The 2012 year has been a mixed bag for the Indian auto market and witnessed some immensely successful products along with few absolute failures as well. This year, the top winners list is as usual headed by Maruti Suzuki, Mahindra and Mahindra (M&M) Limited and consists of a relatively new name like Renault as well. The title of worst performer seems to be stuck with Tata Motors, who even after regularly launching revamped and new vehicles failed to generate a mass volume puller in the country. The fortunes of Japanese auto major Nissan also witnessed a down slide in 2012 as its Evalia suffered an abysmal fate, since it failed to generate any sort of interest among domestic buyers.
Maruti Suzuki India Limited (MSIL), the country's largest passenger car maker, hit the bull's eye with the launch of its latest entry-level subcompact offering - the Alto 800 hatchback in the domestic market. Pegged as a successor to the iconic Maruti 800 city car, the Alto 800 has been breaking all the sales and advanced bookings records in the country. Mahindra and Mahindra Limited, the country's favourite utility vehicle maker, has had an extremely fruitful 2012 year. Evidently, the company consolidated an astonishing market share with its premium Sports Utility Vehicle (SUV) XUV500 and compact SUV Quanto. Both XUV500 and Quanto utility vehicles have witnessed some very impressive sales this year.
Renault India Private Limited (RIPL), a wholly owned subsidiary of French auto major Renault S.A., has wrapped up a highly satisfying year in the domestic car market. The company stormed its way on to top of the best selling vehicle charts with its stylish and aggressively priced Duster compact SUV. Following the incredible success of Duster, the French auto major also introduced its Scala luxury sedan in the Indian car market.
Honda Cars India Limited (HCIL), a subsidiary of Japanese auto giant Honda Motor Co., had a great 2012 as well. The company saw great sales of its Brio hatch of which an automatic variant was also introduced in the country this year. Further, the 2012 year has been great for Japanese multinational utility vehicle maker Mitsubishi, who started local assembly of its premium SUV Pajero Sport and hit the right chords with the domestic audience.
Coming to poor performers in Indian car business for the year 2012, Tata Motors, the country's largest automobile manufacturer, heads the list for sure. The company faced gloomy sales despite introducing as many as six revamped and new models, like Xenon pickup truck, Indica eV2 hatchback, Manza Club Class mid-level sedan, Indigo e-CS VX entry-level sedan, Safari Storme SUV and Aria 4x4 crossover in the Indian passenger car market.
Second in list of poor performers for 2012 would be Hyundai Motor India Limited (HMIL), the country's second largest passenger car maker, suffered a slow year in terms of vehicle sales. The company witnessed slump in sales for the first time in quite a few years. Nissan Motor India Private Limited (NMIPL), a subdivision of Japanese auto major Nissan Motor Co., faced a poor year in terms of launches and vehicle sales. The company's new Multi utility vehicle (MUV) failed to trigger sales among local car enthusiasts of the country. Among the other poor performers in the Indian car business for 2012 year, Fiat India is another big mention along with Ford India Private Limited (FIPL). Both the Italian and American auto majors faced a quite uneventful year and failed to produce any exciting product in the Indian auto market. However, Ford India has a highly new product launch in the offing, its EcoSport compact SUV, which is slated to see Indian daylight next year.
