Mitsubishi Motors, which has been contemplating the launch of its sports sedan, the Evolution X here in India for quite some time now, has finally given its nod and the beast will hit the Indian shores in the second week of July. Yep, we are equally exited too.

The Evo, as all of us know, has been there in the news for a long time now and has probably garnered more coverage than the existing models in Mitsubishi’s Indian line up. This drool-worthy Mitsubishi Lancer Evoloution X is the latest generation Lancer Evo FQ300 which is one of the expensive variants and is being currently sold globally.

Mitsubishi will be launching the high spec FQ300, featuring special shark nose styling and lots of extra technology in it such as new Double Clutch Transmission in addition to a manual gearbox. The Evo X will sport a 2.0L Turbocharged inline-4 producing 296 bhp @ 6500rpm and 407Nm of torque at 3500rpm. Whoa! That’s some power you say, but do expect some drop in the power due to the Indian conditions (Fuel and road).

The prices and features will be made public during the launch. But we expect this car to be in the price bracket of 35-40 lakhs as the car is brought in as a CBU. By the way, this Evo X will be special and will soon become a collector’s item as the next generation Evo will be a diesel hybrid. Grab your check books and rush to the showroom to book your own Evolution X now.

Mitsubishi Motors though had its presence in India for over a decade now, has not yet reached the designated sales it was expecting in India. Mitsubishi Motors India could sell just 2,200 units in the last fiscal, but Mitusbishi is planning big and aims to sell 10,000 units by 2011-2012. The present Outlander has been selling 35-40 units every month which Mitsubishi expects to increase to 80 with the 2010 Bharat Stage-4 Compliant model. Reports even suggest that the Evolution has completed its Homologation procedures at ARAI.

Image Courtesy: EVOX IMAGES

There’s good news. Jaguar Land Rover has started delivering the Jaguar XJ in India. No no, not the hybrids. The Jaguar XJ and XF hybrids are still on their way. For now, the XJ that was showcased at the Delhi Auto Expo 2010 is being delivered. Great news, right? The lustrous, the sporting, the classy Jaguar XJ has begun adorning the car porches of many a homes.

“We notice a very intense aspiration in India to own an XJ. We are encouraged by the number of customers who have expressed a desire to own this iconic car,” Mr S Krishnan, Tata Motors’ Senior Vice President (Commercial), Passenger Car Business Unit, said. Tata Motors, which now owns JLR, says that the all-new Jaguar XJ offers a “seductive mix of striking design, breathtaking performance and engineering.” Very true indeed!

The elongated teardrop shape of the side windows portrays the car’s unique profile. And, the aerodynamic character is not revealed just in the looks, the XJ’s drag coefficient of 0.29 makes it the most aerodynamic Jaguar ever, along with the Jaguar XF of course. The beautiful car is also the lightest in its class.

The XJ’s unique lightweight vehicle architecture that comprises of primarily aluminium, with magnesium and composite alloys too, gives the Jaguar its significantly lighter and stiffer body. The quality materials used in the construction have given the XJ enhanced strength, greater refinement and advanced safety performance. The structure features aerospace-based riveting and bonding processes.

A coupé profile wraps a cabin that offers the space of a sedan. There is generous room for five occupants. A powerful sporting character can be noticed throughout the interiors of this new car. The panoramic glass roof only accentuates the sense of light and space in the cabin.

A new generation of interior technologies have been revealed through the XJ; technologies like the innovative Virtual Instrument dials, 8-inch full-colour Dual View technology with Touch Screen display and 1200 W Bowers & Wilkins premium surround sound system.

The new XJ is available in India in the long wheelbase version and this allows the rear seat passengers enjoy a lavish and refined environment with an additional 125mm of legroom. The all new XJ cabin blends elegant, contemporary design with the comfort, luxury and unmistakable sporting style of a Jaguar. It is powered by 5-litre 379 bhp AJ-V8 Gen III naturally aspirated direct-injection V8 petrol engine. We had earlier mentioned that the car would also come with a choice of a 3-litre V6 diesel motor. Well, let’s hope it comes soon.

The engine has been mated to a shift-by-wire six-speed automatic transmission that also allows the driver to shift gears manually without using a clutch by means of steering wheel-mounted paddles. And of course, the car comes with a long list of high-tech bits like air suspension, Adaptive Dynamics (continuously variable damping), Active Differential Control, LED taillights and a host of others.

