[Jaggu]

Superb car! Perfect for the city and should be a hoot to drive that diesel!

BUT.. what was BMW thinking when they priced it? Or is it just another gimmick of adding models and then exporting them? For an India produced car it should have been under 20 Lakh NOT over. I think these so called Luxury segment has really lost it wrt pricing and then the service of dealerships like BLR Navnit. Thanks but NO.

[RSR]

Originally Posted by Jaggu

Superb car! Perfect for the city and should be a hoot to drive that diesel!

BUT.. what was BMW thinking when they priced it? Or is it just another gimmick of adding models and then exporting them? For an India produced car it should have been under 20 Lakh NOT over. I think these so called Luxury segment has really lost it wrt pricing and then the service of dealerships like BLR Navnit. Thanks but NO.

Locally assembled or not, I think the premium German trio have come to firmly believe that they will be perceived as "premium" in India only if even their least expensive product is priced over 2 million rupees, ex-showroom

It's a pity they want to be seen as a premium brand by providing basic features but charging premium prices. Only when the Germans face competition from the Japanese premium trio of Lexus, Infiniti and Acura will we begin to see them sell their products at realistic prices.

Toyota have taken the first step towards introducing Lexus in India with the launch of the Camry Hybrid. By playing to their strengths (hybrids), Lexus can make the Germans (especially Mercedes) run for cover when they finally jump into the ring.

[a4anurag]

Originally Posted by suhaas307

The difference between the base petrol and the top end diesel is almost 10 lakhs! That's one Eco Sport right there!

I don't get it. Do xenon lights, bigger wheels, leather steering with contrast stitching, fancy stereo, etc add up to 8 lakhs?

Good point Suhaas! Has someone of Toyota or Honda joined these guys at BMW for deciding the pricing of their products for the Indian market.

There is almost 7-8 lakhs difference in the diesel variants which I feel is not justified. The Indian customer would choose a 3 series than going for the top-end variant. The sales volume if needed would be from the base variant but mistake from BMW is that NOTHING is given in the base model, just skeleton.

I don't understand as to whom have they kept in mind while pricing this car.

Cheers,
Anurag.

[kbk_75]

No M Sport bumper on the Sport + variant even? That's sad.

I am surprised that everyone is so shocked at the pricing. When the Euro has gone from 77 to 92 in the past two months and given our wonderful taxation structure, how could you honestly expect the car to cost less? Don't get me wrong, I would love to see ALL cars cost half what they cost here, but that's just plain dreaming, the fact is the car market (especially for CBU cars) is now well and truly screwed here and I don't see it changing for a while, sadly.

[a4anurag]

Originally Posted by kbk_75

No M Sport bumper on the Sport + variant even? That's sad.

The Sport + version is already retailing at 30 L and if they offer the M version bumper then the costs will escalate further and make no sense.

I can understand about the Rupee falling but money is money right? One the first sight people who want to lay their hands on the 1 Series will be taken aback seeing the prices.

Anurag.

[BeamerBoy]

Originally Posted by RSR

Locally assembled or not, I think the premium German trio have come to firmly believe that they will be perceived as "premium" in India only if even their least expensive product is priced over 2 million rupees, ex-showroom

Make no mistake. 30s is the new 20s.

What 2 Million got you two years back, you need 3 Millions for the same today especially if it is all imported.

Say, from new car concept approval to launch, it takes about 2-3 years. In case of 1 Series therefore the Fx was 63 INR: EUR around 2 years back.

Hence, today the Bavarians need 3 MINR instead of 2 MINR to get the same number of Euros per 1er. Do the maths!

Difficult times, we will all get used to it.

[anandpadhye]

Whatever logic you use to justify the price, we all know it's overpriced.

I will stick to my 160 BHP TSi that I bought for LESS THAN HALF of what BMW wants for this 136 BHP hatch that does not have a spare tire...oops, I meant does not even have the space for a spare tire!

[kbk_75]

Nobody is justifying anything, just as nobody is asking you to think the car is value for money. It's simply an observation at why everything that has any imported content is going to cost more going forward. Get used to the thought, because the trend is not likely to reverse in the immediate future.

