GM ends alliance with Reva

Following the M&M-RECC pact, the GM called off its deal with electric car firm and plans to source Volt’s technology from their global electric vehicle.

India’s Mahindra buys Reva majority stake, GM to Develop New India Electric Car, Ends Reva Deal.

Indian car maker Mahindra and Mahindra said on Wednesday it had bought a majority stake in Bangalore-based Reva Electric Car to strengthen its position in the low-emission electric auto market.

Mahindra, India’s largest sports utility vehicle and tractor maker, bought a 55.2 percent stake in Reva, a global leader in producing low-cost electric cars.

The deal includes buying out equity from the promoters of Reva and providing 450 million rupees (9.5 million dollars) in fresh equity, a statement to the Mumbai stock exchange said. The value of the deal was not disclosed.

Reva’s promoters, the Maini family, will hold 31% in Mahindra Reva Electric Vehicle Company while Lon Bell, the co-founder, will hold 11% . Employees with stock options will hold the rest. “We expect that there will be 1.5 million electric cars sold globally. I see no reason why Reva cars will not be 50,000 of that 1.5 million in the next 7 to 10 years; this deal is a part of the larger strategy within the Mahindra group of focusing on sustained mobility,” said Pawan Goenka, president (automotive & farm equipment sectors), Mahindra & Mahindra, who will take over as chairman. Given our expertise in the overall vehicle development, we’ll work closely now with Mahindra Reva to make NXR and NXG a cost competitive and commercially viable product. We have also tied up funds for the first launch for Reva (NXR-NXG).”

GM to Develop New India Electric Car, Ends Reva Deal

Aday after Mahindra and Mahindra Ltd said it was taking a controlling stake in Bangalore-based Reva Electric Car Co., General Motors India (GM) scrapped its partnership with the company being acquired, saying it would make use of its own alternative fuel and propulsion technologies. “We plan to look within the General Motors portfolio for alternate technology vehicles,” said Karl Slym, president and managing director of GM India. Its US parent company is working on launching the Volt, a car that runs on batteries and has a small combustion engine that charges the cells as the car runs, giving it a range of 480km. The car is scheduled to be launched in the fourth quarter of this calendar year. The Reva, which operates solely on batteries, has a range of 80km.

The company is on track to launch light commercial vehicles as well as cars brought from its Chinese partner SAIC Corp. by the end of 2011. The cars will be sold in India under the Chevrolet badge. The three light truck models in the one-tonne range will be manufactured at its plant at Halol in Gujarat. It declined to disclose details on the cars to be launched. GM India is a 50-50 partnership between US-based General Motors Corp. and Shanghai-based SAIC Corp.

Price, Features and Specifications of Tata Indigo e-CS sedan

Tata Motors proudly launched the Tata Indigo e-CS as ‘World’s most compact sedan’ which is set at a price starting from Rs. 4,08,000 to Rs. 4,88,000 (ex-showroom price in Delhi). The company aims to make a sedan available to those who want to spend money below Rs.5 lac and yet enjoy this vehicle. It is the most fuel efficient sedan launched by Tata till date.

Tata Indigo has undergone a facelift and Tata has also enhanced some of the features to deliver e-CS to the Indian sedan buyers. The company has launched 4 versions of e- CS: Indigo e-CS eLS, Indigo e-CS eGLS, Indigo e-CS eLX and Indigo e–CS eGLX.

Tata Indigo e-CS will be available in 2 engine options namely 1193cc MPFi Petrol which can develop 65Bhp of maximum power with 100Nm of maximum torque and 1396cc CR4 Diesel engine which can develop 70 Bhp of maximum power with 140 Nm of maximum torque. Both the engines are complaint with BS4 emission norms applicable in 13 cities of India. The all new 1.4 litre CR 4 Common Rail Diesel engine offers a mileage of 23.03 kmpl approved by ARAI. This mileage is the highest for any sedan currently available.

The all new Tata Indigo e-CS comes with revamped features that include new headlamps, new orange turn indicators in headlamps, new white alloy wheels, dual tone beige interiors, electric outside rear view mirrors and integrated turn indicators in outside rear view mirrors. The sedan also includes new music system with Bluetooth and aux port, new satin finish front grille, new instrument cluster with chrome rings and latest brown glaze finish for centre console. The company has also cut the overall length to four meters to avail tax benefits of small cars. Tata Motors has successfully made e-CS a complete package to address space and maneuverability demands in the big and congested cities of India.

