Peugeot to rethink about its entry in India

A grim financial situation precipitated by falling sales in its home market has compelled Europe's second-largest car manufacturer, PSA Peugeot Citroen, to review its India plans.

The French automaker, which had zeroed in on Sanand in Gujarat as the location for a Rs 4,500-crore project to produce 170,000 vehicles per annum, has initiated efforts to shut down its office in Mumbai, says a person close to the development. According to the proposed plan, the first car, a mid-size sedan, was to roll out in 2014.

"The group is currently evaluating the scheduling of the project, which may lead to some adjustments to the schedule as it currently stands," said Jonathan Goodman, director relations presse, PSA Peugeot Citroen.

A consultant working closely with the French auto major added that the carmaker is working out strategies for "frugal spending" on the India project. "The company is re-engineering the project so that every penny put into the project brings value," said the consultant.

PSA Peugeot Citroen's revision of its India plans could prove a setback to Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi's ambition of making Sanand India's newest auto manufacturing hub. Peugeot was the third carmaker, after Tata Motors and Ford, to plump for Sanand.

For the French auto major, the India project was part of a larger game plan to get half of its sales from outside Europe by 2015. In 2010, sales from outside Europe accounted for 39% of total sales. As recently as in January, during the Auto Expo in New Delhi, around 60 suppliers - both Indian and European - were taken to Sanand to get familiar with the conditions there.

Late last year, the French automaker said it would cut 6,000 jobs in 2012 because of what it termed a "challenging" environment in Europe. The layoffs are part of an effort to shave off 800 million euros, or $1.1 billion, in costs in 2012. In November, registration of new cars in France had dropped 7.6% over a year ago; this impacted Peugeot's sales in that month, which slipped by 15.4%. By mid-December, Chief Executive Philippe Varin announced that he expected an operating loss of over 405 million euros in the second half of 2011- more than what the company had made in the January-June period. As on June 30 2011, Peugeot's net debt stood at 1.65 billion euros.

In April 2011, the French auto major revamped its top management by appointing M Frederic Fabre as the new head of India operations; he replaced Rajesh Nellore, who had the mandate to spearhead Peugeot's re-entry into the world's seventh-largest automobile market. Fabre, who was looking after Peugeot's Iran operations, is based out of Paris. The Indian operation is headquartered in Mumbai, and has a team of 12-15 people.

Source: Economic Times

Mercedes launches GL Grand Edition

Mercedes-Benz has launched the facelifted version of its full-size GL-Class SUV, known as the GL-Grand Edition.

The new GL features a reworked front-end that gets a bigger grille with three horizontal chrome-bars and a slightly-larger and more prominent three-pointed star at the center. The front bumper is re-profiled as well and the head-lamps now get dark-tints too. Additional styling updates include new paint shades and re-styled 20-inch alloy wheels. Interior enhancements for the Grand Edition include black / porcelain and black / maroon leather upholstery, velour floor mats and a ‘Grand Edition’ badge on the centre console.

Standard on all GL-class models are features like the 4MATIC all-wheel drive, AIRMATIC air suspension, Direct-Steer system and the Adaptive Damping System. It also gets PARKTRONIC and COMAND APS system with a reversing camera. Additional features include off-road ABS, Downhill Speed Regulation (DSR) and Hill-Start Assist.  

The GL ‘Grand Edition’ comes in two variants; Executive which is priced at Rs 60.9 lakh and Luxury retailing at Rs 65.5 lakh (all prices ex-showroom). The Luxury variant sports additional features like rear-seat entertainment, Lingutronic (voice-activated controls) and an intelligent lightning package.

Source: Autocar

Honda Motor plans diesel variant of Brio

Honda is likely to introduce the diesel variant of its high-selling compact car 'Brio' in India this year, bringing forward plans to tap a car market skewed away from costly petrol.

The carmaker is testing its newly developed diesel technology, common rail i-DTEC, on the Brio and could introduce it in a 1.2-litre version. The diesel variants of its City sedan and Jazz hatchback, carrying larger engines, will be introduced later. The company had earlier planned to introduce diesel vehicles in 2013.

"Honda is committed to bringing its diesel technology to key markets like India. And to ensure that Honda diesel is best suited to local conditions and offers optimum performance levels, Honda is conducting stringent tests at its R&D centres across several locations," a company spokesperson said in an email response. Honda, which operates in India through its JV Honda Siel Cars India, is keen on regaining market share from rivals Volkswagen and Toyota whose diesel cars account for a large chunk of their sales.

The Japanese automaker, which entered India in 1995, has seen sales fall 27% in the first nine months of the current fiscal, largely because it was unable to introduce any diesel variants, which have become popular in India because of the rising cost of petrol. The carmaker's output in India was also affected by shortage of components after last year's tsunami in Japan and flash floods in Thailand, which led to a 36% loss in production, or 27,939 units, in the April-December period.

The i-DTEC engine, nicknamed "Earth Dreams Technology" will first be used in the new Civic sedan in Europe this year. According to some people working closely with the company, "its application for other models and markets is likely to come in the shape of Brio compact car for India in the initial phase".

