Yamaha launches YBR

As you read at vicky.in few days back, Yamaha today launched a new motorcycle called YBR 110cc. YBR is priced Rs41,000 (ex-showroom Delhi). YBR comes with the same 4-stroke 106 cc engine which is used in Alba. YBR also sourced 4-speed gearbox from Alba. “We have been studying the entry level market and wanted to launch a new bike at an affordable price that would give satisfactory mileage… We are confident that we will replicate the success of our premium segment bikes with the launch of all new YBR 110 in entry level space,” India Yamaha Motor Chief Executive Officer and MD Yukimine Tsuji said.

Pictures of Yamaha YBR

Maruti 2010 Wagon-R specifications, features, variants and colours

Update: Checkout our Maruti New WagorR 2010 special Slideshow

You read it first at vicky.in

Maruti’s much awaited 2010 Wagon-R is here. Maruti will launch the 2010 Wagon-R by the end of next week. We don’t have the price list to share with you. But we have everything else which you want to know about the 2010 Wagon-R.Here are the specifications, features, colours and variants of 2010 Wagon-R. Tagged as Blue eyed boy, this new 2010 Wagon-R will carry forward the legacy of India’s best selling car of all times – Wagon-R.

* Maruti 2010 Wagon-R comes in three variants – Lx,Lxi and Vxi.

* 2010 wagonr will be available in seven colour which incudes superior white, midnight black,silky silver,fire-black red,breeze blue, baker’s choclate and blistering grey

* The new 2010 Wagon-R has grown in every dimensions – length,width,height and wheelbase. Wagon-R length now stands at 3595mm, width at 1490mm,height at 1700mm. Wheelbase has also grown from 2360mm to 2400mm. The ample dimensions means ample space inside the cabin. Wagon-R already the roomiest in its class could set a new benchmark in its segment

* 2010 Wagon-R gets the K-series from A-star and now pumps out 68PS of maximum power at 6200rpm and 90Nm of peak torque at 3500rpm. Coupled with K-series engine is the new cable type transmission which replaces notchy link type.

* As per ARAI, Maruti 2010 wagon-r returns a mileage of 18.9kmpl.

* Though the 2010 carries the same platform of its predecessor, the underpinnings are heavily modified. It comes improved suspension setting for improved ride quality. The front suspension is now L-shaped. Both the suspension are gas filled (the current version uses oil)

* The top end Wagon-R VXi variant runs on 155/60 R 14″inch tyres. Lx – the base variant and Lxi – the mid variant gets only 13″ wheels and 145/60 tyres.

* The top end Wagon-R VXi features keyless entry with i-cat system, central locking, anti-theft alarm, 60:40 foldable rear seat,electrical ORVM (Outside rear view mirrors), tubeless tyres,ABS and Airbags

* The new features in the 2010 Wagon-R includes dual tone interiors, engraved wagon-r badging on the rear, slooping roof, underseat tray, refreshed headlamps and front bumper, chrome front grille, retractable cup holders and chrome strips on the interiors.

Why the 2010 Wagon-R is called Blue eyed boy? 2010 Wagon-R sports an elegant blue eyed parking indicator integrated in the headlamp cluster.

Coming soon is the exclusive Test drive and review on 2010 Maruti Wagon-R

No entry into low-cost car segment says Maruti

The exit of M 800 from its fold has not made any deep impact on Maruti Suzuki. The company does not need any haste decision to supplement nor any replacement for the phased out model. Rather, it likes to focus on A2 segment consisting of A-Star, Swift, Ritz, Estilo and Wagon R. in general, this segment has got more than 20 models and seems to be the biggest one in the car industry. The segment has the sale volume of 1.2 lakh units per month.

The Managing Executive Officer for Marketing and Sales of Maruti disclosed that the company is on the verge of concentrating more on the low end model – Alto(the largest selling car in the country). However, there has been an investment of Rs290 crore for restructuring Wagon R which will be formally launched on April 23. It is highly ironical that the phasing out Wagon R is similar to that of Alto in terms of selling.

