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 ...

Luxury carmaker Mercedes Benz is planning to launch its small car, the A Class, in India in a couple of years. Peter Trettin, president and CEO of Daimler, Central and Eastern Europe, Africa and Asia, said the company would position the A Class as its entry- level car in the country. “This will be lower priced in line with competition,” Mr Trettin said. However, auto experts feel that even the entry level Mercedes will be priced in the range of Rs 16-20 lakh. Mercedes Benz officials have been talking about introducing this car in India for over a decade, but they kept delaying the launch. Experts say this may be due to doubts over whether a high-priced entry-level car would find enough takers here. BMW too has deferred introducing the MINI in India. However, Mr Trettin sounds positive. “In the region I look after, India is a growth market and demand is growing because the economy is growing,” he said. Mercedes Benz India managing director and CEO, Wilfried Aulbur, said sales have picke...

BMW has commissioned artist Jeff Koons to produce the 17th BMW art car. The project is now in its 35th year and previous artists to produced art cars include Andy Warhol, Roy Lichtenstein and Frank Stella. Koons has been keen to produce an art car since 2003 and has been a fan of BMWs since living in Munich 20 years ago. "I always thought it would be an honour to work on a BMW art car,” said Koons at the launch of the project at his New York studio. “I look forward to participating in a tradition set forth by such great artists as Calder, Lichtenstein, Stella and Warhol." BMW art cars have been regularly produced since 1975 and have been on display at the firm’s Munich museum since 2006. Models that have been given the art car treatment include the BMW Z1 and BMW M1. Koons' art car will be revealed later this year. Full details of the car he will use will be announced in due course.

Volvo India will be launching S80, a premium luxury car in the Indian car market in next few months. Volvo sedan S80 will be at price Rs. 39 lac. Volvo sedan S80 will be sold through 12 dealers of the Volvo India. The company has 7 dealers currently and will increase the dealer base to 12 soon. With Volvo sedan S80, company want to improve its market share in luxury car market and also establish itself as a major auto player in India for long term. The car S80 is branded as most youthful and powerful ever. Volvo sedan S80 is equipped with personal car communicator which allows to get all information about THE CAR. To ensure better safety, the car communicator provides alerts and other related information. Volvo S80 car has special feature of collision warning which helps to improve safety while driving. Interesting feature of Volvo S80 car is its steering which is dependent on speed. It is very smooth in slow speed and more stable in high speed. Volvo sedan S80 has two turbo engine ha...

A resolving move from the British car maker Aston Martin Lagonda for instilling the sports pleasure into India seems certain. With the model for India yet to be decided, negotiations are on with the local dealers for the formal launch of the car, said an official spokesman over phone. Amidst the downfall in the industry in 2009, luxury cars shone bright giving hope to the makers better fare in the Indian market. BMW secured a growth of 28% during the fiscal year(2627 units) Audi 977 units @ the growth of 61%. Mercedes-Benz India met the dismal show with the fall in its sale to 2% by selling 2478 units. Observers see the mind set among the buyers who switch their loyalty to the brands and the new comers take advantage of this. Luxury sector in two wheelers too promised a lot as Harley-Davidson launched new ranges of its bikes as well as Ducati furthering its flock to the areas of the country. With the opening of second showroom in Gurgaon, Ducati sketched its operation to other cities l...

BMW India will be investing $50 million on its wholly-owned subsidiary, BMW Financial Services India. Speaking to reporters at the launch of the limited edition BMW Gran Turismo here on Wednesday, Peter Kronschnabi, President, said the finance company would become functional by mid-2010 and have a car insurance adjunct in collaboration with Bajaj Allianz. Also to be introduced this year will be the pre-owned cars showrooms. While BMW India sold 3,619 cars of all variants in calendar year 2009, it was difficult to hazard a guess about the company’s prospects in the fragmented pre owned cars market, he said. “In the premium cars segment, with around 10,000 cars sold annually, BMW can claim a 40 per cent share. This segment is expected to grow 20 per cent this year after a dull period last year” Mr. Kroschnabi said. Asked about the probable date for the debut of BMW X1, he said it would be made at the Chennai plant, the existing capacity of which was 3000 units in a single shift. “We have...