Diesel cars, which registered a 26% rise in sales in the first nine months of the current fiscal, accounted for about 60% of the passenger vehicles sold in the country. During the same period, sale of petrol cars dipped 18%. According to industry executives, diesel cars account for over 80% of sales in models like Maruti Swift and Hyundai Verna, where both fuel options are available.

Source: Economics Times

New Ford Fiesta 2012/2013

The current Ford Fiesta has now been on the market since 2008 meaning it is due for a mid-cycle facelift pretty soon. If the American car maker has been testing the model before now, they have managed to keep it pretty well hidden as these appear to be the first shots that have been caught of a prototype.

The clear to see rear end will sport a design virtually identical to the original model. However, those thick black panels on the other end revealing the front fascia are due to be redesigned. The styling is a bit too difficult to accurately make out but a similar layout to the new Mondeo / Fusion would certainly fit well and a similar shaped grille was displayed last year in the form of the Fiesta ST Concept. One further detail that is revealed from these new spy shots is the line of LEDs we see poking out across the bottom of the headlights.

The prototype caught here should not be confused with the Fiesta ST that the brand currently has under development, read on and you will know this is definitely not the high performance version.

Spy photographers have also managed to catch a shot of the log book which clearly displays the engine type as 1.0 GDI. This confirms that Ford will be introducing their EcoBoost technology to the Fiesta line-up. This particular prototype is housing a 1.0-litre, three-cylinder turbocharged engine that generates 80 hp (59 kW / 81 PS).  It was developed in the UK and is due to begin production in April.

Expect to see the world debut of the new facelifted 2012/2013 Ford Fiesta at the Geneva Motor Show in March.

Source: Worldcarfans

Volkswagen Board to discuss Porsche deal on February 14

Volkswagen's supervisory board will discuss plans to acquire the remaining 50.1% of Porsche SE'S sports car business at an extraordinary meeting on February 14, a German magazine reported.  The magazine said the German Finance Ministry already has a draft for the deal available.  Volkswagen will have to pay 3.9 billion euros plus taxes for the remaining stake.  Instead of an anticipated 1 billion euros, Volkswagen will have to pay a "low three-digit million" amount in taxes, the magazine said. In total the acquisition will cost Volkswagen a little over 8 billion euros.

Volkswagen acquired 49.9% of Porsche sports cars for 3.9 billion euros in December 2009 as part of a deal that prevented the likely insolvency of debt-laden parent Porsche SE.

Volkswagen declined to comment. "In principle we don't say anything about the agenda of our institutes," a spokesman said.

According to disclosures from Volkswagen, Porsche SE has a put option to sell its 50.1% exercisable from November 15, while Volkswagen can exercise its call option between March and April of next year.

Last week Volkswagen said the company was closely examining other possible methods apart from the put-call options that would allow for an integration of Porsche within VW as soon as possible.

Honda to achieve normal output by March

Honda Siel Cars India expects to resume normal output by March after losing about six months of production this ongoing fiscal due to component supply disruptions following tsunami in Japan and flood in Thailand last year.  The company that has already started rolling out about 1,000 units of its mid-sized sedan City this month will start ramping up production for other models like hatchbacks Brio and Jazz in the next two to three months.

"In this ongoing fiscal we have lost about six months of production due to disruption in supply of components following the tsunami in Japan and floods in Thailand. Now we have found alternate source from Japan and China," Honda Cars India Senior Vice-President (Marketing & Sales) Jsnaneswar Sen told press.

By March the company's production capability should reach the normal level, he added.

"Our Greater Noida plant has an annual capacity of 1.2 lakh units. Our expectation is that in terms of our capability to produce cars, we could reach 10,000 units a month by March -April as part supplies are getting restored but how much we produce will depend on market demand," Sen said.

He further said the company will reach full production of the hatchback Brio by the middle of next month which will be followed by the Jazz.

"As far as the market is concerned, the current response is encouraging but we need to wait and watch other macro-economic factors," Sen said.

Asked if the company planned to launch new models in 2012 to boost volumes, he said: "Our priority is to deliver to all the waiting customers for our cars. We have not planned any new models for this year".

The Brio has about 8,000 pending orders though 2,000 units have been delivered so far, he added.

HSCI had cut production at its Greater Noida plant by about 50% from May, 2011 following shortage of components due to the impact of the Tsunami that hit Japan in March last year.  Later on, the floods in Thailand that started in July 2011 had also severely crippled component supplies giving the company a double blow.

Sen also said the decision to start rolling out cars from the company's second plant at Tapukara in Rajasthan will be taken as soon as HSCI is able to utilise the full capacity at the Greater Noida plant.

Tough Time for Ford

Ford Motor Co reported a lower-than-expected fourth-quarter profit on Friday as commodity costs shot up and results from operations outside North America fell short of expectations.  The No. 2 US automaker's losses in Europe nearly quadrupled during the quarter as the economy suffered amid the ongoing debt crisis. Flooding in Thailand led to a loss in Asia, and increased competition blunted profits in South America.