The modification in Wagon R is complete unlike other slight variations. Normal investment for such little modifications would involve Rs20-30 crore. But this new Wagon R needs total change and Maruti itself bears the amount in place of suppliers. It is sure to reflect in the pricing of the refined car-Rs3,334.5 lakh is the current price. The Wagon R undergoes in terms of heart transplantation with K-Series 998 getting place as that of A-Star but with less capacity by 100cc. the new engine is capable of delivering 68bhp with 18.9 km/lit. fuel consumption.

Transmission too undergoes change along with interiors and exteriors to wear a sporty posture. There will be more space to stretch the legs in the legroom and for storage beneath the parallel seat to the driver. Added features will be ABS, two front airbags, integrated stereo and is to be available in three variants- Lx, Lxi and Vxi. As of now there will be only petrol version to be followed by the Duo version and the model is slated for export to surrounding countries pending proper response. In the last ten years, since its launch, Wagon’s net sale volume is 8.5 lakhs. The redesigning is the third in the series the earlier changes happened in 2003 and 2006.

Indian auto plants get slots in world Top 10

The country’s top most car maker Maruti and the second largest company in India, Hyundai get the coveted slots in the world Top 10. With Maruti notching the number 3 slot Hyundai secured 7th position. The ranking done by CSM Worldwide Inc (a forecasting firm) ranked Chinese two companies for 8th and 10th positions. Maruti’s production in Gurgaon plant during 2009 was 620000 cars while the Chennai unit of Hyundai secured 550000 cars. The Chinese company Chongqing Jiangbei plant delivered 525000 cars, since there is no full-fledged plant similar to Maruti’s.

Another factor that restrained the Chinese companies is the focus on large and medium-range cars which need just smaller units involving economy and profit. Other plants in the listing are Ford’s Tichy in Poland (6th slot), Suzuki Motor’s Kosai plant (5th ). However, Hyundai has the twin slots with its Ulsan plant (a capacity of 1.2 million cars a year) in South Korea on the top of the list. The rankings reflect the poor response from the buyers in 2009- the overall purchase globally was 50.91million cars indicating a fall by 2.4% from its 52.17 million cars in 2008. This had not affected the Indian market which saw the purchase of 1.2 million cars in 2009 indicating an increase by 12.5% to 1.05 million sold in 2008.

Maruti Suzuki’s production in Gurgaon plant during 2008 was 640000 cars when it secured 5th rank during that year. Hyundai could not get entry into the listing then. The industry analysts feel that Indian companies can still gain momentum in the listing when more cars will be manufactured in the years to come. Many big global players have set afoot in the Indian land by creating their plants for domestic and export markets.

Renault-Nissan JV has installed a capacity near Chennai to boost the production to 400000 cars per year. Ford Motor is looking India as an ideal hub for small cars and has installed a plant near Chennai facilitating the production of 200000 cars a year. All these companies chalk out their strategy to increase the capacity in their plants in a bid to ease the flow of components from the suppliers. The wide area of India needs such a ploy to meet the demand.

It was in this sense that Maruti installed its capacity near Manesar where the capacity is targeted to be 250000 per year. The component suppliers to the plants of Gurgaon and Manesar are placed in the territory close to them. The revamping of low end infrastructure also contributes to the expansion of plants by the companies. The devising of a car involves altogether 5 allied jobs resulting with the state governments offering assistance by way of land and tax exemptions.

Experts from economy feel that the companies are in the urge to make additional cars to meet the global economies including export. In future, the production may hit at 4-5 lakhs units and there would be a challenging task to manage these production units. The corresponding manufacturing for economies in Europe and the US is 250000 cars per year. This is a major reason that the top 10 list does not find any car units from the US.

