HT Auto Leaderboard Awards 2026 Indian car buyers are moving beyond price and mileage: FADA President

Indian car buyers have become significantly more informed and demanding over the past few years, with safety, technology and new-energy vehicles now playing a bigger role in purchase decisions, said Sai Giridhar, President, Federation of Automobile Dealers Associations (FADA). He made the remarks at the HT Auto Leaderboard Awards 2026, powered by HPCL with Knowledge Partner Vector Consulting, during the panel discussion on “Make for the World: Is India Ready to Become the World’s Auto Powerhouse?"

Giridhar said the change in consumer expectations has also increased the pressure on dealerships to upgrade their facilities, systems and workforce as vehicle technology becomes more complex.

“Talking about change, there is a sea change as far as consumers are concerned. Today’s consumer is far more informed — in fact, he’s more informed than even us when he comes to our dealership. He’s far more demanding," Giridhar said.

He contrasted today's buyer with the purchase priorities of earlier years, when price, brand, resale value and fuel economy were among the key considerations.

“In yesteryears, the purchase decision was based on four pillars: one was price, second was brand, third was resale value, fourth was ‘kitna deti hai’ (mileage)," he said.

Giridhar said the conversation at dealerships has now widened, with buyers asking more questions about safety, technology and different powertrain options.

“But today, when a consumer comes into the dealership, he’s more concerned about safety, he’s more concerned about technology, he’s more concerned about new energy vehicles," he said.

The shift is also changing the role of dealerships, according to Giridhar. With newer vehicles requiring more sophisticated diagnostic equipment and technical knowledge, dealerships need to invest in infrastructure and employee training.

“With the vehicles now being upgraded, probably we at dealership level also need to upgrade our facilities, invest more on systems, processes, even on scanners, training our manpower," he said.

Giridhar also highlighted the challenge of maintaining a consistent ownership experience across India's diverse markets.

“Things change every hundred kilometres, but the customer needs the same experience across. That’s what our task is from the dealership side," he said.

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