"We saw the external environment deteriorate, and that really affected most regions other than North America," Chief Financial Officer Lewis Booth told reporters, "and then we saw slightly greater than we expected impact of commodities, currency and also the Thai floods."

Excluding one-time items, Ford's operating profit fell to $1.1 billion, or 20 cents per share, from nearly $1.3 billion, or 30 cents per share, a year earlier.

Besides higher commodity costs, Ford also said it missed expectations because of unfavorable exchange rates.  Profit margins in Ford's automotive business fell to 5.4% in 2011 from 6.1% in 2010. Commodity costs for the year came to $2.3 billion, up slightly from the company's $2.2 billion forecast.

Ford's losses in Europe widened to $190 million in the fourth quarter from $51 million a year earlier. In South America, the company's pre-tax operating profit fell to $108 million from $281 million.  It posted a quarterly loss of $83 million in Asia, compared with a year-earlier profit of $23 million.

Booth said he expected Ford to be "modestly profitable" in Asia in 2012, but he did not provide a forecast for Europe, where he said rivals have piled on incentives to sell vehicles. Ford expects European growth will be tempered by the debt crisis and austerity measures in 2012.

"Ford won't be immune to a downturn in Europe, but I think the product lineup is a little bit fresher and a little bit better, and it's a smaller piece of the overall pie," said Nesvold, who has a "buy" rating on Ford. "Europe is less of an anchor for Ford's shares than it is potentially for GM's shares."

For the fourth quarter, Ford reported net income of $13.6 billion, buoyed by a one-time tax-related gain of $12.4 billion. Net income was $190 million, or 5 cents per share, a year earlier.
The higher net income was the result of an accounting change that Ford said reflects confidence in its long-term profit outlook. The one-time gain resulted in full-year net income of $20.2 billion, the highest since 1998.

Source: BS Motoring

Chevrolet Trailblazer likely to enter India

Chevrolet is planning to get its all new SUV, the latest Trailblazer, to India. Expected to compete with the likes of the Toyota Fortuner and Ford Endeavour, this SUV will be powered by a 2.8-litre, 180bhp or 2.5-litre, 150bhp diesel units. The larger 2.8 common-rail diesel makes a very strong 47.8 Kgm, incidentally 10kgm up on both the 3.0-litre Fortuner and Endeavour.

The Trailblazer is an attractive looking SUV and the company says it will be the most clean-sheet truck it has designed in its 100-year history. On the inside too, the SUV is expected to have more space than the Endeavour and the Fortuner. Chevy claims the Trailblazer will sport car-like features and will be a proper seven seater.

GM is hoping to assemble the Trailblazer at its Halol facility, where it currently carries out all its CKD operations. This SUV is expected to be priced around Rs 18 lakh.

Zagato from Aston Martin to debut at Kuwait

Aston Martin will debut the first production V12 Zagato at the Kuwait Concours d’ Elegance on 15-18 February. The Kuwait Concours d’Elegance, in its third successive year, is the only event of its type in the Middle East and plays host to some of the world’s finest automotive art from over 19 countries.

The V12 Zagato, being built in strictly limited numbers of up to 150 cars, is due for first customer deliveries in late 2012. Carrying on the partnership between Aston Martin and Zagato that started over 50 years ago with the DB4 GT Zagato, the V12 Zagato, is based on the V12 Vantage. The V12 Zagato boasts Aston Martin’s 6.0-litre V12 engine that produces 510bhp and 570 Nm of torque.

Source: Carwale

Kia 3-door now available

The new Kia Rio is available to order now in three door guise for the first time. The same engines options, trim levels and external dimensions from the five door are carried over to Rio 3-door. The Rio 3-door is available with a choice of four engines – two petrol and two diesel that are carried over unchanged from the five door version.  The 1.1 CRDi that delivers 74bhp and 170Nm of torque at 1,500rpm. EcoDynamics technologies, such as Intelligent Stop & Go, will be a standard feature with all new Rio diesels, including the 1.4-litre models. The 1.4 CRDi is a four-cylinder diesel engine from the same U2 family as the 1.1.  It develops 89bhp and 220Nm of torque. 

There are also two petrol engines in the new Rio.  The entry-level unit is the 1.25-litre Kappa engine which made its debut in Kia’s smallest car, the new Picanto.  This engine develops 83bhp and 121Nm of torque.  The new Rio is also available with Kia’s 1.4-litre Gamma engine, developing 107bhp and 137Nm of torque.  It also offers buyers the convenience of an automatic gearbox as an option to the standard manual.

Source: Carwale

Huge response to 2nd phase of XUV 500 bookings

On 25th of January, Mahindra reopened bookings for its SUV i.e. XUV 500 in 19 cities in India.  In two days, company has received 6000 applications for this SUV.  Final orders will be confirmed through a computerized random allocation process or in other words, a lucky draw. Mahindra can service a maximum of 7,200 orders in the second phase of XUV500 bookings and the automaker plans to close bookings on the February 3rd, after which it will allocate 7,200 cars to buyers.  This will ensure that nobody waits for too long as is happening in case of some of the popular diesel vehicles from various companies.

