Confidence, power and success equals big car it is, for the young investment banker and advertising agency chief to the movie star and the politician. According to Sandeep Singh, deputy managing director (marketing), Toyota Kirloskar, "It is simply a reflection of a new confident personal image."
Take Ford's Endeavour for example, in cities like Bombay, Delhi and Bangalore many corporate organizations give their top employees the car. Senior professionals are the make of the typical SUV owner. But in other metros and smaller cities says Michael Boneham, MD, Ford India, "It's the entrepreneur, politicians, industrialists. In non-metro towns it's a symbol of success." The Honda CR V, a hot cake in the world of premium SUVs, too sees ample demand from small towns coming close to sales in cities like Mumbai, Delhi and Bangalore.
Most car purchases are about image and emotion say car makers. Sen says when it comes to SUVs, "I think, true in many cases, the customer seeks self-gratification and also wants to project a powerful image to one's friends and family."
But when it comes to projecting dominance nothing screams louder than the Hummer, the ultimate SUV says popular culture. French-born cultural anthropologist Clotaire Rapaille who has worked as a consultant to DaimlerChrysler, Ford, and General Motors, aptly described the SUV generation when he famously said, "The inside of an SUV should be the Ritz-Carlton, with a minibar. I am going to be on the battlefield so on the outside I want to be menacing, but inside I want to be warm, with food and hot coffee and communications."
And so although both civilians and the military have been driving the same machines, only the former can have Louis Vuitton interiors, non-military gizmos and gadgets and any colour but hardly ever camouflage. Toyota Fortuner, launched earlier this year, has distinctive ruthless pick-upish features a far cry from its happy-family positioned Innova. Entry level homegrown SUV brands like Mahindra Scorpio and Tata Safari changed the name of the game. Interestingly, what worked in Scorpio?s favour wasn?t a SUV?s rustic charm but city adaptability and dominance that appeals to a younger consumer. Vivek Nayer, VPmarketing, M&M, explains, "The strategy was to make the Scorpio an aspiration car that you can drive to work as well as on long trips with the family." Although last year saw SUV sales in the country going southward, now SUVs are rolling out of dealerships in fairly healthy numbers again.
Perhaps, it might seem odd at first to talk about a bombastic auto industry in a nation where car penetration is about 8 to 9 per thousand and the ratio of cars to utility vehicles is 80:20. But that?s exactly why carmakers are so ecstatic. The future is very bright for all auto companies say industry analysts. And so while economic synchronisation continues and as India awaits the first wave of Tata Nanos to hit Indian roads, car makers are keenly talking about a growing loyal consumer base for these mighty machines.
In the West owners of SUVs have acquired a bit of a reputation over the years. Lobbyists, within and outside governments, have been beating down on citizens, asking them to stop cruising in their gas guzzling tank-like utility vehicles. Instead, they say, opt for more green rides. But while the age of the SUV is bruising elsewhere, in Indian cities folks are saying 'SUPER SIZE ME', (a phrase inspired by a popular McDonald's meal option that allows hungry patrons to upgrade their food portions to a size fit for Titans.) And car makers are more than happy to serve up a super-sized selection to hungry customers.
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