BMW India launched the iconic MINI Cooper in the country at the 2012 Auto Expo. The car is very sought after worldwide but in India due to the high pricing, not many are being sold. BMW has brought in the MINI Cooper through the CBU route, which results in heavy import duties being paid to the Government, in turn resulting in the prices almost doubling. This move is done by the Government to encourage local manufacturing. When BMW launched the MINI Cooper in India, the company had stated that it was just testing the waters and will decide on assembly later.
Now the German automaker is contemplating local assembly for the MINI, which is currently available in four models – the Cooper priced at Rs. 32,57,060/-, the Cooper S priced at Rs. 36,51,210/-, the Cooper Convertible priced at Rs. 39,31,210/- and the Cooper Countryman priced at Rs. 41,98,210/- (all prices on-road, Mumbai). These prices put the MINI Cooper out of the range of many, even those who are looking to buy a retro vehicle, since the Volkswagen Beetle is available at Rs. 27.51 lakhs (on-road, Mumbai). While the Beetle is not even close to being as much fun as the MINI, the original people’s car is very famous in India.
All four models of the MINI Cooper could be locally assembled in India at BMW’s Chennai facility, starting from mid-2013. This will result in the prices being decreased significantly, resulting in a big boost in demand for the MINI Cooper. By that time, MINI will have to fend off competition from the new and updated Volkswagen Beetle, which was showcased at the 2012 Auto Expo. The Beetle will be offered with a diesel heart and BMW could also plonk in a diesel engine in the entry level Cooper hatchback to boost volumes. Fiat in all likely hood plans to bring in the 500X crossover to India, which competes with the MINI Countryman in Europe.