Does Sales Figures of a Car Matter in Your Buying Decision?

[freakdude]

Originally Posted by alexddas

There is no risk in buying Alto,SwiftD and Innova as they are the proven best sellers in india.

Seriously not able to understand how you can you term something as ZERO RISK.

I bought BeatD, on the price,the engine(fiat) and the service package the company offered and i am making money out of it.

I bought punto on reliability on fiat and its safety features,discounts
and if it sell less also no problem i am earning money out of it.

I am planning for Sail SedanD and EnjoyD for the same reasons Highlighting on the Service package and Fiat/chevy engine.

After all the above we get this :

But i would recommend my friend Alto,SwiftD or innova only, because the hard earned money they spend must not be spend on risk.
It is easy for me to recommend too as it top's the market consistently without any major issues.

freakdude.

[alexddas]

Risk comparatively low on Proven cars to cars yet to prove.

I can take risk on buying cars because it is used for business purpose and i earn money out of it but it is not the case of my friends.
so it is safe and good to stick on with proven cars.

[Tornado]

Originally Posted by alexddas;[QUOTE

I do not recommend verna to a friend as they are not selling consistently for years, [

So you will ask the friend to wait for years so that consistency in sales figures could be evident .Can you tell me how much time span is required for a car so as to conclude on its consistency in sales figures ?

the verna sales will turn down when the first sold verna's reach a 100000kms and so on.

This statement is based on reserch done by you or on the sales charts? And does that mean if a friend needs to buy a Verna then he has to do it before the first sold car reaches 100000 km?

When comes on hard earned money people sacrifice comfort for money.

So is it apt now to conclude that success of most but not all best selling cars in market is dependent on the sacrifice of the buyers for the resale value ?

[QUOTE=amippjpr;264838]

Don't know why people think that Swift is not a "pleasure to drive" car and only Fiats are pleasure to drive cars?

I don't think anybody has denied that swift is pleasure to drive but when they compare the pleasure with fiat , fiat wins hands down.

Each car has its own positive and negative and if some cars are selling better than others then there must be more positive in those cars and people should accept that. And if some cars are market duds then it means they have way much more negatives compared to others. Thats it.

Why not to utilize the benefits of information available on internet for reserch on new car buy ? If any info is felt suspicious or unbelievable then you are free to counter question the informer till you get all dobts cleared.
Why to just assume ? Why not to carry out reserch?

[ishanong]

What i feel is that its the brand image that matters the most for the people rather than the sales chart. 'Mere Dad ki Maruti' caught the attention of Indian automobile media just because of a picture of Maruti Ertiga model on its poster. The people at maruti know how to spend their bucks worth when it comes to promoting and marketing.

[Theferrarifan]

Originally Posted by ishanong

What i feel is that its the brand image that matters the most for the people rather than the sales chart. 'Mere Dad ki Maruti' caught the attention of Indian automobile media just because of a picture of Maruti Ertiga model on its poster. The people at maruti know how to spend their bucks worth when it comes to promoting and marketing.

That has to be the worst adv. ever. I would be completely embarrassed if a song comes up like - mere dad ki skoda. I though it was sarcastic before.

[Tornado]

Originally Posted by alexddas

I may do research and try my luck to buy any car in the market, I bought BeatD, on the price,the engine(fiat) and the service package the company offered and i am making money out of it.(RENT-A-CAR)
I bought punto on reliability on fiat and its safety features,discounts
and if it sell less also no problem i am earning money out of it.
I am planning for Sail SedanD and EnjoyD for the same reasons Highlighting on the Service package and Fiat/chevy engine.]

This clearly shows that sales figures doesn't matter in your car buying decision.But your this post is directed toward fellow TAIn Rightnow , hence it is up to him to comment further on this.

But i would recommend my friend Alto,SwiftD or innova only, because the hard earned money they spend must not be spend on risk.
It is easy for me to recommend too as it top's the market consistently without any major issues.

This clearly shows that sales figures doesmatter in your friend's car buying decision.

BTW, why do you feel that only friend earned money is hard earned ? IMO , money earned by you is also hard earned as RENT A CAR bussiness is also a legal and fulfills one of the important need of the mankind i.e. transport IMO.

