Dubai: Every salesperson in the UAE is hoping he or she has the best new car model, extras or offers to entice buyers of one of the toughest markets in the region to sign up.
Regardless of the variance in opinions from auto bosses, most agree that the market here has taken a sizeable hit, making this year's sales the most challenging for years.
"The total industry volume in the UAE for cars and SUVs fell 40 per cent in the first two quarters of 2009," said Tomas Ernberg, managing director of Volvo Cars Middle East.
Keizo Okue, general manager for Middle East and Africa sales at Mazda, said the UAE market has never been easy, due to the fierce competition from other manufacturers. This year, however, he says the UAE is a tougher market than any other in the region. "It's tougher ... because there's not an individual tax system that means everybody can enter the market," said Okue.
In response, a number of brands are hoping their new models will take the edge off 2009. Across various segments of cars, from giant SUVs to tiny city cars, models are transforming.
Kia has launched the Kia Soul, labelling it a crossover utility vehicle (CUV) - it has the general body shape of an SUV but is notably smaller.
"It's not a sports car, it's not an SUV, it's not a saloon, it's a CUV," said Amei Ramesh, product manager at Al Majid Motors, which sells Kia cars in the UAE. Although he remains confident the car will appeal here, he is reluctant to declare the CUV market as booming, describing its market share as "low speed gaining".
The 'premium compact' is another class of car in which Volvo is hoping to increase its presence across the country this year.
Since the launch of the XC60 in January, they claim 17 per cent of the segment's market in the UAE, said Ernberg of Volvo.
He believes this new, smaller version of the 4/4, which includes the Land Rover LR2 and BMW X3, is a reflection of changing consumer preferences. While people may steer away from giant vehicles, they still want to sit higher than a saloon, and keep the four-wheel drive.
"From Volvo's point of view, when you look at SUVs, there is a clear trend towards the smaller SUVs," said Ernberg.
While some of the road's giants are becoming more compact, smaller cars are increasingly describing themselves as 'sportier'. It's unlikely, however, to see an increased presence of sports models from those brands which typically sell mid-range saloons, but their new models are selling a sportier drive, say some companies. "Demand is for realistic utilities," said Kia's Ramesh. "Sports versions are not really going up in the market."
Whereas in the past, there was a phase when Japanese sports cars such as the Toyota Celica became popular, there is no likely comeback in the near future.
"Over the years these sorts of cars lost market to the Europeans and Americans," he said.
"The speciality car manufacturers such as Audi or the Americans are more popular."
Opinions on figures relating to the luxury segment of the market differ. Most however agree that it is holding up the best, and loyal customers are not downsizing by jumping segment to cheaper brands. "The luxury market has held up," said Hugh Dickerson, general manager of sales and marketing for Al Futtaim Motors, which retail Lexus and Toyota cars in the UAE.
"We've seen no discernible [trend] of downsizing."
Therefore, the traditional C segment - known as the compact car in the US and the small family car in Europe - is not trying to lure traditional sports car customers feeling more frugal. Instead, this fiercely competitive segment is pushing for a sportier feel for the driver.
The recent launch of the new Mazda 3 marketed the vehicle as sporty. Mazda's Okue explained that this is more about the sensory elements of driving than the physical shape of the vehicle.
While the company attempts to grapple for market with giant, fellow Japanese competitor Toyota, they are hoping to carve out a niche in the massive, bread-and-butter C segment.
"We want to improve the driving experience.
"This is for people who love the nimble handling response, sports sound. In that sense, this is a niche market," said Okue.
One example they are using is tuning the engine sound to make it more aurally sporty.
Add-ons also provide regular cars with a sporty look.
This has been popular in the region for some time, say retailers, but despite the tough economic climate, many are still willing to pay for spoilers, rims and tinted windows.
This summer saw the launch of the new Golf GTI in the UAE. The GTI has been a mainstay of upgrading though add-ons the world over.
"This works pretty well in the region," said Stephan Mecha, managing director for Volkswagen in the Middle East. "The main things to change are the rims."
The new Kia Soul sells for Dh52,000 and Dh62,000 for the upgraded version, which features add-ons.
"We have seen more demand for the higher version," said Ramesh. "Which means you can put additional body kit. The market is prepared to pay for such items."
Al Futtaim is also pushing the add-ons this summer with their Ramadan specials. However, Dickerson believes the tough market can only be cracked this year by steering away from gimmicky sales offers.
"I saw the market when I arrived and there was a lack of relevancy," he said.
Lexus and Toyota dealers, are offering limited edition vehicles, which they call exclusive ranges, with add-ons such as tinted windows standardised.
"Limited editions all have Bluetooth because people don't want to get a fine," said Dickerson. "It's relevancy for me. That works all the way down to financing."
By Jane Ferguson
© Gulf News 2009