Maruti in red hanger

The proportion of production and sales does not match Maruti Suzuki. The company is facing an acute shortage of production to meet the demand for its cars. The situation is likely to go along till 2012, as the sale projection for 2010 is expected to increase by 10% from the volume of one million in 2009. The derivation implies that the company has to increase the capacity by 1 lakh cars from its plant, which is undergoing with full capacity.

The Chairman of Maruti is too honest to assert the situation and the technicians in the company are trying their best to boost the production by various means. But the situation will not be normalized before 2012, he said. According to the existing situation the supply will not meet any hiccup this year but 2011-12 would be more prone to delivery problem. The only option to recover from this situation, according to the Chairman, is to put the manual lines. The Executive Officer(Marketing) for Maruti said the company is on the verge of rationalizing, renovating and debottlenecking in Gurgaon plant.

The move is to press for optimal use of the plant for getting the maximum output, he said. Maruti has two plants- Gurgaon and Manesar- with the installed capacity of 800000 cars. However, the engineers of the company are too rapid to deliver one million cars this year indicating the capacity utilization of the units to 125%. The Manesar plant is to undergo the increased capacity by 250000 before 2012, despite the claim that both units might produce 1.1 million cars during this FY.

The company is brooding over the pending delivery of some of its cars especially Dzire, which has a waiting period of 3-4 months. Similar is the case with the newly launched Eeco. Swift comes next with the wait of minimum 2 months. The company is under pressure as it has not expected such a tremendous demand. To ease the dependency on European countries, Maruti is diluting the export potential. Already, it has inked a pact with Nissan for delivering 35000 Star-A (for Nissan it is Pixo) for this year. Industry experts view the situation of Maruti as highly competitive due to the increased presence of global players like GM, Nissan and Ford in small car segment.

Daimler, Renault-Nissan tie up for small cars, LCVs

The tripartite alliance among Renault, Nissan and Daimler is focused on small cars and LCVs. The pact enables each of the partners to enjoy a stake of 1.55% in Daimler and Daimler will enjoy 3.1% in Renault and 3.1% in Nissan. They believe that the pact would accrue 2 billion Euro in the next 5 years by way of cost saving and additional sales in the challenging European market. the deal is at core about sharing components as Renault-Nissan will take care of powertrains for Daimler’s micro cars- Renault Twingo and Mercedes-Benz range of compact cars. Nissan’s Infiniti will get the petrol and diesel engine tech from Daimler. In addition the alliance will involve for LCVs. The deal is akin to Peugeot Citroen playing as an engine supplier to BMW but the current deal among these partners is a project-oriented. The deal makes each of the partners as the supplier to the other. Daimler has had a tough time in the past with alliances- in 2005 it dropped its Mitsubishi project, ended up badly with Chrysler. Hence the current deal is taken in a serious view on restricted cooperation.

India will not face any impact out of Renault-Nissan and Daimler pact

India need not fear over the inking of the pact between Daimler and Renault-Nissan. The aim of the pact is focused on the European market rather than on domestic facility. The pact will involve small cars, LCVs and power trains and China alone will be brought to the fore as hubs for regional cooperation- Daimler and Infiniti of Nissan involving. India is not yet a potential destination for the car market, compared to China’s 14 million units. India, on the other hand, will be a source for low cost components for the partners.

The global companies see the quality and cost as the major factors constituting the Indian market. Daimler tried its best to bring in Chrysler to India but in vain. Rather it concentrated on Mercedes-Benz first which clicked well. Mitsubishi too tried with a small car for Asia under the shade of Daimler but the pact with Hyundai took Daimler to the fore with good business. The tie-up with Chrysler burnt the palms of Daimler. Renault contented itself with its Logan in India in a pact with M&M while Nissan-Renault tie-up will bring more business. Renault is chalking out its strategy to launch more cars from the Chennai unit. Hence Daimler has no role to play in the Indian business involving Renault-Nissan alliance.