Increasing competition in the automobile market has put a great challenge before car companies to cater to the specific needs of the customers in order to remain in business. The growing competition also requires frequent innovations in the industry. High cost associated with frequent innovations may cause big setbacks to these companies if any new launch of a passenger car model fails to attract the customers' attention. A precise model specification, catering to the needs and aspirations of the customers, is ,therefore, required. This paper is an effort to find out the factors that help the companies to customize their products as per varied customer needs, categorized on the basis of their socioeconomic classes such as age, city, occupation, income group, and their present car ownership status. The study investigated selected twenty variables as determinants of the customers' choice for the selection of a 1200cc car. Factor analysis (on the influencing variables) out of the said twenty variables was applied to the respective categories of customers. The analysis found varying factors that contributed differently in the customers' choice while selecting a 1200cc car. Considering these factors and their contribution, the passenger car companies, especially in the 1200cc segment, can incorporate appropriate specifications for innovation in their products.

1. Adetayo, J.O., & Apollos, E. A. (2013). An overview of service delivery and customer satisfaction in the telecommunication industry in Nigeria. Indian Journal of Marketing, 43 (8), 14-22.
2. Bikash, R.D., Pravat S.K., & Sreekumar (2010). Factors influencing purchase of 'NANO' - The innovative car from India : An empirical study. Asian Journal of Business Management, 2 (3), 48-56.
3. Buyingadvice.com (n.d.). Over half of car buyers factor auto manufacturer's warranty into choice. Retrieved from <a href=http://www.buyingadvice.com/warranty-survey.html target="_blank">http://www.buyingadvice.com/warranty-survey.html</a>
4. Hair, J. F., Black, B., Babin, B., Anderson, R. E., & Tatham, R. L. (2005). Multivariate data analysis (6th ed.). New Delhi : Prentice Hall of India.
5. Newstead, S., Cameron, M., Delaney, A., & Watson, L. (2006). Study of the relationship between injury outcomes in police reported crash data and crash barrier test results in Europe and Australia. Retrieved from <a href=http://www.euroncap.com/files/SARAC_report_2006---c69a85cf-3aaf-44c7-8ed3-f1a8d3d9f414.pdf target="_blank">http://www.euroncap.com/files/SARAC_report_2006---c69a85cf-3aaf-44c7-8ed3-f1a8d3d9f414.pdf</a>
6. Ranawat, M., & Tiwari, R. (2009). Influence of government policies on industry development: The case of India's automotive industry. Technology and Innovation Management (University of Hamburg) Working Paper No. 57.SSRN. DOI : <a href=http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.1583449 target="_blank">http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.1583449</a>
7. Thakar, G. D., Jain, N. K., & Singh, M. D. (2012). Identification of factors affecting the choices of automobile in 1200cc passenger car segment - An empirical study of Central India. Udyog Pragati, 36 (4), 1-11.