The Volkswagen showroom at Ratu Road in Ranchi on Monday. (Hardeep Singh)

The world maybe finding it difficult to steer past an economic slowdown, but Ranchi’s wealthy with bottomless wallets are sure having the hots for high-end wheels.

After Japanese automobile manufacturer Toyota and German car giant Volkswagen, the makers of the caaar are ready to vroom their way into the state capital in two weeks’ time. Japan’s premium auto manufacturer Nissan, which recently made a speedy foray into India’s drawing room discussions with its spacious saloon car Sunny, is ready to set shop on HB Road.

While Toyota brought luxury wheels to Ranchi last September with a showroom in Ormanjhi, Volkswagen debuted on Ratu Road a month later. And as the capital’s adventurous heart raced for more, here comes Nissan with its own eye-popping range and its famous four peers — BMW, Mercedes-Benz, Mitsubishi and Honda — in tow.

BMW is already offering test-drives in Jharkhand on demand. Though a direct representative of the German automobile major could not be reached in Ranchi, an official at Calcutta-based OSL Prestige that deals in BMW cars told The Telegraph that interested clients could fill up an online form available on the website, specifying the model they wished to ride. “Our representative will contact the prospective client within 24 hours and fix an appointment for the test-drive. We will bring the cars from Calcutta,” she said.

Jamshedpur-based businessman A. Bhalotia is introducing Ranchi to Nissan. He is also in talks with BMW, Mercedes and Honda for their franchises.

Subhash Mishra, general manager (sales) of the upcoming Nissan showroom in Ranchi, said the automobile market was on fifth gear. “In the past two months, we sold around 25-30 cars from our yet-to-be-opened Ranchi office. That sums up the story,” he said, adding that the cars were delivered from their outlet in Adityapur.

The 2,000sqft Nissan showroom on HB Road, currently under construction, is likely to be formally inaugurated within a couple of weeks. “Most of the cars we sold were in the range of Rs 6.5 lakh to Rs 9 lakh. But buyers are lined up for luxury SUV and sedan models such as X-Trail and Teana. These high-end cars start from Rs 25 lakh,” he added.

Volkswagen and Toyota, too, have been selling a minimum of two-three cars a month since they opened shop.

So, what’s driving this upmarket trend in Ranchi? “Money isn’t an issue in tier-II and tier-III cities anymore. In places like Ranchi and Jamshedpur, the majority of customers are not first-time buyers. When they seek a new car, the brand factor comes in. For instance, Volkswagen Polo is almost in the range of a Maruti Swift. Moreover, international brands are a status symbol,” said a senior official at the Volkswagen showroom.

“Compared to cities, in suburban pockets customers are mostly first-timers. So, they will generally buy a Maruti or a Hyundai car,” he added.

Nissan sales general manager Mishra couldn’t agree more. “We have realised that in cities like Ranchi, people change their hot wheels every three to four years when brand names come into the picture,” he said.

According to Mishra, the car market in Jharkhand is roughly estimated at around Rs 1,000 crore, if one goes by the overall car sales figure (of all brands) of 20,000 per annum. And as the new brands fuel the desire to flaunt more money power, the future of high-end cars will reach an uncharted altitude in the state, feel market players.