MUMBAI: They've all driven into India... Lamborghinis, BMWs, Porsches, Benzes, Audis... and, of course, Rolls Royces too...but how profitable are these luxury items in India's cost-conscious market?

Are their volumes enough to make volume operators like Maruti push out luxury items?  management says not just yet. R C Bhargava, chairman, Maruti Suzuki, said: "We don't see the market as very large in terms of volume... so now we're not present at the high end of that game."

Bhargava is right in terms of absolute numbers...Rolls Royce sold just 50 cars in the past three years..compared to volume players, that's not even a percentage point of what Maruti may sell in the same time...

So, what's the upside, if at all... distributors say its about creating the footprint...

Sharad Kachalia, director, Navnit Motors, says: We may not see volumes now but its basically it is about expanding your portfolio and getting the variety... that's when you can see the light behind the mountain..."

That's not all..... officials with Rolls Royce add that if there's an excess supply of one thing, its their customer base - a demographic that applies to all luxury cars...

Brenda Pek, general manager, Rolls Royce SE Asia, said: "The three things in common with our customers is that they all have huge automobile passion, they expect nothing but the best and they have the financial support to get what they want..."

What does make the Indian market attractive to car makers is that complex homologation procedures can move quickly compared with other markets... in fact, cars like the Rolls Royce Ghost first came to India before other countries in the Asia-Pacific region that includes even China...and analysts say that the takeway is that although small as of now, the luxury segment's a calling card - that's hard to ignore....