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mr funny
06-01-11, 18:25
http://www.businesstimes.com.sg/sub/motor/story/0,4574,420409-1294257540,00.html?

Published January 5, 2011

Sales of luxury cars grow in shrinking market

Premium car brands did well in 2010, despite the rise in COE premiums

By SAMUEL EE


BMW and Mercedes-Benz are not the only luxury makes that saw 2010 sales outpacing the general market - most of the other premium brands also did well last year despite a shrinking certificates of entitlement (COE) quota and rising COE premiums.

With significantly fewer COE issued, the total number of new car registrations in 2010 is likely to be about 41,000-plus units - a sharp 39 per cent drop from the 68,862 units in 2009.

The actual 2010 figure will be released by the Land Transport Authority later this month.

As COE premiums began spiking upwards from March 2010, luxury brands such as Porsche and Mini began increasing their market share. Porsche, the German sports car maker best known for its iconic 911 rear-engined model, zoomed ahead in 2010 with authorised distributor Stuttgart Auto delivering 325 units - a whopping 61 per cent increase compared with the previous year (see table).

Stuttgart Auto's parent company, the Eurokars Group, also represents Mini, which posted a stellar 48 per cent jump to 300 units.

But Karsono Kwee, executive chairman of the Eurokars Group of Companies, preferred to attribute the sales improvement to factors other than the COE situation.

'Porsche registered strong increases in 2010 due to a broadening of our product portfolio, investments in marketing and customer care programmes including the introduction of our five-year warranty and maintenance programme,' said Mr Kwee. 'Mini sales too have registered a strong increase of close to 50 per cent with the emphasis on marketing communications, upgrade of our retail environment and an attractive product offering.'

The strong performance of another Eurokars franchise, Rolls-Royce, was also attributed to a new model from the ultra-luxury marque. Rolls-Royce saw its sales figures more than triple to 35 cars, thanks to the Ghost, which was launched early in 2010.

Over at Wearnes Automotive, the Jaguar and Land Rover brands also accelerated ahead in 2010. Jaguar's 338 units accounted for a 56 per cent rise in 2010 sales, while Land Rover's 106 units meant a 26 per cent gain. And this considering that Wearnes only took over the Land Rover franchise in May last year from Sime Darby.

A senior executive who declined to be named credited the two brands' success to the higher visibility and availability of the mid-sized XF saloon, as well as heightened interest in the new XJ full-sized sedan.

'The product appeal of the Land Rover and Range Rover models also complement our Jaguar and Bentley brands,' he said. Wearnes also deals in the ultra-luxury Bentley.

But more importantly, 'high COE premiums do not really affect our group of customers at the moment'.

'An extra $20,000 or $30,000, if spread over the next five years or 10, isn't that much more per year,' he added.

And while buyers of smaller bread-and-butter models will baulk at having to pay substantially higher car prices because of the COE hikes, luxury car customers may consider it more worthwhile to get something even more expensive.

One senior manager explained: 'They feel that if they have to spend so much on COE, they may as well top it up to get a better model.'

The sales manager of a European premium make also pointed out that the change in consumer behaviour was assisted partly by the lower euro and higher yen.

'Apart from more favourable pricing, there were also no surprises from the Japanese manufacturers in terms of model range and engineering quality,' he explained. 'So as consumers began to shift over to Continental makes in 2010, some of them decided to move upmarket to a premium European car.'

But although the business for premium marques appears rosy, the further cuts expected to the COE quota are worrying many.

'The business environment is definitely going to be more competitive,' said Mr Kwee. 'But with the Eurokars Group's strong focus on customer care as a key strategy, we will continue to perform well in 2011.'

Audi Singapore, which posted a 27.5 per cent jump in sales of its premium models last year to 1,875 units, believes 2011 will be 'challenging as the price of cars will surely rise'.

'Consumers willing to pay top dollar will be even more discerning and demanding in their choices,' said managing director Reinhold Carl. But he is confident that Audi will be well-positioned with its wide range of products. Last year, the brand with the four rings launched nine new models. In 2011, it will launch another nine.

Audi's product strategy, as well as customer satisfaction, will be key in a tough year, according to Mr Carl.

'Our investments in the past years to build up the brand are paying off,' he said. 'Audi is closing the gap in the eyes of the consumers to consider us as a desirable premium brand.'

http://www.businesstimes.com.sg/mnt/media/image/launched/2011-01-05/sesales5.jpg

kingkong1984
14-01-11, 04:08
Expect more second hand luxury cars for sale now....

tericia
14-01-11, 12:50
Expect more second hand luxury cars for sale now....

i think at the rate the government keeps decreasing the amount of loan we can borrow to buy investment property, my dream of owning a luxury car is really - bye, bye adios.

One side loan going down, the other side COE price keeps going up.

sigh....

Blue
14-01-11, 12:57
Damn, there goes my dream of getting the M3

tericia
14-01-11, 14:56
i think at the rate the government keeps decreasing the amount of loan we can borrow to buy investment property, my dream of owning a luxury car is really - bye, bye adios.

One side loan going down, the other side COE price keeps going up.

sigh....

M3?

i think if M1 increase price, even handphone also has to give up. Must wait till go home to call from lan line.

orange
27-01-11, 02:24
Damn, there goes my dream of getting the M3

Har? Why? There are always second hand and used import alternatives... Much lower depreciation. Why let munich auto make that ridiculous premium?

I trust you're a gearhead who knows his car stuff and where to get M3 car parts, also about the really good workshops out there who specialise in performance cars so taking on a used M3 doesn't seem like a big problem for you. I would take that route. There are a lot of people driving M3 around the world so there is no lack of OEM and performance parts from internet parts dealers who are single handed supplying the M3 enthusiasts' market(or aftermarket)