In the first major victory over its rival Maruti Suzuki, Hyundai’s i10 has driven past its rival Wagon R in the 1.1 litre engine category during FY10.
During the period, Hyundai sold 149,242 units of i10 in the domestic market as compared to Wagon R’s 1,44,898 units. Maruti Suzuki’s WagonR had been dominating this segment until now.
The Hyundai Motor India Ltd (HMIL) director (marketing), Mr Arvind Saxena, said the company has “sold as many as 149,242 units of i10 in the Indian market during 2009-10, which makes it the top selling car in the 1.1 litre capacity segment”.
However, i10 might find it difficult to sustain the lead as Maruti is all set to launch the new WagonR with additional features and aggressive pricing.
The new Wagon R, which was launched in April this year, carries a price tag of between Rs 3.28 lakh and Rs 3.81 lakh across models.
The company modified Wagon R with a new platform –– including engine, transmission and suspension.
Hyundai, however, does not appear to be deterred by the new Wagon R. “Wagon R has been the leader in this segment for long. But i10 has its own specialities. We believe it would continue to do well in this segment,” the company spokesperson claimed.
The Korean major is pinning hopes on the good mileage of i10 to enable it to increase its share in a cost-sensitive market.