Driveblog

Tata Motors which made the 'People car' for an affordable price has created another affordable Bullet proof vehicle, Tata Safari. The SUV is said to be the most affordable bullet-proof vehicle available in the local market. You can buy it directly from the manufacture at Rs 60lakhs. The Armored variant of the Safari is said to  resist an assault of an AK-47 rifle.  It can even run on flat tires for a distance of 50 kms and at a speed of 50-60 kmph. [Source:Rediff.com] 

Mahindra Racing  – part of the US $7.1 billion Mahindra Group – will make its race debut on March 17-20 at the 5.38km Losail International Circuit for round 1 of the 125cc MotoGP World Championship. Mahindra is the first Indian motorcycle manufacturer to enter a team into the prestigious MotoGP World Championship with its GP125 racing motorcycle, entered in the 125cc class. Produced by Mahindra’s Italy-based Engines Engineering division, the GP125 will be ridden by riders Danny Webb from Britain and Marcel Schrötter from Germany.  Qatar is likely to present a tough debut venue. Its desert location means sand is often blown on to the track, making finding a good bike set-up difficult on the constantly changing surface. It is also the season’s only night race, held under floodlights, giving added difficulties to the riders. [Source: indiainfoline ]

Volvo Auto India pvt ltd is planning to open five more dealerships across India, taking the total number to 12 by the end of this year. It would be opening new dealership at Bangalore, Chennai, Kolkata, Jaipur and Ahmedabad. Volvo Auto opened its first dealership in March 2008 and currently markets its products through its dealerships in New Delhi, Mumbai, Chandigarh, Coimbatore, Hyderabad, Kochi and Pune. To expand its portfolio, it launched its latest S60 sedan, which will be available in both petrol and diesel variants, priced between Rs 27 lakh and Rs 34 lakh (ex-showroom Chandigarh) in Punjab which is one of the potential market for the company. The new car boasts of unique features such as the “world’s first pedestrian detection technology” with full auto brake, advanced Control with Torque Vectoring, Adaptive Cruise Control (ACC), and Laser Assisted Automatic Braking – City Safety, Turn with steering lights (Active Bending Lights) among others. [Source:Bsmotoring] 

Tata Motors has struck a deal with the Future Group to sell the Nano through the Group’s Big Bazaar consumer retail network. This tie-up is a first-of-its-kind move in the country’s passenger car segment. (The ITC-promoted e-choupal initiative for farmers displayed tractors at its rural malls) The Nano will be displayed at 120 of Big Bazaar’s 148 outlets where prospective buyers who book it will get gifts such as gold coins, and vouchers worth Rs 1,500. For Tata Motors, the tie-up is an additional sales channel that brings in an estimated 18 million footfalls every month. For the Future Group, this is a way to explore the business potential of adding a vehicle to its range of products. Nano sales have picked up since December 2010 after the company announced a four-year warranty for existing and new customers. The company sold 8,262 Nanos in February which made it to the top 10 cars in terms of sales after a five-month gap. [Source:Autocarindia]

Luxury car maker Lamborghini's Indian distributor Exclusive Motors showcased super sports car Aventador LP 700-4, which will be delivered from third quarter of this year onwards with an expected price tag of  Rs.  1.6 crore. The car is powered by a 12 cylinder 6.5 litre engine. It can touch an acceleration of 100 km per hour in just 2.9 seconds and can attain a top speed of 350 km per hour.  Although the company did not share the possible price of this super premium car, industry experts put a figure of around  Rs.  1.6 crore on it. [Source:financialexpress]

BMW, One of the countries largest Luxury car maker has increased its production capacity in its Chennai plant, earlier it was 8,000 units now the company increased to 10,000 units in a single shift. The company currently sells various model right form 3 Series to Z4 roadster, most of the models are assembled except few models like 7 series which are bought to India as CBU(completely built unit). Increase in the production will add two models to the line up. The first one is re-skinned 6 series that will be launched later this month and X3 SAV that will arrive in mid-2011.   [Source:Autocarindia]     

Japan's quake hit automobile industry may face serious supply chain disruption at a time when its samurai brands, Honda, Toyota, Nissan and Suzuki, are all planning aggressive strategies for India's top growth market.   Already the local units of Honda and Toyota have canceled promotional events, including the former's showcase event for its eagerly awaited small car Brio scheduled later this week. The company officials said components and knocked down kit stocks would last for now, but there was "no confirmation" on future production plans.   The only silver lining is India's relatively small dependence on Japan. Auto experts said higher levels of localization levels and cost concerns prompting most Japanese car makers to import from Thailand would help the Indian subsidiaries. For instance, India's market leader Maruti Suzuki relies on 95% local content in older models and between 85-93% in the case of newer models.   [Source:economictimes]