The country’s largest electric passenger vehicle (PV) maker, Tata Motors, on Thursday said that as more young customers are coming as first-time buyers to new cars, carmakers must equip themselves with newer/sophisticated vehicles, not only design-wise but with latest technologies inside too.
“Sixty-five per cent of our buyers are less than 35 years of age and therefore these people are exposed to a different mindset...they are exposed to the world of fashion, technology and this is what is a part of their lifestyle. Whatever they consume should express their personality, fashion statement...a car has to be no different and that’s their expectations from a car,” Shailesh Chandra, Managing Director, Tata Motors Passenger Vehicles and Tata Passenger Electric Mobility, told businessline.
- Also read: Tata Motors unveils new identity for its EVs
Exclusive EV outlets
Speaking on the sidelines of the launch of the new Nexon, he said looking at such trends, Tata Motors is also planning to have separate sales outlets for electric vehicles (EVs).
“We need to separate outlets because there would not be enough space to keep both EVs, internal combustion engine (ICE) models at the same place..So there’s a practical difficulty...we will not be able to do justice to both. So you will start seeing exclusive outlets starting slowly from the coming quarters,” he said.
Currently Tata’s EV portfolio includes Nexon EV, Tiago EV, Tigor EV and the XPRES-T EV.
Chandra said currently EVs contribute 13-15 per cent of Tata Motors’ total sales (selling around 6,500 units on an average every month), and revenue-wise, it is 18-20 per cent as of first quarter this year.
“In the next three-four years the penetration (sales of EVs) is likely to go up to 25 per cent and by end of the decade, we are aspiring to touch 50 per cent,” he said.
New era
Talking about the new Nexon EV, Chandra said the company is transitioning into a new era that will be bolder and more innovative as it remains committed to lead the change and to shape the future of mobility towards an electric and sustainable tomorrow.
The new Nexon EV is priced between ₹14.74 lakh and ₹19.94 lakh (ex-showroom) and comes with a maximum range of 465 km in a single charge.
The company also launched the petrol and diesel versions of Nexon with introductory prices starting from ₹9 lakh to ₹13 lakh (ex-showroom).
Since its launch in 2017, Nexon has 5.50 lakh customers, out of which around 53,000 are of Nexon EVs. In the first year (2017), Tata Motors sold 27,000 units and it sold 1.70 lakh units last year, Chandra added.