Car majors keep faith in old brand platforms

In 1993, when Maruti Udyog Managing Director Jagdish Khattar was just a week old in the company, the Zen was launched.

Only slightly more roomy than the 800 but much costlier, it took off on a lukewarm note. However, as its sporty drive and trendy looks caught on, it became a steady money spinner for Maruti.

This week, Maruti launched an all-new car, which is more a tall-boy as opposed to the low-slung Zen, has a bigger engine, is based on the Wagon R platform, and looks like the byproduct of the coming together of Toyota Innova and Maruti's own Wagon R. Yet, it is called Zen, albeit with the suffix of Estilo, which is Spanish for style.

This marks the strengthening of a trend in the Indian automobile industry of retaining old brands across starkly different vehicles. The first instance was the new Honda City, which, with its space-age design and low power output, was totally different from the straight-lined 100-BHP sedan that was the old City.

Earlier this year, Hyundai Motor India launched a new car, much bigger and more powerful than the Accent, and yet called it Accent Verna.

This new trend runs contrary to the pattern in the earlier years, which saw a bevy of once-popular brands like Ford Escort, Opel Astra, Opel Swing, Toyota Qualis, Bajaj Chetak and Hero Honda Street riding into oblivion.

"As the Indian industry integrates with the globe, the global standards are being brought to India," says Khattar. The statement is in reference to some of the best known car companies selling cars under brands that debuted decades ago.

For instance, Toyota Corolla was introduced in 1966 as a two-door sub-compact sedan. Since then, it has been sold as a wagon, two-door coupe and van. In 1988, it became a compact car and was the biggest selling nameplate in 1997, as many as 31 years after inception.

Similarly, Honda Accord debuted as a compact hatchback in 1976 and as a four-door sedan the following year. In 1994, it was re-modelled into a mid-size sedan. The eighth generation of the Accord is due in 2008.

Brand strategy experts say it is important for old brands to continue to stand for the same core values even as the vehicles are overhauled. For instance, the Corolla continues to be good value for money even as its sibling, Camry, caters to those seeking more luxury.

"Just as you have technology platforms, you should also have brand platforms," says Rama Bijapurkar, an independent brand strategy consultant based in Mumbai.

In some way, this is catching on in India's two-wheeler industry too, as Hero Honda Splendor, even as it gets to be called Super Splendor (with a bigger engine) and Splendor Plus (with some add-ons), continues to cater to the executive segment.