Finalists for Car of the Year Award

Following are seven finalists for the Car of the Year Award, shortlisted by a jury consisting 59 members from 22 countries-

1. Citroen DS5
2. Fiat Panda
3. VW Up
4. Range Rover Evoque
5. Ford Focus
6. Toyota Yaris
7. Vauxhall Ampera/Chevrolet Volt

The winner will be announced on the opening day of the Geneva Motor Show at the beginning of March.

VW Passat petrol coming in February

The new Volkswagen Passat has been performing decently on the sales charts. Having stabilised to 150-180 units per month, Volkswagen wants to increase its marketshare even further and it seems it might just have the solution. Come next month, Volkswagen will introduce the 1.8 TSI powered Passat petrol in India.

The erstwhile Passat that was sold from 2007 until early 2011 in India was offered with a 2.0 TDI motor, but in its last year was also sold with the 1.8 TSI option. This motor is currently offered on the Skoda Laura and Superb and produces about 160 bhp and 25 kgm of peak torque. Well known for its immense shove and good economy figures, the turbocharged 1.8 TSI may not only end up in the Passat but in the Jetta as well.

Expect the 1.8 TSI version of the Passat to come a little lower down the pecking order than the 2.0 TDI BlueMotion currently on sale. The base VW Passat 2.0 TDI (Comfortline) is priced at Rs 23.8 lakh, ex-showroom, Delhi. We expect the similar trim 1.8 TSI to come at least a lakh rupees lower. That should put it within striking distance of the Honda Accord, Toyota Camry and the petrol version of the Skoda Superb.

Source: BS Motoring

Alto is the bestselling car

Maruti Suzuki Alto has been the bestselling car in India with one unit of this car being sold every two minutes.  Because of this huge volume generation, this car was the best selling car of the world in 2010 and now it has done it again in 2011.

Alto outpaced the likes of VW Golf and Fiat Uno to become the bestselling car of the world for the second time in a row. The Alto sold over 311,367 units followed by VW Golf in Brazil at 293,454 units, Fiat Uno (Brazil) at 273,537 units and VW Golf in Germany at 258,059 units. Another gem from Suzuki’s stable – Wagon R completed the top 5 best selling cars of the world.  However, there is a twist in this story. Although Alto bagged the best selling title, its growth rate is losing steam as time progresses. The fastest growth rate was demonstrated by Fiat Uno in Brazil.

Source : indianautosblog

New version of A Star launched

A-Star, Maruti Suzuki’s 1000 cc hatchback, is now available with some interior changes.  This model has not been doing well and the monthly sales were around 1000 units during the previous year.  This was mainly due to shortage of space, in the rear as well as in the boot.  This is one of those rare models whose export sales are more than domestic sales.  The company has now put some minor changes in 2012 version of this car as detailed below-

Ø  Duel tone interiors with beige upholstery

Ø  Reworked front seat head restraints

Ø  50-50 rear split seats

Ø  Airbags optional in one of the version

Ø  New alloy wheels

Ø  New Colours: Caffeine Brown and Glistening Grey

Suzuki also added a new version Zxi besides already existing Lxi and Vxi.  Following is the price list at New Delhi (Ex-showroom)-

•  LXi : Rs. 3.66 lakhs
•  VXi : Rs. 3.97 lakhs
•  VXi Automatic : Rs. 4.47 lakhs
•  ZXi : Rs. 4.22 lakhs
•  ZXi with Airbags and ABS : Rs. 4.40 lakhs

Honda delivers the first electric Fit

Honda has delivered a Fit EV (electric vehicle) to the city of Torrance - south of Los Angeles where it is based - as part of an electric vehicle demonstration programme ahead of the retail market launch in California and Oregon this summer. The EV was displayed at the Detroit Auto Show this month.

At a ceremony at Torrance City Hall, the car's key was presented to Mayor Frank Scotto by Steve Center, head of the Environmental Business Development Office at American Honda.

Over the past year, Honda and Torrance have worked together to gather input from local residents about potential recharging station locations and jointly participated in numerous public awareness events with a test vehicle. Honda will also study local government fleet usage of an electrified vehicle. Torrance will also receive a Honda plug-in hybrid for additional testing at a later date.

Honda also has hydrogen fuel-cell vehicles on test in California and shares a hydrogen refueling station in Torrance with Toyota whose US unit is also based there.

Honda launched the 2013 Fit EV at the last year's Los Angeles Auto Show and announced plans to begin leasing the 123 city-mile per charge (76 mile range combined adjusted city/highway) battery-electric commuter vehicle to US customers from summer 2012. The car has a 20 kWh lithium-ion battery and 92 kW coaxial electric motor. Through a fast charger connected to 240 volts (standard US domestic sockets are 120V), the battery can be fully recharged in three hours.

Honda will also test the Fit EV with Google and Stanford University.

