BMW India, which continues to compete with Mercedes Benz for the top spot in the India luxury market, is planning to launch its pre-owned car business in the Indian market from January 2011. According to a recent statement given by Andreas Schaaf, president, BMW India, "It has been more than three years since we have been operating in the Indian market and the cars have now started coming back."
The move of entering in used car business has been take in the view of rising demand for pre-owned BMW cars in the Indian market. BMW’s arch rival Mercedes Benz had launched its pre-owned car business in the country in June 2010, and it has sold more than 600 units in the Indian market, so far.
The models that are expected to account for a major chunk of the sales of BMW’s pre-owned cars include company’s flagship 5-series and popular 3-Series. The company currently sells more than half a dozen cars in the Indian market which includes sedans like 3 series, 5 series and 7 series, SUVs like X1, X3, X5 and X6, Gran Turismo, and Z4 Roadster.
In the period of January-November 2010, the company sold a total of 5,345 units of its cars in India as compared to 5,109 units sold by Mercedes Benz during the same period.
