On Market Research

Tata Motors introduced their new MUV / SUV Crossover vehicle, the ARIA, at the Auto Expo in 2010 and launched it soon after. The Aria was aimed at the Toyota Innova, a 7-seater Multi-Utility Vehicle which has been selling about 4000-5000 units per month.

Interestingly, Tata Motors has been a strong player in the SUV segment with the Tata Sumo selling between 3000 - 4000 units per month between 1994 and 2005. The Sumo was followed by the Safari which went on to garner sales of about 2000 units per month in its day. These numbers were in addition to the Sumo units.

When the Tata Xover Concept was presented at the 2006 Geneva Auto Show, the platform was capable of being developed into a Multi Utility Vehicle (minivan) and a Sport Utility Vehicle (SUV). Tata Motors conducted customer interest clinics in India and the market research suggested that respondents considered the vehicle favourably against the Toyota Innova.

Tata Motors decided to develop the MUV version of the Xover and launched the Aria in 2010. Strangely, the Aria was launched with 4-wheel drive, which left most minivan prospects wondering why they should be paying more for a car that will be used for the school run and the office commute and the weekly grocery shopping. The van like shape of the Aria, on the other hand, left the off-road enthusiasts scratching their heads.

Sales volumes have been dismal. The Aria has not sold more than 40 units per month in the last 6 months and apart from the first few months after launch, has never sold more than double digits. These are all-India numbers.

Clearly, there is a big difference between what people say they will do when responding to a survey and what they will actually do when the time comes to pull out their cheque-books.

Tata Motors has now developed the SUV version of the Xover, the Hexa, expected to be launched in 2016. Given Tata Motors strength in the SUV space and the loyal following the Safari seems to have, I am willing to bet that the Hexa, which is really the same car as the Aria, save for a changed look at the front end, will sell far better than the minivan variant. If Tata had launched the Xover with an SUV look the first time round, rather than the minivan look, it might have been a runaway success.

I appreciate that hindsight is 20-20, but I am going to say this anyway. If Tata Motors had stayed true to what they stood for, i.e. SUVs rather than minivans, they are likely to have done a lot better with this product, market research notwithstanding. To make matters more confounding, Tata Motors has been enjoying the success of SUVs even with Land Rover; they know the SUV space, they own the space. What in the world takes a company 6 years to change the bonnet and front bumper on a competent 4x4 vehicle to make it look a more butch?