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      Highlights of the second quarter of 2012 auto industry

      CarTrade Editorial Team

      CarTrade Editorial Team

      Quarter 2 of 2012 has just started and it has already witnessed significant events across various segments of the Indian auto industry. Few auto makers in the industry rejoiced with the overwhelming response gathered mostly by their new launches, whereas some witnessed not-so-good times with dwindling sales.

      Heading the league, Renault recently launched its compact Sports Utility Vehicle (SUV) Duster in Kerala. With the expected response gathered by the new model, the French car maker has planned to register sales of 30,000 units in the country by the end of 2012. In 2011, the company had maintained its sales figures at 1,500 units. Joining the bandwagon of compact SUVs, the Japanese auto giant, Toyota is also set to introduce its mini SUV Rush in the Indian market. It is believed that the new model will sparkle at the Indian showrooms before the end of 2014.

      Aston Martin has also unveiled its highly anticipated V12 Vantage in the global arena. The car, provided with a roadster body style, was spied on the London streets. The first appearance of the latest V12 Vantage reflected a sharper look without a roof, similar to that of its sibling DB9.

      In addition to new models on the turf, the car industry witnessed alterations in rankings of the auto makers. Audi emerged as the leader in the luxury car market of the Indian industry by outpacing its stiff competitor BMW. For the past three years, BMW had been enjoying a dominant position in the industry, a spot now taken over by its German peer, Audi. The latter delivered 759 units in June 2012, as compared to 750 units sold by BMW during the same period.

      When mentioning about figures, the achievement of Mahindra & Mahindra cannot be ignored. The domestic player registered a three-fold growth, in terms of exports, in the last two years. A big credit for the same goes to the company’s bestseller XUV500, which is now positioned in the top ten compact SUVs in South Africa. The exports of the auto maker have expanded in regions like Asia-Pacific, Africa, South and Latin America. In USA, its business expanded by 70 per cent, which is quite favourable for the auto maker as the company is striving hard to consolidate its global presence.

      On the other hand, the Italian auto maker, Fiat has confirmed that the will launch a new edition of Fiat 500X in India. Prior to this, the car maker also confirmed to bring in its Jeep brand, a part of Fiat-Chrysler portfolio. However, the Italian auto giant is presently engaged in establishing its brand in the Indian market after the severing of its ties with the associate partner, Tata Motors.

      An interesting event of Q2 is the alliance between creme de la crème fashion property, Lakme Fashion Week and Volvo Auto India, the ‘Official Car Partner’. Both the ‘Icons of Luxury’ will present designs, which would be patterned around a common focal point of ‘Designed Around You’.