Local assembly a boost for Mini's Countryman
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Mini hopes to grow sales by 20 per cent in Thailand this year thanks to local assembly of the Countryman crossover sport-utility vehicle.
The Countryman is assembled at the BMW Manufacturing Thailand plant in Rayong, and 200 units are expected to be made this year, according to Somprach Bosuwan, general manager of Millennium Auto Mini Co, the largest Mini dealership in the country.
Local production has helped to lower retail prices of the Countryman by 24-27 per cent, and the starting price has dropped from Bt2.59 million to only Bt1.84 million, he said.
“The arrival of the Mini Countryman CKD [complete knock-down] serves as a highly interesting choice for customers, and it is expected to help drive up Mini sales in Thailand by as much as 20 per cent,” he said.
Mini sold 250 vehicles during the first half of the year. Last year it sold a record 501 vehicles in the Thai market, while grey importers sold another 500.
Somprach said the market for Mini vehicles was expected to remain at 1,000 units this year, meaning that grey importers could be affected as they could lose customers to the Countryman CKD.
However, sales of the Countryman would largely depend on the supply from the BMW plant.
“We’d like to sell as many cars as we can, but it also depends on the number of cars we get from the factory,” he said.
