To enhance its customers’ buying, selling or exchange experience in the pre-owned car segment, Volkswagen Passenger Cars India has expanded its Das WeltAuto Excellence Centres with the launch of two new outlets in Palace Cross, Bengaluru and Ahmedabad.

The company further plans to open an additional 10 DWA Excellence Centres in 2021 taking the total to 17 Excellence Centres.

Volkswagen’s digitally integrated service outlets provide a bouquet of options including pricing transparency, unique accessory offers, a dedicated relationship manager, hassle-free transfer and warranty packages. Through this initiative, the brand has successfully opened total of seven DWA Excellence Centres in 2020.

With DWA facilities, Volkswagen is taking a comprehensive approach to address customers’ concerns related to buying, selling or exchange a used car, further providing convenience and peace of mind through integrated services. It is a one-stop solution from the brand that offers a strong value proposition in the organized pre-owned car segment, enabling customers to fulfil their need for accessible, individual mobility.

Along with providing a complete digital experience, Volkswagen with its DWA Excellence Centres intends to offer a professionally managed and value for money proposition to its potential customers looking for pre-owned mobility options. Additionally, as part of the brand’s digitization drive, customers can buy, sell or exchange a pre-owned car on the DWA website as well as can self-evaluate through the Das WeltAuto Valuator app. The expansion of the outlet is a step towards increasing the brand’s presence in the organized pre-owned segment in India.

Commenting on this initiative, Ashish Gupta, Brand Head, Volkswagen Passenger Cars India said, “The organized pre-owned car business has received a positive response this year, wherein customer demand for affordable individual mobility has grown, which is likely to double in the coming years. In-line with this momentum, our Das WeltAuto Excellence Centres with multi-brand options, aims to professionalize the customer purchase experience and be a one-stop shop for all the customer’s needs. We intend to further penetrate the markets by launching 10 more facilities in 2021.” (MT)

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Cars24 has announced the acquisition of Vehicle Info, an automotive utility application. The move is intended to facilitate the development of a vehicle ownership platform in India.

The acquisition signals a shift in strategy for Cars24, moving from a focus on buying and selling transactions toward managing the vehicle lifecycle. Vehicle Info provides users with tools to track insurance validity, traffic challans, FASTag balances and vehicle documentation within a single interface.

Vehicle Info was founded by Chirag Pipaliya in Surat. Developed without venture capital, the application was designed to address the daily management needs of car owners rather than one-time transactions. The platform currently ranks among the most used automotive applications in India for document compliance and utility tracking.

Vehicle Info will continue to operate as a standalone application. Its existing team will work with Cars24 to integrate these utility features into a broader ecosystem for car management.

The integration aims to consolidate fragmented services that vehicle owners typically manage across multiple platforms. By combining transactional data with ownership utility, the companies intend to create a system that serves users throughout the duration of vehicle possession.

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Roinet Insurance Brokers has announced the launch of Roinet Kavach, a digital motor insurance platform designed to increase insurance adoption in Tier III to Tier VI markets. The company expects 2.5x–3x growth over the next 6–12 months and is targeting a GMV of INR 1 billion by FY2027, with motor insurance projected to contribute 35 percent of revenue.

The platform utilises a network of over 70,000 rural touchpoints to reach first-time buyers, who currently represent 65 percent of the customer base. Primary growth has been recorded in Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Rajasthan, Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu.

Roinet Kavach is a mobile-first interface designed for low-bandwidth environments. It allows Point of Sale Persons (POSPs) to generate quotes, compare premiums and issue policies in three minutes.

The platform currently integrates real-time pricing from ICICI Lombard, Chola MS, SBI General and Go Digit. At present, two-wheelers contributes 75 percent, private cars 15 percent and commercial vehicles 10 percent of policies, respectively.

The platform serves 1,000 POSPs in rural and semi-urban regions, providing them with vernacular support, renewal integration, and claims assistance. According to the company, the system creates a monthly income stream of INR 2,000 to INR 10,000 for these distributors through transparent commissions.

