Should you buy these flop SUVs?

Some SUVs are doing phenomenally well. Others are holding on to their gains, and can be best termed as consistent sellers. Some SUVs have fallen down the wayside, and are sliding lower, each passing month. Today, we take a look at five sub-25 lakh rupee SUVs that are slow sellers, and that are almost on the verge of being called flops. Do the slow selling SUVs still make sense to you, the buyer? Read on.

Renault Duster

The Renault Duster has been hit really hard by the Hyundai Creta. Sales have plunged, and the Duster is currently doing about 1,000 units a month, which is a far cry from the 3,000+ units that it used to sell consistently. Increasing competition is the main reason for the fall in this compact SUV’s sales, and Renault has a facelift in store.

Why should you buy one?

You love the carpet like ride quality. You want a compact SUV that’s safety feature loaded and that gets an AWD option. You want discounts of around 50,000 rupees.

Why shouldn’t you buy one?

You aren’t convinced about Renault’s patchy after sales service. There are newer, better finished SUVs in the markets.

Nissan Terrano

The Terrano is proof that badge engineering is past the sell-by date in India. Though similar to the Duster in mechanicals, the Terrano never took off right from day one. The steep initial pricing was the first blow, and the second blow was dealt by the increasing competition.

Why should you buy one?

There are discounts of upto 95,000 rupees on offer. If you want a compact SUV with great ride quality and sorted dynamics, the Terrano still makes sense. The 110 PS diesel variant is a great mile muncher.

Why shouldn’t you buy one?

Nissan’s after sales service is still poor, and this hits resale value hard. The Terrano is essentially a Duster with different looks, which means that it’s not the freshest SUV in town, nor is there any facelift on the cards.

Tata Safari Storme

The Tata Safari Storme arrived at a time when the Mahindra XUV500 was the flavour of the market. Most buyers saw the Safari Storme as old wine in a new bottle, and despite humongous improvements when compared with the Safari 2.2 DICOR, the Storme never caught on.

Why should you buy one?

You’re a sucker for big street presence. You want a comfortable and imposing SUV that seats 5 adults in comfort. You want the rugged-ness of a ladder frame chassis and a four wheel drive layout for getting out of sticky situations. You like the 1 lakh rupee discount on offer.

Why shouldn’t you buy one?

Refinement is something that the Storme falls short on. You want a car-like SUV.  It’s still quite large, making it unwieldy in tight parking slots.

Skoda Yeti

The Skoda Yeti was a hard sell right from day one, and the steep pricing didn’t help matters. The facelift did little to get the Yeti to move from dealer stockyards and the SUV remains stuck in a rut. It’s a shame, for the Yeti is quite capable, refined and very quick.

Why should you buy one?

You want car-like ride and handling, in an SUV package. You value refinement, and top quality interiors. You also like the hefty discounts lined up, and you don’t really care about being seel in a vehicle that’s labelled a flop.

Why shouldn’t you buy one?

Skoda’s after sales service is still a big risk to contend with. Resale values of Skoda cars are poor. The Yeti is quite pricey for a 5 seat SUV that can carry only four in comfort.

Ssangyong Rexton

The Ssangyong Rexton was an experiment by Mahindra, to try out the obscure South Korean SUV brand in India. The experiment has failed, and the Rexton is a very slow selling vehicle. Despite Mercedes Benz mechanicals, the Rexton’s poor badge value has seen it remain at dealer stockyards.

Why should you buy one?

Badge value doesn’t matter to you, bang for the buck does. You want an SUV that can stand apart from the Fortuners and Pajeros of this world.

Why shouldn’t you buy one?

You don’t like dated stuff, especially when you’re spending 25 lakh rupees. You’re uncomfortable with buying an SUV from an obscure brand, whose future is in question in India.