Recession may be the biggest news on the year around the world, but as far as Indian automobile market is concerned, there isn’t any as far as new launches are concerned. This has been the year of car launches and we have seen some big launches in the past 7 months which includes the Fiat Linea, Fiat Grande Punto, Hyundai i20, Maruti Ritz, Maruti Estilo and Toyota Fortuner and will soon be gearing to look at the Face-lifted version of the Hyundai Santro.
Soon to join the launch bandwagon would be GM who in their kitty has two big launches planned for the year, the all new midsize saloon Chevrolet Cruze and the small car Chevrolet Beat. GM will launch the Chevrolet Cruze in the India in a few weeks time to coincide with the festive season. The small car Beat will follow soon after the sedan and will provide the much needed sales momentum to GM in the biggest volume segment in India.
GM Chevrolet Cruze was first unveiled at the Paris Motor show in
October 2009 and is designed and developed to be sold around the world.
In India, the Cruze will take on the tough competition from Honda Civic
and Toyota Corolla which have the upper midsize segment almost to their
own. Internationally, the Cruze comes with 3 engine options starting
with the 112 bhp 1.6 Litre 4 cylinder petrol, another 1.8 Litre 140 bhp
petrol and the 2.0 Litre turbocharged common rail diesel engine from
the Captiva SUV
It’s not yet certain which engines will come to India but the diesel under the hood will give the new Chevvy a distinct advantage against its more established rivals. We will have all the details for you once the car is launched in India.
GM also has also planned to upgrade their existing engine doing its work in the Chevrolet Tavera. This is to comply with the April 2010 emission norms and we might as well see a new engine in the Tavera. GM is planning to install the Isuzu D-Max engine which is currently sold in Thailand.
This 2.5 litre common-rail-diesel-engine produces 115 bhp of maxium power. According to the inside reports, the new model is unlikely to be launched before end of 2010 which means only the non-metro owners will be able to own the D-Max installed Tavera after April 2010. This model wont just have a new engine but also refreshed looks and revamped interiors.
Keep coming for more!
The new Maruti Suzuki Estilo has been launched with a revived look. The car not only has changed its look but has also changed its engine. The new car will not have Zen in it but will be simply called Estilo. The new Estilo is a trend setter which matches the moods and thoughts of all young crowd of India.
The new heart, engine of the car is powered by a 998 cc K-Series light weight aluminum engine which meets the norms of the BS IV. The engine is more eco-friendly emitting less carbon dioxide and offers more kilometers per litre, an amazing mileage of 18.2km/l.
The car has new interiors and exteriors as well and this give a completely new look to the car. The car also has a wide range of safety features that includes ABS and airbags. The new Maruti comes in three variants: LX, LXi and VXi. The car is available in eight new colors and is priced between Rs 3.12 Lakh to Rs 3.95 Lakh (ex-showroom, Delhi).
Toyota has just launched Fortuner in India. After a long wait the SUV was launched in India on August 24th. Initially the company had announced that it would launch the Fortuner in September, but the company then thought of not making its customers wait further and launched it a month earlier.
Toyota has high hopes on its SUV, Fortuner; it is targeting to attain a market share of 50 per cent in the SUV segment in the Indian market and to sell at least 2,000 units by the end of 2010.
The Fortuner is a fulltime four-wheeler drive that has a 3-litre Advanced Common-Rail Diesel engine. The SUV is available in the diesel variant and the petrol version of the model will not be available initially. The company, with this luxury model, targets mainly at the urban customers more than the rural ones.
This sports utility vehicle will be a good competition for Ford Endeavour and Chevrolet Captiva in India and is expected to do good business for the company in India. TKM will bring the Fortuner to India as a knocked down unit, which will be assembled at its plant in Bidadi. The car is priced at Rs 18.45 lakh (ex-showroom New Delhi).
A special edition C-Class model has been launched in the country by the luxury carmaker Mercedes-Benz India.
The company has announced that the special edition will be rolled out only in limited numbers. Mercedes-Benz will only manufacture 60 special edition C-Class models aiming to maintain the exclusivity of the model. Both the petrol and diesel versions of the special edition C-Class will be available and these models will be priced between Rs 28.46 lakh and Rs 31.30 lakh.
It was not in the distant past the Mercedes-Benz was adorning the top position in the Indian luxury car market, which is now taken up by BMW. Not only from BMW, but the company is facing competition from other brands which are all aiming for the top position but in spite of all the competition, the company is able to still remain among the top three best car manufacturers of the country. But the company with its constant launches of new models and upgraded and facelifted versions of the existing models the company is trying to win back the number one position it once had. The company has already announced its plans to invest Rs 150 crore in network expansion in the country.
