Paul Tan's Automotive News» India at Paul Tan’s Automotive News

Renault-Nissan to introduce the cheapest car in the world in 2012

Harvinder Sidhu — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 11:54:01 +0000

Renault-Nissan has announced that it will work with an Indian company called Bajaj Auto to produce the world’s cheapest car, even cheaper than the Tata Nano. An agreement was signed and the partnership is set to introduce the new low-cost vehicle in 2012.

Under the agreement, Bajaj will handle the design, engineering as well as the manufacturing while Renault-Nissan will focus on marketing, branding and the sale of parts. CEO Carlos Ghosn revealed that the cost of the car will be lower any car made in India today, pointing to a price tag that would be cheaper than the Rs 1 lakh carried by the Nano.

With India to become the primary market and exports to emerging markets to be made later, the new vehicle is expected to feature a mileage that is better than 20 kilometers per liter. The car will be built in India and will target India’s emerging middle class. Both companies actually announced a partnership last year but apparently there were some disagreements, which have now been resolved. Pictured above is the Bajaj Lite concept that was shown in 2008.

Source

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 22 Nov 09 07:32:26 +0800.

Volkswagen Touran Park Assist System TVC

Paul Tan — Mon, 27 Jul 2009 19:03:25 +0000

They really should make more amusing ads like this. Check out this Volkswagen Touran TV commercial after the jump. They’re promoting the car’s Park Assist system, which by the way is available locally on the Volkswagen Tiguan. The dude in the video can’t dance though but he kinda looks like Schumacher. The Touran is a Golf-based MPV that isn’t available in Malaysia, though there were a number of pre-owned ones (CrossTouran) sold off by Volkswagen Malaysia recently. Volkswagen recently announced that they will start assembly of the Touran in Indonesia.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 22 Nov 09 07:32:26 +0800.

Tata Nano officially goes on sale, delivery in July!

Paul Tan — Wed, 25 Mar 2009 02:50:17 +0000

The Tata Nano is officially here and on sale! Bear in mind this is the Indian domestic market version and not the larger, more well-equipped version that was showcased as the Tata Nano Europa recently.

The Indian version of the Nano will go on sale from the 1st of April onwards at Tata Motors Passenger Car dealerships and other select authorised outlets, available in 3 variants – Standard, CX and LX, with a 24,000km or 18 month warranty. The cheapest one is priced at 1 lakh as promised, but only when it leaves the factory, after that it gets some other costs tagged on including shipping, taxes and registration.

The Tata Nano has its engine mounted at the back, a 624cc 2-cylinder aluminium multi-port fuel injection engine mated to a 4-speed transmission. The engine produces 35 PS at 5,250rpm and 48Nm of torque at 3,000rpm, with a top speed of 105km/h.

Not much power, but the car weighs only 600kg. It can negotiate a maximum of a 30% grade incline. Fuel efficiency is rated at 23.6 km/litre, certified by the Automotive Research Association of India (ARAI) under mandated test conditions – this is said to be the most fuel efficient petrol car in India.

The Nano measures just 3,100mm long, with a width of 1,500mm and a height of 1,600mm. Tata claims despite it having the smallest exterior footprint of any car in India, it is 21% more spacious than the smallest car available today.

The Standard is very bare, with 3 colour options, single-tone seats and a fold-down rear bench. If you notice, it doesn’t even have side view mirrors. The CX adds 2 more colours, climate control, two-tone seats, a parcel shelf, boost-assisted brakes, and a fold-down rear seat with a nap rest.

The highest grade LX model adds complete fabric seats, central locking, front power windows, body-coloured bumpers and etc, fog lamps, an electronic trip meter, a front console cup holder, a mobile charger point, and a rear spoiler.

There is limited capacity at the moment, as Tata’s Sanand plant is not ready yet in terms of capacity. The State Bank of India will be managing the Nano’s bookings. Application forms will be sold at Rs. 300 from 30,000 locations in 10,000 cities – Tata Motors Passenger Car dealerships, State Bank of India and its branches, its subsidiaries and associates, other preferred financiers, and outlets of Westside, Croma, ‘World of Titan’ and Tata Indicom exclusive stores.

After one obtains the form, he can either pay the entire booking amount themselves or seek financing of the booking amount. Financing is available from 15 financial institutions, where a Nano can be booked for Rs. 2999.

