Luxury carmakers in India are betting big on the luxury and sport-utility vehicle segment

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here as the mass volume car segment slows down due to the rising interest rates and fuel prices.

In the first seven months this year, BMW sold 5,364 units, clocking 97 per cent growth compared with the same period last year. It has retained its leadership with 40 per cent market share, beating compatriot and archrival Mercedes-Benz’s market share at 33 per cent.

Mercedes-Benz sold 4,277 units in January-July 2011, registering a growth of 46 per cent compared with the same period in the previous year. The third German luxury carmaker Audi sold 3,145 cars from January-July 2011, clocking an impressive growth of 93 per cent.

“The first seven months number is almost double compared to same period last year,” Andreas Schaaf, BMW India president told Financial Chronicle. This year, he said, the company is targeting to sell 10,000 cars and maintain its leadership position above 40 per cent market share.

“The entry level luxury car X1 launched last December is driving volumes at over 400 units monthly at Rs 22.40 lakh, and our latest offering of Rs 42 lakh X3 SUV launched last week is targeted to clock 100 units a month and be the second volume driver for the company,” Schaaf said.

Sales in June and July were also impressive for the three German competitors fighting for leadership in the growing luxury segment in India. Due to fastest growth this year compared with the last four years, BMW India sold 890 units in June and 840 in July 2011 against 291 in June and 535 in July last year. “August numbers will definitely be better than July with our newly launched X3 SUV last week,” Schaaf said.

Audi sold 408 units and 343 units in June and July 2011 respectively. Mercedes-Benz clocked 565 units in June. It did not release figures for July.

“Mercedes-Benz has registered an impressive 46 per cent growth for the first seven months of 2011 as compared to the same period last year. A key enabler towards this has been new product launches which has retained the interest of our customers for our products," Debashis Mitra, director, marketing and sales, Mercedes-Benz India, said.

“Our robust sales are due to our philosophy of thinking ahead of the curve and to bring innovative products to India. With an exceptional sales performance in the first seven months, we are well poised to achieve our sales target of 5000 cars this year,” Michael Perschke, head, Audi India, said.

Luxury carmakers are gearing for future growth as they expect the luxury cars and SUVs to soar to 23,000-24,000 units in 2011, up from 15,000 last year. They said the luxury car market in India was not impacted by the hike in interest rates, fuel prices and inflation. “Sales will rise and this trend will continue as we approach the festive season,” Schaaf said.