As for overpriced, every single car on sale in India is overpriced. It's all relative to what you expect / compare as a baseline.

[pmbdcoe]

Originally Posted by RSR

Locally assembled or not, I think the premium German trio have come to firmly believe that they will be perceived as "premium" in India only if even their least expensive product is priced over 2 million rupees, ex-showroom

It's a pity they want to be seen as a premium brand by providing basic features but charging premium prices. Only when the Germans face competition from the Japanese premium trio of Lexus, Infiniti and Acura will we begin to see them sell their products at realistic prices.

Toyota have taken the first step towards introducing Lexus in India with the launch of the Camry Hybrid. By playing to their strengths (hybrids), Lexus can make the Germans (especially Mercedes) run for cover when they finally jump into the ring.

I had hoped that after the Launch of Merc A Class, the luxury/premium brands specifically the three german ones would open up the car market and start giving good competetion to cars such as Camry/Accord/Passat etc. But if this is the pricing, Coupled with their High Insurance Cost, these premium brands still do not come in the reach of us middle class service people. I have seen in the US, how working class people like us can easily afford mercs and BMWs and was desperately hoping that these entry premium segment vehicles would give us the same oppertunity. I do hope though come 2017, when the government finally slashes the import duty on premium vehicles as per the EU trade agreement, we would eventually get to own these beauties. Till then.....

[FuelInjector]

Originally Posted by KrishD

Given that both the A-class and the 1 are targeted at slightly younger, but fairly rich individuals, the bells and whistles are important.
And although the enthusiasts will root for the beemer, i do feel that Merc has done a better job by keeping only 1-2 variants.
Also, I think the A-class looks much better, and that is going to be important for buyers in this segment. The X1 also suffered on this count.

Exact same thoughts KrishD. The rear seats look pretty flat though!

[anandpadhye]

Originally Posted by kbk_75

Nobody is justifying anything, just as nobody is asking you to think the car is value for money. It's simply an observation at why everything that has any imported content is going to cost more going forward. Get used to the thought, because the trend is not likely to reverse in the immediate future.

@kbk_75, this was the line I was referring to:

Originally Posted by BeamerBoy

Say, from new car concept approval to launch, it takes about 2-3 years.

But that's OK, chill :-)

[kbk_75]

Whichever line you were referring to, the message remained the same, "we all know it's overpriced".

Not only is good value an entirely subjective matter, but my point was that ALL cars here are overpriced and, going forwards, the prices are only going to head up.

By the way, I'm perfectly "chilled", no need to suggest it! :P

[rolling_stone]

Originally Posted by autobalan

Now no one seem to be talking about the V40 here. Unlike the CBU's ,its an imported car with all features, more advanced than the competition. Isn't it a better buy?
i know the lack of dealers and brand image but for real value for money, i dont think any other model can beat V40, or i think they can bring a lower variant with some high tech features removed, then it would be under 25 lakhs.

Actually Volvo India has conveniently removed all advanced features of the v40 in India under the lame pretext of "not applicable to Indian Scene" including adaptive cruise control, lane assist, blind spot warning, navigation, cross traffic alert (very useful during reversing)! The only 1st in segment features are active cornering bi-xenons, laser assisted city braking, led Console, LED lighting package. What is sad is that the driver console display changed (eg) from comfort to sport DOES NOT changing the transmission kinetics or suspension settings or steering response compared to the competition. With time wouldn't one get bored with some fancy display (just like we do with our mobiles?) without some change in driving dynamics added to the fancy graphics! Is city safety braking actually that relevant to India, may I ask, when actually an Indian driver is the least likely to be distracted on the road or be cruising unsuspectedly at high speeds not expecting someone to emerge from a side lane? So should one pay 29 lacs for the looks + xenons + LED package + lousy service network? I'm not so sure!

[slamnos]

Introducing more affordable sporty cars in India is a good idea.

But at 30L +, digesting the fact that its still a Hatch is difficult, should have been a compact sedan like the A3.

[virtualdanger]

I have to agree that the interiors in the base edition look really cheap. Many C2 sedans costing half as much look way nicer, and a lot more sophisticated.

With my existing aesthetic dislike for hatches, BMW or not, not really fond of the 1 series.