SAIC invests its due to stake claim in GM India

The Chinese car premier company Shanghai Automotive has already entered into a JV on 50:50 basis, with the General Motors India, for establishing car manufacture in India. Under this JV, SAIC has shelled out $500 million (Rs2350 crore) to GM India. This makes the net investment of GM in India to $1 billion (Rs4700 crore) ever since its entry into India in 1994. The net investment involves the establishment of Talegaon plant for vehicle and power trains, Halol plant for cars, Gurgaon office and an R&D wing at Bangalore, said the GM India’s VP.

The R&D wing is to remain as a 100% subsidiary of GM USA. The JV between GM and SAIC, on 50:50 basis, is christened as General Motors SAIC Investment Ltd with its base in Hong Kong. Under the pact, the companies will make use of the plants at Maharastra (Talegaon) and Gujarat (Talol) with an equity base of $100 million.

The units will begin making utility vehicles and cars for the domestic market. With an investment of  $650 million for the initial phase of operations in India by 2011. The new pact paves way for the entry of two representatives into the board of GM India. Exports to parts of Asia will follow suit. GM has got 4% in domestic market with the production capacity of 60000 units a year which is expected to increase to 250000 units by 2012. The cars will be commonly branded Chevrolet while the utility vehicles will be branded under SAIC term with separate dealerships for cars and UVs.

Under the pact, the company will launch a new 800cc car, an entry-level, mid-size sedan from Wuling (local partner for GM-SAIC in China operations). There will be three CVs – small vans in the likes of Wagon R, pick-up vans (similar to Tata Ace) and muv (like Tata Sumo)- all from the SAIC product range.

Fuel efficiency to be rated by the government

The long awaited system of rating the vehicles on the basis of fuel efficiency has been mooted by the government. The rating will be publicized through a label pasted on the windshield of the cars which will enable the buyers to judge the worth of buying. Though not made mandatory as of now, the manufacturers are expected to be honest in revealing the rating stickers at least for a year now. The labeling is done to weigh the credential of that particular car in addition to other cars’ performance.

The cars are to be categorized on the basis of their weight – the best car will be awarded with 5 stars and the descending numbering for the inferior performance of the cars. From the current analysis it is estimated that it will take some time for cars to fetch the 5 star rating, implying that the present models come under below that category. The hiccup in the labelling, after the initiative from the Prime Minister’s Office in April 2009, came from two sources – the ministry of surface transport and the auto industry. The auto makers raise too many complex questions over the labeling on fuel efficiency and the turf battle with the Ministry is still on.

The standards for labeling has not yet been finalized – the mileage aspect or the emission of CO2  however, in association with the Bureau of Energy Efficiency, the transport ministry has suggested the emission of CO2 as the criterion for labeling. But, the BEE had the grace of Ministry of Power and the PMO, to insist that the focus should be made on the mileage aspect, to satisfy the fuel efficiency and economy of fuel import. The reason cited for this is that the pricing of fuel is of top priority in a country where 2 million cars find their entry every year.

Quite contrary to this, the surface transport ministry constituted a committee which came out with CO2 emission aspect. There are indications that the standards framed were so lax. By this, the cars running in 2017 could find their condition safe, in spite of being worse, compare to that of 2007. In the tussle, the BEE and the power ministry kept aloof from the scene indicating their unwillingness to proceed further. Notwithstanding the grave situation, the government has initiated the move.

The government believes that once the scheme gets off, the response would start flourishing. By 2012, it is believed, 15-20% cars of the current models would meet the norm so that 30% would get into the 5star category, 15% under 4 star category and another 30% would remain under 2 star category. The government’s move is seen as a boost for the foreign exchange savings for imported oils and direct benefit to the consumers. The volume of cars in 2005 was 49 million which is expected to rise to 373 million in 2035.

Tata to launch Pelican

You read it first at vicky.in

No surprise that our spy team is always fond of scoops! but their job gets tougher as manufacturers invest heavily to keep the secrets as secrets. Recently you must have read (it first) at vicky.in on Mahindra’s new Maxximo, now comes the Tata Pelican. Following the lines of magic and winger, Tata plans two commercial vehicles – Pelican and Penguin (both are codenames actual name may differ). While Tata Pelican would be smaller than winger, the Penguin based on Ace platform will rival Omni in the market. Now the specifications,variants and other details of the Tata Pelican

Tata Pelican is a van which comes in 5 seater / 8 seater configuration. Pelican will be powered by 1.4L Indica engine developing 70bhp of peak power at 4500rpm and 135Nm of peak torque at 2500rpm (the same engine that powers the Indica Vista 1.4 TDI). The Indirect Injection, turbo charged, intercooled is coupled with five speed transmission. With a claimed maximum speed of 125km/hr + pelican could be a good option for inter city travel too.Similar to winger and Omni, Pelican sports sliding doors at the sides. The dimensions of the Pelican are 3.9m in length, 1.5m wide and 1.8m taller. With a wheelbase of 2.1m, Pelican promises spacious cabin for occupants.

Emmel Vheelers of Maharastra is in the process of launching its electric vehicles in motorcycle segment.

The bikes will belong to high power electric version differing from its current electric two wheelers. To enhance its product sale, the dealer network will be increased to 100 (from the existing 25). The market area will be extended to AP, Gujarat and Delhi. The company is 18 months old with the launch of three brands and a sale figure of 1000 units as of now.

