While automakers have already announced festive discounts on several models in their bid to uplift consumer sentiments, dealerships are also offering additional cash discounts, goodies and even gold coins with purchases. “We waited till the festive season to buy our car as we were sure of good discounts during the Diwali period. We recently booked it and got a good cashback deal,” Hadapsar resident Nikhil Jain said.
Industry players said car sales had showed a declining trend over the last three months. “Sales during the Ganapati were not as robust as the previous year. A lot of inquiries are now getting converted into bookings. Inventory has piled up, and there is competition between dealers to get the consumers to book cars,” said Sachin Mahajan, state chairperson for the Federation of Automobile Dealers Associations (FADA).
The Sept-Nov festival period makes up for 30-40% of annual sales for most of the automakers.
Nicky Sehgal, managing director of Sehgal Autoriders, said, “The market is not buoyant, and demand has been tepid, but with huge discounts, we are bullish on bookings. We saw good bookings on the first day of Navaratra.”
An official at a Tata Motors dealership in Baner said the monsoon had played some spoilsport during Ganapati, but things were improving.
Virmeet Singh Maini, president of the Poona Automobile Dealers Association, said, “With fewer new cars being sold, owners focus on maintaining their vehicles. This benefits the maintenance industry.”
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