[Mpower]

Originally Posted by sadsack

My dear Sir, I am afraid that is not very correct. Even if you see the sales of the Duster and the Ecosport they are falling and not rising. .

Really? Ecosport sales are falling? What is the source of your info? The people who are waiting would be thrilled to hear it

If I want something, I will not wait for too long. Especially when there are so many alternatives. The Nano was hurt by the moving of the plant from Singur to Sanand and the delays that came with it. The delays were used by the other companies to make sure that the product was properly run into the ground

I dont understand your logic? Lets say a person bought a scooter vehicle in 2008 and wants to replace it NOW(2014) with a Nano because the scooter is gotten old, why the heck should it matter to him if there was a production delay in 2009 or 2010?

[sadsack]

Originally Posted by Mpower

Really? Ecosport sales are falling? What is the source of your info? The people who are waiting would be thrilled to hear it

I dont understand your logic? Lets say a person bought a scooter vehicle in 2008 and wants to replace it NOW(2014) with a Nano because the scooter is gotten old, why the heck should it matter to him if there was a production delay in 2009 or 2010?

My dear Sir, the source of my argument of Ecosport sales falling comes from Team-Bhps monthly sales figures. The Ecosport began its sales in June, 2013 with a figure of 4002 and in July that figure went up to 4715, further up in August at 5372 and peaked in September at 6203. From October on the decline has started with sales at 5113, down further in November at 4392 and still down in December at 3905. I said the sales were falling on the basis of a decline for three consecutive months.

As far the logic bit which you did not understand, if you look at the full post that I made, I suppose it will become clearer. I am pasting what I said previously. "I would agree with this completely. It was the delays, and the negative publicity in conjunction with the couple of instances of spontaneous combustion that reinforced all the negative publicity of it being a coffin etc, that actually led to the downfall of the product". My argument was not about a scooter owner selling his 2008 model and buying a Nano of the 2014 model. It was about all the things that went wrong from launch to other negative publicity given to the car by half baked journalists and by industry rivals and how that led to more and more negative publicity which ruined the reputation of the product, simply because Tata Motors never gave a proper clarification about the cause of the fires.

[Mpower]

Originally Posted by sadsack

As far the logic bit which you did not understand, if you look at the full post that I made, I suppose it will become clearer. I am pasting what I said previously. "I would agree with this completely. It was the delays, and the negative publicity in conjunction with the couple of instances of spontaneous combustion that reinforced all the negative publicity of it being a coffin etc, that actually led to the downfall of the product". My argument was not about a scooter owner selling his 2008 model and buying a Nano of the 2014 model. It was about all the things that went wrong from launch to other negative publicity given to the car by half baked journalists and by industry rivals and how that led to more and more negative publicity which ruined the reputation of the product, simply because Tata Motors never gave a proper clarification about the cause of the fires.

I have already proved that the launch delays have nothing to do with today's market situation. Not sure what you mean by 'other' and 'all' things/negative

Are you telling me that 'fire incidents' are responsible for Nano's poor performance. AFAIK, the sales had already been on a decline before that.

Yes the fires incidents happened in quick succession and got a lot of negative PR but not only have they died down, not many people remember them. Like I said, two friends test drove the Nano and ended up with Altos because of the loud racket it makes and the image and the oddball styling. Fire and delay 3 years ago was no-where in their minds.

[zenren]

Originally Posted by Mpower

Like I said, two friends test drove the Nano and ended up with Altos because of the loud racket it makes and the image and the oddball styling.

Good point that I forgot to mention. Nano's 2 cylinder engine sounds like a Bajaj auto-rickshaw at certain rpm range and that is something no first time car buyer would compromise. Even the shape reminds me of the same auto-rickshaw.

[audioholic]

Originally Posted by sadsack

My dear Sir, the source of my argument of Ecosport sales falling comes from Team-Bhps monthly sales figures. The Ecosport began its sales in June, 2013 with a figure of 4002 and in July that figure went up to 4715, further up in August at 5372 and peaked in September at 6203. From October on the decline has started with sales at 5113, down further in November at 4392 and still down in December at 3905. I said the sales were falling on the basis of a decline for three consecutive months.

If delivery issues are to be blamed, would the Swift, Dzire, Ertiga should have bombed within a few months of launch. Only now, because of the overall slowdown, they are available off the shelf. The ecosport bookings are still on and the numbers are lesser because they are concentrating on exports. Whether that will lead to booking cancellation or not cant be determined as of now. Yes there are people pulling out but not sure what fraction of the bookings are cancelled.

[Mpower]

Originally Posted by sadsack

My dear Sir, the source of my argument of Ecosport sales falling comes from Team-Bhps monthly sales figures. The Ecosport began its sales in June, 2013 with a figure of 4002 and in July that figure went up to 4715, further up in August at 5372 and peaked in September at 6203. From October on the decline has started with sales at 5113, down further in November at 4392 and still down in December at 3905. I said the sales were falling on the basis of a decline for three consecutive months.

OK here's the scoop. Ecosport production is down because of parts supply constraints. Waiting time have actually increased because of this. Fell free to stop by your Ford dealer and check for yourself.

