The brand-new Audi Q5 should be launched in India by the end of 2008
German luxury car manufacturer, Audi has said it wants to sell at least 1,200 cars in India by the end of 2008, as compared to only 350 cars it sold last year. The company is gearing up to start assembly of its A4 model, which will compete with cars like the Mercedes-Benz C-class and the BMW 3-series, at Aurangabad.
The Indian arm of Audi has seen an 80 percent growth during the first quarter of 2008, selling 220 cars in the country. In the long term, Audi sees India as one of its top five car markets and the company plans to launch some of its very latest cars here. For example, in addition to the Q7 SUV already being sold in India, Audi also plans to launch the smaller Q5. Local assembly of the A4 is expected to start by July this year, and Audi will be investing about 10 million euros for this. The plant will have an initial capacity of 800 units, which could be upped to 1,600 in 2009.
Audi, which already has showrooms in Delhi, Hyderabad, Gurgaon, Mumbai and Chandigarh, also plans to open showrooms in Ludhiana, Chennai, Kolkata, Cochin and Ahemdabad. The company wants to compete with other German car manufacturers like BMW and Mercedes-Benz in the rapidly burgeoning luxury car market in India, while making sure its India strategy and operations are in sync with other group brands, Volkswagen and Skoda.