Tata Indigo e-CS is available in 4 vibrant colors: Sterling Gold, Starlight Blue, Royal Burgundy and Porcelain White. The ex-showroom price in Delhi for the four models is as follows- e-CS e LS is set at Rs. 4,08,000, e-CS e GLS at Rs. 4,28,000, e- CS e LX at Rs. 4,68,000 and e-CS e GLX 4,88,000.

Special edition of Innova launched by Toyota

Car-maker Toyota Kirloskar Motor on Wednesday launched a special edition of its multi-purpose vehicle Innova, priced at Rs 8.87 lakh (ex-showroom, Delhi).

The special edition, of which only 700 units will be sold, has been launched to commemorate the five years since the launch of the MPV in the Indian market, Toyota Kirloskar Motor (TKM) said in a statement.

"The Innova has been highly appreciated by our customers and has been the market leader in the MPV segment ever since its launch in 2005. We are focused on constantly upgrading our products based on customer feedback and are now delighted to introduce the all-new edition of the Innova," TKM Deputy Managing Director Sandeep Singh said.

He said the company has sold over 2.26 lakh units of the Innova since its launch in 2005. It is currently available in four variants in a price range of Rs 8.15 lakh to Rs 11.98 lakh (ex-showroom, Delhi)

The new special edition will be sold at TKM's dealerships between now and September. Fitted with a newly designed bumper, front grill and rear door varnish, the car will be available in one colour, premium super white.

VW to launch Phaeton in June with a price tag of Rs 76.3 lakh, Vento in three months

The Volkswagen Polo, the German auto major’s offering in the premium hatchback segment, continues to have a waiting period of two-three months, depending on the model and the variant.

This is despite customers paying a deposit of Rs 50,000 on booking. The Chakan plant is ramping up volume, which is approximately 100 cars a day now, for production of the sedan version of the new Polo, called the Vento (which means wind in Portuguese and Italian). Production of this car is expected to begin from July. It will be commercially available later in the year.

Neeraj Garg, member of the board and director cars, Volkswagen India, said they have over 9,000 bookings for the Polo. He said, “A sure sign of the revival in the market is that people are booking the Polo despite having to wait up to three months.”

The diesel variant of the Polo was launched earlier this month. VW India began selling the petrol version of Polo in March. The company will launch its top-of-the-line Phaeton next month with an ex showroom price tag of Rs 76.3 lakh. This will come as VW’s third CBU import, the two others being the Touareg and the new Beetle.

“We have no bookings for the Phaeton since it is in a niche segment,” said Mr Garg. He was speaking to reporters after the formal inauguration of VW’s Pune dealer, Vidyut Motors, its 43rd. VW has dealerships in 37 cities.

VW India president and CEO Joerg Mueller said VW is the only carmaker with a 17 vehicle line up across three brands in the group.

Mr Garg ruled out any cannibalisation of group company Skoda’s Fabia by the Polo hatchback. The entry level Polo is priced lower than Fabia, also a hatchback. Mr Garg said, “The group has a product strategy.. In the market different brands could compete with each other. But there has been no cannibalisation and the brands are not in conflict.”

Nissan Micra gets ready for booking!

Japanese carmaker Nissan said on Tuesday it will launch its Micra small car in the Indian market in July from a plant in the south co-owned with its French partner Renault.

"We will produce 80,000 units of Micra in the first 12 months beginning in May," Renault Nissan Automotive managing director Akira Sakurai said, according to Dow Jones Newswires.

The Micra was unveiled earlier this year at the Geneva auto show.

The Franco-Japanese carmaking alliance on Tuesday confirmed plans for another small car in the future, with its local partner, motorcycle and scooter manufacturer Bajaj Auto.

"We have room for another product, a small car, with Bajaj. This would be not just for Indian markets but for emerging markets too," Carlos Ghosn, chief executive of Renault-Nissan, said.

"The Micra will be competitive in terms of price and features with other Indian cars," Ghosn told media at a press conference in Chennai, where the car will be manufactured.

"To compete in India one must manufacture and source components locally, and meet Indian consumer needs," Ghosn added.

Nissan sold between 200 and 300 cars in India last year, all imported.

India and its 1.2 billion-strong population is a huge draw because of the low number of car owners.

Several automakers including Ford, Toyota and Honda are in the race to launch small cars in India in the next two years, to rival the Tata group's Nano, dubbed the "world's cheapest car" at 100,000 rupees (2,200 dollars).

Just eight per 1,000 Indians own a car, compared with 550 per 1,000 in Germany and 495 in France.

The Indian auto market is forecast to triple over the next decade to six million cars a year from the current two million.

The cars to be put on display across showrooms in India from May 25, will also be available for bookings at the same time.

The car to be produced from India and exported to Europe, Middle East and Asia in designed in keeping in mind the discerning consumer needs of India.