Future plans for the platform include the introduction of telematics-based risk scoring, electric-vehicle-specific products, and usage-based pricing models as regulations evolve.

Rahul Mathur, CEO, Roinet Insurance Brokers, said, “Roinet Kavach solves a real and persistent distribution gap in motor insurance by ensuring transparency, efficiency, and accessibility for millions of Indians who have never availed a policy before. By placing the right digital tools in the hands of our last-mile POSPs, who are our backbone, we are strengthening insurance reach in underserved markets and helping build financial resilience in regions the industry has long overlooked. It is a win-win for both the end customer and our POSPs.”

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Autorox, a digital repair shop network, and Boodmo, an automotive spare parts marketplace, have announced a strategic partnership to create a connected aftermarket ecosystem in India. The collaboration aims to link workshops, parts catalogues and sellers in real time.

At present, Autorox operates a network of 2,000 workshops in India and has a presence in 40 countries. The partnership focuses on a ‘Discovery First’ workflow, which embeds parts intelligence directly into the digital repair order used by technicians.

The system integrates a digital parts catalogue into the Autorox repair process. When a vehicle is diagnosed, the workshop can identify parts, verify fitment and check live inventory from sellers on the Autozilla platform without leaving the repair interface. This data is then surfaced to marketplaces like Boodmo.

This integration is intended to replace manual searches and external catalogue checks. By linking the repair order to live seller data, the companies aim to ensure that stock levels reflect actual inventory rather than cached data.

The companies stated that this launch is the first step in a broader partnership. Future phases are expected to include:

• Fulfillment Integration: Streamlining the delivery of parts from sellers to workshops.
• Ecosystem Data Sharing: Building an interoperable infrastructure for the Indian aftermarket.
• Automated Procurement: Linking diagnosis triggers directly to parts ordering.

Vijay Gummadi, Founder & CEO, Autorox, said, “India never waited for landlines or legacy banking - it leapfrogged straight to mobile and UPI. The aftermarket is at that same moment. Our partnership with boodmo is how we make that leap. By embedding real-time parts discovery directly into the repair workflow and linking it to live seller availability, we are eliminating guesswork and wasted time - and building a connected ecosystem that India's aftermarket has never had before.”

Oleksandr Danylenko, Founder, Boodmo, added, “By tapping into real-time availability from sellers, we are strengthening trust across the ecosystem and improving outcomes for workshops, sellers, and customers alike.”

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Assurance Intl has announced the relaunch of ACDelco, the automotive aftermarket brand owned by General Motors (GM), in the Indian market. The move follows a licensing and strategic partnership between the two companies.

Under the agreement, Assurance Intl will serve as the official licensee for ACDelco in India, managing the manufacturing, marketing and distribution of specific products. The initial range consists of automotive batteries and lubricants for passenger and commercial vehicles.

To support the relaunch, Assurance Intl has established production capabilities at its facilities in Hisar, Haryana. The site includes a battery manufacturing plant and a blending facility for engine oils and automotive fluids.

The company stated that local production is intended to manage pricing while adhering to the quality standards set by General Motors. Products will be supplied through a network encompassing distributors, retailers and workshops across India.

The partnership aims to address local market requirements while following GM’s global aftermarket strategy. The companies also intend to investigate the development of battery technologies and lubricants aligned with vehicle trends and sustainability.

Rakesh Sharma, MD, Assurance Intl, said, “This partnership is a natural synergy between ACDelco’s global legacy in automotive aftermarket solutions and Assurance Intl’s manufacturing expertise, quality experience and distribution capabilities in the Indian automotive sector.”

Mahesh Ravindran, Country Lead (India) - Commercial Operations of Chevrolet Sales India, added, “The relaunch of ACDelco automotive batteries and lubricants products in India through an official licensing arrangement is aligned with our global aftermarket brand strategy. Assurance Intl’s operational capabilities and understanding of local market requirements provide a strong platform for the ACDelco brand in the country.”

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