[Vishwas]

Originally Posted by alexddas

I disagree with you Alto is selling because it is the best low budget car in india..
Alto is proven for years,it is worth for the money spend on it.
If it is the upgrade as you said then nano would have sold more.
People sell Alto with descent re-sale to upgrade to higher segments.

Don't forget that Alto is the only vehicle which offered Air con and PS when it was re-launched in 2007 in that budget, and people(with less budget looking for no-frills car) found alto more comfortable,peppy than 800 and less to maintain.

Now yes Hyundai came with Eon(which i would prefer over alto) but its no-where near the alto because people find it hard to come out the Marutified mind.

[hemantp]

Regarding herd mentality, I don't think there is any bad or problem with it, as long as you know and agree with the herd. For example, I generally prefer to halt at a restaurant on (unknown) highway depending upon the number of cars parked for lunch/dinner/breakfast. At the same time, avoid the ones (particularly 'dhaabas") where trucks are stopped (especially when I am with family).

So as long as one agrees with the herd which chose swift Dzire (for example) over Fiesta classic, no harm in going for it.

[Rightnow]

Originally Posted by alexddas

@ rightnow,
I may do research and try my luck to buy any car in the market, I bought BeatD, on the price,the engine(fiat) and the service package the company offered and i am making money out of it.(RENT-A-CAR)
I bought punto on reliability on fiat and its safety features,discounts
and if it sell less also no problem i am earning money out of it.
I am planning for Sail SedanD and EnjoyD for the same reasons Highlighting on the Service package and Fiat/chevy engine.
But i would recommend my friend Alto,SwiftD or innova only, because the hard earned money they spend must not be spend on risk.
It is easy for me to recommend too as it top's the market consistently without any major issues.

You have your reasons to buy a car, in similar way, a common man may also have specific reasons to buy a car. You should recommend looking at their needs rather than straight away recommending the chart busters.

You understand that its the common public who brings a car to top of charts. If a car has capability of becoming a good seller, then it should be given its due credit by informing the common man about the car. I am not telling you to NOT recommend a best seller to your friends (or whoever comes for your advice), but I am just saying that you should inform them about the good points of a best seller as and as well as others too. Rest is their job to choose the best, who knows a poor selling capable car fits their requirement perfectly!

[gego]

Answer Is yes

For me reliability is most important factor.
Next comes maintenance cost of the car. I keep the car for 5 years usually until it has touched a lac kms before I sell.

[Raja]

Originally Posted by Vishwas

Don't forget that Alto is the only vehicle which offered Air con and PS when it was re-launched in 2007 in that budget, and people(with less budget looking for no-frills car) found alto more comfortable,peppy than 800 and less to maintain.

Now yes Hyundai came with Eon(which i would prefer over alto) but its no-where near the alto because people find it hard to come out the Marutified mind.

+100

Originally Posted by hemantp

Regarding herd mentality, I don't think there is any bad or problem with it, as long as you know and agree with the herd. For example, I generally prefer to halt at a restaurant on (unknown) highway depending upon the number of cars parked for lunch/dinner/breakfast. At the same time, avoid the ones (particularly 'dhaabas") where trucks are stopped (especially when I am with family).

So as long as one agrees with the herd which chose swift Dzire (for example) over Fiesta classic, no harm in going for it.

+100

Perfectly explained . This is what I have been saying HERD MENTALITY is not something evil , or a shamefull thing atall . It is a part of our evolution . Like you explained correctly even cites were established on basis of herd mentality . It gives one a sense of safety and security which is a primal need .

Since its a part of your evolution it plays a major role in desicion making . Denying that fact is also not a wise thing because then there is no objectivity left .

Like you said buying dezire ( which itself is a great car ) is all fine and great if it fulfill's ones requirement , even if one blindly follows the herd and buys it still fine.

But showing sales figures of dezire to prove and conclude its better then fiesta classic is not a wise thing to do specially when you are a auto enthusiast .

Fiesta classic might not sell well like the dezire but can anyone conclude that it is a bad car ?