Mercedes planning to beat BMW by 2020

Mercedes Benz is planning to become the world’s largest premium carmaker in 2020 by selling 2.7 million units worldwide. The company popularly known at the Stuttgart star sold 1.26 million Mercedes-branded cars in 2011, about 120,000 short of the BMW brand. This means that the company is planning to more than double its output comes 2020. In order to achieve this production target the German czar has set a new North American plant that would begin manufacturing the next generation A-Class by 2017.

Further adding to the capacity would be a new plant in China and another in either the United States or Mexico to meet the target.

Source: indianautosblog

Up from Volkswagen - coming to India

Volkswagen has released the photos of its small hatchback Up coming to India soon-

Bentley unveils the new Continental GTC in Qatar

Bentley unveiled the new Continental GTC for the first time in Qatar at the Qatar International Motor Show, Doha. The all new Bentley GTC Convertible features an even more spacious and sumptuous hand-crafted cabin, with soft-touch leather hides, an extensive range of wood veneers, cool-touch metals and deep-pile carpets, all produced by Bentley’s talented craftsmen and women. Now with a more powerful 575bhp 6.0-litre, twin-turbocharged W12 engine as well as a new QuickShift transmission, enabling faster gear changes than ever before.

Taking cues from its GT coupe sibling launched last year, the new Continental GTC builds on the highly successful foundation of the previous cabriolet, which premiered in 2006. Bentley’s design and engineering teams have improved virtually every aspect of the iconic convertible with an uncompromising focus on quality.

Source: Carwale

Chevrolet achieves its best global sales in 2011

Chevrolet sold 4.76 million vehicles around the world in 2011 setting a global sales record and driving General Motors Co. global sales to more than 9 million vehicles, a 7.6 percent gain compared with 2010.

GM gained four-tenths of a point of market share to 11.9 percent of the global vehicle industry. Sales were up in all four reporting regions – North America, South America, Europe and International Operations – as GM sold a total of 9,025,942 vehicles compared with 8,385,484 in 2010. The United States led the way for Chevrolet with total vehicle sales of 1,775,812 up more than 13 percent from 2010. China posted record sales of 595,068, up 9.5 percent from the previous year. Other markets that posted significant year-over-year increases include Vietnam (79 percent), Russia (49 percent), Turkey (30 percent) and Germany (21 percent).

Chevrolet is building its global presence by delivering cars like the Cruze, Aveo (Sonic) and Spark, the all new midsize global Malibu, and crossovers and trucks like the Orlando and Colorado that are designed for the varied driving conditions and customer preferences around the world.

More than 15 markets experienced record Chevrolet sales in 2011 with the largest year-over-year increases in Peru (81 percent), Vietnam (79 percent), Thailand (57 percent), South Africa (50 percent)and Israel (46 percent). The top 5 Chevrolet sales markets in 2011 were USA, Brazil, China, Russia and Mexico in that order.

Source: Carwale

Market	Total 2011 Sales
United States	1,775,812
Brazil	632,201
China	595,068
Russia	173,485
Mexico	162,461
Canada	150,540
Argentina	133,491
Uzbekistan	121,584
India	111,056
Colombia	105,783

Now get XUV 5OO through draw of lots

Bookings for XUV 500 were closed some time ago due to huge response for this SUV.  Now, bookings are going to open on 25^th January 2012 and will remain open till 3^rd February 2012.  A prospective customer will be required to submit his application form along with a booking fee of Rs. 80,000 through a demand draft or pay order in favour of Mahindra & Mahindra.  On completing the application procedure, customer will be eligible for the ‘XUV5OO Draw’.  This draw will make the booking process as convenient as possible and will also ensure a reasonable waiting period for the winning applicants.

Winners of this draw will be announced by 15^th February 2012.  Those not selected in this draw will get a complete refund of the booking amount (without interest) within 30 days of the results being announced.

For detailed terms and conditions of this draw, customers can visit any selected dealer of Mahindra or log on to www.mahindraxuv5OO.com

General Motors is the No. 1 in the World

Some days ago we observed that Volkswagen overtook Toyota as largest manufacturer of vehicles.  At that time, as we mentioned, numbers for GM were not received.  Now, these are out and GM is no. 1 with sale of 9.03 million units during 2011.  VW is no. 2 with 8.16 million units and Toyota is third with 7.9 m units.

Petroleum Ministry recommends for increasing the tax on diesel cars

Petroleum Ministry of India has recommended to the Finance Ministry to levy additional excise duty on diesel cars in India in budget of year 2012-13 so that the demand for diesel cars and consequently diesel fuel in India is decreased. The step has been taken to reduce the financial burden on the Government which is bearing the subsidies on the Diesel fuel which is sold at subsidized price in Indian markets. If the recommendations are implemented, the Diesel cars are likely to cost as much as Rs. 80,000 higher than their present prices (before budget of 2012-13) starting from coming financial year.

