Honda Cars India (HCIL) on Friday said that it will introduce sedans and sports utility vehicles (SUVs), including compact SUVs with all the powertrain options — flex-fuel and electric vehicles (EVs) — when the demand grows in the market.
The company plans to launch 10 new products by 2030 and six within this financial year, said top officials at the company. However, it will not bring back any hatchback to the Indian market and its compact sedan Amaze will remain as the entry-level car in its portfolio, they added.
“We are looking at all the possibilities for the future…we always consider for options. For us, small car is the Amaze and now we are also looking at sub 4-metre SUV for the Indian market. Our first priority has always been the domestic market and exports come as a secondary,” said Takashi Nakajima, President and CEO of Honda Cars India.
On the West Asia crisis, he said there is not much change in the demand side in the Indian market, and the market is doing good because of the GST reduction since September last year.
On the sedan market, the company said India still has a strong market with CAGR of around 8.5 to 9 per cent over the last five years, and that is why Honda’s Amaze and City still have a strong demand.
“The hatchback segment, five years ago, was contributing 40 per cent of the total industry, but now has gone down to 23 per cent, so there is a big change…India as a market is getting more matured and it’s getting more segmented growth…the new segment, which is emerging strongly, is the 4-meters and that is where Honda is focusing,” said Kunal Behl, Vice-President, Marketing and Sales, HCIL.
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Meanwhile, Nakajima said India is among the top three focus markets to realise Honda’s future growth, which will be driven by a strong pipeline of new products and the company’s efforts are to achieve cost competitiveness.
“This year is a landmark year for us with six strategic launches that will sharpen our competitive edge and reinforce our brand position in the market. Recently we announced that we will be launching new models under two categories — under 4 metres and the midsize category. Last time, in Japan, we mentioned 10 models, but currently we are counting more than 10 [by 2030],” he said.
Last week in Japan, Honda Motor Company, announced that it would start introducing models tailored to the Indian market from 2028, and leverage on its two-wheeler business to upgrade customers to passenger vehicles as part of rebuilding of its automobile business and the future direction.
The company launched the new version of its popular hybrid sedan City with introductory prices starting at ₹12 lakh, going up to ₹21 lakh (ex-showroom, Delhi). It also unveiled its premium SUV ZR-V, powered by a 2-litre hybrid electric engine, which will come to India as a completely built unit from July.