Indian Car News

With the government playing Santa and reducing the central value-added tax rate by 4%, sales of small cars have risen smartly, giving beleaguered automakers just the Christmas gift they needed. In just over a week since the rate cut, rebates by car companies have resulted in more customers walking into showrooms, enough for a 20-25% increase in sales this December over last month, top auto financiers said. Inventories with dealers, too, are down from 45-50 days in November to around 30 days now. Ashok Khanna, executive vice-president and head of the auto loans unit of HDFC, said the discounts resulting from the lower tax rate have improved buyer interest, particularly in the past five days. But it is only the small-car segment, accounting for nearly three-fourths of sales, which appears to be benefiting, said Sumit Bali, CEO of Kotak Mahindra Prime, the vehicle financing unit of Kotak Mahindra Bank. The country’s top two carmakers, Maruti Suzuki and Hyundai, which get bulk of their rev

Japanese car maker Toyota Motor Corporation Tuesday said the compact car that it plans to roll out in India in 2010 will be its own and not from the stable of Daihatsu Motor Co. "No. This (the small car) is very much Toyota's...," Toyota Kirloskar Motor (TKM) Managing Director Hiroshi Nakagawa said. He denied reports that the small car was proposed to be launched in association with Daihatsu, in which Toyota holds 51 per cent stake. Toyota Kirloskar Motor - a joint venture with the Kirloskar Group - is the Indian arm of Toyota Motor Corporation. Nakagawa said the compact car project is on track and that TKM plans to produce 100,000 units in the first phase, after which it may be doubled. TKM had announced an investment of nearly Rs 1,400 crore for its second unit at Bidadi near here, for which a foundation stone was laid in July this year. Asked if the proposed car would carry a price tag of around $5,000, Nakagawa said, "That's a tough question for me". &qu

Tata Motors, which has been awash with Nano-related queries from across global markets, is mulling the licensing route for mass manufacturing the Nano overseas. The company has received enquiries from undisclosed car makers in the US, Latin America, Europe and South-East Asia for manufacturing and marketing Nano in these countries. Tata Motors circles indicated that the company might consider issuing licences to a particular car maker in offshore markets, who would manufacture the Nano there. Technology-transfer and associated manufacturing expertise issues would be shared by Tata Motors. Tata Motors vendors would also supply auto components to licenced foreign manufacturers. Sources said: “In lieu of the Nano licence, Tata Motors will get a fee. Existing auto-component makers of Nano will also benefit in the process.” The international manufacturing strategy is slated to crystallise once the Nano is physically available in India. When contacted, Tata Motors head (corporate communicati

American automobile manufacturer Chrysler has plans to equip its cars with a system that will enable people to surf the Internet while driving. The UConnect Web system is what the company says can bring wireless Internet access to cars' dashboards. Frank Klegon, the company's vice-president, says that they wants to gain a reputation for high-tech cars. "In today's market, Chrysler's mission is to bring innovation to market more quickly," Wired News quoted Klegon as saying. Officials at the company have revealed that UConnect Web uses cellular and WiFi technology to provide "instant access" to the internet. According to them, anyone in the car will be able to check e-mail, download music, play games and even upload photos from an SD card directly to Flickr. They claim that all wireless devices and " major gaming systems" will work with UConnect. The company says that the new system will be competitive with laptop wireless cards, and that cus

Lighter, faster and more powerful - this is Lamborghini’s facelifted Gallardo, the LP560-4. It takes its name from the 560PS (552bhp) power output of the new 5.2-litre V10, up by 40bhp. The engine, developed with Audi, is new and uses the VW Group’s FSI direct injection, which Lamborghini is calling Inienzione Stratificata. Torque is up by 3kgm to 54.2kgm. The extra shove fractionally improves the Gallardo’s 0-100kph time — now 3.7sec and a match for Ferrari’s 430 Scuderia — but it should also improve midrange performance with more torque available at 4000rpm than the old car had at its peak output. And it should make an even better noise with a new exhaust system. On the outside there’s a new Reventon-style front bumper and an entirely new rear designed to make the back end look more horizontal. Some of the changes are aimed at cutting costs. The engine has plastic covers, and the accerartor pedal is now plastic with a clip-on alloy cover; it was solid aluminium.