After 60 days of the closure of bookings, Tata will use a lottery system to allocate the first 100,000 cars to be delivered in phase 1 of the delivery process. Deliveries will start in July 2009.

If you do not get selected for the first phase of delivery, unlike here where your booking fee gets stuck for ages if your car takes a long time to get delivered, customers will be eligible to interest on their booking fees – 8.5% for retention period between one year to two year and 8.75% for a retention period of more than 2 years.

Look after the jump for a full gallery of the Nano.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 22 Nov 09 07:32:26 +0800.

New Tata PR1MA Concept designed by Pininfarina

Paul Tan — Thu, 05 Mar 2009 20:08:38 +0000

The Tata Prima is the first collaboration between Tata and Italian company Pininfarina and is based on the Tata Indigo platform stretched to a 2,700mm wheelbase. It kinda looks somewhat like a Nissan Sylphy actually, and you can see some latest design “trends” incorporated there although some can be considered overkill – it has TWO sets of daytime running lights – you get one strip on each side the bumper and another set integrated into the headlamps. I feel Tata should really reconsider a stronger corporate grille for its car. The front end that ended up on this one kinda makes it look like a smart forfour when viewed head-on. A prominent and good-looking corporate grille is really important. Hyundai has found a new one in their i-series of cars, albeit somewhat shamelessly ripped off from the pre-facelift current generation Honda Civic, while Kia has its new H-grille design penned by Peter Schreyer. Look after the jump for a gallery of the Tata PR1MA Concept.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 22 Nov 09 07:32:26 +0800.

Tata Nano Europa: a high-spec Nano for Europe!

Paul Tan — Wed, 04 Mar 2009 16:56:40 +0000

Tata has unveiled a more regularly-specced version of the Tata Nano that it intends to sell in more sophisticated markets such as Europe. It will be a car that has all the creature comforts that you’d expect, unlike the 1 lakh version that it intends to sell in India which will be stripped bare of even an air conditioning unit.

This high-spec version has been exhibited at the 2009 Geneva Motor Show and is called the Tata Nano Europa. While the Indian Nano rides on a wheelbase of 2,230mm, the Tata Nano Europe has a stretched 2,280mm wheelbase and measures 3,290mm long and 1,580mm wide (the Indian Nano is 3,100mm by 1,500mm). It’s actually shorter both in terms of length and wheelbase compared to the Kancil but is wider. Powering the Nano Europe is an inline-3 fuel injection engine mated to a 5-speed automatic and it will also come with a power steering system.

	Tata Nano Europa	Viva	Kancil
Length	3,290mm	3,575mm	3,365mm
Width	1,580mm	1,475mm	1,405mm
Wheelbase	2,280mm	2,390mm	2,280mm

Other features that the Nano Europa will get include ABS, ESP stability control and airbags, which already places it above many small cars in terms of equipment, especially the presence of stability control. Of course with all of this extra features the price will be far from the original pricetag that gave the Nano its “1 lakh car” nickname, but I doubt the European customer will accept driving something as bare as the Indian Nano. Who knows, we could even end up having this Nano Europa sold in Malaysia by the new Tata franchisee, whoever they may be.

Tata of course has other aces up its sleeve for Europe, and it begins to make sense why they acquired Jaguar once you see what else they are exhibiting at Geneva, coming soon right after this story.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 22 Nov 09 07:32:26 +0800.

Production Tata Nano all set for 23rd March unveiling, sales to begin in April!

Paul Tan — Thu, 26 Feb 2009 10:25:34 +0000

Some of you may be wondering what has happened to the Tata Nano after all the buzz that was created after it was unveiled back in January last year. Tata’s 1-lakh car had gone through so many downs such as having to abandon a nearly-completed production plant because of regional protests, and the continuous economic downturn doesn’t do much to help the Indian conglomerate who dreamt up this car for the masses.

But good news this time – in less than 1 month’s time, the Tata Nano will be officially unveiled in Mumbai on the 23rd of March 2009, with the first batch of showroom cars delivered from the 1st week of April 2009 onwards. Dealerships will be accepting bookings from the 2nd week of April 2009 onwards. We will get the full details on the production car at the March unveiling, but at the moment please check out our past coverage on the Tata Nano. There are some very interesting details on how Tata plans to make the car so cheap as well as videos.

