Large scale discounting is a 'cancer' in the car industry, according to Renault's boss Carlos Tavares, writes Brian Byrne.And he intends to stop his own brand's national distributors from the practice by providing them with only the numbers of cars they can sell at proper margins.
In an interview in Automotive News Europe, Tavares says he has been pushing up net prices of Renault cars to match rivals like Peugeot, Citroen, Opel and Ford.
And he said 'destructive discounts' are not the way forward as far as his company is concerned.
Renault is also fixing a perceived 'lack of appeal' in its designs, he said, starting with the new Clio (above), the Zoe electric car, and the upcoming Captur.
In Ireland in recent years, Renault substantially increased market share by offering steep discounts. From a 4.0 percent share in 2008, the brand peaked at 11.3 percent in 2010, and in sales to date in 2013 has tumbled back down to 4.6 percent.
