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> India is actually a very small market for cars. It's a small market for foreign cars, which have a huge import duty slapped on them. Indians love buying Tata

> India is actually a very small market for cars. It's a small market for foreign cars, which have a huge import duty slapped on them. Indians love buying Tatas, Mahindras, Maruti Suzukis, and locally-built Hyundais and Hondas.

fakedang 3y ago
Indians love buying foreign cars too. Nobody likes buying Tata, Mahindra and Suzuki, it's all about Mercedes and BMW where I'm from. Heck even Skoda, Chevrolet and Toyota are considered fancy. That being said, this was the right move for Tesla. Tesla is not suited for the Indian road currently, and X and S are pricey even without the import tax even for upper class Indian standards, so it doesn't make sense making for India. That being said, I'm surprised they haven't been able to crack the Japanese market.
- yurishimo 3y ago
  That one is easy! Tesla still has quality control and more importantly, interior issues. Japanese buyers expect the highest quality which is why many of their products are still produced domestically. The country is also so small and well connected with public transportation that people don’t need cars with 400 miles of range. The infrastructure and battery tech is arguably the biggest selling point for Tesla currently and those are non-factors in Japan.
  - fakedang 3y ago
    Hmm, that explains quite a bit. My experience with the pharma industry previously gave me the impression that the Japanese were big on foreign brand names, but I guess the underlying driver is just quality.
- delta_p_delta_x 3y ago
  If you're talking about the glitziest parts of Mumbai or Bengaluru, maybe. It's rare to see Mercedeses or BMWs outside of the wealthiest parts of even Chennai, for instance. I don't think a small-towner in a second- or third-tier city is going for a C-class that would be worth several years' salary, even as a software engineer. Indians might want to buy German luxury cars, but whether they can afford to actually buy them and whether they actually buy them is a different story altogether.
  - fakedang 3y ago
    Sorry but I have to disagree. The district my father hails from is the second biggest luxury car market in the country, and not even 30 years back, it was the most backward in the entire state as well as one of the poorest in the country. A generation of education later and we have one of the most affluent districts in the country. In the coming years, I expect more of this boom to occur in other districts (and it's already happening). Just drive around Rajasthan or Haryana these days - that's where the markets are growing now. As for Chennai, it's a different story. In my experience, rich Tamilians tend to flaunt wealth less prominently as a cultural trait, unless you're talking nouveau riche politicians and entertainment industry people. I've met Tamilians all over the world and they have consistently been comparatively down-to-earth in terms of material wealth. An old friend's dad was a producer for several Rajnikanth movies, yet he drove around in a Hyundai.
    - delta_p_delta_x 3y ago
      > The district my father hails from is the second biggest luxury car market in the country > we have one of the most affluent districts in the country You're still sort of cherry-picking a single (wealthy) district out of hundreds in the rest of India. Whether said district was wealthy thirty years ago or not is irrelevant, and I stand by my point: luxury cars are in general rare in India, and I was speaking generally. There are 1.4 billion Indians, and the overwhelming majority of them cannot really afford a German luxury car.
      - fakedang 3y ago
        My next point was the important bit though, that our district's turn is up, but there are other districts following the trend. Rajasthan was not a major luxury market 15 years back while this district was (my data is a bit dated by the way). The majority of Indians may not be able to afford a luxury car, but still taking 0.1% of the population / 4 (for the average family size) gives 250k, which is still a sizeable luxury market.
    - bombcar 3y ago
      Reminds me of “My grandfather rode a camel, my father rode a camel, I ride a Mercedes, my son rides a Land Rover, and my grandson is going to ride a Land Rover…but my great-grandson is going to have to ride a camel again.” Different areas react to wealth in different ways, some flaunt it and burn it, others plod along doing what they’ve always done.

fakedang 3y ago

Indians love buying foreign cars too. Nobody likes buying Tata, Mahindra and Suzuki, it's all about Mercedes and BMW where I'm from. Heck even Skoda, Chevrolet and Toyota are considered fancy. That being said, this was the right move for Tesla. Tesla is not suited for the Indian road currently, and X and S are pricey even without the import tax even for upper class Indian standards, so it doesn't make sense making for India. That being said, I'm surprised they haven't been able to crack the Japanese market.

yurishimo 3y ago
That one is easy! Tesla still has quality control and more importantly, interior issues. Japanese buyers expect the highest quality which is why many of their products are still produced domestically. The country is also so small and well connected with public transportation that people don’t need cars with 400 miles of range. The infrastructure and battery tech is arguably the biggest selling point for Tesla currently and those are non-factors in Japan.
- fakedang 3y ago
  Hmm, that explains quite a bit. My experience with the pharma industry previously gave me the impression that the Japanese were big on foreign brand names, but I guess the underlying driver is just quality.
delta_p_delta_x 3y ago
If you're talking about the glitziest parts of Mumbai or Bengaluru, maybe. It's rare to see Mercedeses or BMWs outside of the wealthiest parts of even Chennai, for instance. I don't think a small-towner in a second- or third-tier city is going for a C-class that would be worth several years' salary, even as a software engineer. Indians might want to buy German luxury cars, but whether they can afford to actually buy them and whether they actually buy them is a different story altogether.
- fakedang 3y ago
  Sorry but I have to disagree. The district my father hails from is the second biggest luxury car market in the country, and not even 30 years back, it was the most backward in the entire state as well as one of the poorest in the country. A generation of education later and we have one of the most affluent districts in the country. In the coming years, I expect more of this boom to occur in other districts (and it's already happening). Just drive around Rajasthan or Haryana these days - that's where the markets are growing now. As for Chennai, it's a different story. In my experience, rich Tamilians tend to flaunt wealth less prominently as a cultural trait, unless you're talking nouveau riche politicians and entertainment industry people. I've met Tamilians all over the world and they have consistently been comparatively down-to-earth in terms of material wealth. An old friend's dad was a producer for several Rajnikanth movies, yet he drove around in a Hyundai.
  - delta_p_delta_x 3y ago
    > The district my father hails from is the second biggest luxury car market in the country > we have one of the most affluent districts in the country You're still sort of cherry-picking a single (wealthy) district out of hundreds in the rest of India. Whether said district was wealthy thirty years ago or not is irrelevant, and I stand by my point: luxury cars are in general rare in India, and I was speaking generally. There are 1.4 billion Indians, and the overwhelming majority of them cannot really afford a German luxury car.
    - fakedang 3y ago
      My next point was the important bit though, that our district's turn is up, but there are other districts following the trend. Rajasthan was not a major luxury market 15 years back while this district was (my data is a bit dated by the way). The majority of Indians may not be able to afford a luxury car, but still taking 0.1% of the population / 4 (for the average family size) gives 250k, which is still a sizeable luxury market.
  - bombcar 3y ago
    Reminds me of “My grandfather rode a camel, my father rode a camel, I ride a Mercedes, my son rides a Land Rover, and my grandson is going to ride a Land Rover…but my great-grandson is going to have to ride a camel again.” Different areas react to wealth in different ways, some flaunt it and burn it, others plod along doing what they’ve always done.