According to latest exchange rates – 1 lakh Indian Rupees is US$1,986 or RM 7,300. That’s seriously cheap, but the base model will be extremely bare, likely not to even have air conditioning! But still safer than a motorcycle.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 22 Nov 09 07:32:26 +0800.

New Hyundai i20 (Getz) to be built in India

Paul Tan — Tue, 30 Dec 2008 08:37:59 +0000

Hyundai has launched the new Hyundai i20 in India. India will be a production base for the new i20, and i20s from Hyundai’s plant in Chennai is already being exported to locations around the world, which could include Malaysia as well, when Sime Darby gets around to bringing the car in. The recently launched Inokom i10 also came in as a CBU from India initially, but is now built from CKD packs sourced from India.

The new Hyundai i20 replaces the Hyundai Getz in Hyundai’s line-up, and will likely become the new Inokom i20 here in Malaysia. The Indian model only comes with a 1.2 liter all-aluminium Kappa engine producing 80 horsepower mated to a 5-speed manual, but the i20 is also designed to take a 100hp 1.4 liter, a 126hp 1.6 liter, and a range of diesel engines including two 1.4 liter units and two 1.6 liter units with outputs ranging from 75hp to 128hp.

Malaysia will likely get at least the 1.4 liter petrol, as with the current Inokom Getz.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 22 Nov 09 07:32:26 +0800.

Honda developing new car smaller than the Honda Jazz for emerging markets

Paul Tan — Fri, 17 Oct 2008 12:30:46 +0000

Honda has a few K-cars in the Japanese market like the Honda ZEST (shown above) and the Honda Life, but they’ve been reserved for the Japanese market so far. I actually drove the Honda ZEST with the turbocharged 660cc i-DSI engine last year during the visit to Honda’s R&D facility in Tochigi and it really felt quite zippy thanks to the turbocharger’s torque and the 4-speed automatic.

India’s Honda Siel has revealed that Honda is working on developing a new car smaller than the Honda Jazz for emerging markets – that’s pretty much markets such as the Indian and ASEAN market, so we may even see it in Malaysia as a contender to the likes of the Hyundai i10 and the Kia Picanto.

The powerplant is currently a question mark, but Honda Siel says the engine could possibly be under 1.0 liters in displacement. Honda has two 660cc engines – a normally aspirated version which produces 52hp at 6,700rpm and 61Nm of torque at 3,800rpm, and a turbo-ed version with a top-mounted intercooler making 64hp at 6,000rpm and 93Nm of torque at 4,000rpm.

Given that Honda’s Indian unit is the one revealing this juicy bit of info, India could most likely be the production base for the new car.

Source

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 22 Nov 09 07:32:26 +0800.

Cheap jeep could cost only RM2,200!

Paul Tan — Tue, 07 Oct 2008 04:55:53 +0000

A 70 year old man in India named Indraprakash Bhargav claims to have created a little 2+2 jeep (in the style of the recently launched Nissan KIX?) that costs only Rs 30,000 to buy, can go 40km on a liter of petrol and reach a top speed of 50km/h.

Rs30,000 is only about RM2,200 and is a decent price to pay for something that can sit 2 adults and 2 children. He claims the material costs are only about Rs15,000 to Rs20,000 (RM1,100 to RM1,470). He also says he is working on an electric version of the little jeep.

Apparently despite this project and some other automotive innovations that he’s produced in the past, the Indian government or car manufacturers paid little attention to him. He says he is willing to divulge the “secrets” of this cheap jeep for free if an industrialist like Ratan Tata is interested. No harm having a look. Anyone with money interested?

Source

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 22 Nov 09 07:32:26 +0800.

Honda studying possibility of smaller i-DTEC

Paul Tan — Fri, 03 Oct 2008 05:57:43 +0000

Honda’s Indian distributor Honda Siel Cars India Ltd CEO Masahiro Takedagawa says that Honda is seriously studying the possibility of developing a small diesel engine for compact cars such as the Honda City, especially for countries such as India where diesel cars are extremely popular thanks to the 30% price difference between petrol and diesel fuel.

Honda currently has a 2.2 liter second generation diesel engine called the i-DTEC. The first generation was called the i-CTDi and some of you may remember the cute ad campaign that debuted with the engine.

India will also become a key manufacturing base for Honda’s global supply chain as certain key engine components will begin to be supplied from there. The Indian engine component plant will mainly supply the ASEAN market, so in the future our 1.5 liter i-VTEC engines in the upcoming new Honda City may come from India.