The additional excise duty will be used to recover the losses to the public sector oil companies which are facing losses because of under-recoveries. There is a lot of political pressure attached to the prices of Diesel in India as it’s a primary fuel for farming equipment as well as the road-transportation fuel in India which affects the commodity prices and inflation in India.

With the difference in technology and higher build construction required for a diesel engine compared to a petrol engine, the Diesel engine cars in India are already about Rs. 60,000 to Rs. 1,00,000 costlier than the same car with petrol engine. With additional excise duty (if implemented), the diesel cars will become between Rs. 1.4 Lakhs to Rs. 1.8 Lakhs more costly compared to petrol cars which have lower initial cost but higher running cost because of high petrol prices in India.

Many Indian automobile makers have been keeping their expansion plans for Diesel cars and Diesel engine plants on hold till the Budget of 2012-13 is passed.

Source: Carblogindia

Mitsubishi to launch its new vehicle at Geneva Motor Show

For the first time, Mitsubishi Motors Corporation (MMC) has decided to select the most demanding European market as global launch pad for an all-new vehicle. This March, the Geneva Motor Show will see the world premiere of a strategic and innovative premium vehicle, to be retailed sequentially during 2012 – a car of substance that will reflect a gradual transformation in Mitsubishi’s design language.

This unveiling will confirm the start of an all-new generation of global products for Mitsubishi Motors, consistent with the ambitions set in MMC’s “Jump 2013” business plan for a greener and more global Mitsubishi. Fittingly, this complete family of cars / crossovers / SUVs will see a gradual transition to a re-focused design language.

Maruti most trusted automotive brand in India

The country’s largest car maker, Maruti Suzuki India Limited has been voted as the country’s most trusted automotive brand. The survey was published in “The Brand Trust Report, India Study 2012” by Brand trust Advisory. As per the report, Maruti Suzuki is followed by other automotive OEMs like BMW, Hero Honda, Toyota and Honda in order of their ranking. Other manufacturers like Ford, Audi, Skoda, Hero and Yamaha also featured among the top ten trusted automotive brands. It was interesting to note that the second largest manufacturer, Hyundai Motors didn’t feature among the top ten companies. Also not making to the top 10 was Tata Motors. The CEO of Trust Research Advisory, Mr. N Chandramouli said that for the survey 61 tangible and intangible aspects of the brand were evaluated which on combining reflected the positive behaviours and attitudes towards a brand.

The survey was conducted between August to November last year by taking into account responses of over 17,000 brands from over 2700 participants. The survey was conducted across 15 cities across the country and featured the top 1000 brands in different categories. Swift Dzire was voted as the most trusted car and BMW the most trusted luxury brand.

Source : Motor beam

Agreement between Fiat and Suzuki for diesel engines

FIAT India has announced that it has reached an agreement to supply the 1.3-litre, BSIV compliant, Multijet diesel engine (75 HP) to Maruti Suzuki for the next three years. The supply will start this month and every year FIAT will supply Maruti Suzuki with 1 lakh diesel engines for use in the Ritz, Swift and Swift DZire. The production of these engines will commence in the fourth week of January at FIAT-Tata’s joint venture plant in Ranjangaon near Pune. These engines are other than the ones which FIAT already licenses to Maruti Suzuki for production by Suzuki powertrain India. FIAT also supplies Premier with Multijet engines for the Rio compact SUV.

Mahindra to increase the production of XUV 5OO

Buoyed by the influx of bookings for its newly-launched global sports utility vehicle (SUV) – XUV500 – Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M) is looking at scaling up the production capacity of the all-wheel drive vehicle at its Chakan plant near Pune to 3,000 units per month during the next fiscal.

“The demand is clearly exceeding than what we can produce. So, looking at the demand we are putting in all our efforts and we would like to touch a volume of 3,000 units, from the existing 2,500 per month, in the short run and then ramp it up further,” Arun Malhotra, senior vice-president (sales and customer care) said here on Tuesday.

Since its launch on September 29 last year, the XUV500 received over 8,000 bookings in just 10 days, post which M&M suspended new bookings in October due to inability to meet the demand. The vehicle was available only in five cities of Mumbai, Delhi, Bangalore, Chennai, and Pune then.

Announcing the launch of XUV500 in the Hyderabad market, Malhotra said their primary objective was to ensure that their customers had no longer waiting periods. “Our idea is to supply to the first lot and then go to other cities. By the end of February, we will try to deliver all the 8,000 units that have already been booked,” he said.

M&M will open the Phase-II of bookings for XUV500, the fourth SUV from its arsenal, with the other three being Scorpio, Bolero and Xylo, for a limited period of 10 days starting January 25 in 19 cities including Hyderabad, Kolkata, Ahmedabad, Chandigarh, Ludhiana, Jalandhar, Patiala, Kochi, Thiruvanthapuram, Kozhikode, Trissur, Coimbatore, Nagpur and Nashik.

“If the bookings exceed 7,200 units, then we will go for a scientific and transparent draw process, which will be validated by Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu India,” Malhotra said, adding that the Rs 80,000 amount to be paid with the XUV draw application form was refundable.

