Honda Mobilio, the 7 seater MPV, will be produced from the company plant in Greater Noida. It will be offered in both petrol and diesel engine options and will be a strong contender to the Maruti Suzuki Ertiga, Chevrolet Enjoy and Nissan Evalia. Measuring 4.4 meters in length, the new Mobilio will have best in class ground clearance of 185mm and will have better interior space and comfortable third row seating.
When asked who are the target customers for the new Honda Mobilio, Mr Sen replies, “Being a mid-size stylish 7 seater MPV, target audience are those whose lifestyle includes spending a lot of time together with their families. But, considering Mobilio offers strong desirable values, we expect that Mobilio will appeal not only to MPV segment customers with many family members but also to families which have traditionally opted for a sedan or an SUV. These customers have functional requirement of a 7 seater but have a hesitation of buying an MPV. Honda aims to reach out to those customers.”
How different is Honda Mobilio from other cars in the segment? “Some consumers have felt the crunch for space and comfort in compact MPVs, some find it inconvenient to driving and parking full size MPVs. Consumers today are also very keen on vehicles with great fuel efficiency.
We aim to evolve the MPV segment in India in line with changing customer’s requirement and preferences. Honda has a strong legacy of MPVs globally with successful products like the Odyssey and Freed. We have put together all the learnings from Honda MPVs over the years in developing the Mobilio to offer space, comfort and utility in just the right size for the modern & real Indian family. Mobilio is set to meet their rational needs of space, fuel economy and quality and also his emotional wants of style and progressiveness.”
What about the price of Honda Mobilio, localization content? “We have been working extensively to increase localization for all our models for e.g Amaze, Brio and City have more than 90% localization (which makes it possible for pricing them aggressively). We will share localization (and price) details for Mobilio during the launch (in July).”
With the launch of the new Mobilio, the company plans on increasing Honda dealer networks by 35% during the year. The company currently has a dealership count of 172 facilities in 109 cities across the country which will be increased to 230 facilities in 150 cities.
