Monthly Archives: May 2009

Tata’s Struggle with Jaguar and Land Rover

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It seems that the acquisition of JLR is taking more time and effort of Tata Motors than it was ever envisioned. Mr. Ratan Tata has admitted that buying Jaguar and Land Rover is proving heavier than he ever thought. The statement comes at a time when Tata is due to repay its loan amount of Rs 5,000 Crore ($ 1 billion) in June this year. This amount is a part of the Rs 10,000 Crore ($ 2 billion) to be repaid to the consortium of banks that helped in raising Rs 15,000 Crore ($ 3 billion). All the big hype surrounding the acquisition of Jaguar and Land Rover has vaporized into thin air and only the hard facts are left.

Sadly, Tata is struggling to raise the amount from its existing resources. As Tata has made huge investments to acquire JLR, selling it out will be very difficult. It will not get a buyer who will invest in a brand that is unmanageable. The previous owner of JLR, Ford Motors had brought it for $ 5 billion but was able to sell it off for only $ 2.3 billion. It was unable to recover more than half of its investment. Obviously, Tata is left with only one option of cleaning up its finances and also straightening up JLR in the face of the world.

The global economic meltdown has taken a heavy toll on Tatas’ vision of expansion into various fields. Hopefully, the company survives the tough times and again spread its charm across the globe with its scintillating car models.

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Yummy Racing Car Fuelled with Chocolate

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A racing car that runs on chocolate and has body parts made of veggies sounds really unimaginable. But this has been made in reality by a team of British designers from the University of Warwick. Though racing cars are commonly known to attract men, this particular car will be adorned by women as it comes with a chocolate flavour.

Named as the EcoF3, this yummy car runs on 30% biodiesel extracted from chocolate waste. Fibers derived from carrot pulp left over from the juice are used to make the steering wheel, front wing and the mirrors are made of potato starch and flax fiber. The car also used other eco-friendly materials like a side pod made from recycled bottles, a recycled carbon-fiber engine cover and radiator coatings that transform ozone to oxygen.

The car is built on Formula 3 specifications and is said to be the fastest race car that runs on biofuel with a top speed of 145 mph. Launched in last week, the car will be displayed at several races including the European Grand Prix and Britain’s Goodwood Festival of Speed. The concept of the car is really interesting and bizarre. Hope, India too witnesses some unique creations like this.

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Witness the Adventurous Bolero Inspira

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New Mahindra Bolero Inspira Concept Cars In India

If you want to add fun and adventure to your journey then the Bolero Inspira Concept is a perfect car. The car is an open top off-road concept based on the Mahindra Invader Platform. At a first look, Bolero Inspira may appear similar to open top off-road Willy’s Jeep models, but a closer look will reveal that it is completely a different vehicle.

Bolero Inspira is highly customizable vehicles available in the Mahindra customization unit of the company. The company has launched a special domain for customization of their popular car models like the Scorpio and the Bolero.

The new Bolero Inspira is inspired by the original Willy’s Jeep that carries a cult among car enthusiasts worldwide. The exterior has the custom painted body colour with a black mirror finish bonnet. The front and rear bull bars give the vehicle a unique off-roader look. The custom made bull bar in the front holds auxiliary spot lamps. The re-styled muscular flared wheel arches give it a tough side image. Inspira rolls on tough alloy wheels that add style to the adventure driving.

The colour coded interiors features bucket rows in first and second row seating and the rear seats are surrounded by the powder coated twin pipe roll cage that gives a sense of security to passengers while travelling in hilly regions. Custom stitched upholstery is available for buyers who like to have their own style in the car. The steering wheel, gear shift knob, and the dash grab handle compliment the body colour of the car. The flooring receives complete carpeting which can be customized according to a buyer’s choice.

Mahindra has intelligently introduced the customization facility eyeing the fast growing trend for car customization. And the model Inspira completely fulfils the desire of a car enthusiast to own a modified car as par his/her taste.



New Mahindra Bolero Inspira Concept Cars In India New Mahindra Bolero Inspira Concept Cars In India

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Stylish Linea to be More Powerful

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Fiat wants to give more power to its stylish Linea. It plans to add two new engines – a 1.6-litre multi-jet diesel engine that produces 118 bhp and a 1.6-litre petrol engine that generates 106 bhp.

The launch of the car has helped the company to get back its lost glory in India that was faded away into oblivion a few years ago. It experienced a smooth ride in the fast racing Indian car industry grabbing several accolades like ‘Car of the Year’ by UTVi Autocar, ‘Mid-Size Car of the Year’ awarded by both UTVi Autocar and CNBC Overdrive UTVi. It was also selected by TopGear for the Best Mid-size Saloon 2008 award. It has enticed many customers with its elegant design, luxurious interiors, and advanced features that give them a feeling of ownership pride.

Many believe that the car is underpowered compared to its rivals. The present 1.4-litre FIRE engine generates 89 bhp which is quite less compared to 116 bhp offered by the Honda City. Eyeing the customers’ response and competition, the company plans to enhance the power of the car. The company also plans to achieve 90 percent localization in production by 2010. This will further help to slash down the price making it more cost effective.

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Maruti Suzuki’s Swift Dzire Demand Goes High

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New Maruti Suzuki Swift Dzire Cars In India

Maruti Suzuki Swift Dzire, the stretched version of the sporty Swift hatchback is so much in demand that the company is unable to supply enough car models to the dealers.

