Buying cars in India is becoming difficult. Reason? Variant boom
What's the story
India's passenger vehicle market is witnessing an unprecedented surge in model variants, with a whopping 56% increase since 2021. This trend comes as automakers are trying to meet the diverse demands of consumers by expanding their offerings across powertrains, features, and price points. The number of variants has jumped up to 1,923 during this period.
Strategic advantage
Variant development more cost-effective than new model introduction
Amit Dhaundiyal, head of Product Strategy & Planning at Hyundai Motor India, said that developing new variants is a faster and more cost-effective approach than introducing all-new models.
He explained that continuous feature enhancements and advanced technology adoption through variants, enable OEMs to cater to diverse customer preferences across powertrains, transmissions, features, and price points.
This strategy also maximizes the potential of existing vehicle platforms.
Consumer challenge
Need for clear differentiation
However, the rapid increase in variants also poses a challenge for consumers: understanding the differences between them.
Dhaundiyal stressed that excessive overlap can complicate purchase decisions.
He emphasized the need to maintain clear differentiation and a simple, logical variant hierarchy that makes customer choices easier.
Maruti Suzuki's Senior Executive Officer Partho Banerjee echoed this sentiment, noting that today's customers seek different combinations of powertrain, transmission features, and price points.
Decision dilemma
Complexity in choice
Ravi Bhatia, President of Jato Dynamics, pointed out the paradox that while buying a car has become easier with more options and information, choosing one has become more complex.
He said the real decision now comes down to understanding differences between variants and what an additional ₹50,000 or ₹1 lakh buys.
This dilemma is likely to grow as automakers compete not just on models but also on how finely they can tailor them to different buyers.
Retail perspective
Customers well-researched but confused
According to Sai Giridhar, VP at the Federation of Automobile Dealers Associations (FADA), customers are coming to showrooms well-researched but still find it hard to make a final decision because of the number of variants.
He said consumers usually decide on a brand and broad price band before approaching a dealer, who then helps them navigate through variants within that range.