Take your pick 8212; Flashy or dependable

CHANDIGARH, JUNE 15: Car companies are desperately wooing customers: the advertising blitz is tremendous but prospective customers for ne...

CHANDIGARH, JUNE 15: Car companies are desperately wooing customers: the advertising blitz is tremendous but prospective customers for new models of cars are preferring to wait and watch road performance. Howsoever gleaming and flashy the new models may be, financers say that customers are weighing the plus and minus points before succumbing to the quot;irresistiblequot; new models.

Almost all car companies, keeping the customers desires in mind, have experimented with new models. So Maruti has its not-so-new Maruti Zen, Premier has Uno, Tata has its Indica, and of course Santro and Matiz are the hot things on wheels these days.

All car dealers claim that their vehicle is doing the best and has maximum number of buyers queuing up for purchase, but no one8217;s dishing out exact sales figures. Indications are that despite the ballyhoo about new models, among customers Maruti still continues to top the popularity charts.

Says dealer Ramnik Singh: quot;A Maruti is affordable, its performance is not a question mark, time has shown it to be a dependable, convenient and suitable car for nuclear families. So although he has many choices, the buyer still prefers Maruti.quot; According to Singh, quot;It was Maruti8217;s success that attracted other car companies and all the new cars Santro, Indica, Matiz 8212; are similar to Maruti.quot;

But the car war is intensifying and many car companies have slashed their prices. This includes Maruti and Daewoo. Harbir Singh, another car dealer says: quot;Premium on cars is one criteria that indicates which car is high on the popularity chart. Although Maruti still tops the chart with a bare premium of Rs 10,000, Tata Indica diesel model is commanding the maximum premium of Rs 60,000. There are very few takers for Indica petrol.quot; Premier Uno is next on the list with a premium of Rs 45,000. Santro has the premium of Rs 5,000 to Rs 10,000 while Matiz has no premium at all but the quot;sales are picking upquot; say dealers. Although there is no premium on Honda City and Mitsubishi Lancer, dealers say these too are doing well in the city.

Suresh Kataria, a prospective buyer looking at options available today, says: quot;If people go in for other models it is only because of a sense of adventure and a desire to experiment and be different. Everybody owns a Maruti and people are bored with it. That8217;s why the new cars are available in bright colours and modernistic shapes.quot;