Indian Car News

Nissan is planning to add three new small cars to its product portfolio in next 3 years to tap into the demand for small cars in the India. In a report says, Nissan to develop three small cars, code named K2, I2 and K11. The K2 will be launched in December 2012 and will take on the Maruti Wagon R and A-Star and will be priced at around Rs. 3.5 lakh. Nissan will use the same 1.2 litre petrol motor in K2 that already powers the Nissan Micra and the company is also considering a 1.0 litre petrol engine for better fuel efficiency. The K2 is expected to be manufactured with two wheelbases, the shorter version for India and the longer version for export markets. Nissan is also planning to launch an K-based MPV for the Indonesian market. As per sources in Nissan, the company can save upto Rs. 50,000 by using the K11 platform which will be critical in meeting the stiff target price. Nissan’s upcoming I2 is expected to lock horns with Maruti Suzuki Alto, which is now the World’s No.1 small car.

A price war is in the offing in the entry-level sedan segment with Maruti Suzuki looking to downsize the Dzire to under four metre to fit the car in the small car definition and avail lower excise benefits, a move that will give it elbow room to be more price-competitive . The Dzire, leader in the entry sedan segment , is a hot seller for Maruti and accounts for about 8,000-9 ,000 units monthly. However , the entry of Toyota Etios at a highly competitive price (Delhi ex-showroom price just under Rs 5 lakh for the basic model) has prompted Maruti to go for this rejig. While company officials refused to comment , it is believed that the Maruti’s R&D team is working on reducing the length of the car to under four metre. In its present avatar, the Dzire has a length of 4.16 metre that puts it in the category of a big car, thus attracting excise duty of 22%. The length reduction will cut excise by more than half to 10%. The Delhi ex-showroom price of the car is between Rs 4.88 lakh and