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Published on November 27, 2007

The move is a result of the government's decision to cut excise tax on all vehicles running on 20-per-cent gasohol, or E20, effective next January 1.

"We are passing on the price difference to the customer. Tiida sticker prices will decrease by between Bt40,000 and Bt45,000 and the Teana by between Bt65,000 and Bt85,000. Although excise decreases next year, the price cut will take effect immediately," said Roger Immel, vice president for sales and network development at Siam Nissan.

The company expects to sell 400 Tiidas and 150 Teanas during the rest of the year. However, these cars are not E20-capable. Immel said the price cut would help clear stock.

The first E20-capable car to be sold in Thailand is the Ford Focus, which started selling in 2005, way before the excise tax was cut. Ford has already announced a price cut to reflect decrease.

As for the Tiida, the company said it would not provide an E20-conversion kit, as that would be technologically cumbersome, it said.

"Our focus for this year and next is to improve our dealer network in Thailand. We're currently working on a strategy to ensure that all parts of Thailand are covered. The distance a customer has to drive from his residence to a Nissan dealership is one of the determining factors for customer satisfaction. We currently have 94 dealers and 174 outlets," Immel said.

More than 95 per cent of all Nissan outlets is sales, service and spare parts. It is important to hunt for open markets or regions not well covered and appoint new dealers. Next year, Nissan will add to its product offensive the Navara single-cab pickup. Because of its commercial character, sales are expected to be good," Immel said.

"There are two main things we are focusing on doing. First is to ensure profits for dealers and make the idea of being a Nissan dealer an attractive one. Second is to have high customer satisfaction in terms of service and sales. Some Nissan dealers have been with us for 55 years and have lots of experience. We need to ensure they get enough support to take advantage of this experience."

Following its 1999 alliance with Renault, Nissan rolled out newer and more attractive products, although the positioning of products like the Tiida has been unsuccessful here.

Immel said the automotive market was always evolving and that mistakes would be made. He said the company was unable to place the Tiida in the right segment, which caused customers to misunderstand the product.

"But our marketing and sales teams are working closer now and monitoring the market more. It's important for the Thai market to understand that we are a brand that sells both cars and pickups. In the future, I expect sales of sedans to increase in Thailand. At Nissan, currently 80 per cent of sales are pickups, but in the next five years I expect that figure to come down to 60 per cent, with the remaining 40 per cent taken up by sedans.

Vijo Varghese

 The Nation