The Mercedes ESF 2009 becomes the first Experimental Safety vehicle since 1974. Mercedes is a German automobile manufacturer that is well known for its quality and class. The superior functions and features of the brand has become the reason for it to win umpteen numbers of awards. Accepted all over the world this brand has an identity of its own.
The ESF 2009 from Mercedes is an experimental vehicle which will, in near future, become the synonym for safety. The ESF 2009 thinks, makes decisions, and acts hastily. The new safety inventions of the car include a very vivid crash control and crash protection features such as supplementary brake that avoids a crash by inflating braking bags, which helps create friction and increase deceleration, and inflatable metal structures. The exclusively designed seat bolster on sensing any crash concentrated on the sides moves the passengers up to 50mm into the center of the car, which leaves them unhurt.
An airbag fitted into the seat belt, reflective tires, and full emergency braking are the other safety features. Mercedes not only has added new safety features but also has worked on improving its existing safety features. The already existing safety feature of side impact bars can be stated as a good example.
This is a futuristic venture by Mercedes. It shows the concern of the company about the safety of its passengers. When other brands are experimenting and working on many fancy features, Mercedes is setting an example by experimenting on one of the most important feature of a car, safety. The experiment also reflects the importance Mercedes gives to the safety of its passengers.
There might be more experiments conducted and it might take years for Mercedes before it launches the safest car, but such experiments and trials always leave hopes about the bright tomorrow of the car industry. The Mercedes ESF 2009 foretells the safe-driving features of the next generation
The stage is set for the launch of the 2009 Maruti Suzuki Zen Estilo. Speculations apart this new model will not only be a facelifted one, but it will also have some technical changes to it too.
The New Zen Estilo will be spotted with trendy and rejuvenated exteriors, it will have new fog lamps, front bumper and grille.
The car will be equipped with a new engine, a 1.0-litre K-series engine. Maruti has already introduced this new engine in its very successful model, the A-star. The new engine will consume less fuel and has less emission.
The 2009 Maruti Suzuki Zen Estilo will be thus a very eco-friendly car. It seems that the company is getting ready for the Bharat IV emission norms that wil come to effect in India from April 2010.
This new Maruti will be launched into the Indian market by the 23rd of this month. The pricing of the car is not available.
Many are getting irritated with the process of waiting for a long time for getting their Nano car delivered and as a result of this more and more customers are cancelling their bookings on the Nanos they have made.
The customers are complaining about the long wait for the car and the really disappointed customers have already started cancelling their orders. The customers are also expected to pay EMIs on the Nano before it has been delivered, and this is triggering the cancellation at such a large rate. The EMI should be paid by the customer depending on the model they have ordered form a month after the car has been allotted to them but they will receive the car only after several months.
Tata has promised to finish delivering one lakh Nano to its customers within 2010 and then continue with the rest of them. But most of the customers who are cancelling the booking are those who have got their allotment for 2010-2011. If this trend follows, it would be a great blow for the company.
The Korean company, Hyundai, is in for the competition, the second generation of Hyundai Equus will be soon travelling to America. There are many reasons why Hyundai is planning for this launch and we know them why.
Hyundai will not be shattered by the news about the growth and acceptance of other Asian cars, such as Indian and Chinese, among the American crowd but it will surely be on the toes. This new car launch can be seen as a product of thought, a thought for sustenance. Never think that the Hyundai is struggling, it is certainly not, but there is certainly suffocation.
The Americans has a huge list of cars to choose from and this Korean made luxury cars must not have been a candy for them until before the economic slowdown, but now it may, as the Americans are trying to reincarnate themselves from all the bitterness’s of the recession and this may make them to think in line with Equus.
Based on an all-new Hyundai Genesis luxury sedan platform, the Hyundai Equus is expected to launch in America by mid 2010. The specifications, pricing and the final name of the car is not yet decided. But all of this is expected to be announced by the company early next year.
Hyundai is anyway expecting a huge line fans for its Equus, but beware, one never knows what will happen to the American car market in the next one year, unlike now,it may not breeze a positive current for the Equus and the one year delay may do harm to Hyundai. So make hay while the sun shines.
It seems like Fiat is planning to sell more cars and pose tough competition to the other car manufacturers in the Indian car market. The different models of the car will be sold not only in India but it will be now exported to other parts of the world.
The company is planning to export over 7,000 units of its different models within this fiscal year. This decision of Fiat India Automobiles could be a very important factor that will help in increasing the car sales of the company.
The company has been, since some time, thinking about and working towards its opportunities outside India. The countries the company had been focusing were the SAARC countries, which include Sri Lanka, Nepal, and Bhutan. It looks like Fiat India is concentrating on nations where they have right hand drive.
This year, the company has exported only 700 units of Palio and around 90 Linea. These models which are well received in India are expected to be a major hit in the overseas market also.
All this is to give the company a more stable position in the global car market.
