[amitpunjani]

Hi

If in any case Proton comes into India, they have to spend quite a lot in marketing as the brand awareness among the people is less or it might end up having the same future Peugeot 309

Amit

[GTO]

It is going to be an incredibly hard sell for any new entrant in the 3 - 8 lakh price band; Indians, Japs, Koreans and Americans are doing a fantastic job. No one can beat the 800 (& Nano) on costs. Maruti, Hyundai & Tata have the B and B+ segments well covered. Ditto for the entry-level sedan market with the Dzire, Logan, Indigo, Accent and Ikon. The SX4, Honda City, Verna, Optra & Fiesta offer a great range of choices in the C segment.

Proton (or anyone else) needs a differentiating point / USP for a shot at success. But I don't see any ground left to be covered!

[Cyrus43]

Originally Posted by GTO

It is going to be an incredibly hard sell for any new entrant in the 3 - 8 lakh price band; Indians, Japs, Koreans and Americans are doing a fantastic job. No one can beat the 800 (& Nano) on costs. Maruti, Hyundai & Tata have the B and B+ segments well covered. Ditto for the entry-level sedan market with the Dzire, Logan, Indigo, Accent and Ikon. The SX4, Honda City, Verna, Optra & Fiesta offer a great range of choices in the C segment.

Proton (or anyone else) needs a differentiating point / USP for a shot at success. But I don't see any ground left to be covered!

I think what they need to give are cars with completely mindblowing fuel economy in one bracket and crazy performance in another bracket. Proton should also aim at alt. fuel management such as giving LPG/CNG based vehicles with above par performance. Say a 140HP LPG/CNG car for around 6.5-8 lks!!

[Mpower]

Not to mention they are zero when it comes to diesel engines!

[abhinav.gupta88]

I doubt they will be very successful
Personally i dont like the cars from Proton.!

[mail4ajo]

I feel there is still space for more entrants. In the late 1990's we thought the car market was overcrowded. Hasn't it grown significantly since then? Buyers needs are always dynamic. Novelty factor in car buying will always remain.

However, like GTO and others said, there need to be some USP to click in the market. Either it has to be for the masses, else has to niche and exclusive.

Having seen and driven Proton in its home market, I feel they are looking at the low end to start with. And seriously they are not that bad as projected. They really dont have a strong image to start with in India say like a Suzuki, Honda or a Hyundai.

But we cant really brand Proton a non starter. Take the example of Skoda, with all its not so great image in Europe, isn't it a success in India??

Proton was pampered by the Govt just like how Maruti was in its initial days. But when you have a level playing field, its takes a lot to compete and strive in the international market.

Heres a Proton I got to drive a lot. My relatives being a huge joint family have 4 of these. I am not sure, but I think it is a model called Waja.

[NOS Power]

Originally Posted by mail4ajo

Take the example of Skoda, with all its not so great image in Europe, isn't it a success in India??

I think you need to restudy your stats regarding Skoda's. You might be referring to the time before they were bought out by VW. Skoda's are well known for there reliability and VFM in Europe.

[ajmat]

Skoda had a good product to start with, what do Proton have ?

[Tushar]

Reports of Malaysian car-maker Proton considering an entry into the Indian car market have been coming in for several years now. While an official confirmation has yet to arrive, a recent report suggests that Proton is considering the Iriz hatchback for India.

According to the report by Autocar Professional, Proton is still undertaking a feasibility study to understand the Indian market and zero in on the right product for it. Abdul Rashid Bin Musa, Proton’s sector head for technical operations, said that the brand is looking at the possibility of a partnership to locally assemble cars.

The relationship could be similar to the one that Mitsubishi and Isuzu share with Hindustan Motors’ plant in Chennai. A challenge cited is the fact that diesel engines are largely limited to commercial vehicles in markets like Malaysia. This means that a model like the Iris will have its work cut out for it, among the B-segment hatchbacks currently sold in India.

The car is offered with 1.3L and 1.6L petrol engines mated with either 5-speed manual or CVT automatic gearbox. It is also interesting to note, that according to the official website, all variants of the Iriz come with a 5-star ASEAN NCAP rating. Whether or not Proton goes through with a product launch, only time will tell.

[zenren]

It is always nice to have more options in the hatchback segment. They would need to downsize their 1332cc engine to come under the 1200cc if they need to price it right which should be relatively easy by reducing the stroke length to remove 33cc per cylinder. Given their current unit churns out 95PS, a downsized 1.2L petrol mill should still return around 85PS which is perfectly fine for the segment. However, lack of a diesel mill could hurt them very bad if they intend to just enter with VVT into the Brio segment.

Brands like Proton are relatively unknown ones and hence it would be difficult to gather trust of the Indian consumers who are either obsessed with the Maruti/Hyundai stables or the European ancestry. Given Proton has neither, the interest would be very low initially, especially in the volume segments. Another risk that has come up recently is the influx of Chinese ventures in other areas. People could very well mistake this for a Chinese car maker and that would diminish the desirability of the brand. If they are coming, they would need to highlight their rally heritage in the ads to remove any adverse perception.

Also, they would need to learn the art of cost cutting if they have to price their offerings on par with the competition. Believe me, its an art that most of the global brands failed to master - eg: Toyota with Etios, Honda with Brio, Nissan with Datsun Go and so on. Majority buy a car as a status symbol and an evidently cheap car is not something that would be acceptable for most families if they have a choice. Average Indian consumer wants a car that has cost cutting so that he can buy it cheap but is not evident at first glance, especially to his neighbors or his in-laws.