Losing the Battle; Winning the War...

I happen to ask couple of my friends about what comes to their mind when they think of Germany. Two of them said German Football, Ballack and Bundes Liga while one of them about German being a hard language to grasp and learn. The closest positive response I got was from a super-nerd classmate of mine. He suggested that Germany is the country that built the Autobahn; it’s the fastest motorway, so many lanes and thereafter continued on and on. Yes I agree, India is primarily an Asian car dominated market. Maruti, Hyundai and Tata claim 80% of the market. But cars to Germany are like cricket to India. And I was surprised not many people knew that Germany is home to the biggest car makers of them all.

For a petrol head, there are only three countries which concern them. Germany, Italy, USA. Yeah, that’s right. USA does get a place in that list. The reason being the US population themselves, for whom muscle seems to be the symbol of power and status. Yes, muscle cars happen to be a prominent category in the US, in fact analogous to luxury or sport cars in other parts of the world. And that’s exactly the reason why the US has built the best muscle cars in the world - something like saying Toyota makes the best engineered vehicles for the most efficient people. Ford Mustang - the Adam and Eve of muscle cars, Chevrolet Camaro - much more than the Bumble Bee cutiepie image, Dodge Challenger – muscle pedigree in its skin, Chevrolet Corvette – supercar symbol in the USA.

Italy, besides designer names and trend setting fashion statements, is also the home to multiple iconic car manufacturers. Ferrari, Lamborghini, Alfa Romeo, Fiat, Maserati, the upcoming Pagani and so on. The cars from Italy tend to live to the name of being a driver’s car. The passion for driving and the feeling of you being part of the car, rather than prioritising the luxury and techo aspects, has always been an Italian trademark.

Then there is Germany. The land where cars were born (quite literally) and is now home to the biggest names in the Auto industry. From VW, to the lux trio of Merc, BMW and Audi to the ever usable Porsche, the list goes on. And as mentioned, the Autobahn serves as battle ground for these biggies either to test their latest or to keep track of what the competitors are upto, cos in Germany that motorway comes above the president. Let’s zoom in on the big three of the German Auto industry. Mercedes Benz, Bavarian Motor Works (BMW) and Audi. Think of luxury and the names of cars that first pop up will be one of the above, unless you’ve seriously thought about the Jags or a VW Phaeton. If you’re thinking about a Bentley or a Rolls, nice meeting you, please click on the top right corner X button to continue.

Clash of the Titans... Or is it?????

So, for men like us who cannot afford a Rolls, let’s open up the options to the sub-rolls category. OK. What is the point of buying a car like that? It’s pretty much only larger in size, has a cosy seat and an engine more in power. A sub-10 lakh sedan would perform the same with reduced maintenance. Well, let me take you back, say 853 years. There would have been a Mughal ruler Jaganshid Khan and a poor peasant Jugalbog Singh. While the peasant would have walked to the farm, the king would ride on his artic white horse that has a ruby-studded cling cling add-ons on its nose. The peasant would have plain rice while the Mughal dude, rice and sabji with freshly made curd and a paan to finish it off. While the poor farmer wears just enough to hardly cover the skin, his holy highness would have a dress made from the finest of cotton, with stones and gems attached. Think of it. Whyyy?? If he could rule one of the largest empires in the world, how can he be so senseless. When you're a King, Live like one!

I bet this was what had gone through the minds of the BOD, Mercedes Benz, when they decided they’re gonna cash in on luxury cars. Make cars that might be on the higher end of the budget of an average customer wanting a vehicle to transport him from A to B. But make sure it has goodies that will turn on a certain section of the billion-numbered nation. That idea struck cords with the above average population and hence luxury cars were born in India. Merc being the first to invest in this idea took the lead, or should I say it remained a Numero Uno when it began operations in India in 1994. For a decade, it was the only player to have a say in this growing segment. People started liking the prospect of a luxury car. Knowing very well that, owning a Merc was like a status symbol, a sign of wealth and authority over the comrades around. The recent growth in the luxury car market in India is much more than mere market dynamics in a particular car segment. It is a reflection of the changing lifestyle of the affluent class in the country. In India, the luxury car segment has been growing at an average rate of 20% or above during recent years; it seems to be least affected by the global financial crisis. During worst recession period when world was facing low market demand trends, Indian luxury car segment grew at 23% despite a 0.5% decline in passenger car sales.