[carfreak]

Originally Posted by Raja

But showing sales figures of dezire to prove and conclude its better then fiesta classic is not a wise thing to do

Fiesta classic might not sell well like the dezire but can anyone conclude that it is a bad car ?

This sums it all. Point well made! Couldnt agree more on this!

Few months back I was happy for my friend who chose Fiesta classic over other sales chart busters cars. Though he isnt a great auto enthusiast, he chose a car based on its merits and not merely on sales figures.

On a lighter note - if I had gone by this sales buster logic, forget about owning a Punto; its a crime to even look at it

[Gurrala74]

Originally Posted by carfreak

This sums it all. Point well made! Couldnt agree more on this!

Few months back I was happy for my friend who chose Fiesta classic over other sales chart busters cars. Though he isnt a great auto enthusiast, he chose a car based on its merits and not merely on sales figures.

On a lighter note - if I had gone by this sales buster logic, forget about owning a Punto; its a crime to even look at it

Hmm, may be off topic, but still it was mentioned by a member in the thread that Punto cannot pull well on hills due to its more weight, can you please enlighten us on this as now and then I keep on suggesting Punto to my friends, but I need to know about this before I suggest Punto, otherwise I will become one more Herd thinking blindly Punto is a good car

[carfreak]

@ Gurrala, people shouldnt bash both of us for going OT

Being a heavily built car & short 1st & 2nd gear ratios, this is the perception any one would have. Instead of getting on to debate mode, I would like to share my experiences so far with Punto on hilly drives -

Since I bought Punto in June 2012, have done numerous hilly drives under all circumstances i.e, with only 2 people, 5 people on board with loaded boot, with & without AC etc. Have travessed the terrains of Ooty, Chikmagalur, Kemmangundi etc which cant be compared with rohtang pass but atleast few stretches were demanding. I had shared the same in my Chikmagalur TL as well. I always keep the MJD spinning at right revvs and have never faced a major block till now. Infact with Punto's handling prowess, precise steering & torquey 3rd gear, many times I feel am driving an automatic on hills. One can get in and out of twisty corners at good speeds without a fuss due to handling & good braking. Would like to highlight a specific incident - during my Ooty visit, I stayed at Kluney Manor near Club Mahindra. People who have seen this area would be aware of the incline road leading to the resort. Gosh! I felt it was almost 90 dgs Almost every car was facing issue with start stop problem. Especially the petrol ones due to low end torque. Few were doing wheel spins as well trying to move up the hill. Just stopped and gave it a thought how to go about. I allowed the cars in front to move a distance, then started building the rpms. Once I was above 1800 rpms, I knew MJD wont let me down and it was a cake walk since then. In fact the resort owner had warned about this steep road leading to the entrance.

Apart from this, many people have carried out Leh-Ladakh, Nepal, NE expeditions in Punto from down south. I dont think they would have dared to do these if Punto was really bad on hills

PS: Mine is a 76 bhp mill unlike Jayadev's or Vivek's 90 hp VGT beasts!

In the end, all that matters is how good one knows his car while driving on hills. Be it any car for that matter. Vipul had summed it up well in his post on hilly driving.

Sorry for OT, over to topic guys!

[alexddas]

Originally Posted by Rightnow

You have your reasons to buy a car, in similar way, a common man may also have specific reasons to buy a car. You should recommend looking at their needs rather than straight away recommending the chart busters.

You understand that its the common public who brings a car to top of charts. If a car has capability of becoming a good seller, then it should be given its due credit by informing the common man about the car. I am not telling you to NOT recommend a best seller to your friends (or whoever comes for your advice), but I am just saying that you should inform them about the good points of a best seller as and as well as others too. Rest is their job to choose the best, who knows a poor selling capable car fits their requirement perfectly!

Yeah i do suggest and inform the goodies of less sellers too bro, but recommend the best sellers,rest is left for their choice.

@tornado
Bro we know the history of Crdi engine of hundai so we have to wait that period of time to take a decision, the consistency period depends on the history of the company,goodwill,image and reliability.
I am not recommending verna now but are waiting to do so.

@vishwas
Bro Alto took over Zen very soon after its launch,it was 1L less than Zen on launch.