Earlier this month Honda pulled the plugs off the BR-V seven-seater in India. The alleged SUV was discontinued due to poor sales.
Related: Honda BR-V Discontinued in India
The BR-V was launched in India back in May 2016, hardly 5 months after the vehicle made its debut. However the vehicle didn’t achieve much success in Indian market. The sales figure below will show the BR-V never picked up any momentum; in fact it kept on a constant decline reaching to abysmal sales of just 2,857 units in year 2019 averaging only 238 odd units a month.
| Year | Sales |
| 2016 | 16,820 |
| 2017 | 12,275 |
| 2018 | 7,140 |
| 2019 | 2,857 |
Honda BR-V sales in India
According to information the reason for its downfall was a rather higher price tag and the vehicle itself which wasn’t too impressive to appeal the masses. It was available with two engine options in India, a 1.5-liter i-VTEC petrol unit paired to a 6-speed manual or a CVT and a 1.5-liter i-DTEC diesel engine paired to a 6-speed manual transmission. The petrol versions were priced between INR 9.52 lac and INR 12.85 lac whereas the diesel versions were available from INR 10.16 lac and INR 13.82 lac. During its last days, some dealerships were even offering an INR 1.0 lac discount on the BR-V but that didn’t help its sales either.
In Pakistan too, the Honda BR-V is going through a distressing period with sales constantly on a decline. It was launched in April 2017 and sold 2,159 units at an average of 719 units a month in the last three months of FY2016-17. In FY2017-18 the BR-V saw 8,684 units leaving the showrooms averaging 723 units a month. Then in the following year FY2018-19 the sales plunged to 5,045 units averaging 420 units a month.
| Fiscal Year | Sales |
| FY2017-18 | 8,684 |
| FY2018-19 | 5,045 |
| 8M 2019-20 | 1,832 |
Honda BR-V sales in Pakistan
Currently the seven-seater is suffering from a 45% decline as of the first 8 months of this fiscal year FY2019-20. Honda BR-V saw just 1,832 units sold during this period (averaging 229 units a month) as compared to 3,317 units sold in the corresponding period a year earlier.
| Fiscal Year | Sales Average |
| FY2016-17 | 719 |
| FY2017-18 | 723 |
| FY2018-19 | 420 |
| 8M 2019-20 | 229 |
Average monthly sales of Honda BR-V in Pakistan
Honda Atlas introduced the BR-V facelift in October last year however the company also substantially jacked up its prices. During the last 24 months the BR-V in Pakistan has witnessed a 42% increase in price. Currently the Honda BR-V variants retails at:
- BR-V MT PKR 29.99 lac
- BR-V CVT PKR 31.49 lac
- BR-V CVT-S PKR 32.99 lac
The future doesn’t look too good due to the COVID-19 lockdowns as automakers including Honda Atlas are observing plant shutdowns in order to help prevent the deadly virus from spreading. It is unclear when the production will resume and with major disruptions in supply chains as most regional auto plants are also observing shutdowns, the dwindling BR-V sales might take a long time to recover.
Related: COVID-19 Poses Greater Threat to Local Auto Sector
It is imperative to mention that Honda had already observed 108 non-production days since the beginning of this fiscal year as the company had to keep its plant shut during the last 6 months of previous year due to thousands of piled up unsold stocks in its inventory. Despite this, the company announced to increase the prices of its cars by up to Rs 100,000 on the 16th of January 2020 even when there was no additional duty or tax imposed and the Rupee had recovered by 5.5% against the US Dollar.
Honda’s other two local assembled products– the Civic and City (combined) are also witnessing a dreadful 64% decline in sales, and with Toyota having launched the new Yaris sedan which is new & better equipped than the 12 year old 5th gen City, things aren’t going to be too good for Honda Atlas in Pakistan in future. How the company is going to respond to this challenging situation, only time will tell.
Related: Upcoming Problems for Honda City in Pakistan
And while Honda can still try bringing in the new City to compete against the Yaris, there is no such remedy available for the BR-V, the facelift of which was already introduced last year but is yet unable to do any wonders for the company. Do you think Honda BR-V is heading for the same fate which it met in India? Let us know with your comments.
A computer animation professional with over 23 years of industry experience having served in leading organizations, TV channels & production facilities in Pakistan. An avid car enthusiast and petrolhead with an affection to deliver quality content to help shape opinions. Formerly written for PakWheels as well as major publications including Dawn. Founder of CarSpiritPK.com
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