Groupe PSA, the second largest passenger vehicle group in Europe by volumes, on Wednesday said it would focus on offering products in all key segments of the Indian passenger vehicle market as the French car group gears up for its India entry next year with its first launch.

The French car group, which will introduce its first vehicle - Citroen C5 Aircross SUV, a premium SUV – next year, reiterated that it would not chase volumes in India, but would focus on playing in all major segments as the Group seeks a profitable growth journey in the country.

“The C5 Aircross SUV will be our flagship model initially and we are going to cover most of the mainstream segments with our new platforms,” Roland Bouchara, Senior Vice-President – Sales & Marketing, PCA Automobiles India Pvt Ltd, the Indian arm of the Group, said here.

He said the company was developing strong business fundamentals for the successful launch and growth of its vehicles in India through various programmes across product, suppliers, dealers and technology areas.

There would be two major differentiators in its India play among other things. While there is a stronger focus on products to make them attractive in terms of design and features, hassle-free dealership service with a strong digital flavour will also be a key part.

Purchase of Citroen cars will be made easier using technology and customers will be allowed to choose their vehicle options and service packages on their own instead of dealers forcing them on several things.

During the launch of its first car next year, the company will have dealerships across 10 major cities and will ramp up the dealer network gradually.

Bouchara said the company would aim for significant localisation in its car and the new platform vehicles would come with more than 90 per cent local content.

On the service side, it is working on plans to ensure that its vehicle parts are available at competitive prices. The company will also introduce a leasing model in an attract to bring more buyers under its fold.

Groupe PSA owns six-vehicle brands. But it has chosen to sell vehicles in India under its Citroen brand. It has a tied up with C K Birla Group for the manufacture of vehicles at Thiruvallur near Chennai. It has gear box unit at Hosur near Bangalore. The facilities will have production capacities of one lakh vehicles, three lakh gear boxes and two lakh engines.

comment COMMENT NOW