Luxury carmakers BMW and Mercedes slug it out in India

In recessionary times, the Indian luxury car market is seeing a battle of sorts between two of the biggest global brands i.e. Mercedes Benz and BMW. In January, BMW managed to beat Mercedes Benz in sales for the first time in the history of Mercedes in India. However, in February, Mercedes managed to regain the top slot in February.

The battle so far

Mercedes Benz sold a little over 250 cars compared to BMW’s 244 cars in February.In January, Mercedes Benz sold 132 cars compared to BMWs 272.

So cumulatively, for the months of January and February, BMW is still leading the pack by a margin of 132 cars.



Going ahead

Analysts say that ahead it is going to a much tougher battle because BMW will try its best to keep the lead, as far as a cumulative sale is concerned. During the second half of this year, BMW will launch all new models in a new segment.

Peter Kronschnabl, President, BMW India, says, "We believe this year you will see a maximum growth of 10-20% and this is only in the second half. The first half will be very challenging for all manufacturers and then hopefully, things will smoothen out."