M&M doing a Tata Nano !

Dear Mahindra & Mahindra,

Ok, so now that I have your attention, first things first. What exactly you think you are selling to warrant a lottery? A Nano? So get this thing straight up your minds - consumers who are buying XUV can buy 10 nanos for this price. XUV, though a fabulous car, still has lot of niggles that we read about on various forums. Niggles likes steering rod touching driver, bad brake pad design that you are replacing free of cost, notchy gear shifts etc. So first get those iron out before having an arrogance of lottery system.

Now coming to lottery system itself, who was the genius who came up with the idea? (S A R C A S M, just in case I need to hold a board for you to understand). Tell that person that he/ she is wrong in argument of "fairness", because it is not fair to those potential customers who have had their paper work ready and finances, including bank finances, streamlined for about 4 months now. So you can kindly suck-it on the fairness part. It is only fair that they get First-come-first-serve treatment.

Coming to Deloitte auditing of system, really M&M? You want to employ a monkey on the keyboard using "rand" (random number generator) command on excel, and you call it audited lottery? Seriously? Stop undermining intelligence of your customers. Anybody who has money to buy XUV is smart enough to know it.

But let me give you benefit of doubt for "fairness" play. Here are few options that your marketing genius (again, S A R C A S M) can use to be fair:

1. Allow first come first serve for first 7,200 bookings. You can put the rest in the lottery draw. Latecomers, lazy and lethargic should be punished for their laziness. Simple. That is fair, isnt it? You work hard, get in top 7,200 and get your car. You laze around and get thrown in lottery pool after 7,200 bookings. How is that not fair?

2. OK, maybe many customers are arranging finances and are genuine buyers, so a 9 day window makes sense to accommodate all. So why not spread 7,200 bookings through 9 days - 800 bookings a day on first come first serve basis. 801 and beyond on each day can go in lottery pool. That is also fair and more spread.

3. Why not have an online booking system as well? Consumers can book on their own, after all the DD is being made in name of M&M and not the dealer. Sure, there is a chance of fake bookings or covered bookings, but then you can comb through those later, and you have lottery pool to shift up into booking pool if you need replace a fake/ covered booking by genuine booking.

Infact, let me quote somebody from team-bhp,

Since the lottery scheme is anyway ridiculous, let me take it to the next level:
1. I demand 50% reservation for women
2. I demand 20% quota for the financially backward
3. I demand 20% quota for the minorities and culturally oppressed
4. I demand 8% quota for the locals - people staying within 15km radius of a particular dealership
5. The remaining 2% would be reserved for the people who do not belong to any of the above categories

( http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/official-new-car-reviews/109469-mahindra-xuv500-test-drive-review-109.html#post2648704 )

Lastly, let me tell you one thing very clearly. I will own a XUV, hopefully this time or whenever bookings open next. For all the troubles you are making us go through, I promise I would be very difficult customer if I'm buying an expensive car. One squeak from my XUV, whenever I get one, would result in whole marketing department and my RM squeaking. I would not tolerate shabbiness and will not settle for below quality vehicle. Period.

Enough of Chalta Hai attitude !