Giving impetus to the ‘Make in India’ campaign, BMW has decreased the prices of a number of models from its range of locally assembled cars. The revised prices are a result of the increase in localisation of these models, and the price drop is in the range of Rs 1 lakh to Rs 4.6 lakh.
The biggest price drop can be observed in the company’s flagship SUV, the X5, whose prices have been cut by Rs 4.6 lakh for the X5 xDrive30d Design Pure Experience variant and Rs 3 lakh each for the X5 xDrive30d Expedition and the X5 xDrive30d Design Pure Experience (seven-seater) variants. Prices of three variants of the 5 Series sedan have been reduced by Rs 2 lakh each, while three variants of the 3 Series sedan will now be cheaper by Rs 1 lakh each. The 3 Series Gran Turismo Luxury Line variant gets a price cut of Rs 1.6 lakh, while the customers of the flagship sedan 7 Series 730Ld Eminence variant get to save Rs 90,000.
Speaking about this drop in prices, Mr Philipp von Sahr, president, BMW Group India said, “The future belongs to India. If you want to benefit from the dynamics of the Indian market, you need to act today. Following our approach ‘Production follows the market’, we have accelerated our localization program in India. We have created a win-win situation for our customers with a wide range of exclusively authentic luxury products and now equally attractive value proposition with ‘Make in India’.”
Some of the major components that BMW sources from within India include engine, transmission, axles, door panels, wiring harness, exhaust systems, heating, ventilating, air-conditioning and seats. The increase in localisation in the production of a car not only cuts down the manufacturing costs, but also helps in reducing the taxes and custom duties levied on the final product. BMW is displaying a nice gesture by passing on the benefits of localisation directly to the customers.