Merc in the fast lane: Mercedes-Benz is seeing a rise in the number of Indian buyers opting for electric vehicles as their first luxury car, the country’s managing director told Reuters, a trend that is helping the German carmaker boost its sales.
Luxury car sales in India are on the rise, helping market leader Mercedes-Benz post record numbers. In the first six months of 2024, Mercedes sold 9,300 cars in India, of which 5 percent were electric models, doubling its EV penetration from 2.5 percent last year.
A growing group of young Mercedes MBGn.DE buyers are turning to electric vehicles to “differentiate themselves,” Santosh Iyer said after the launch of the EQS 580 SUV, a seven-seater electric model priced at around $168,200.
“Most of them are opinion leaders in their own small target groups, be it doctors, lawyers or architects. That’s why they want to show that they have made the transition first,” Iyer said, adding that this group is small but growing. About 15 per cent of all electric vehicles sold by Mercedes in India this year were for first-time luxury car buyers, up from 5 per cent in 2023, helped by launches of new electric SUVs, Iyer said.
India’s electric vehicle market is small but growing. Electric models accounted for about 2 percent of the total 4.2 million cars sold in India last year and the government wants this share to rise to 30 percent by 2030.
Mercedes, which announced a new $24 million investment in India in January, sells 18 combustion-engine car models in India and six electric vehicles. In 2022, the German automaker began assembling electric vehicles in India instead of importing fully assembled units that attract tariffs of up to 100 percent. The EQS SUV is its second locally assembled electric vehicle.
“We are taking the transition (to electric vehicles) very seriously and we are pushing hard, not only by importing products but also by localizing more and more,” he said.
The high price of electric vehicles compared to gasoline cars and uncertainty about their resale value remain a deterrent for many buyers.
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