Renault has signed an agreement with Bajaj Auto to build a low-cost car. The Nano rival is penciled in for launch in India in 2012, with similar pricing of around Rs 1.2 lakh.
Code-named ULC, the design, sourcing and manufacturing for the project would be done by Bajaj and Renault would take care of marketing in India and overseas, Renault CEO Carlos Ghosn said.
"We intend to bring this highly price competitive and fuel-efficient product to the Indian market in 2012," Ghosn told reporters. The car is expected to carry the Renault badge.
Production will take place at a news plant in Chakan, with initial capacity planned at 400,000 units a year. The project had been announced in 2008 but it has taken until now to thrash out an agreement between the two companies.
The car would dip in underneath the Logan price-wise, which is also built in India. High taxation has caused sales of the Logan to fall in India, with production at a third of capacity.
The world’s most affordable car is due for some small but significant upgrades within the next six months, following market feedback.
TataMotors is working towards improving the performance of the Nano by raising the very conservative 5000rpm rev limit to 6000rpm to quicken its acceleration, especially in first and second gears. The company is also considering a five-speed gearbox, but this may be ruled out for India as Tata does not want to increase the top speed (currently limited electronically to 105kph) for safety reasons.
According to a Tata Motors engineer, “With a top speed of 105kph, five gear ratios are unnecessary and could result in excessive gear changing for the driver.” However, it is understood that for the European version of the Nano, a five-speeder is definitely on the cards.
Other changes for India include a modified outside rear view mirror (ORVM) assembly, which is ready to be introduced, but pending ARAI approval. In the current ORVM, the entire unit has to be moved, while the new design is less cumbersome, with movement of the mirror within the housing. This design will lend itself to electrically-powered mirrors in the future. Small niceties like a ‘check-strap’ to limit the door opening will also be introduced.
The other significant improvement expected in the coming months is a tail-gate that can be opened — the Nano currently features a sealed rear glass unit. The only way to access the small luggage area is from inside the car, by folding down the rear seats, causing inconvenience. Tata Motors’ engineers have now designed a tail-gate that meets with Ratan Tata’s requirement for a design that does not feature exposed hinges, to maintain the purity of the Nano shape.
Tata Motors is taking advantage of the limited capacity in its Uttaranchal plant to tweak the Nano before production is shifted to the upcoming main plant at Sanand in Gujarat, which should be ready by end-2010. At that point, production could jump from the current 4,000 units to 20,000 units a month.
BMW is planning a stripped-down version of the 320d called the ‘Executive’. The options that will be deleted from the features list include the sunroof, cupholders and powered seats. The missing features will result in a considerable drop in the price tag to around Rs 24 lakh from the near Rs 30 lakh price for the 320d. The Executive will only be available to fleet customers when it goes on sale in January 2010.
. Volkswagen will launch its Beetle and Touareg models in India on December 5. Pricing is expected to range from Rs 22lakh for the Beetle, to around Rs 55lakh for the Touareg sport utility vehicle.
The Beetle will be powered by a 2-litre, 113bhp petrol engine, mated to an automatic transmission and VW plans to offer the fully loaded version, which includes airbags, climate control and plenty of other goodies.
The Touareg, which has been available unofficially with VW dealers for some time, will be making its official debut in December. The SUV will be powered by a 3-litre, V6 diesel engine that makes 240bhp and feature a six-speed automatic transmission with the DSG system
