Electric sparks: M&M flags issues with Tata Motors e-car pricing

Pawan Goenka says not sure about selling cars in phase-II

M&M, which is competing with rival Tata Motors Electric Cars in the country’s largest electric car tender, said the company finds it “difficult” to comprehend the latter’s pricing in the tender. Tata Motors quoted a price of Rs 10.16 lakh for its electric Tigor sedan in the tender for 10,000 electric cars when M&M offered to sell its e-Verito at approximately Rs 12 lakh (both prices are exclusive of the goods and services tax).

“This pricing is difficult for us to comprehend given the fact that we have been in the business for more than five years and have good knowledge about the industry,” Pawan Goenka, managing director at M&M, said in a conference call on Thursday.

Also Read : Tata Motors Wins Bid To Sell 10,000 Electric Cars

Tata Motors emerged as the lowest bidder in the tender and is selling 250 of the order for 400 units in the first phase. EESL, which invited the bids, gave M&M an opportunity to match the price of the electric Tigor, following which the firm would supply 150 units in first phase that ends on November 30. Goenka, however, said they would not make any profit on the order.

Goenka said he was not aware if Tata Motors was able to offer the price based on a volume commitment to its vendors. He drew a distinction between the e-Verito and the electric Tigor. He said the e-Verito was a proper sedan with a bigger length (4.24 metre) against the sub-4 metre length of the Tigor. “Our vehicle has a range of 170-180 km upon full charge, which is more than the specified range of 130 km in the tender,” he said. Read More

Tigor launched at Rs 4.7 lakh: Tata eyes a seat in Swift Dzire's market

Upping the ante in the crowded compact sedan category, Tata Motors on Wednesday launched Tata Tigor, its third product in the tax-efficient sub-four metre sedan segment.

The biggest selling point for Tigor is its aggressive pricing. At Rs 4.7 lakh for the base petrol variant, Tigor is now the cheapest compact sedan in the country and even undercuts Tata’s existing models. For example, the largest-selling car in the segment - Swift Dzire - starts at Rs 5.27 lakh, while the base petrol version of Indigo CS, from the Tata stable, is priced at Rs 5.03 lakh.

Besides Indigo CS, Tata Motors also sells the Zest in the segment, but has not been able to break the dominance of Maruti Suzuki’s Swift Dzire in the category. The compact sedan and hatchback category, accounted for over 40% of car sales in January 2017, at over 114,000 units.

Maruti accounted for 56,000 cars in the category, with Swift Dzire selling over 18,000 units in January 2017.

The Tata Tigor 1.2-litre petrol model comes in four variants in the price range of Rs 4.7 lakh to Rs 6.19 lakh, while the 1.05-litre diesel engine mounted models starts at Rs 5.6 lakh and goes up to Rs 7.09 lakh in Delhi. The Tigor is the second all-new launch by Tata Motors in 2017 after the sports utility vehicle Hexa in January, which, the company claims, has notched over 2,000 retail deliveries.

Launched in April last year, Tiago sold close to 60,000 units and has helped the company pull buyers back to its showroom. Tiago, which, too, was a price warrior like Tigor, was the first successful launch by Tata Motors after a series of lacklustre product launches. The company is now trying to build on Tiago’s success by launching a new series of stylish products to attract young buyers and expand its sales and service network.

“With Tiago, Tigor and Hexa, we now cover 51% of the addressable market. But I have 49% of the market unaddressed. But I am very sure we have made the right beginning with these models and are very much on track,” Mayank Pareek, president-passenger vehicles, Tata Motors, said after the launch. Read Article Source >>>