In the Indian car market, the Swift Dzire is available in both petrol and diesel version. Among the two variants, the diesel version rejoices a comparatively higher demand than the petrol counterpart.The waiting period of the petrol version is nearly six months and for the diesel version the waiting time is still longer. As the company feels the demand for the diesel variant is plunging, it has scaled down the production of the car. However, according to dealers nearly 80 percent of the people opt for the diesel variant. The company should increase the overall production of the car so that buyers do not have to wait much to drive home their dream car.

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Mitsubishi Pajero takes the Sporty Route

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New Mitsubishi Pajero Cars In India

The stunning Mitsubishi Pajero is all set to arrive in an all-new avatar. The SUV will get a new design as well engine. It is said that the car will carry a Paris-Dakar Raid car looks, interior similar to Outlander, and the Tiptronic-like INVECS II automatic gearbox. Just like Toyota Fortuner, even the Pajero is based on a truck called Triton. The upgraded version of Pajero will come with a choice of two diesel engines powered by a 3.2-litre engine with an output of 165 bhp and a 2.5-litre engine that delivers 140 bhp.

The car was launched in India in 2002 and is available as completely built unit in cities like New Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Kochi, and Chandigarh. The vehicle recently got a facelift which is available worldwide with a 3.2-litre diesel engine. The present third generation Pajero is powered by a 2.8L turbo-diesel engine that generates 117 bhp. It seems the company wants to upgrade the car both in terms of design as well as power to tap the highly competitive Indian car market.

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Classic Beauties Unveiled in Hyderabad

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Eyeing India’s inclination for classic car, infrastructure developer GMR has come forward to promote Vintage car events in the City of Pearls, Hyderabad. GMR has taken an initiative to support vintage car events which are held in club levels across the county. Classic car enthusiast and collectors can take part in the well-organised events where they can deeply experience the world of vintage cars. GMR will also catalogue the cars that belong to the classic era and of which common masses are not aware of.

India always had a special place for classic car and each car comes with a glorious history that is worth revealing. These are considered to be the priced possession of the country that it beholds with pride.

At the recently held vintage show at Hyderabad some of the classic beauties that were the part of the event were American classic like 1936 Dodge convertible and Austin Seven from Britain. It is a good initiative taken by GMR. This will further promote and preserve these classic beauties in India.

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Modern Cars Give More Fuel Economy

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It’s found that modern cars give slightly more fuel efficiency than old cars. This is practically proved in a report by the journal of Energy Policy published in United States. The study was conducted recently on vehicles manufactured from 1923 to 2006. The report reveals that since 1920 there has been a little progress in fuel efficiency statistics. Researchers unveiled that the overall fuel economy of vehicles in United States in 1923 was 5.9 km/l. But in 2006, the average fuel efficiency was 17.3 km/l.

They found that overall fuel efficiency decreased to 5 km/l in 1973 from the earlier 5.9 km/l in 1923. However, there was a rapid improvement by 1991 when cars reported 7.1 km/l of fuel efficiency. Also, from 1991 to 2006 the improvement was less than 2 percent compared to earlier years. Whereas, fuel efficiency of cars improved from 5.6 km/l in 1973 to 9 km/l in 1991, but after 1991 there was only a marginal improvement of 9.5 km/l in 2006.

Though car manufacturers have introduced many engines that consume less fuel, it has been noted that still some of the modern cars consume same amount of fuel as old cars. They should stress more to bring in new technologies in the car industry that ensure improved mileage.

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Renovated Audi Q7 to Arrive Soon

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Audi is all set to give its high-performance SUV Q7 a new makeover. The globally acclaimed Audi Q7 will come with a revamped grille and twisted lights with Audi’s Led technology. The car is also speculated to get a new wheel designs, chrome accents, four new paint colours, and updated body styling in the front and rear. But the restyling is not that strong to change the originality of the existing Q7.

The drivetrain of the car will receive a newly developed ‘clean diesel’ version of the 3-litre V6 TDi engine. The new engine uses an AdBlue catalyst which is said to be Euro VI complaint. It is not yet confirmed whether this version will be available in India or not.

The upgraded car will foray the European market soon but it will take a year for the right handed Indian market to see the car. Audi Q7 is a great asset of the Indian car market. And the news of the upgraded version of the dashing Q7 is sure to create a sensation among its fans.

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Hyundai to Take Away India Exclusivity Tag from i20

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New Hyundai i20 Cars In India

Due to recurring labour unrest, the production at the Hyundai Motors’ Sriperumbudur factory has been hit badly. The plant manufactures around 1000 units daily that has been crippled due to the stir. Seeing the impact of the labour strike, the company is thinking to shift the production unit of i20 to a European country. It is also facing troubles like infrastructure problems, currency fluctuations, and low export incentives. All these hurdles are affecting the timely delivery of the i20 which may further upset the car sales.

It has been speculated that if the problem persists then the company will definitely look for an alternative that is for now is expected to be in Europe. Sadly, this step will take away i20’s India exclusivity tag.

With the strike reaching new heights as more than 800 workers getting arrested, the deadlock seems unbreakable. A cloud of uncertainty hangs over the launch of Hyundai i20 diesel which is set to hit the roads by the end of this year. Hopefully, everything gets settle down and i20 retains its tag of being the Indian made car.

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