The FTA which allows special duty benefits for 8 to 10 engine components traded between the two countries allows India to enter the ASEAN engine component market. This list may be widened in the future.

And who knows, we could see a 1.4 liter Honda City i-DTEC some time in the future too! Though it may have little hope of making it onto our shores as our diesel prices are now very close to petrol prices despite having very low quality, after enjoying many years of being alot cheaper than petrol.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 22 Nov 09 07:32:26 +0800.

New Suzuki Alto images released, details to come

Paul Tan — Thu, 07 Aug 2008 16:20:49 +0000

Suzuki has unveiled a preview of the next generation Suzuki Alto, which will make its debut at the 2008 Paris Motor Show. The new Alto was shown to us in concept form as the Suzuki A-Star Concept. The new Alto will replace the best-selling Maruti Alto currently sold in Japan, but the Maruti 800 based on an even older Alto will still soldier on, repositioned with less specs and a lower price to compete with the Tata Nano.

As India is the Alto’s biggest market, the world production center for the new Suzuki Alto will be situated in Maruti Suzuki’s Manesar plant. If Suzuki Malaysia deems the Alto suitable for Malaysian consumption (Hyundai seems to think so with the recently introduced Indian-sourced i10), the Alto we get will most likely come from India.

The recent news of a free trade agreement being discussed between ASEAN and India will be good news for the i10 and the Alto if it is introduced here as it would mean less taxes for Indian imports.

One more photo of the new Suzuki Alto available after the jump, with more details to be revealed as we approach the 2008 Paris show.

Related Posts:
Next generation Suzuki Alto spotted in India

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 22 Nov 09 07:32:26 +0800.

Nano target market may face difficulty with loans

Paul Tan — Mon, 23 Jun 2008 02:58:01 +0000

I think we now know why Maruti’s low cost car was revealed to the banks earlier this month, they were probably pitching it to the banks to see if they would grant loans for people who want to buy it!

Banks in India are saying that they would only grant loans to buy the Tata Nano to second time car buyers instead of motorcycle owners who are looking to upgrade to a car. “We will not look to finance the purchase of the Tata Nano for those who already own a motorcycle but are stretching their budgets to buy a car. We have faced numerous problems of motorcycle loan defaults,” said an unnamed banker in an interview with Business Standard in Mumbai.

Rates to finance the Tata Nano are also expected to be higher at 18 to 19% instead of a usual new car interest rate of 13 to 14%, although it is still lower than the usual used car interest rate of 22%. This is because usually low income owners that buy such cars usually have their finances stretched to the limits every month, especially in the wake of astronomical fuel prices. This is also why Proton cars usually have higher interest rates than foreign makes in Malaysia.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 22 Nov 09 07:32:26 +0800.

Bajaj and Renault-Nissan partnership to go beyond low cost Bajaj ULC

Paul Tan — Fri, 20 Jun 2008 15:22:45 +0000

Bajaj Auto already has a joint venture with Nissan and Renault to develop the low-cost Bajaj ULC for the Indian market, but Bajaj Auto’s managing director Rajiv Bajaj says that by July another agreement will be signed to explore additional products to be added to the Bajaj-Renault-Nissan portfolio such as larger cars and MPVs.

“There’s no way one can compete with a single product in any market, be it cell phones or motorcycles or cars. We are planning a portfolio of products. There would be different products, not just variants of the same product at different price points,” said Rajiv Bajaj.

I think its safe to say that Renault-Nissan’s new partner in the Indian market is Bajaj Auto. They’ve been said to be on a lookout for a new partner ever since the collaboration with Mahindra to produce the Renault Logan in India did not take off very well.

Even in the recent story on Proton in India by the Economic Times of India, it was mentioned that talks between Proton and Mahindra aren’t going so well because Mahindra wanted to stay away from the passenger vehicle market for awhile after the Logan’s unsuccessful run.

Source

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 22 Nov 09 07:32:26 +0800.

Maruti working on Rs 1.2 lakh Maruti 800

Paul Tan — Tue, 17 Jun 2008 09:28:49 +0000

Banks and other financial institutions have been given a sneak preview of Maruti Suzuki India’s upcoming low-cost car (possibly to work out financing deals?), which is expected to get a price tag of Rs 1.2 lakh to Rs 1.5 lakh. The car will not be a new car, but will be a stripped down version of the Maruti 800 hatchback.