The Number Games 

Now there have been talks about how BMW has overtaken Merc in the luxury car race and Audi having 80% growth in India last year and is closing in on Mercs tail. I agree, the BMW is the driver’s car, the best in class steering and a drive feel that a Merc may not match upto. Audi’s generous techno gadgets and its youthful engine may be a master recipe to rope in the young guns. Merc engines on the other hand might not give you a stampede-in-your-chest feel in a drag race either. That’s the point isn’t it. For a country that has more than 150000 millionares, tell me how many of those would actually spend the time driving these high end saloons. It is a sad but true fact that this end of the market is primarily chauffer driven. That’s something which I wouldn’t prefer but then the sight of a company director stepping out from the rear doors pulled open by the driver in white uniform has unmistakably set in. You sign the cheque and the chauffer gets to have all fun at the wheel. That would be tragic. The fact remains that the three point star still stays true to its objective of providing ample space and comfort with the luxury that a millionaire deserves. When people buy a car spending this grand an amount, the company ought to spend generously for its proud owner. Not that the engine lacks power in comparison to the competition; it has pretty much enough, if not more. Just that it delivers all that power in a way that makes you feel easing. The engine noise does not enter the cabin to ruin the ambience either. The old SLK convertible had a flap on top of the wind screen in the driver’s cabin. When the head of another Auto company had come to investigate the Merc, he asked the sales man what the purpose of that electronic flap was. He explained when the roof goes down and the passengers want to get the open feel of a cabriolet, yet not disturb their well combed hair, press the button to open up the flap which will divert the air flowing over the wind screen, away from your hair. Although the majority wouldn’t use this feature every day, there will be instances when you’ll need them. The Boss was so impressed by the attention to details that he gave an order for one without even a phone call.

Safety First - SLS style

And of course, safety. If you have the cash to buy a car in this segment, it’s highly unlikely that you are not a big name in your company. Even if you might not, your boss and colleagues are interested in you being around for a longer while. Safety is another critical chapter to define a car in this class. And the benchmark was set long back by this same auto giant. The racing fans would have noticed, when the motorsport’s purest form, F1, decided in 1996 that Mercedes will be the car used as the official Safety car, it speaks a lot. If it was the CLS earlier, it’s the SLS now that leads the pack of mighty beasts behind it.

Now the question from my counterpart is what if Im rich, Im still young, I love luxurious cars but at the same time want to have mad fun in the driving seat. I doubt if an Audi or Bimmer can give you all of that in one package. Yet Merc answers those demands with little help from a good old friend of its. They call it the AMG. Holy Mother of Christ!! For those ambitious ones out there, get a load of this. So much for your ‘uncle’s car’. Yes, it comes at a price. But you were the one with all the demands!!

Operation Desperado

Its a fact that films that are a brand itself would try negotiating with companies and say that the actor would use only their cars in the movie an stuff. Mission Impossible did that with BMW. It was a sad sight that they did not have a supercar status vehicle to offer for Tom. And so they had to cover it up with a concept car. I mean c’mon. The damn thing does not even exist now. But then a lot of things in MI 4 is fictional. So….

There never was a race. Statisticians wanted to avoid unemployment, hence the number games to brainwash those innocent deep pocketed bosses. Think of the wish list that’s available in India alone.

C-Class             CL-Class            CLS-Class             E-Class Saloon, Coupe, Cabriolet            GL-Class              M-Class             R-Class              S-Class                 SL-Class            SLK-Class              Maybach        G 55                  SLS AMG

Based on the purpose, driver, bling factor, ruggedness, luxury or adrenaline, you can get your orders in the form of any one or more of the above cosy mobile lounges. Who wants to talk about the vehicles in the BMW and Audi stable now. Wake up people. For a company that build the first Automobile, you really think Mercedes Benz is bothered about sustainability issues??