General Motors India is gearing up to launch the Captiva SUV with an automatic transmission. The Captiva has been well received, and presently is the only diesel soft-roader in its class. Last month, the Captiva managed to sell nearly 200 units, second only to the Honda CR-V. However, the lack of an automatic transmission option has turned away some customers, and it is these potential buyers that GM is targetting. The car was initially launched only with manual transmission and front-wheel drive, but the automatic version comes with four-wheel drive as standard. The auto ’box has five forward ratios, and is geared to provide similar levels of performance and fuel economy. One such car is currently undergoing homologation in India. An important factor will be cost; the auto ’box and the four-wheel- drive system will add to the cost of the car, and the company will be keeping a keen eye on this. As yet though there is no clear indication of when the car is expected in the market.

Hyundai will launch a more powerful version of the i10 this month with a bigger 1.2-litre engine. This new motor called ‘Kappa’ is the latest powertrain from Hyundai not just in India but worldwide and boasts the latest engine technology from the Korean Giant. The Kappa is an all-aluminium 1.2- litre motor with double overhead camshafts and four valves per cylinder and develops an impressive 77bhp, which will make the i10 Kappa the most powerful hatchback in its class. The Kappa will supplement the existing 1.1-litre ‘Epsilon’ motor in the i10. The plan is to have five variants of the i10, the base D-lite and Era will continue to be sold with the Epsilon while the Magna variant will get the Kappa. Two additional variants above the Magna will also be introduced. The Asta will get some of the features that are optional in the current Magna (sunroof etc) as standard while the range-topping Sport will get jazzed-up interiors and a body kit. Hyundai plans to price the Kappa aggressively and

IN-CAR navigation systems are about to make the leap from being a back-seat driver navigation aid to an essential tool for the commuter. Car navigation systems get smarter Such systems, whose sales have been booming in the past few years, are poised to offer features far beyond their initial applications as electronic adjuncts to road atlases for those venturing on to unfamiliar roads and highways. Functions such as real-time traffic flow information, digital logbooks and image-based navigation are among the tools manufacturers hope will turn in-car GPS systems into tools for everyday use, rather than assistants for those in unfamiliar places. "For a while now, the market has been going crazy. It's like the digital camera market was about five years back," says Chris Kearney, Australian marketing manager for GPS specialist Tom-Tom. "With the things that are in the process of being introduced here, it's set to go up even more." GPS system makers such as Tom-T

The Union Budget has been tabled, and the auto industry has received its share of sops and benefits. Of course, while some within the industry might argue that these benefits aren’t what they were hoping for, the fact of the matter remains that the buying price of vehicles has come down, particularly small cars and two-wheelers which have received a reduction in excise from 16 percent to 12 percent. In hard cash, this would translate to a saving of Rs 2000 for a bike buyer to about Rs 10,000 for someone looking at a hatchback. Hybrids on the other hand have received a 10 percent reduction in excise from 24 percent to 14 percent. For Honda and M&M who are keenly looking at this niche with their Civic hybrid and Scorpio hybrid respectively, this is indeed good news. Electric vehicles like the Reva, Hero Velociti and TVS Scooty Teenz enjoy a tax reduction from 8 to zero percent. For vehicles using alternative fuels such as biodiesel or gasohol however, there remains a grey area as to

Mercedes has given the B-Class a design makeover with more economical engines and a special fuel-cell hydrogen drive version available in 2010, the car maker has announced. The four-cylinder engines are up to seven percent more economical than the predecessor with exhaust emissions that undercut current European Union (EU) emission standards by as much as 90 percent, Mercedes said. A new start/stop function will be available for the B 150 and B 170 models. The engine switches off automatically at traffic lights. Additional new developments include a bi-fuel petrol/natural-gas drive in the B 170 NGT, along with active parking assist. The B-Class continues to be available with a choice of six engines ­ two direct - injection diesel units (80 kW/109 hp and 103 kW/140 hp) delivering up to 300 Newton metres of torque, as well as four petrol engines with a peak power output of up to 142 kW/193 hp and a maximum torque of 280 Newton metres. Depending on the model and engine output, the four pe