The Maruti 800 is a rebadged Suzuki 800, and used to be India’s best selling car until it was overtaken by the newer Maruti Alto. It is a car from the 1980s, but have been given several facelifts over the years… this all sounds very familiar. The cheapest Maruti 800 is currently about Rs 0.75 lakh more expensive than the target price that Maruti has set for the new low cost stripped down version.

The 5-door hatchback weighing around 650kg is powered by a 37 horsepower 796cc inline-3 engine engine, hence the 800 model name taken from an engine displacement rounded up to 800cc.

The Maruti 800 has an advantage over all the new players rushing into the low-cost car market such as the Tata Nano and the Bajaj ULC as the Indian public are already very familiar with the Maruti 800 and know what what they’re in for, while its competitors are basically a big question mark.

Source

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 22 Nov 09 07:32:26 +0800.

Indian government increases car taxes

Paul Tan — Tue, 17 Jun 2008 09:10:26 +0000

The Indian government has just introduced an additional tax for cars, MPVs and SUVs with engine displacements from 1,500cc and above, a segment that sees nearly 400,000 vehicles sold annually.

Cars with engine displacements between 1,500cc and 1,999cc will be taxes an additional Rs 15,000 (roughly RM1,125), and cars with engine displacements above 2,000cc will be taxed an additional Rs 20,000 (about RM1,498).

“This hike was unforseen and unexpected. It will have an impact on demand and we will have to revisit our production forecasts and margins, which are already under pressure. There is nothing to suggest that just because a car has a bigger engine, it will consume more fuel,” said Ankush Arora, vice president (marketing and sales) at GM India.

Of the three Proton cars that the Economic Times reported will see an Indian market launch sometime next year, only the Proton Persona with a 1.6 liter engine will be affected by this increase in tax, as the other two cars are 1.3 liters and below.

Source

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 22 Nov 09 07:32:26 +0800.

Proton set to be launched in India early 2009?

Paul Tan — Tue, 17 Jun 2008 08:13:04 +0000

India’s The Economic Times reveals that Proton has finalised its India plans and is set to enter the Indian market initially with a 3 model line-up comprising of the Proton Savvy 1.2 liter, the Proton Saga 1.3 liter and the Proton Persona 1.6 liter.

They will be introduced in phases with the first to hit the market in early 2009. The cars are currently undergoing trials and technical evalutations – India’s homologation rules are quite stringent from what I’ve heard.

There is also some new news regarding Proton’s talks with a JV partner in India. Apparently talks with Mahindra & Mahindra have fell through, according to an unnamed senior executive from Indian company Proton Motors Ltd.

“We were close to striking a deal with M&M, but they have preferred to distance themselves from the car market after the Logan sedans not too successful run. We are now looking for a possible joint venture with other Indian automobile companies, particularly with a strong focus on marketing,” the senior executive revealed.

He also added that Proton will be looking at the high fuel efficiency niche as part of its Indian strategy, and there is also the possibility of introducing Protons there with the ability to use Compressed Natural Gas as fuel.

Related Posts:
Proton and the Indian automotive industry

Source

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 22 Nov 09 07:32:26 +0800.

Mahindra acquires Italian motorcycle firm

Paul Tan — Thu, 05 Jun 2008 19:07:20 +0000

Indian automaker Mahindra & Mahindra Limited, a company popular for their SUVs and trucks is putting a firm foot into the opposite end of the vehicle range with their recent acquisition of Engines Engineering S.p.A., an Italian engine design and manufacturing firm.

Mahindra through its unit Mahindra Systech will begin R&D of small and fuel efficient engines for cars such as the Tata Nano and the upcoming Nissan-Renault-Bajaj ULC. Engines Engineering S.p.A. started off designing motorcycles, and some of its motorcycle clients include Ducati, Honda, and Yamaha.

Mahindra did not say if it already had any clients who are looking for small engines or whether it is already in discussions with potential clients, but if there are no takers Mahindra can always build a small car themselves, since it is all the rage now.

Source

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 22 Nov 09 07:32:26 +0800.

Hyundai to develop 1.5 lakh car in India

Paul Tan — Mon, 02 Jun 2008 05:35:01 +0000

Hyundai Motor India managing director HS Lheem announced that Hyundai will be developing a Rs 1.5 lakh (RM11,360) car for the Chinese and Indian markets.

