Honda recalls ‘City’ in India for faulty valve train

     Honda has recalled its popular sedan ‘City’ in India for replacement for a faulty valve train. The recalled cars were manufactured between November 2008 and December 2009. According to the company 57,853 units had been manufactured during the period and all those will be recalled.

     The City need a change of lost motion springs which are compressed by rocker jams during normal engine use. These springs may bend or break causing abnormal engine noise and hence damaging the engine.

     The valve train replacement will be done free of cost and the company will communicate with the City owners directly. A microsite on Honda’s Indian website has also been created where customers can check weather their cars are affected

New Volkswagen Passat launch in India on March 29th

     Volkswagen will launch the new Passat sedan in India on 29th of March this year. The new Passat will be the 7th generation car and even though most of the body panels have been changed, the car looks similar to the earlier model. Nothing has been changed in terms of dimensions except for the length which is 4 mm longer than the outgoing car.


     New headlamp and tailamp assembly with chrome insertions are the only major changes in the exterior. The interior looks familiar with the earlier model but now gets lots of chrome treatment. Quality of interiors have been enhanced with use of quality materials.


     Initially, the Passat will be available in the same engine options – a 2.0 TDI diesel and 1.8 TSI petrol, both of which are familiar and being used in the earlier model. The 2.0 TDI diesel engine now delivers power of 170 Bhp, a clean 32 Bhp higher. Transmission options offered will be both manual and DSG gearbox. Expect the new Passat to be priced slightly higher than the previous one.


     Autocarindia could scoop some of the pictures of the soon to be launched new Passat. Have a look at them.

Mahindra Gio passenger cab launched in Bihar

     Mahindra has launched a passenger variant of its sub one tonne pick up Gio in Bihar priced at Rs. 1.95 lakh (ex-showroom). The vehicle is powered by single-cylinder, 441cc, diesel engine that produces 9.1 bhp and 2.2 kgm of peak torque. The engine compiles with BS3 norms. Mahindra claims the Gio 4-wheeler compact cab will deliver 30 kmpl. The 4 wheeler compact cab will compete with the 3-wheeler passenger carriers from Bajaj and Piaggio.

Mercedes Benz launches G Wagon(G55 AMG) in India

     German luxury automobile manufacturer Mercedes Benz has launched G Wagon cross country vehicle in India priced at Rs. Rs 1.1 crore (ex-showroom Mumbai). The G Wagon will be imported a CBU (Completely Built Unit). The G represents Geländewagen which in German refers to Cross Country Vehicle. The version launched in India is the AMG tuned G55.

     The G55 is powered by a 5.5-litre petrol V8 eninge developing 507 Bhp @ 6100 rpm & 71.4 kgm of torque @ 2750 rpm. The G55 weight over 2.5 tonnes and does 0-100 is just 5.5 seconds. The G55 is loaded with technology such as permanent all-wheel drive with three locking differentials, a 5-speed automatic transmission, ESP and electronic traction control system and high performance 350mm front and 330mm rear ventilated disc brakes.

One more Chinese MPV caught testing in India – this time its Hong Guang

    Few days earlier we had posted about General Motors testing the Wuling MPV Hong Tu in India. Now we have found one more MPV from the Chinese manufacturer Wuling being tested on India soil.

     The MPV in the picture with heavy camouflage is Wuling Hong Guang which was spied in Bangalore. Unlike the Hong Tu which is a competitor to Maruti Eeco, the Hong Guang is bigger in dimensions and is likely to compete against Toyota Innova and Mahindra Xylo. The vehicle has flexible seating arrangements of 2+2+3 and 2+3+3.

     Chevrolet has to position the Hong Guang as it might overshadow its own Tavera. Probable Chevrolet will position Hong Guang as a luxury people mover. Lets wait and watch.

Chevrolet Beat diesel launch in India by June 2011

     Chevrolet had revealed its plans of launching a diesel powered Beat in India. Now it has been confirmed that the diesel Beat will be launched in India by June 2011. But we could expect the diesel Beat launch any time before the speculated launch.

     Chevrolet recently launched LPG version of the Beat and is looking serious on the diesel variant to push sales. The petrol driven Beat could not make a big impact on the Indian market thanks to the series of new launches in the segment by other players.

     Goa on Wheels (a fellow blogger) could able to get spy pictures of diesel Beat being testing in Bangalore. To remind, General Motors has a designing and testing facility in Bangalore which was instrumental in developing the new 1.2L SMARTECH petrol engine which powers the current Beat.

     The white Beat in the picture has a TCDi badge which makes it confirm that the car is indeed run on diesel. Since we have spotted the car without camouflage it might be soon launched earlier than expected. The Beat diesel engine will be a 3 cylinder 1litre one promising a path breaking fuel efficiency.

Mahindra enters construction equipment market in India with launch of Earth Master backhoe loader

     India’s leading multi utility vehicle manufacturer Mahindra & Mahindra has entered the construction equipment market in India with the launch of Earth Master backhoe loader. The Earth Master backhoe loader is priced at Rs. 20.98 lakh (ex-showroom Maharashtra) and will be manufactured at the company’s state of the art facility at Chakan. The vehicle is ideal for all heavy duty applications such as excavation, loading, grading, dozing and cutting.

     The Earth Master backhoe loader is powered by a DITEC 3.3 litre engine with 83 Bhp of power. The vehicle promises to give unmatched fuel economy, superior style and great operator comfort.  The vehicle comes with a 2 years unlimited hours warranty and can be serviced at dedicated service outlets by the company.

Press Release:

Speaking at the launch of the Construction Equipment business, Pawan Goenka, President, Automotive & Farm Equipment Sectors, said, “The Mahindra EarthMaster is an outcome of 36 months of development and is loaded with technology not hitherto seen in this product segment in India. With EarthMaster, we are ushering in a new era of performance, comfort and ease of operation in backhoe loaders.”

“The Mahindra EarthMaster has undergone over 20,000 hours of rigorous testing in the harshest of terrains and for the toughest of applications. It has been validated on all performance, safety and reliability parameters. It is backed by Mahindra’s dealer network, which will have unparalleled reach across the country. India is the world’s largest backhoe loader market with over 25,000 units expected to be sold in this fiscal, and we hope to create a mark in this fast growing segment,” said Kairas Vakharia, Business Head, Construction Equipment, Mahindra & Mahindra.

Source: The Hindu via IndianCarsBikes