Maruti to launch new Alto 800 on 16th October

This festive season you will see lot of new launches form auto makers in Inida. The all new Maruti Alto 800 is one of them, which will be launched officially on 16th of October 2012. In our earlier post we had posted clear spy pictures of the Alto 800. Maruti in last April stopped the production of M800 and will soon phase out the existing Alto. The new Alto 800 will replace both 800 and Alto, which is likely to be priced competitively at Rs. 2 lakh to rival Tata Nano.

     The new Alto 800 will be powered by the same 800cc engine but the engine has been extensively modified to improve performance and return a high mileage of 22.7 Kmpl. Now the 3 cylinder 796cc petrol engine will have power of 47.5 bhp @ 6000 rpm and torque 69 Nm @ 3500 rpm. Maruti has brought in new technologies – DSA (Down Shift Assist) and DPT (Detent Pin Technology) to improve the performance of transmission.

     The new Alto 800 has better interiors. The all new dashboard with neat central console gives a premium look to the car. Outer styling has been very conservative with lot of styling being copied from other cars such as Ford Figo and Hyundai i20. A CNG option will also be available right from day of the launch. Maruti has got a habit of delivering cars which are going to be a sure success. In case of new Alto 800 it will be tough as the market is flooded with competition with Renault, Nissan & Mahindra also planning to launch a car in that segment. 

Maruti Alto 800 Specifications

Nissan Evalia launched in India, priced at Rs.8.49 Lakh

Japanese auto major Nissan has launch Evalia MPV in India with price ranging from Rs. 8.49 lakh for the base XE variant and going up to Rs. 9.99 lakh for the top end XV variant (prices ex-showroom, New Delhi). The Evalia comes in 4 variants – XE, XE+,XL and XV.

Nissan Evalia Prices (ex-showroom, New Delhi)

Nissan Evalia XE - Rs.8.49 lakh

Nissan Evalia XE+ - Rs. 8.92 lakh

Nissan Evalia XL - Rs. 9.49 lakh

Nissan Evalia XV - Rs. 9.99 lakh

     The Evalia is powered by Renault sourced 1.5 L dCi diesel engine producing 84 Bhp of power and 20.4 Kgm of torque, mated to a 5 speed manual gear box. It delivers fuel efficiency of 19.3 Kmpl as per ARAI. Nissan keeping the safety features first, ABS and EBD are standard on all variants.

     The Evalia is built on Nissan’s NV200 platform. It has 7 seats in three row configuration and two sliding doors like the famous Maruti Van. Nissan doesnot want to call the Evalia a MPV, instead refers its as n a ‘Urban Utility Class Vehicle’ (UUCV). Is that a new segment in the making, we will have to wait and see.

     The Evalia will compete with Toyota Innova, Mahindra Xylo and the latest entrant Maruti Ertiga. Having priced close to Ertiga, the Evalia has an advantage over its competitors. Nissan aims at family car buyers but we feel it will certainly end up in the fleet operator segment.

2013 Honda CR-V spied in India

          The next generation Honda CR-V 2013 has been spied in India with heavy camouflage. Autocarindia has posted pictures of 2012 Honda CR-V provided by Mr. Vinod Sharma. The CR-V in the picture looks huge and bulkier than the current model, especially from the rear.

      The next generation Honda CR-V made its debut at New Your Auto Show in 2011. As of every Hondas, the new CR-V design is dynamic with sharp edges and flowing lines on the body. In the front the headlamps and grill merge which looks like both overlap each other. The grill, bumper and air dams match to the car’s dynamic profile. In the rear, Honda has retained the tall tail lamps, now more curved to gel with the tail gate. From the side profile the vehicle looks stretched and one feels to imaging of a third row of seats. It is still not clear whether the 2013 Honda CR-V come with a third row of seats.

     With Honda working on the diesel engines, we might see a diesel Honda CR-V 2013 locking its head with the Fortuner, Santa Fe and Pajero Sport. Honda CR-V 2013 will be priced around Rs. 28 lakh in India. 

Picture Source: Autocarindia

Tata Safari Storme launch on 17th October

     Finally Tata Motors has decided to launch then next generation Safari with a suffix ‘Storme’. Earlier this year at the Auto Expo 2012, Tata Motors had displayed the Safari Storme and couple of spy pictures taken during the TV shoot revealed that vehicle’s launch is around the corner. But Tata Motors has taken more time than expected to launch the much awaited Safari Storme.

     The Safari Storme has new front and rear ends. In the front the headlamps are upward sweeping wrap around type and the grill has been inspired from Land Rover. The spare wheel on the tail gate is removed and put under the vehicle like that in the Aria, for which Tata Motors had to work a bit on the Safari chassis. Apart from the exterior features, a host of interior changes reminds us of the Aria.