The car will be developed in India at R&D facilities in Hyderabad and Chennai with support from Korea, with a target launch set somewhere in 2011 or 2012. Hyundai is the number two car manufacturer in India and their cheapest car is the Hyundai Santro (Hyundai Atos) which sells for Rs 2.7 lakh (RM20,450).

India is a market where both the Hyundai i10 (rebadged 2008 Picanto) and the Hyundai Santro are offered, but the more expensive i10 are slowly eating into Santro sales because the Indian market is maturing, and at that price point they’d rather pay a little bit more in terms of monthly installment to get something that looks better and more modern.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 22 Nov 09 07:32:26 +0800.

Tata Nano affects used car prices in India

Paul Tan — Thu, 29 May 2008 21:54:04 +0000

According to a report by Marinews, it seems that the impending launch of the Tata Nano has had a bad effect on the used car market in India, with used car sales dipping between 15 to 30 percent because buyers are waiting for the Tata Nano to be launched before deciding whether to buy a Nano or a used car.

Even used car values are affected, with cars like a 6-year old Maruti 800 dipping in value by 30% from 110,000 rupees to 75,000 rupees and a 5-year old Hyundai Santro’s 200,000 rupee value down to 165,000 rupees. Values of small cars that are usually purchased by budget-concerned buyers are generally hit the most, because of the fear of an impending rise in fuel prices. Some of these buyers would have to go back to bikes.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 22 Nov 09 07:32:26 +0800.

Tata Nano to get US$10 airbag?

Paul Tan — Tue, 27 May 2008 08:38:29 +0000

The Tata Nano is a no-frills car, but one of the more well-equipped, pricier versions of the Tata Nano will feature dual front airbags. And with luck, they’ll only increase the cost of the car by a minimum. Autoliv IFB India on the request of Tata is trying to develop a US$10 airbag for the Tata Nano, less than 10 times the price of airbags in other compact cars which cost around US$150 per airbag.

Swedish-American company Autoliv currently supplies 28% of the world’s airbags. In our market, an Autoliv joint venture with a Japanese company called Autoliv Hirotako Sdn Bhd supplies airbags for Proton, and the upcoming Perodua MPV.

Given that even these normally priced airbags sometimes do not work completely as intended and may end up injuring or killing occupants rather than saving them, are US$10 airbags really safe to use?

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 22 Nov 09 07:32:26 +0800.

Renault-Nissan and Bajaj team up for USD2,500 car

Paul Tan — Mon, 12 May 2008 19:29:31 +0000

The Renault-Nissan Alliance and Bajaj Auto will form a new joint-venture in India, held 50% by Bajaj Auto, 25% by Renault and 25% by Nissan. The new joint venture will develop and produce a new low cost car called the ULC, which would have a price tag of USD2,500 onwards. Not sure what ULC stands for at this moment, but I’m guessing something to the lines of Ultra Low Cost.

The Bajaj ULC will most likely be a production version of the Bajaj Lite concept car (shown above) displayed at the New Delhi Auto Show earlier this year. The Bajaj Lite concept featured a 2-cylinder engine and driven to the wheels via what Bajaj says is a new type of transmission that is a cross between a manual and an automatic.

That sounds like a manual with a computer controlled clutch like the Savvy’s AMT gearbox to me, but we’ll see what Bajaj has up its sleeves. Could a centrifugal clutch like a bike’s (Bajaj is a bike maker) be used on a car? Actually, it has been used in the past, but we’re talking about cars from the 1930s here.

Bajaj managing director Rajiv Bajaj was quoted referring to the Lite concept to say, “It will be priced competitively but not sell on the pricing. Offering the customer twice the fuel economy is more effective than offering half the price.â€

Two more photos of the Bajaj Lite concept after the jump.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 22 Nov 09 07:32:26 +0800.

Tata to take up stake in MV Agusta?

Paul Tan — Sun, 11 May 2008 15:19:30 +0000

MV Agusta F4 Tamburini

Apparently MV Agusta could have a new owner or at least a large shareholder in the form of Tata Motors, according to Italian bike magazine euroMoto. MV Agusta used to be owned by Proton and was disposed of a few years ago for a sum fo 1 Euro. Since then, MV Agusta’s new owners have not been able to do much with the company, and its ails continue, lacking funds to channel towards new product development.