M&M, which launched XUV500 at introductory prices ranging between Rs 108 lakh and Rs 11.95 lakh, had hiked prices in the beginning of this month with its two variants becoming dearer by Rs 35,000-Rs 50,000.

“We have passed on only 50 per cent of the price hike to those customers who have booked XUV in the first lot. The new bookings that we are doing now is with the new price,” Malhotra said, adding that the XUV is available at Rs 11.2 lakh for the W6 model and Rs 12.57 lakh for the W8 2WD model (ex-showroom, Hyderabad). On the exports front, Malhotra said the company had started exporting XUV in small volumes to South Africa. “Once we are able to ramp up the production and feed the domestic demand, we will go into more countries,” he said.

Source : BS Motoring

Car prices hiked by Maruti and GM

Suzuki and GM have hiked the prices of their products by up to Rs 17,000 to offset rising input costs and the impact of currency fluctuation.  This hike is in spite of the poor sales in the recent months.

Maruti India (MSI) has hiked prices of its vehicles across models, except for entry-level sedan DZire, by between 0.3 per cent and 3.4 per cent. This translates into a minimum increase of Rs 2,400 on the SX4 sedan and a maximum of Rs 17,000 on the diesel variant of its Swift hatchback.  Hike is effective from Monday.

The company had stated it would hike the prices of its models to offset the impact of rising input costs and foreign exchange fluctuation.
Before the hike, the SX4 sedan was priced between Rs 7 lakh and Rs 9.11 lakh (ex-showroom Delhi), while the Swift diesel was available at prices ranging from Rs 5.27 lakh to Rs 6.47 lakh (ex-showroom Delhi) for different variants.

The company's best-selling Alto model will also become dearer by Rs 4,000 vis-a-vis the current price tag of between Rs 2.32 lakh and Rs 3.31 lakh (ex-showroom, Delhi). Maruti sells a variety of models, ranging from the M800, which starts at a price of Rs 1.97 lakh, to the top-end Kizashi, which comes with a price tag of Rs 17.5 lakh (ex-showroom, Delhi). The company has not touched the price of the DZire sedan as it will launch a new version next month.

GM India has also increased product prices by between 0.5 per cent and 1.75 per cent for models including the Spark, Beat, Cruze and Tavera, translating into an increase ranging from Rs 3,000 to Rs 15,000.

Honda destroys more than 1000 cars

Honda destroyed 1055 cars affected by Thailand floods.

Suzuki to launch new Dzire in February

Suzuki is all set to launch the new Swift Dzire in February in India. This will be a shorter version in length to qualify for the excise duty of 10 per cent enjoyed by small cars. In India, cars having a length less than 4000 mm enjor some benefits in excise duty.  The company said it is unlikely that the new version of DZire will be priced lesser than the existing one, which ranges between Rs 4.94 lakh and Rs 7.29 lakh (ex-showroom Delhi).

The interior of the new Dzire is laid out in the same manner as the Swift. Features such as steering-mounted audio controls, dual tone dashboard, five-speed manual transmission, etc are copy of new Swift.  Maruti has neatly differentiated the sedan from the hatch using a new grille, triangular fog lamp modules and unique wheel caps.

 

Source : indianautosblog

 

Audi achieves its highest sales ever

Audi sold around 1,302,650 cars in 2011 which is its highest tally.  It was better than its previous sales record by more than 210,200 units. The brand’s strong growth spanned all regions of the world: China became Audi’s biggest single market for the first time ever, with 313,036 vehicles delivered. In Europe, the Ingolstadt-based brand increased its unit sales by 12.1 percent to around 726,300 cars; it also achieved a growth rate well into double figures in the United States. Audi ended the past year with a new sales record in more than 50 markets.

Since the market launch of the new-generation A8 and A6 and of the A7 Sportback, more than one in four U.S. customers have opted for a full-size model. Within one year, Audi has thus increased the U.S. sales share of the top-end car lines by more than half. Across all models, Audi sold 117,561 automobiles in the United States last year, a further advance of 15.7 percent on the 2010 figure.

Worldwide, too, the full-size models were instrumental in driving Audi’s growth: Even before the appearance of the new-generation A6 in China, the sedan model’s biggest market, global sales of this car line rose by 12.2 percent to around 229,200 vehicles. The new A6 sedan appeared in its first markets in March, with the Avant, which is especially popular in Europe, following only in the fall. By contrast the A7 Sportback has now been on the market for its first full year, attracting over 31,300 customers worldwide. The brand with the four rings also increased its presence in the full-size category with the Q7, with sales up 21.4 percent on the previous year. Launched at the start of 2010, the brand’s flagship A8 model actually doubled its volume (+101 percent).

Source : Carwale

Car companies in bad health, postpone price hike

January is the month when car manufacturers usually hike the prices of their cars.  However, this year has been different.  Companies like Maruti, Volkswagen, Hyundai have not increased the prices inspite of the fact that input costs have risen and rupee is much depreciated against dollar.  All this is because gloomy economy is threatening to reduce the already lean customer presence in their showrooms.  In fact, some of the car companies are still giving discounts on various models.  For example, Nissan Micra is still available at Rs. 3,75,000 ex-showroom, Delhi against the usual price of Rs. 4,10,000.  Volkswagen is luring the customers with a surprise gift if they book Polo/Vento.  Maruti is continuing with various discounts on its models.