The yet to be launched new bike will be powered with a battery of DC motor and to run at 80km/h and equal distance at a single charge. Further, a personal transporter in the form of scooter Segway, an electric version, and a hybrid three wheeler will also be designed by Emmel in addition to accessories like batteries, fast chargers and controllers.

Nano to remain at Rs1 lakh

Tata Motors does not want to dissatisfy those who have booked its Nano at Rs1lakh. The existing cost hike for the raw materials and input prices may demand the company to hike the price but Tata is firm to deliver at the booked price. The MD of Tata disclosed that any hike in the price of Nano will be assessed only after the delivery of the pending bookings.

The company is not in a hurry to discuss about the price hike right now. Tata got the bookings for Nano from 1.55lah customers among the 2.06 applicants. Of these 1 lakh cars will be delivered by March 2010 and the rest will be delivered during the second phase. So far(till November) the world’s cheapest car reached some 13924 owners.

Tata committed the ex-showroom price of Nano to nearly first 1 lakh bookings and the three variants are available in the price range of Rs1.23 – Rs1.72 lakhs.

Bajaj testifies the Pulse and Discovers the market

The future months will see more models of Pulsar and Discover rushing out the Bajaj plant. At the same time, there is equal spirit in phasing out of existing models as the company has already locked the handbars of 4 models in just 4 months. The reason cited is the less demand for these models- Platina 125, XCD 135 belonging to executive segment of 110cc -135cc and this precedes the phasing of XCD 125 and Pulsar 200 models some months ago. As a result there won’t be any range in XCD brand (which won fame at the launch two years ago) taking the current portfolio to 8 bikes and a scooter.

Within a few days, Kristal scooter and Platina 100 will also find their exit from the market. This is in sharp contrast to the market leader Hero Honda who has 15 models ranging from 100cc – 225cc along with automatic scooter Pleasure. To retain a stable market for it, Bajaj intends to focus new brands of Pulsar and Discover- economy bike 100cc, executive bike 135cc respectively. Refined versions of Pulsar 150,180, and 220 will also be focused.

Bajaj affirms that the new Pulsar 135 will be superior to Platina 125 or XCD 135 in terms of style and brand image. Bajaj had faced a tough time with the Platina 135 and XCD 135 in sales compared to Pulsar or Discover both procuring better margin for the company. XCD 125 was targeted 50000 units a month but could fetch sale of just 20000 units a month.

The downfall came by means of cannibalization from Pulsar and from other bikes of other companies. The phasing, however, is indicated as a temporary measure to push the Pulsar ranges, said an official of the company. The target for Bajaj’s Pulsar ranges in 2010-11 is one million units of which nearly 45% will be derived from the new range.

Bajaj displays NO ENTRY into car market

A breath of relief for Nano comes in the wake of Bajaj’s dilemma over small car project. The two wheeler premium company was to launch its small car, to counter Nano, by 2011 but the Chairman of Bajaj ruled out such a project in near future. The project was to have been a JV among Bajaj, Nissan and Renault without Bajaj brand.

This is yet another surprise from the long term scooter giant, who withdrew its production of scooter to concentrate on motorcycles alone. Mr. Bajaj was fully emphatic about the situation that the trend is not conducive to enter the small car market which is already witnessing the competition from Nano to Mercedes.

The need of the hour, according to MrBajaj, is the stability for motorcycles segment followed by the three wheelers. The last resort will be the four wheelers and that too might be a carry van.

Delhi Auto Expo will witness Audi concept car

Audi, the German car sensation is to display its concept car at the Delhi Auto Expo. But, the visitors will have to wait to know about the specs of it nor the heritage models. The centenary car maker is planning to launch its brand logo at the Expo, in which the company’s board member for Sales and Marketing Mr. Peter Schwarzenbaurer will lead the delegation.

The MD for Audi India, Mr.Benoit Tiers is full of praise for the company’s good stint in 2009 derived from its range- Audi 6, Audi Q5, Audi Q7; further the company received tremendous response to its three new engines for Audi 4. The dealer network too is revamped in Mumbai, Ahmedabad and Kochi. Much to coincide the Expo, Audi is releasing its limited version of Audi A6 2.7 at Rs37lakh available from the New Year.

Audi 6 is the masterpiece for the company worldwide and the Indian market said the MD for India.

Tata Sumo Grande Mark II Driven

Click here to know on-road price, discount and offers of Tata Sumo Grande Mk2 http://www.vicky.in/onroadprice/quote

Unlike the sumo, sumo grande didn’t went well with the customers. Adding to the Tata’s misery is the success of its arch rival Mahindra’s MPV – XYlo. The failure of sumo Grande is attributed to its radical styling and poor plastic quality. On the other hand,Toyota Innova the segment leader continued to lure customers with its impeccable refinement and car like driving characteristics.

We have been witnessing great improvement in Tata vehicle’s quality (remember Indigo Manza), before we checked out Sumo Grande Mark II, we expected the improvement in this line. Let’s see whether Sumo Grande delivers![more review…..]

Maruti to showcase SX4 hatchback

The Auto Expo in New Delhi will be a platform for the bigger companies to muscle their strength with latest models and Maruti intends to display its existing strength of 17 vehicle. Apart from the Eeco and R III concept, Maruti will also showcase much popular SX4 hatchback. But there would not be launch of this version in India, said an official from the company. Visitors to the Expo can have a sight of Suzuki Kizashi, a 2.4lit US import sedan.