Driveblog

General Motors India will soon bring the Muscle car Chevy Camaro to Indian market. The car will be priced around 30 lakhs and it will the most expensive car in its portfolio but will be the cheapest sports car. The car will be Imported as Completely Built Unit (CBU) and will the powered by the 3.6liter V6 engine. The car was first shown in the Delhi Auto Expo 2010 but the company did not have immediate plans at that time. The car is said to be a Brand builder for the Company bringing lot of people to the showrooms. The company is also likely to launch its compact sedan Sonic and the 800cc spark by this year.  

You all might know that the Company's Brand plays a very important role when it comes to cars. But what about their models. In India the model name plays a major role an example is Hindustan Motors Ambassador the ''Ambassador'' name played as a brand. Right now two of the Indian players are modifying their Model name for their products due to different reason. First is the Ford Fiesta is changing its existing model name to Fiesta classic because its bringing its next-Generation global Fiesta. So in marketing point of view consumers should be able to differentiate the two models. Second one is the Indigo Manza to Manza Elan this is because the name Indigo is registered in the minds of consumers that its a cheap and economical entry level sedan so Tata's want to change that by removing the Indigo name and marketing as Manza.    

Hyundai has been always a preferable brand for Indian consumers from the time the company started its Operations here. The Santro has been the flagship product for many year because it set the benchmark in that segment for built quality, design and in other aspects. The company was moving to higher segment this time will go in reverse. A car below Santro which will be priced between 2-3 lakhs to take on Tata Nano and Maruti Alto. The car would definitely be a strong contender because the company is known for good engineering and design. The car could get a stripped down version of Hyundai's Epsilon engine which powers the Santro. The car would be available at Hyundai showroom in the second half of 2011. It is worth waiting for if you are purchasing your first car.      

After seeing the title you must be wondering that this would look like an advertisement of some Indian motorcycle company claiming the mileage figure of their latest 100cc bike. But it isn't  this time its the German automaker Volkswagen which is testing its prototype XL1. This prototype is consumes  just 0.9 liter per 100 kilometers which is remarkable for a car. The car will be a production model by 2013 and it is bound to be in India at some point or other because for a country like India fuel economy is the priority in purchase of a car.        

BMW S1000RR 2011 Harley Davidson SuperLow 2011 Hyosung ST7 2011 Hyosung GT650 2011 Kawasaki Ninja 650R 2011 Harley Davidson  Iron 883 2011 Bajaj KTM 200 2011 Mahindra Mojo 300 2011 Ducati Diavel BMW R1200GS 2011 Honda CBR250R 2011 Yamaha R15 2011 Yamaha-Scorpio-Z-225

T he Country's largest passenger car manufacture Maruti-Suzuki is planning to bring the SX4 in diesel avatar this February. Due to the recent hike in petrol prices many consumers prefer diesel cars. SX4 is right now facing a stiff competition from cars like Fiat Linea, Vw Vento, Hyundai Verna because these cars offer diesel variants. Now company will fight back with a diesel engine. The Engine is Fiat-Sourced 1.3liter with the Variable Geometric Turbocharger(VGT) the same engine that does the duty in Fiat Linea and Indigo Manza. The car is likely to be prices between 7-8lakhs.          

T he Mumbai International Auto Show has already set pulses racing, with a large range of breathtaking cars on display. The stream of car enthusiasts that throngs the expo is testimony to its popularity. The expo was inaugurated by actors of the movie  Dil to Bachha Hai Jee  -- Ajay Devgn, Emraan Hashmi, Omi Vaidya, Tisca Chopra, Shruti Hassan, Shraddh Das and Shazahn Padamsee, and the film's director Madhur Bandarkar, to add star value to the show.       Here is a look at some of the stunning vintage and new beauties that are grabbing the limelight. . . The Nissan 370Z The Nissan 370Z is the car major's first luxury segment sports vehicle, and is available in India in two variants. The variants are priced at Rs 55.5 lakh (Rs 5.55 million) and Rs 57.5 lakh (Rs 5.75 million), respectively, ex-showroom Delhi.   Piaggio Aprilia  RSV4 T he Piaggio Aprilia pure sports RSV4 superbike is now in India. Vintage Collection: Mercedes Benz 230 S...

About 60 years ago, in a market dominated by Japanese companies, an Italian motor company manufactured its first scooter. In a short time that scooter became one of the most loved and wanted icons in the world. Every motor lover knows about the Indian adventure of  Vespa . Now Vespa is making a big come back with Vespa LX 125 at the International Auto Show Mumbai. The launch of the scooter is set to the end of 2012. Now everyone is wondering how much it would cost because there is no official statement about the pricing in India. In the United Kingdom, the 125 cc model is being sold for around 3000 pounds. Vespa LX 125 If you look for a sports bike, the  Vespa LX 125  should not be your choice. Its wheels are small but there is no balance problem with this baby. Its turning circle is good and in jammed traffic it is easy to ride. Like all the other Piaggio, its suspensions are not very good, but this doesn’t cause much problem. Vespa LX 125 is not suitable for carrying h...

The Blue oval company has been in India for more than a decade but was not able to reach an Average Indian car buyer. The companies models Such as Ikon & Feista did some decent numbers because there were hardly few players in that segment. The Introduction of Ford Figo early in 2010 turned the table upside down for the company the car was run away success for the company. Ford India Tripled its sales volume by selling 83,887 units when compared to previous year which was 29,488 units the sales were up by 172%. Ford Figo alone ever since its launch in march 2010 sold over 60,000 units. The car also won several industry awards for ''Car of the year'' at Autocarindia, Zig Wheels, (ICOTY 2011). The car is also exported to countries such as South Africa & Nepal the company is planning to export to another 48 countries. With the success of the Figo Ford India has lot of New products for India in its pipeline Including the new Feista Sedan & Ha...