Source [ Translated ]

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 22 Nov 09 07:32:26 +0800.

BTimes: 4 players interested in Tata franchise

Paul Tan — Mon, 14 Apr 2008 17:57:06 +0000

Business Times reports quoting sources that there are currently four runners in the race for the Tata franchise in Malaysia, currently held by DRB-HICOM’s Scott & English (M) Sdn Bhd. The current franchise agreement will expire in May 2008, and DRB-HICOM holders themselves have expressed that letting the franchise go is one of the options being considered pending results from an internal evaluation.

The interested parties are: 1) DRB-HICOM of course, this would mean they would keep the franchise, 2) the owners of Brooklands Motors Sdn Bhd (Citroen) and Competitive Supreme Sdn Bhd (Ssangyong), 3) Sime Darby Berhad (BMW, Hyundai, Inokom, Alfa Romeo, Land Rover) and 4) Naza.

If Naza gets a hold of the Tata franchise, it will be able to sell the Tata Nano here, probably positioned lower than the Naza Forza. Sime Darby will already have a relationship with Tata through its Land Rover distributorship here as Land Rover has just recently been bought over by Tata.

Related Posts:
Tata Nano archive at this blog

Source

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 22 Nov 09 07:32:26 +0800.

Tata Indica Silhouette Concept: 330 PS 3.5 liter V6

Paul Tan — Mon, 14 Apr 2008 16:47:11 +0000

The Tata Indica Silhouette concept car is unlike what you’d expect an Indica to be. This is not a budget city car with a tiny engine, but rather a track monster powered by a 3.5 liter V6 mounted at the rear of the car, powering the rear wheels as well. This setup instantly reminds us of the Renault Clio V6, but this isn’t exactly a production road car, so think of it more of similiar to the Golf GTI W12-650.

The 3.5 liter V6 engine (a race-ready version of the Renault-Nissan VQ engine) produces 330 PS at 7.000rpm and sends the 850kg Tata Indica Silhouette barrelling down the roads up to the 100km/h mark in just 4.5 seconds, up to a top speed of 270km/h. The engine is mated to a 6-speed sequential gearbox.

The 2-seater car is built on a space frame steel chassis made with aeronautical steel and uses the engine as a stress member. The car uses an adjustable progressive rate pneumatic suspension system. For track duties, it has a data logging system and a high-accuracy GPS unit.

So in reality this isn’t exactly an Indica adapted to fit a V6 in the rear, but a space frame and an engine with a shell made to look like an Indica put on top of it, much like R3’s rear wheel drive Waja.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 22 Nov 09 07:32:26 +0800.

Ajanta planning sub-1 lakh Oreva electric car

Paul Tan — Mon, 14 Apr 2008 16:02:57 +0000

The Ajanta group in India currently produces electric scooters and bikes under the Oreva brand, but in the works is a new electric car which Ajanta aims to price at Rs 85,000, or 0.85 lakh Indian rupees.

Production of an electric car is not difficult for us as the technology is almost similar and 70 per cent of its parts can be produced in-house, giving us an edge over the vehicle’s pricing,” said Ajanta group director Jaysukh Patel.

The company’s R&D department is currently studying both the feasibility of an electric car under Indian motoring conditions, as well as other electric cars. THe TImes of India’s sources say Ajanta has purchased as many as 8 different electric cars from different manufacturers for study.

Source

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 22 Nov 09 07:32:26 +0800.

DRB-HICOM evaluating Tata franchise

Paul Tan — Sat, 12 Apr 2008 12:14:38 +0000

DRB-HICOM is currently evaluating whether or not to keep the Tata franchise in Malaysia, according to DRB-HICOM group managing director Datuk Mohd Khamil Jamil. Options currently are the logical three – A) keep as is, B) expand, or C) let go. According to Business Times, DRB-HICOM officials will be meeting up with representatives from Tata in May 2008 to discuss the future of the brand in Malaysia.

The current agreement between DRB-HICOM 70% owned Scott & English (M) Sdn Bhd and Tata Motors will expire by June 2008.

Tata is currently ramping up efforts in our region, with the new Tata Xenon (shown above) launched in Thailand not too long ago. Tata has been constantly featured in world headlines for the past few months thanks to its Tata Nano low cost car project and its recent acquisition of the Jaguar and Land Rover premium brands.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 22 Nov 09 07:32:26 +0800.

