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Two out of three Mercedes Benz cars in India sold on lease or finance: CEO

Launching The New E-class Mercedes Benz In The City, Company's Managing Director And CEO Eberhard H Kern Said The Trend Of Getting The Car Leased Is Gaining Pace In India Despite People Preferring To Own A Car In Their Name Here.

PTI | Updated on: 06 Jul 2013, 03:45:55 PM

Chandigarh:

Every two out of three cars sold by Mercedes Benz in India is either financed or leased, a top company official said on Saturday. Launching the new E-class Mercedes Benz in the city, company's Managing Director and CEO Eberhard H Kern said the trend of getting the car leased is gaining pace in India despite people preferring to own a car in their name here.

"The business of getting Mercedes Benz on lease is fast catching up in India," he said adding 5 per cent of the its leasing is to the corporate sector.

He said sales of every two out of three cars by the company was undertaken through financing or leasing.

He said that the company plans to invest Rs 250 crore in its production facilities in the country to "double" its capacity.

The company is prepared to come out with new models next year to cater to the demand of the market, Kern said.

On the dealership network, there are 57 outlets in 32 cities of India, he said adding the company plans to add another ten dealers throughout the country this year.

Fiscal 2013-14 is "offensive year" for the company as it will come out with new products and extend its dealership network, among other things, he added.

E-Class, which is fourth new launch of this year, accounts for 40 per cent of business of the automobile giant in India, the company said.

Talking about the sale of the luxury car, Kern said 45 per cent of the cars were sold in Delhi and Mumbai and 55 per cent in rest of the country.

"The company may introduce its products in small segments of SUV as well," he added.

Most of the cars are assembled in India and some ten per cent customers demand "certain features" in imported cars called as "dream cars", the top company official said.

He said the company sees growth in all segments - sedan, SUV and luxury hatchback and would launch more products.

"We have plans to assemble GL-Class, a SUV considering the response from the customers. Currently, we assemble the C-Class, E-Class, M-Class and the S-Class in India at our facility, Kern said.

He said the company looked to double its production capacity to 20,000 units by 2014.

Having sold 7138 units last year, the company is eyeing double digit growth in the current year, he added.

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First Published : 06 Jul 2013, 03:43:00 PM

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