     Under the bonnet is the 2.2L ‘VERiCOR diesel engine with dual mass flywheel lifted from Aria which cuts the noise and vibrations. The power output though remains the same but the performance of the engine has been improved largely.

     The Safari Storme will be equipped with most of the latest features seen in the Aria. The Safari Storme will sell alongside the current Safari and will come in LX, EX and VX variants. The VX and ZX variants of the current Safari will be discontinued. The Safari Storme is likely to command a premium of over a lakh rupees than the current model.

     This is a desperate move from Tatas to push the Safari sales. Launched in 1998 along with the Indica, the Safari brand has bought laurels to the company and we feel its high time Tata Motors start thinking of making a truly next generation Safari.  

Mahindra Quanto launched in India at Rs. 5.82 lakh

     Mahindra today launched the much awaited mini Xylo aka ‘Quanto’ in India with prices starting from Rs. 5.82 lakh all the way going up to Rs. 7.36 lakh  for the top end model (Prices ex-showroom, Mumbai). 

     The Quanto name is derived from the word ‘Quantum’ which means more, and Mahindra in case of Quanto wants to tell its customers that the vehicle has more power, more space and more fun to drive features. 

     The Mahindra Quanto is powered by a 1493cc 3 cylinder CRDi engine that produces 100 Bhp of power @ 3750 rpm and 240 Nm of torque @ 1600-2300 rpm. The engine is both BS3 and BS4 complaint and has twin turbocharger, making it the smallest engine to have twin turbos. The engine delivers 17.21 kmpl, according to ARAI certification.

     The Quanto comes in four variants – C2, C4, C6 and C8. The C6 and C8 variants get ABS and DDAS features (Digital Driver Assist System) while the top end model is equipped with dual front airbags. Mahindra has incorporated Hybrid technology, which lowers fuel consumption by 5% in all the variants.

     The Quanto has turning radius of 5.4 m and ground clearance of 180 mm. It comes in 5+2 seating configuration with the last two seats facing each other. It is available in 6 colours - Black, Brown, Silver, Beige, Red and White. The Quanto bridges the gap between a hatchback and a SUV and aims to woe young customers.

     The Quanto shares its platform with Xylo and Genio and because of platform sharing only Rs. 100 crores has been spent on its development. Mahindra plans to take the Quanto to European markets next year. 

Mahindra Quanto Prices (ex-showroom, Mumbai): 

Mahindra Quanto C2 – 5.82 lakhs

Mahindra Quanto C4 – 6.35 lakhs

Mahindra Quanto C6 – 6.86 lakhs

Mahindra Quanto C8 – 7.36 lakhs

Fiat India introduces Absolute editions of Punto and Linea

     Fiat India today introduced Absolute editions its cars Punto and Linea. The introduction of Absolute editions marks Fiats celebratory offer to its customers. 

     The Absolute editions are nothing but top end variants of Punto and Linea with customised accessory for no extra cost. Both Punto and Linea Absolute edition comes with a front windshield mounted touchscreen 3D GPS navigator which also acts as a 3G tablet. It is powered by 1GHz processor and runs on Android 2.3 OS. It also has smartphone and multimedia functionality.

Features of Fiat Punto Absolute edition:
Countered splash guards
Grey coloured carpets
Free roadside assistance
Absolute branding on the exterior
Punto branded door sills
Insurance at discounted rate
Exchange bonus

Features of Fiat Linea Absolute edition:
Reverse parking sensor
Countered splash guards
Beige coloured carpets
Chrome strip on the boot
Linea branded door sills
Absolute branding on the exterior
Free roadside assistance
Insurance at discounted rate
Exchange bonus

Press Release:
Speaking on the occasion of launch, Mr Ravi Bhatia, Head of Business Development Fiat India said, “India is an important market for us and this endeavor is an important step for Fiat in that direction. We came out with this celebratory offer keeping the customers sentiments and their needs in mind where they can avail maximum benefits at no extra cost”. He also mentioned about Fiat India’s move to set up 80 more dealerships across India by end of March 2013.

More spy pictures of Maruti Alto 800 surfaces

     We in our earlier post had showed you spy pictures of soon to be launched Maruti Alto 800. Our friend Carblogindia has much more spy pictures of the Alto 800, exterior as well as interiors. From the pictures it is see than Maruti has given an all new dashboard for Alto 800. The fit and finish of the interiors seems to be good, better than the Nano.

Maruti Suzuki Alto 800 Specifications