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Interview: A Sankara Narayanan, Director, Hindustan Motors
Posted on 16 Mar 20123,741 Views1 Comments
After a long hiatus, HM-Mitsubishi finally launched a new product in the market, namely the Pajero Sport. ZigWheels catches up with Mr. A Sankara Nayaranan, Director, Hindustan Motors to gain an insight on HM-Mitsubishi's future plans as well as their latest offering.
ZW: Why have you chosen to introduce the Pajero Sport through the CBU route and not the CKD route? I believe you have plans to eventually go the CKD way.
Narayanan: We feel that the CBU route offers us a better chance to understand how the model will perform in the market. While it might be a little more expensive, it also gives us time to set up the sales and service for the vehicle. By that time, we are well in place to make the leap to install equipment and eventually go the CKD way.
Our plan is to have the CKD operations ready by September this year and as expected, the Pajero Sport will then be offered at a lower rate.
ZW: Is Mitsubishi looking at offering more engine options and an automatic transmission on the Pajero Sport?
Narayanan: As far as an automatic option is concerned, we will study the market and if we feel that there is enough demand, we will look at introducing the Pajero Sport with that transmission. In terms of engine options, internationally there is a smaller engine, but this currently isn’t on the cards.
ZW: What would be the fate of the existing Pajero SFX model?
Narayanan: As of now, we will continue selling the existing Pajero SFX alongside the new Pajero Sport, however once our CKD operations commence; we will phase out the older model.
ZW: HM-Mitsubishi has not been that aggressive in the market as compared to other manufacturers. By treading slowly, don’t you feel that this hampers both market perception as well as your brand value?
Narayanan: Aggressive is an adjective that you have used and honestly that isn’t our aim. We try to be the best in terms of offering quality products, good service and maintain a good sales reputation. We aren’t operating at extremely large volumes just yet and while the competition might move at a different pace, we have our plans and will operate accordingly.
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M K
HM is unable to deliver the car on the committed dates. HM and Mitsubishi are not at all bothered about the customer or customer relationship.
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