Good is never enough, is it? And hence we strive to achieve the better. Similar is the case with Maruti Suzuki India. MSI is planning to expand its dealership network, which is already one of the best in India. The company plans to add another 200 dealers to its existing network.

Maruti Suzuki India is the largest auto manufacturer and boasts of having more than 800 showrooms and service centres spread across which across 500 plus cities in the country. And the company’s Chief General Manager Mr. Shashank Srivastava revealed that the company intends to take this number further up to 1,000 in this fiscal year.

“Last year, we did very good sales in rural areas, where the growth was very, very good. Nearly 17 per cent of our sales were in the rural segment against nine per cent in the previous year (2008-09)” he said. “Our intention is to take up the number of outlets to 1,000 this fiscal,” he added.

No doubt that the urban crowd is increasingly demanding more new cars, but the rural population in India is also giving good business to the car manufacturers. And Maruti Suzuki wants to be the in the lead making the most of the situation. The company has seen a significant 17% sales contribution from the rural areas, and hence the decision to strengthen the dealership and service centres in the villages.

“We have gained good ground in the rural market and we will continue on that,” he said. There had been some wild speculations that MSI was losing its market share in the small car segment in India. But it all seems a little exaggerated, at least for now.

In the past one year or so, we have quite a few launches in the hatchback segment, such as Honda Jazz, Tata Nano, Chevrolet Beat, Ford Figo and Volkswagen Polo. But MSI’s market share remains practically untouched by these new entrants. The company did witness its market share fall below 50 per cent in the A2 segment, during April 2010.

Sachin Gupta of HSBC Securities and Capital Markets recently said that Maruti has started to regain the lost share but Hyundai Motor India and Tata Motors are the one whose loss has been much higher than MSI.

Meanwhile Maruti has found another way of beating the competition. Yes, the company is lining up some CNG launches which will strengthen its position further in the small car segment.

Executive Officer (Marketing & Sales) Mayank Pareek says Maruti has been able to retain market share because it held fast to three core values: value-for-money, trust and reliability of the product and styling.

“We have always been able to provide the lowest cost of ownership in cars and now, even in the styling aspect we have matched competitors”.

So what is it that attracts the customers towards Maruti cars? It is the power of competitive pricing, overall value for money that is coupled with a wide service network that is famous for excellent after sales services. Maruti also scores some extra points when it comes to spare parts replacement. The cost of spares needed for the Ford Figo is about 25% higher than that of Maruti WagonR, and that of Chevrolet Beat is about 40% higher. Even the resale value of the Maruti cars is much higher than the other small cars.

We had yet another spectacular race filled with excitement as Audi took the top honours at the Le Mans 24 Hours Endurance Race 2010. Audi raced around clean sweeping out the stakes at Le Mans with all first, second and third places bagged royally. Audi won the 24 Hours of Le Mans for the ninth time on Sunday after all Peugeot cars retired, completing a record 397 laps. Audi had famously lost out to Peugeot in their amazing bid last year for the title with their capable HDi powered LMPs.

However, this year, the German manufacturer swept the top three spots at the 8.4-mile Circuit de la Sarthe. There is a tie between Audi and Ferrari for the second place in the list of the most successful manufacturers at Le Mans. Porsche, however, has the best record with 16 wins.

Timo Bernhard, teaming up with fellow German driver Mike Rockenfeller and Frenchman Romain Dumas won the race. Congratulations to the three who have won for the first time at the track. Audi secured its fourth top-three finish after sweeping the top three spots in 2000, 2002 and 2004. The R15 TDI driven by France’s Benoit Treluyer, which lagged one lap behind, came second. The #7 Audi whose steering was in the hands of Italy’s Dindo Capello came third, three laps back.

“It’s unbelievable. I didn’t expect it,” Rockenfeller said. “We did a good, clean job and we were lucky that our main competitor had so many problems.” That’s what we call ‘being humble’. Peugeot became a huge favourite after securing the four top spots on the starting grid. Peugeot had the fastest cars while Audi had reliable ones. The result: the reliable ones took home the title. Peugeot ran into problems during the race.

“At the beginning it was a little unlucky for us, but at the end it worked out fine,” said Audi boss Dr. Wolfgang Ullrich. “It’s a great reward for all the work everyone has done. I think this has to be the hardest Le Mans we’ve ever done.”

