May 2007 Archives

India’s first wide body car Logan from Mahindra Renault has received resounding response from customers in the 11 cities that the car has been launched so far. The Logan received more than 3000 bookings in three weeks.

The response from across the country is in line with the product’s class defying strengths in terms of space, safety and engine performance. Mr. Rajesh Jejurikar, MD, Mahindra Renault Pvt. Ltd., said, “The Logan has evinced phenomenal response since its launch as evident from the bookings. Our dealers had to deal with over 25,000 inquiries so far. This is very significant considering that the Logan has been launched in only 40 percent of the markets.”
More than 11,000 test drives were given to customers, 3000 of which were converted to bookings. “This is a healthy ratio of over 30% conversion from test drives to bookings,” said Mr. Jejurikar.

Bookings have opened in dealerships across Mumbai, Pune, Bangalore, Nashik, Delhi - NCR, Chennai, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Chandigarh, Ludhiana and Jalandhar.

“The Logan has been getting over 1,200 inquires every day,” Mr. Jejurikar said, adding, “The launches have been made in a phased manner starting with Mumbai on April 9. The phased ramp-up is to help cushion demand as we increase our plant capacity to planned level of 50,000 per annum by July.” The Logan made its debut on April 3, 2007 with a host of class-defying features at an aggressive price.

Mr. Nalin Mehta, Vice President Sales & Marketing, Mahindra Renault Pvt. Ltd., said, “The trend so far has shown that the 1.5 litre dCi common rail vehicle has been a great hit among customers. This is very much in line with our expectations given the fuel and cost efficiency of diesel combined with Logan’s superior technology, which rivals the best petrol cars on the road.”

“Our challenge now is to meet customer demand for the car,” concluded Mr. Jejurikar.


Source : Moneycontrol.com

This article is of the Mahindra Renault Logan, from Business Standard Motoring, I won’t copy paste the whole article here, but a few excerpts on the car, that I found worth taking a note of.

Except 1: Proves to be, quite a spacious car.
" Make no mistake, this is a car built to a price. And the Indian version sticks to the brief like glue. The design is not like any of the contemporary Renaults since the thinking when the Logan was conceived, was a car that looked as robust as it actually was. Mahindra can be happy that like their proven utes, the Logan is a sturdy machine. It is evident the way the doors shut, how the car rides over bad roads, skims over speed-breakers and how it tackles corners. There is nothing flimsy about this machine. And then there is space – lots of it. An airy cabin with the feel accentuated by pre-tanned grainy plastic (again, lots of it), lots of elbow and head room (bring on the turbans) and a rear bench seat that can actually seat three make it a class leader. We drove a diesel car close to 600 km before filing this report, and that too, over all kinds of roads and we came back impressed. Fit and finish of the car, despite a very labour intensive manufacturing process which makes it affordable, is second to none. This car is absolutely well put together. The powertrain (imported for the time being) felt indestructible too in a way traditional engines did. The gear ratios are suited for commuting and we were surprised how easy the diesel was to drive on congested Mumbai roads. The improved airconditioner did a good job of keeping the commute cool. Getting in and out of the car is easy and seats are good for three-hour stints. Another strength area is economy – Mahindra Renault claims 18 kpl on the highway and our Logan actually returned 20 kpl easily. Brilliant indeed. The petrol models are supposed to return 10-13 kpl but we are yet to drive them.The Logan is contemporary when it comes to crashworthiness. And the company has offered driver-side airbags as standard fitment for the top-end models. Way to go. "


Excerpt 2: As a reader on my blog had commented, asking the commutablity of the car in highly congested traffic, here’s an answer.
"The gear ratios are suited for commuting and we were surprised how easy the diesel was to drive on congested Mumbai roads."

Excerpt 3: Value For Money!
" In short, the car should appeal to anyone who is planning to buy anything, from the top-of-the-line Hyundai Santro and Suzuki Wagon R to the Suzuki Swift and Hyundai Getz to the Honda City and Ford Fiesta. The top-end petrol model with a 1.6-litre engine is a whopping Rs 1.5 lakh cheaper than a City while the premium diesel variant is a clean Rs 1 lakh cheaper than a Fiesta TDCi – yes, it looks like moving 50,000 units won't be a problem for the Indo-French combine "

Excerpt 4: To summarise it all…
"Right product, right manufacturing strategy, right risk mitigation exercises and right pricing and packaging. If you are looking for a well-built car that can offer excellent economy, then the Logan diesel is where your hunt should end. "

One of Carlos Ghosn’s favourite words is “frugal”. As boss of Renault-Nissan, a Franco-Japanese carmaking alliance, he likes to talk of “frugal management”. Now, as his firm rolls out the Logan, its “world car”, in developing countries across the globe, Mr Ghosn has found a whole nation to help champion his cause. “India’s not just a market—it’s where we learn to be frugal,” he says.

Renault-Nissan is learning from Mahindra & Mahindra, an Indian conglomerate with interests from tractor-making to financial services. Mahindra Renault, a joint venture formed in 2005, launched a new version of the Logan in India this month with a price tag of $7,100 before tax. The development of the new model cost 15% less than expected and was completed a month ahead of schedule. Compared with the original Logan, which Renault designed in Romania after acquiring the former Dacia factory near Bucharest, the new version has better styling, beefed up suspension to cope with India’s poor roads and improved air-conditioning.


Since 2004 over 450,000 Logans have been sold in 51 countries. The car is variously sold under the Renault, Nissan and Dacia brands. The initial sales target of 50,000 cars a year in India sounds modest, but Renault has big plans for India, where manufacturing costs are 10% lower than in Romania, says Mr Pélata. Sales of new cars are growing by 10% a year and are expected to reach two million by 2010. Renault Mahindra is investing $950 million in a new factory in Chennai that will be capable of making 350,000 vehicles a year and will build six Logan models, including an estate and a hatchback. The new Indian-developed version of the car will also be introduced into several other countries, including Argentina, Brazil and Mexico. But perhaps the most unusual new market for the car is Iran, where it went on sale last month.



Renault even hopes to export cars to other countries in the region, subject to UN sanctions. Designed, built and sold in the developing world, the Logan is shaping up to be the VW Beetle of the 21st century.
Courtesy :- The Financial Express