Buyers considering utility vehicles, mid sized cars: J D Power

New vehicle buyers in India are increasingly looking at models in the utility vehicle and mid-size car segments, according to research firm J D Power Asia-Pacific.
In the last four years there has been a significant shift in the vehicle body-types being considered by car buyers, said the '2015 India Escaped Shopper Study' by J D Power.
"In 2012, 65 per cent of new-vehicle buyers considered a small car during the shopping process. This has come down to 45 per cent in 2015. At the same time, consideration for utility vehicles and mid-size cars has gone up by 12 per cent and 7 per cent respectively over the same period," it said.

JD Power Asia Pacific Executive Director Mohit Arora said that a few years ago, consumers were limited by the choice of vehicle body types that were available at the price they were willing to pay.
"The price hurdle from one body type to another was often too large for most to consider. Today, price boundaries separating vehicle body types have come closer and many automakers are offering models of different body types straddling the same price point. This has given new-car buyers a wider range of vehicle types to choose from," he added.
As per the study, consideration for newly launched models has increased among new vehicle shoppers in India.

In 2015, 10 per cent of all shoppers considered a newly launched model - the highest in the last three years.

"While repeat vehicle buyers have been relatively more open to experiment with newly launched models, this year, for the first time, consideration for newly launched models has increased among first-time purchasers and is almost at par with that for repeat buyers," the study said.
The study is based on the responses from 8,116 buyers and 2,983 rejecters of new cars and new utility vehicles who purchased their vehicle between September 2014 and April 2015.
The study, which examines the reasons why new-vehicle shoppers consider but ultimately reject certain models in flavor of another, was fielded from March through July 2015.