There was a time when it was believed that luxury cars belonged to successful old men, men who have worked their entire lives to rake n enough money and success. However, times have definitely changed and the higher end luxury cars, like the BMW M3, which once belonged to those who had worked hard for years or those who had come of blue blood, now belongs to the young entrepreneurs.

The new age owners of luxury cars are no longer in their fifties. Even young twenty somethings in India today have the purchasing power to buy themselves the best luxury that vehicles can provide. Though the car still remains a hit amongst the older enthusiasts, its he young ones who are in total control now.

The changing trend is owed largely to the increased salaries and the IT boom in India. The young corporate India today has higher buying power than their older counterparts, who have been culturally accustomed to saving rather than spending.

Looking at the increased sales of all luxury cars like the BMW, Mercedes and Audi are an indication of the the inclination and the ability to buy luxury cars. Mercedes in fact, has been able to launch two new series, the C class and the E class, only because of the increased sales volumes. The affluent section has been helping boost sales, increasing sales percentages more than 100 percent for all luxury car makers that are selling in India. While car makers like Mercedes only had manufacturing units in Tier 1 cities like Pune and Mumbai, now they are coming up with units in tier 2 cities like Surat.

According to the profiling done by the car makers, this new customer class belongs to the families which are already established in business. The thriving merchants, especially gold and diamond, young executives who have reached the top of the corporate ladders at a young ages and self employed professionals like those in the medical community are also most likely to opt for a luxury car these days.

This new trend seems to work for the benefit of luxury car makers who seem to be building aspirational models and are marketing their new vehicles especially to the younger class of consumers. Cars like the Volkswagen Beetle, which has recently come into the market, are being bought by parents as presents for their young ones. The car is being marketed to appeal to that set of consumers as well.

India has finally arrived in the Automobiles sector. The world’s largest consumer market for automobiles, India is also seen as one of the largest manufacturers of Automobiles in the world. This was already apparent when there was a record number of footfalls this year at the Auto Expo 2010.

Today many of the car makers all over the world are making cars especially suited for the Indian consumers. This year, at the Auto Expo 2010, there were ten international car launches. These are all indications of the ever booming automobile industry.

What is most exciting to see though, is the fact that foreign luxury brands like Daimler AG and Audi AG have seen local sales surge significantly this year. Thanks to the rising demand of luxury cars, there has been a significant increase in the local sales of both Audi and Mercedes Benz cars.

Mercedes Benz India Pvt. Ltd, the Indian unit of Daimler has seen a five fold increase in its sales this year. Last year in January, Mercedes Benz had sold off only 82 cars in India. However, this year, the sales reached 403 cars in January alone!

While rival Audi has not been able to do as well, they have also seen sales rising three fold. Last year, where Audi was only able to sell 109 cars in January, this year, Audi has already sold 306 vehicles. Both the companies are thrilled to see such a huge gain in their sales and are keeping their fingers crossed, hoping to continue on this positive streak.

India is today home to the maximum number of millionaires in the world. With the increase in the coffers, there is also a proportional increase in the interest in owning luxury cars. The ever shrinking demands in both North America and Europe, has driven luxury car makers to more lucrative markets in Asia.

Along with Daimler and Audi, BMW and Porsche are also in the race to create space for themselves in the Indian market. India is the world’s second fastest growing economy in the world and it only makes sense that the luxury car makers make cars exclusively for the Indian consumers.

If we talk about statistics, Audi is expecting to increase their annual sales by 40% this year. This means that compared to the total of 1,658 cars that they sold last year, they are looking to sell at least 2,300 cars in the current year. Mercedes Benz on the other hand, is increasing the number of models by introducing 7 new products in the Indian market.

In 2009, Mercedes Benz had a tough time when sales dropped by 10%, allowing competitor BMW to become the largest seller of Luxury cars in India. BMW meanwhile saw a 24% growth, firming its position further in the Indian market.