With the Indian economy growing and several young customers buying luxury items, the luxury car market can also grow at double the size of the current market in the next one decade, a top official at Volvo Car India said on Tuesday.
“From India perspective, there are a few things which we know for sure – one is, our economy is in a good path and it will become an even bigger economy in the next few years…so if the Indian economy does well as we progress and if all the basic things are in place, the luxury car market, which is at 50,000-plus (in 2024) units, can grow at one-lakh plus per annum, in the next one decade,” Jyoti Malhotra, Managing Director, Volvo Car India, told businessline on the sidelines of the new XC90 launch here.
The luxury car market in India grew by 6 per cent year on year in calendar year (CY) 2024 to around 51,200 units compared with around 48,500 units in CY23.
Volvo Car India retailed 1,824 units in CY24, a decline of 13.55 per cent compared with 2,110 units in CY23.
Malhotra said that the adoption rate of the luxury electric vehicles (EVs) would also be much faster than that of the mass-market EVs, which is already visible currently in the Indian market.
“In the mass market, the penetration of EVs is around 2 per cent right now compared to 6-7 per cent in the luxury segment and I think this will only become more and more as far as luxury cars are concerned because typically our (luxury) buyers are multi-car owners and luxury cars typically have a much longer range, say a minimum of 500 km per charge,” he said, adding that the range is also getting better.
The new XC90
Talking about the new XC90, Malhotra said, “This iconic SUV has long been a cornerstone of our success, and we are thrilled to unleash the new XC90 onto the Indian market. The SUV embodies the pinnacle of Swedish luxury and design, seamlessly integrating innovation and safety, the hallmarks of the Volvo brand.”
Priced at ₹1,02,89,900 (ex-showroom), the new XC90 is designed to be one of the safest vehicles on the road, featuring a robust safety cage and a comprehensive array of active safety technologies, ensuring the protection of occupants and other road users, he said.
Utilising the radar and front camera, the new XC90 can detect unintentional lane drifts and automatically steer the vehicle back into its lane, preventing potential collisions. It also includes run-off road mitigation and collision avoidance systems that can detect and react to other vehicles, pedestrians, cyclists and large animals, Malhotra added.