Safety features, a raft of new technology and Chris Bangle. In spite of all that's changed in 20 years, the E30 and E90 3-series still share the same spirit. Inevitably, the drive back home ends with Mrs Sorabjee slamming the door and storming off in a huff, muttering something to do with irresponsible behaviour. It’s hard to explain to my wife that the only way my 20-year-old E30 325i likes to corner is with its tailing hanging out. That’s the problem (for her) with my pride and joy. Age hasn’t dampened my Bimmer’s enthusiasm and, true to the DNA of the marque, it simply yearns to be driven in a fashion that might not qualify for mere A-to-B motoring. The handling is so crisp and predictable, the chassis so finely balanced and that creamy in-line six so responsive, that you can’t help but toss it around with gay abandon and full knowledge that it won’t snap back at you. Ever since I bought MFC 977 from my dear, late friend Jangoo Nicholson in 2002, I have never sat in any seat exc

Volvo wants to take on the might of the Germans with these, the S80 saloon and the XC90 SUV. We drive them on home soil. Volvo’s design philosophy goes like this: If it isn’t functional, it can’t be beautiful. In this sense, both the S80 and the XC90 are the automotive equivalents of Ingrid Bergman. Like the Swedish actress, these Volvos certainly aren’t the most beautiful cars around. But their inherent talent more than makes up for this. The last time we drove these very same Volvos, it was in Sweden. The cooler temperatures, organised traffic and almost blemish-free roads of Volvo’s home country makes one wonder how the cars will handle the chaos that prevails in the warm tropics. We got a chance to find out on the drive from Delhi to Jaipur organised by Volvo. Both the S80 and the XC90 have their work cut out for them here. The S80 faces some serious competition in India. The formidable armories of the Mercedes-Benz E-class, the BMW 5-series and the Audi A6 are what it is up agains

Mercedes-Benz C-Class was launched in the city on Friday by Sanjiv Sahajwala, Head-Marketing & Sales, DaimlerChrysler India Private Ltd. Speaking on the occasion, Sahajwala said: "To date around 6 million C-Class vehicles have been sold all around the globe. In fact, the C-Class is the worldwide leader in its segment and has been an immensely popular vehicle since it was first launched. The new CClass is more power-packed, more spacious and enjoys even greater street presence." As pioneers of the luxury car segment in India, Mercedes-Benz has the widest product range and the most extensive sales and support network spread across 28 cities, Sahajwala said. "The result of close and continuous engagement with customers is reflected through our growing sales figures as well. This year, we achieved record sales of 2491 units from January- December 2007. This marks a growth of 18 per cent over 2007." With a length of 4596 millimetres, the new C-Class is 68 millimetres

Think cars fly only in the movies? Well, meet the Skycar. A cross between a Ferrari and a Batmobile, it takes off vertically just like advanced fighter aircraft and is just one in a series of personal flying machines being developed around the world. Cars this cool are still some way off. But driverless cars? Those you can get. For the past few years, robot cars have raced against each other, navigating deserts and city roads on their own, in contests backed by the US Army and private manufacturers. Using easily available technology like GPS tracking, Intel computer chips and laser censors, they still aren't quite as good. But in few years, they could replace our friendly neighbourhood taxi driver. Robots or not, cars need gas and gas costs money. Then there are cars that run on air. Compressed air moves the pistons, which in turn drives the wheels. Result: absolutely no emissions and speeds up to 150 km per hour. Tata Motors and French company MDI are already readying such a vehic

Maruti Suzuki India Limited announced today its plans to launch an all-new car to be built in India. The car called the A-star will be showcased in concept form at the Auto Expo in Delhi in January next year. The company plans to sell the A-star with a 1.0-litre petrol engine, which will be Euro-V compliant. The carmaker will be following Hyundai’s footsteps (which, makes the i10 in exclusively in India and sells it in Europe) and will manufacture the car in India at its Manesar plant, and will sell it in Europe and India. Production at the facility is being bumped up and the plant is expected to roll out 150,000 A-stars annualy along a similar number of Swifts and SX4s. The car will also be sold under the Nissan badgeing in certain markets and will be on sale by autumn of 2008. The company refused to divulge details about the price and specifications but said that the car would be a size smaller than the Splash, which was launched internationally recently.