So, to your point about 'delays' hurting desirability of a product is not evident here.

Agreed some customers can't wait and will look elsewhere but its absurd that someone considering an Ecosport in 2016 will ignore it because there was a delay in 2014

[Sawyer]

I am very pleased with the 2013 Nano I bought in August. Brilliant city car for two/small families. It has proved to be so reliable, I am driving down to Goa in it next week.
To my mind, there is a combination of reasons it hasn't sold the way it deserves to:
1. Confused positioning and a challenge to get that right because it falls of short meeting at least one key target user need for every segment it seeks to address.
2. Tata reputation for niggles/reliability and mediocre after sales service.
3. The fire issue - people still ask me the question.
4. Effective negative PR by the competition.
In time, it will sell - if the environment grants it that time, and Tata get their pricing, positioning and communication right. They are still struggling with that. I must say that the 2013 car is finally a finished product, and more so now with PS added. And I am pleased with the quality of after sales from Concorde now.

[apachelongbow]

IMO Indian public has peculiar reasons for buying a car. We are very SUV aspirational, after all SUV in India project power unlike in Europe or USA where SUV are mainly driven by 'soccer moms' for their weekend shopping. No matter if the 'SUV' is actually a raised hatchback with a spare wheel exposed, and requiring cash equivalent to a descent mid sized sedan. Most of the people I know who bought the EcoSport did so because they wanted a) a SUV b) Didn't have cash for even the Storme LX and above.

Similarly we tend to buy even a second hand Santro or Wagon R, because they are 'proper' cars compared to the Nano, no matter financially it seems stupid to do so.

We are a brand/perception crazy nation, that's why people would aspire/wait and buy a LEE/Levi denim, compared to a local brand, even though its common knowledge that both denims use the same cloth from Arvind mills.

[abhjain]

Originally Posted by apachelongbow

we are a brand/perception crazy nation, that's why people would aspire/wait and buy a LEE/Levi denim, compared to a local brand, even though its common knowledge that both denims use the same cloth from Arvind mills.

I guess we are more a value conscious nation that's why 90% people are still on prepaid connections even though it might only be a perceived value. IMO, people have not been able to see the value in Nano and go by only their perceptions of it being an inferior car. Being an erstwhile owner, I still stand by this car and might even buy it again in future if they come out with a 1.0 litre engine.

[ssingri]

I feel the Nano still gets a raw deal as it is compared to cars like Alto and Eon which are sometimes twice its cost. The only car it can actually be compared to is the 800 and there it wins hands down.
As for NVH, the 3M underbody coating available at Tata dealers for Rs 900 with 5yr warranty reduces it to a great extent and the car is almost as quiet as my Baleno on the inside.
The thing that will bother you the most is the hard clutch caused by the long cable. Seriously thinking of converting it to a hydraulic clutch.
I replaced the plugs with bosch ones Fr7dcx as I could not find the NGK BKR6e, it improves the low end torque and smoothens the idle.

[PNTLovesNano]

I had given this feedback to Tata on Facebook. I really wish they would provide 60:40 or 50:50 split in the rear seat. This should help to an extent the problem of luggage on long travel or big shopping. I am not sure how TBHPians consider this feedback.

[sadsack]

Thank you all knowledgeable people of the forum. I wish some of the marketing gurus from various automobile forums would be picked up by automobile manufacturers and soon see themselves flourishing where they have been floundering. I hope Tata makes a fresh start with somebody in the place of the now departed Karl Slym (and hopefully that will be a marketing guru from any one of the auto forums) and launch a new and expensive car that will satisfy the ego of the Indian car buyer.

[apachelongbow]

Originally Posted by abhjain

I guess we are more a value conscious nation that's why 90% people are still on prepaid connections even though it might only be a perceived value. IMO, people have not been able to see the value in Nano and go by only their perceptions of it being an inferior car. Being an erstwhile owner, I still stand by this car and might even buy it again in future if they come out with a 1.0 litre engine.

No, I still say we are a brand crazy nation, ask any 2 random guys you meet next time, why did they buy that particular phone they own, why did they wear that particular shirt/trouser/denim they are wearing, or why are they riding/driving the bike/car they own. 90% of the time the answer is 'because it is xxx brand!!', or second best 'because my friend/neighbor/girlfriend/wife/in laws say so!!' What I mean to say is, most of our buying is to a) please others, b) confirm with the society c) based on hear say.

Now hear what even an uneducated rickshaw walla, cab driver has to say about the Nano. They perceive Nano is still a 1 lac auto rickshaw, and they deride anyone smart enough to own a Nano. So when the brand perception has become as 'the cheapest 4 wheeled autorickshaw sounding car to own', then most of the buyers (two wheelers to car) who are the target don't want to be seen driving one!!

[Sawyer]

Just back from a drive to Goa in the Nano, very impressed with its performance. About 8.5 hours driving time, very comfortable for 2 people, and it returned 25 km to the litre for the trip. Handled well in the ghats, and climbed well too. Not effortlessly, but very adequately.
Not just a city car for sure.

[Mpower]

What was your cruising/top speed and with how many people? How did you manage to stow luggage?