Volkswagen mulling introduction of budget brand in India

German automaker Volkswagen is said to be studying the possibility of the introduction of a budget car brand in India, which will be positioned in the sub-Rs. 5 lakh price bracket. The company is likely to take a decision regarding this matter in the next one year. Once the project is approved, products under the new brand will take 3-4 years to go on sale.

Volkswagen is close to finalising a budget brand for China. For India, the company has considered ideas that it had looked up for China. However, the Indian product could vary from the Chinese one. This is because the company considers India as one of the toughest low retail markets in the world and what may be seen as a low cost product in China may not be considered low cost in India.

Additionally, the company is also localising its products and is considering building certain engines and gearboxes in India. The company is also aiming to bring in many more products, including the Polo and Vento facelifts, the Polo Stuffe sub-4 metre sedan, compact SUV, new Passat, Jetta, Beetle and Touareg in the coming years.

Volkswagen plans to capture a market-share of 7-9% by the end of the 2018-2020 period.

Source: Economic Times