It is the first time in 15 years that companies have not hiked the prices in January.

Source : Economic Times

Car sales are down from 218000 (September 2011) to 159000 (December 2011) in spite of heavy discounts given in December.  This shows how badly sales have been affected during this period.

Nano all set for Bangladesh

Nano, the cheapest car in the world, is all set to enter Bangladesh next month.  The initial price will be around 600,000 taka (approx. 400,000 Rs.).  The company plans to export around 300 car per month initially.  After Bangladesh, nano is likely to enter South East Asia via Thailand, Indonesia and Myanmar.

Volkswagen is the no. 1 in sales

The German car company Volkswagen has become the no.1 car manufacturer in the world by selling as much as 8.16 million units thus displacing Toyota as no.2 which sold 7.9 million units during 2011.  Volkswagen increased its tally by 14.3 per cent over the previous year.  It is pertinent to mention that Toyota had to face production cuts due to earthquake in Japan during March 2011. 

Production figures for the American giant GM are yet to be received. 

Jazz and Brio production to restart from mid-February

Honda is going to restart production of Jazz and Brio in India from mid-February.  These cars were not in production for a couple of months due to problem in supply of parts from Thailand caused by floods there.  In fact, Honda had to face this problem everywhere in the world.  In India, the problem was very peculiar for Honda as all of its products are petrol driven which itself is a disadvantage as price of petrol is too much when compared to diesel price.  This has caused a huge demand for diesel vehicles and these are generally available after much waiting in spite of the fact that economy is not in a good mood and diesel cars are expensive compared to petrol vehicles.  However, when Honda reduced the prices of Jazz in August 2011, it immediately became a hit due to people’s belief in Honda’s petrol engines and overall quality of their cars.  Similarly, Brio, launched in September 2011, is also a popular model and people are ready to wait for this.

Along with Jazz and Brio, Honda is likely to start production of new version of City from mid-January itself.  At its factory near Delhi, Honda can produce up to 100,000 cars every year.

Bloomberg-UTV Autocar Awards 2012

The prestigious Bloomberg-UTV Autocar Awards 2012 have been declared and following is the list of winners-

Car of the year – Suzuki Swift

The Swift won Car of the Year in 2005. And it wins it yet again this time. Though the new Swift looks exactly like the old model, this car is a grounds-up new generation of the Swift. This model is based on an all-new platform and is now both longer and wider. The Swift’s interior styling, which is heavily borrowed from its Kizashi sibling, is now plusher.

The car is now sportier to drive and the 1.2 K-series petrol gets variable valve timing (VVT) to bump up power to 86bhp. The 74bhp 1.3 diesel Multi-jet engine remains largely unchanged but the carmaker’s effort to make the cabin a quieter place is evident. Maruti Suzuki has taken an already good car and made it even better by ironing out the flaws in the older car. Despite stiff competition this year from among nearly all the world’s majors, Maruti Suzuki’s new Swift shows the competition a clean pair of heels to pick up the prestigious award of the Bloomberg-UTV Autocar Car of the Year 2012.

Bike of the Year – Honda CBR250R

The Honda CBR250R came like a breath of fresh air for Indian motorcycle enthusiasts long stuck between underpowered city commuters and horrendously expensive imported superbikes. Here was a motorcycle that offered great styling, zippy performance, street-friendly handling with a price tag that did not need you to mortgage your house. The CBR250R has all the big bike visual cues with its VFR 1200 inspired headlamp and CBR1000RR fairing. It ticks all the right boxes in the design and styling department. For its combination of style, performance, streetfriendly handling as well as advanced technology at a decent price, the Honda CBR250R is the Bike of the Year.

Winners for other categories are-

Best Styling & Design – Hyundai Verna

Best Value for Money – Mahindra XUV500

Best Variant of the Year – Chevrolet Beat Diesel

Best Driver's car – Ford Fiesta

Manufacturer of the Year – Toyota

Technology and Innovation award –  Audi A8

Sub-compact car of the Year – Honda Brio

Best Compact car of the Year – Maruti Suzuki Swift

Best Saloon car of the Year –  Skoda Rapid

Best Executive Saloon of the Year – VW Jetta

Luxury Saloon of the Year – Audi A6

SUV of the Year – Mahindra XUV500

Luxury SUV of the Year – BMW X3

Best Automobile Ad of the Year – Volkswagen Jetta 'Flyboy'

Premium Bike of the Year – Kawasaki Ninja 650R

Import Bike of the Year – BMW K 1600 GTL

Green Car Award – VW Passat for BlueMotion technology

Man of the Year – Pawan Goenka

Viewer's choice award - CAR – Mahindra XUV500

Viewer's choice award - BIKE – Honda CBR250R