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| Datsuns are Go |
In 2014, Datsun was revived as a low cost brand in several markets including India. A few more countries were added after that but its global reach was modest. At its arrival in India, the goal was that Datsun would command 10% of the market by 2016. A bold expectation indeed.
The first cars were the Go hatch (pictured above) and a wagon named the Go+. They were built in India to avoid steep import duty. Initial local sales reached the 20,000 mark after two years. Then in 2016, the Redi-Go mini hatch (pictured below) was added to the range and immediately sold 20,000 units.
The 1.3% Datsun did secure in India by 2016 was well below expectation. The brand did well in Indonesia but poorly in Russia, the latter proving difficult for everyone. In any case, it was decided to end production in these countries by 2020. Surprisingly, the brand soldiers on in India although by 2021 a mere 4,300 were sold, capturing one tenth of one percent market share.
Pictures: QuikCars. Stats updated 1.06.2022.
It goes to show that building small, low priced cars in India isn't always going to work out well. The competition is fierce and late arrivals have to offer something really special to wrest customers away from successful brands with an established and loyal clientele. I can see this endeavour soon becoming a no go. (Edit: Datsun ended in early 2022)
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