Tata Nano November 2010 sales decline

     The sales of county's much hyped small car Nano has fallen drastically to 509 units in November 2010 as compared to 3,000 odd units in the previous month. Sources say the manufacturing of Nano at the Sanand plant has almost stopped and over 80% of employees have been cut in last 6 to 8 months.

     The fire issues over the Nano has been a major factor for the decreasing sales. Tata Motors has issued a notice of fitting a fire protection device to all the Nano including the one also sold earlier of free of cost. May be this move by Tata Motors is also not working to a greater extent.

     A new initiative to sell Nanos across small outlets is planned in most of the states. Tatas have to work strongly with innovative ideas to woo customers and keep the Nanolution alive.

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Toyota Etios sedan launched in India

     Toyota has launched Etios sedan in India. The base variant 'J' is priced at Rs. 4.96 lakh where are the top end VX variant costs Rs 6.68 lakh (Prices ex-showroom New Delhi). The deliveries of the car will begin by January next year.

     The Etios sedan compete with cars such as Swift Dzire, Indigo Manza and Mahindra Logan. The base variants of these cars are priced at Rs 4.88 lakh, Rs. 5.12 lakh and Rs 4.66 lakh respectively.

     Toyota has worked hard on Etios which is evident. The company has keet the exterior design simple where the interiors will definitely impress everyone. The rear seats are designed very well which makes it the most comfortable car in its class. The boot space is generous at 595 liters. The car also features seven full sized cup holders and a 13 liter chilled glove box.

     Powering the Etios is the 1.5 Liter, 4 valve cylinder, 4 cylinder petrol eninge which produces power around 90 Bhp. The fuel efficiency is the best in class with 17.64 Kmpl as per ARAI certification.

Toyota Etios sedan equipment check list

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Maruti Suzuki developing a diesel engine for mid sized sedans

     India's largest automobile manufacturer Maruti Suzuki has announced that the company is developing a diesel engine for its mid-sized sedans which will be ready by 2011. Currently Maruti Suzuki enjoys a good market share of around 50%, thanks to its small diesel cars such as Swift and Ritz being sold in good numbers.

     The company is facing serious problems of not having a bigger diesel engines for its mid-size sedan SX4. Though being a good product, SX4 sales have been hit due to lack of a diesel option. Current the mid-sized sedan segemet is hotting up in Inida and no wonder companies like Toyota and Volkswagen are launching a good diesel powered sedan under Rs 10 lakh.

     Swift based sedan Dzire is also expected to get a bigger engine in coming future.

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Suzuki plans to make India as export hub for its cars

     After Hyundai, Suzuki Motor Corporation of Japan is planning to make India as its export hub for its cars. The company intent to export cars to Europe and African markets from India.

     Speaking at a Business Summit at Nikkei, Chariman of the company Mr Osamu Suzuki said, India has to develop its infrastructure to make it a major export hub. He emphasized on development ports which facilitate smooth export processes.

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Honda reveals its small car Brio

     Honda has revealed the prototype of its small car Brio at the 27th Thailand International Motor Expo 2010. Honda small car concept (codenamed 2CV) was showcased at the Auto Expo 2010.


Honda has built Brio as a commuter vehicle which is easy to use even in urban areas. The compact dimensions of the car (length 3,610mm x width 1,680mm x height 1,475 mm) helps in easy handling for the car in city traffic. 


Honda is aiming at fuel effeciency of 20 Kmpl. Brio has been priced at 4,00,000 Bhat in Thailand which is around Rs. 6,00,000/-

More pictures of Honda Brio

Honda Brio Video

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Volvo XC60 launched in India

-->     Swedish car maker Volvo has launched its XC60 SUV in India priced at Rs 39.5 lakh (ex-showroom New Delhi). The XC60 is the first vehicle in the contemporary crossover segment and is believed to be one of the safest cars in the world.

      The XC60 is powered by D5 twin turbo diesel engine pumping out 205 Bhp of  power and torque of 42.82 Kgm at 1500-3250 rmp. 0-60 is achieved in 4.48 seconds and does 100 Kmph in 9.57 seconds which is remarkable for such a big size vehicle. 

The Volvo XC60 is loaded with unique safety features such as

Blind Spot Information System
Lane Departure Warning
Radar-based Adaptive Cruise Control
Collision Warning with Auto Brakes (optional)
Radar and camera-assisted Automatic Braking
Roll Stability Control
Hill Descent Control
Whiplash Protection System
Adaptive Brake Light and Ready Alert Brakes

Source: Autocarindia.com  

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Fiat to split its Truck & Car business

     Italian automobile gaint will split its Truck & Tractor business with Car making operations. The split will be officially effective from 1^st January 2011. The two split firms will be Fiat SPA, which will focus on the automotive sector and Fiat Industrial SPA, which will have truck, commercial vehicles, agricultural and construction equipment, and related powertrain divisions under its portfolio.The two firms also gets new logos designed by Robilant Associati

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