Check out Toyota Innova's rival Renault Lodgy MPV 

The automaker says that the MPV segment witnessed a slump of 20% so far in 2016.In an attempt to improve sales of the Renault Lodgy MPV, the automaker has decided to market the vehicle aggressively in the taxi operator segment. The people carrier currently clocks a monthly sales average of around 400 units which is far below the company’s expectations.

The not-so-encouraging numbers are mainly due to the dwindling popularity of the MPV segment as a whole. The emergence of compact crossover SUVs has been pressurizing every other segment in the vicinity.

Sumit Sawhney, CEO and MD of Renault India feels that the Lodgy should have a monthly sales average in the region of 1,500 – 2,000 units. He adds that giving Lodgy access to the fleet operator and corporate segment will bring in significant increment in sales. While the wholesale numbers are expected to go up this month, retail numbers for the Lodgy is pegged at around 1,000 units.

The company has recently launched a new variant which is suitable for taxi fleet operators. This segment is expected to account for around 50% of the MPV’s sales in the future.

To recap, the Renault Lodgy is based on the Duster’s platform and is powered by the popular 1.5-litre K9K diesel engine. The 85 PS version employs a 5-speed manual transmission while the 110 PS version adopts a 6-speed manual gearbox.

This article has first appeared in Rushlane.com