said the company is at an advanced stage of launching this facility, which enables people to use artificial intelligence and augmented reality to explore new vehicles and make purchases online

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