The battle for the small car is getting hotter. Soon after the Tatas stunned the world with a Rs 1 lakh car, Nano, Hyundai stated its intention to come out with a car that could cost less than Rs 2 lakh and hit the road by 2012. And now, auto biggie Maruti-Suzuki too is ready with Its small car. The little car could hit the road, they say, as early as the end of this year or early 2011. The Suzuki car will come closest to rival Nano. It will sport a Suzuki 660cc engine – as against Nano’s 623cc – and wear a tag of around Rs 1.5 lakh on road (that is, excluding insurance) and max might go up to 2.49 lakh – a little higher than Nano, which is expected to be Rs 1.50 lakh on road. The car might be called ‘Suzuki Cervo’.

Bajaj auto has appointed 135 dealers in small towns and mini metros. The dealers will offer special finance scheme backed by Bajaj auto finance with a direct cash collection facilities for the customers who have no bank account. Customers can pay installment in cash rather than a post dated cheques. Post Hero, Honda split the company sees a good opportunity in future current Bajaj holds only 25% of the market share in two wheelers and Hero Honda with 54% share.  

Czech Automaker Skoda autos launched its stripped version of Laura at Rs 11.99 lakhs (ex-showroom, delhi). The name of the trim is called Classic and the Company took out some of the features that are available in the high end Variant such as Parking sensors, alloy wheels etc. This is to keep the price of the car Competitive. The cars uses the same 1.8 TSI engine that does the duty in other petrol variants.      

German Luxury automaker Audi Launched its supercar R8 5.2FSI with V10 engine in India at the company new showroom at Chennai. The car is priced at 1.35 crores is sold in India as a completely built unit. The company aims to increase its market share in the luxury car segment to 30% from the present 20% by the end of 2011. In the same year the company also will launch the models of  A6, A7, A8. Audi sold 3003 units in the year 2010 when compared to 1658 units in 2009. The Company is also planning to float its own finance arm by the first quarter of 2011 which will help the company to boost sales.     

Tata motors is planning to merge the Commercial vehicles and passenger cars dealerships as it will bring good margins to dealers and also availability products such as Winger platinum,Venture,Xenon under one roof. Products such as Venture which is a part of Ace family share Engine components with Indica and also (SUT) Xenon which shares Engines with Safari and Aria.Sales of winger platinum has already started in these dealership. This move from the company with new product line up will help the dealers to expand the customer base and also for dealers who were demanding better profitability on sales and service. 

Its seems that Tata has taken seriously about Nano sales drop in November 2010 and came up with few more Tv commercials.

The Countries Largest car maker Maruti-Suzuki will launch its premium sedan Kizashi on 28th January. The car was first shown at the Delhi auto Expo 2010. Maruti-Suzuki is present  in the Indian  market for more than 25 years and for the first time the company is entering into this new segment. Maruti-Suzuki's image in the premium market hasn't been successful so far it had failed previously by introducing Mid luxury vehicles like baleno and Grand vitira. Kizashi will be a completely built unit imported into India and will be priced around 18 lakhs. Hope the company promotes the car aggressively and erase the old image.      

Honda Civic all set with the ninth generation model Honda Civic Si the concept sedan and the Honda Civic concept saloon were showcased on the international auto event in North American International Auto Show at Detroit in Michigan. The concept car showed an interesting sneak of the new style in an all new Honda Civic, ninth generation. The car is expected to launch in this spring, the new Honda Civic car model will come with various added features includes new model of saloon car models, the “Si” sporty performance car models which will include natural gas and hybrid car versions. It is being learned that the new Honda Civic hybrid model will be affixed with lithium ion battery cell. The launch of all new Honda Civic hybrid model is going to be the first by Japanese auto giant. Honda is also venturing for the first time in the ECO-Assist system which will be a variant of the new Honda Civic car models. Japanese auto giants are also increasing the sales of the ...

The Indian auto mobile sector grew by 31 per cent which has stimulated a growing momentum owing to the various activities in the sector especially in the last quarter of 2010. One of the ancillary in the auto industry, the tyre producers, faced problems last year because of the increasing prices of the natural rubber which was quite fluctuating. The tyre manufacturers even had to import the tyres owing to the increasing demand. It is learnt from reliable sources that Apollo has stamped on a supplementary MoU with Tamil Nadu government which includes an investment of Rs 2,100 crore, for being a part of the greenfield project. As per the reports, it stated that there has been increasing demand for the Apollo tyres has induced it to make an investment of Rs 2,100 crore. This will be the added investment in the unit which will increase its capacity to 6,000 truck tyres and bus radial tyres every day. Also the capacity of passenger  car  radial tyres will increase to 8,000 ev...

General Motors India will launch six new models in the next two years from which it includes models three light commercial vehicle. The company who currently only makes passenger cars is now entering to a new segment with its Chinese partner Shanghai Automotive industry corporation (SAIC). The company will also introduce 14 new variants in existing models which includes the petrol version of Cruze and diesel version of Beat. GM  Halol Plant has a capacity of 85,000 which will be Expanded to 1,05,000 units for which the company is investing about Rs 450 crore.       

BMW and Mercedes-Benz are the closest rivals in India when it comes to Indian Luxury car market. The Two German automakers had witness a very positive growth in the year 2010 but BMW took the spot of top luxury car manufacture in India in 2010 by posting a sales of 6,246 units and saw 73% of growth in sales.On the other hand Mercedes saw 80% jump in sales of 5,819 units when compared to 3,250 units in the corresponding previous year.