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| Edited By: Sindhu Bhattacharya |Source: DNA |Updated: Mar 17, 2018, 02:42 AM IST
The Indian unit of Sweden’s Volvo Car Corp plans to launch two cars this year to tap the growing market for luxury vehicles in the country.
It plans to start selling a new sport-utility vehicle — XC60 — within the first half of the year, and the S60 sedan by year end.
“We expect the luxury car market in India to outpace the overall growth in the passenger car market during 2010 as is the case with most emerging markets. We are not chasing numbers, but want to build a strong foundation in India so focus will remain on opening new dealerships and enhancing product range in India,” said Paul de Voijs, managing director of Volvo Auto India.
Volvo will also introduce a new diesel-engine powered variant of the S80 sedan in the first half of 2010.
It currently sells a petrol variant of S80 and the SUV XC90 in India. It plans to open dealerships in Kolkata, Ahmedabad, Bangalore and Goa this year. Volvo sold 140 vehicles in India during 2009, up from 90 units in the previous year.
To a question on whether the imminent acquisition of Volvo Cars by China’s Zhejiang Geely Holdings would change things at the Indian operations of the company, de Voijs replied in the negative. Volvo’s parent company Ford recently named Geely as a preferred bidder for Volvo Cars.
“Ford never interfered with our strategy, neither will any new buyer. We will continue to function the way we have been functioning,” he said.
