Luxury carmakers Mercedes, Lexus, Audi expect bumper sales in festive period

NEW DELHI: Luxury carmakers Mercedes-Benz, Lexus and Audi expect sales momentum to continue in the ongoing festive season with demand remaining robust for high-end cars.

With offtake remaining strong, the festive season push could even see the luxury car segment posting its highest ever volumes in a year in 2023. In an interaction with PTI, Mercedes-Benz India Managing Director and CEO Santosh Iyer noted that the festive season looks very promising as compared with last year.

''This year the festive season is spread across four months and we are optimistic as we started on a very positive note, from Onam onwards,'' he stated. With a strong demand primarily driven by recent launches and buoyant customer sentiment, Mercedes-Benz expects the growth momentum to continue, Iyer said.

Lexus India President Naveen Soni said the luxury car market continues to grow in the country.

''This year, the demand for high-end cars has brought cheer to the industry. Luxury cars, as a market segment, are growing at a healthy pace,'' he said. Rising numbers of high net-worth individuals, millennials, high levels of disposable incomes, well-travelled consumers coupled with stable economic growth are fuelling this growth, he noted.

''At Lexus, we have already overtaken sales of 2022 and expect an equally strong momentum from the second quarter to carry well in the coming festive period. Customer sentiments have perked up, and fresh bookings remain strong,'' Soni said.

To further offer greater value to customers this festive season, the automaker has introduced the limited edition of its sports coupe, LC 500h, he said. The company has also opened bookings for the new-generation LM multipurpose vehicle, he added.

''This is a new category for Lexus in India, and we're confident that this will redefine the ultra-luxury mobility experience,'' Soni said.

Audi India head Balbir Singh Dhillon said the company retailed 3,474 units in the first half of this year witnessing a strong 97 per cent growth.

''Our SUVs have witnessed a growth of 217 per cent and our performance cars have grown by 127 per cent. With the festive season, we are expecting this demand and growth to continue,'' he noted.

The company continues to see strong demand for models like A4, A6, Q3, and Q5, among others, Dhillon said.

''With our recent launches, Q8 e-tron and Q8 Sportback e-tron, we now have the widest EV portfolio in the segment. We are confident of good demand during the festive season for our electric range,'' Dhillon said.

The company has recently launched Q8 Limited Edition for the festive season and will be introducing more products during the season, he added.

''Evolving demographics and favourable economic conditions are leading to growth in the luxury car market,'' Dhillon said.

The company is on a growth path and expects to close the year with high double-digit growth, he added.

It is expected that the overall domestic passenger vehicle sales will cross the 10 lakh-unit sales mark in the festive period this year.

The 68-day festive period this year falls between August 17 and November 14.