Tata buys Jaguar and Land Rover for US$2.3 billion

Paul Tan — Fri, 28 Mar 2008 10:25:18 +0000

The Jaguar and Land Rover deal has been sealed, and the two companies go to Tata Motors, which will pay US$2.3 billion for them. As part of the deal, Ford will inject US$600 million of the US$2.3 billion into the two companies’ pension funds, leaving about US$1.7 billion remaining for Ford’s coffers. Ford will have no stake in the companies after the sale is completed.

Most of the management team will be retained, and Ford will continue to supply Jaguar and Land Rover with powertrains and technology for the time being, depending on existing supply agreements. Ford Motor Credit Co will also provide financing for Jaguar and Land Rover dealers and customers for the period of up to 12 months. The deal includes the Rover, Daimler and Lanchester brand names.

Tata Motors says it was confident this investment would have a positive effect on its balance sheet in the long run. Shareholders do not seem to share these sentiments as Tata Motors shares dropped as much as 7.3% yesterday, finally settling on a 3.6% drop at the end of the day as analysts says the deal will be a strain on the balance sheet. As for Ford, the money will help it focus on turning around its North American operations, which are currently operating at a loss.

The other bids for Jaguar and Land Rover are former Ford CEO Jacques Nasser’s One Equity Partners, Ripplewood, and Texas Pacific Group, which was advised by Bob Dover, CEO of Jaguar and Land Rover between 2002 and 2003.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 22 Nov 09 07:32:26 +0800.

Proton talking to owner of ex-Daewoo India plant

Paul Tan — Thu, 28 Feb 2008 10:00:39 +0000

Indian paper The Telegraph has revealed to us one of the partners in India that Proton is talking to. Argentum Motors is the new owner of the defunct Daewoo Motors plant in Surajpur, Uttar Pradesh, a state in northern India.

Proton is reportedly talking to Argentum Motors on using the plant for contract manufacturing or sourcing of components. Argentum executive Ajay Singh says Proton was looking into ways to bring down production costs for its Indian market entry, and the Argentum plant provided some ways to achieve that goal. He added that Argentum is also talking to other manufacturers like Daimler AG.

Source

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 22 Nov 09 07:32:26 +0800.

Proton to finalise India plan by mid-2008

Paul Tan — Mon, 25 Feb 2008 21:05:27 +0000

Proton plans to finalise its India strategy by the middle of 2008, according to its managing director Datuk Syed Zainal in a report by The Star yesterday. A suitable partner (or partners) for the Indian market would have the following qualities:

manufacturing and distribution experience
car design and localisation capabilites

Proton will be targetting the B-segment and C-segment in India with cars like the Proton Saga and the Proton Person, with a strategy similiar to the one they used in China, which was getting a Chinese manufacturer to buy CKD kits of the GEN2 (CBU imports initially) and handle sales and marketing themselves in their own market which they would be familiar with, something Proton would not have experience with.

Read my previous article for my thoughts on how Proton could fit into the Indian automotive industry: Proton and the Indian automotive industry. It was written before the Saga launch so at that point we were still speculating the Saga’s dimensions.

On the local scenes, there will be something nice from Proton next week

Source

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 22 Nov 09 07:32:26 +0800.

Fiat happy about Tata’s Jaguar/Land Rover buy

Paul Tan — Mon, 04 Feb 2008 23:29:33 +0000

Tata is inching very closely to acquiring Jaguar and Land Rover from Ford Motor Company, and everyone is already assuming the two companies are in Tata’s hands, in a deal that analysts have pegged at being worth between US$1.5 to US2.0 billion.

One company that is very happy about all of this is Fiat, who has a close relationship with Tata. Tata uses Fiat turbodiesel engines in their cars, and the two companies have a partnership worth Rs 4000 crore (3.3 billion ringgit) in India.

Fiat says this will most likely allow the Italian company to get access to Jaguar’s technologies. It is particularly interested in Jaguar’s rear wheel drive platform as well as Land Rover’s four-wheel drive technology. Yup, you guessed right – the first model from the Fiat group to benefit from this is most likely the new flagship Alfa Romeo 169, which Fiat plans to develop as a rear wheel drive car.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 22 Nov 09 07:32:26 +0800.