GM set to offer cheaper Corsa in volume push

General Motors (GM) has decided to introduce a cheaper version of Opel Corsa to prop up its sale. The variant, Opel Corsa 1.4 Elite, will be introduced this week with a price reduction of over Rs 50,000-80,000 from the existing ones which are priced in the range of Rs 5.88-6.26 lakh.

Confirming this development, P Balendran, general manager, corporate affairs, General Motors, said the new variant will be priced at Rs 5.4 lakh (ex-showroom). The company has sold only over 10,000 Opel Corsa in the last five years compared with 35,000 Chevrolets in two years.

The new variant will have value-added features such as Italian upholstery, leather wrapped steering wheel and triple information display, said Balendran.

"The new variant is expected to add more value and attract more demand for Opel Corsa, which is under performing compared with stronger brand such as Chevrolet," said Amit Dutta, vice-president, marketing and sales at General Motors.

Chevrolet Optra (Rs 8.7-12 lakh) was launched in September 2003 and Tavera (Rs 6.7-10.80 lakh) in May 2004. The company so far has been able to sell about 17,000 Optras and 18,120 Taveras.

General Motors has set a target to sell 38,000 Chevrolets by December this year. It is making a global thrust with the Chevrolet brand.

These cars, from the GM-Daewoo Automotive Technologies (GM-DAT) stable, are making inroads into Europe and other developing markets such as India wearing the Chevrolet badge.

"We have set up a target to attain a 10 per cent market share of the total number of passenger car and special utility vehicle (SUV) market by 2010," said Dutta.