Audi India is looking for a double-digit growth in 2021 as it prepares to launch a slew of cars with a mix of all body types and powertrains, including two electric vehicles (EV)s in the next two months.
The premium car maker managed to sell only 1,639 units in 2020 when it could do business only in the last five months of the year owing to the pandemic.
“In 2020, the automotive industry lost a significant volume during the pandemic which was not recoverable and we were no different. The sales did pick up from the festival season and at Audi, we witnessed month-on-month growth over five months last year with December witnessing the highest sales in 2020,” said Balbir Singh Dhillon, head of Audi India.
Even as the company prepares to launch its first electric vehicle (EV) in the coming months, Dhillon feels the first movers and early adopters will be the potential customers.
“We are buoyant on the e-mobility space and plan to launch our first two all-electric cars — the Audi e-tron and the Audi e-tron Sportback — within the next couple of months in the country. The buyers of luxury electric cars are first-movers and early adopters; they know the merits of going electric. Existing luxury car buyers will also be our target audience. One of the reasons the customers opt for EVs is the ‘fun to drive’ element. EVs with stronger batteries today, provide peak torque right from the start without any delay,” said Dhillon.
On the upcoming models, he said: “We have lined up a host of launches in 2021. We kick-started the year with the launch of one of our best-selling models in India, the Audi A4 in January, followed by the Audi S5 Sportback in March. Our model line-up will expand across all the segments where we have been present in the past. We will launch a comprehensive line-up of cars, from sedans to SUVs, ICE variants to electric cars, and models in the volume as well as niche segments such as performance cars.”
On the company’s diesel plan, Dhillon said: “We started moving towards a higher mix of petrol engines in 2017. We will grow our petrol and electric portfolio further in the months to come as the total cost of ownership of a petrol vehicle is now ‘not a concern’ compared with a diesel vehicle for customers. This being said, we have not given up on diesel engines entirely and are evaluating this further.”
