MG Motor’s premium bet with Gloster

Automaker MG Motor on Monday launched a premium seven-seater with autonomous level 1 features in India. This is the company's first autonomous vehicle in the market. The Gloster Savvy, which comes at a starting price of ₹37.28 lakh, has multiple driving modes enabled with the Advanced Driver Assistance System (ADAS) or a cluster of electronic systems that assist drivers in driving and parking functions. It also has the i-SMART technology (MG's own technology that makes a car more intuitive), 64-color ambient lighting, three-zone climate control, a panoramic sunroof, driver seat massager, and several other exclusive features. The automaker currently sells the model with six-seat configuration and has launched other products like Hector, ZS EV, and Hector Plus in the past.

“We are introducing the Gloster Savvy with a seven-seater configuration in response to requests from our customers. With this addition to the existing Gloster Savvy with six-seater configuration, we are offering our customers the power to choose a vehicle as per their needs and preferences,” says Gaurav Gupta, chief commercial officer, MG Motor India.

The seven-seater MG Gloster Savvy features a 2.0 Twin Turbo Diesel Engine generating 200 PS power and 480 Nm of peak torque.

Rajeev Chaba, president and managing director, MG Motor India tells Fortune India that in the future, there will be more mobility solutions and the company is also looking at alternative forms of vehicle ownership like subscription, leasing, used cars, etc. "I would even like to claim that we are one of the first to start subscription in India,” he points out.

The company—which is headquartered in London, is a subsidiary of SAIC U.K., and is owned by the Chinese state-owned auto manufacturer SAIC Motor—made its debut in India in 2019 and did well despite the economic slowdown preceding the pandemic. Famously known as “the internet car”, its first product, the Hector, had sold 15,930 units from July to December 2019 (compared to Tata Harrier which sold 5,794 units and Mahindra XUV 500 which sold 6,962 in the same year). The aggressive pricing of ₹12.18 lakh made it the most affordable car in the mid-size SUV segment. “Our demand right now is more than what it has ever been in the last two years. Typically, you enjoy the honeymoon period and the sales go down. But it has been going very well for us. Even the resale price of the Hector is the best in the segment. People who want to sell their cars can get almost 90% of their sale price. There is a huge pull towards the products,” Chaba argues.

He, however, did admit that while the company was making losses currently, in two years time, it should be able to stabilise. “India is a very unique and tough market. Most of us are here for the long term,” he says.