The remaining No. 1 Peugeot 908 HDI, driven by Alexander Wurz, Marc Gene and Anthony Davidson, suffered an engine failure with just two hours remaining at the Circuit de la Sarthe. They had started out well but were forced to pit for 12 minutes with electric problems, thus dropping from first to seventh place. The three drivers, however, had moved back to second, with Gene and Davidson alternately improving the best time. That stumbling block came into the picture four hours after the leading No. 2 of Stephane Sarrazin, Franck Montagny and Nicolas Minassian retired with turbo failure.

Peugeot’s problems started very early this year. Suspension damage after less than three hours led Former Champ Car champion, Sebastien Bourdais’s car to retire. The non-factory Oreca Peugeot of Olivier Panis, Nicolas Lapierre and Loic Duval also retired. Problem: engine failure. Duval was attempting to catch the No. 7 Audi and was within 10 seconds of third place when his car’s engine blew up.

Audi’s hopes had gone down during the fifth hour when Tom Kristensen went off while trying to pass a BMW driven by Andy Priaulx. Kristensen, has eight wins at the Le Mans and imagine this racer sliding off into the gravel and hitting the barriers. However, he returned to the pits and continued the race, but lost three laps to the race leaders.

Former Formula One world champion Nigel Mansell lasted only 18 minutes. Mansell spun in his Ginetta-Zytek and hit the security barrier and was then evacuated in an ambulance. The 56-year-old British driver was racing for the first time at Le Mans, with his sons Greg and Leo.

We all know that the Indian car market has been showing phenomenal growth of late. And, that is why the eagle-eyed Chinese auto and parts suppliers are looking for some narrow space through which they can get in and take control of the Indian market. Second only to its own in pace of growth, China has been dreaming of using India as a low-cost export base.

Indian auto sales went up 30 per cent in May. No wonder all this is happening. Chinese companies like SAIC, Foton, FAW, Chery, Geely and Great Wall have plans for everything, from light minivans to cars, heavy-duty trucks and buses, for introduction in India. A few like SAIC and FAW are trying their luck through their global alliance and others are on the lookout for Indian partners.

We have already heard that GM may take some Chinese help to bring in the Nano rival. GM India, SAIC and Wuling have bonded and SAIC has bought 50 per cent of the US car maker’s Indian subsidiary, General Motors India. So, SAIC will not find it too difficult to get in. It’s clear that LCVs and minivans from the Wuling range will be here any time, don’t you think so? GM is also looking at introducing new cars from its Chinese partner, FAW.

Another Chinese company, Foton has plans of investing around $200 million for a 100,000-unit factory using locally-sourced components. Foton will most likely introduce tractor trailors, heavy duty trucks from the Auman and Aumark range, pick-ups and SUVs in India. Medium-sized and small vans will be assembled locally. Speculation says Chery, Geely and Great Wall are also in advanced talks with ICML, the car division of tractor-maker Sonalika. ICML’s CEO Deepak Mittal, however, refused to comment.

Car makers possessing the advantage of low cost and scale have been looking at India as their Asian hub. Experts believe Indian regulations are not going to pose a major hurdle to Chinese companies. Given the fact that Chery Automobile sells around 5 lakh Chery QQs in about 11 countries, clearing motor vehicle norms in India is not an issue. Besides, China has more stringent commercial vehicle norms than India. However, with the recent controversy generated by Chery QQ, which is allegedly a design copy of GM’s Spark, patents may pose as a cause for concern.

Car sales in the current fiscal are estimated around 3 million units. But Chinese companies are not going to be satisfied with just the high sales. They also look at India as a low-cost but higher quality export hub, a business model that Maruti Suzuki and Hyundai have successfully adopted.

And yes, it’s not just the auto companies that are eyeing India, parts companies too are looking for potential partners. Yapp Zoom Automotive Systems, a 51:49 joint venture between Yangzhou-based Yapp Automotive Parts and Mumbai’s Zoom Developers, for example, began production at its plastic fuel tank manufacturing facility at the Ford New Suppliers Park early this month. Yapp Zoom Automotive has confirmed business from Ford for its Fiesta and Figo models. It is also the 100 per cent component supplier for VW Polo and Skoda Fabia and is in advanced level talks with other auto manufacturers.

Watched Sex And The City 2 over the weekend? Carrie and her three urban icon friends are back and as stylish as ever in the highly anticipated Sex and the City 2. The movie features the same style and luxury expected of the foursome and their friends. The four are off on adventures yet another time. But this time, adding extra streaks of lavishness all over, are the Mercedes Benz E-Class Cabriolet and the ultra-luxurious Maybach.

A Darren Star Production, A Film by Michael Patrick King, Sarah Jessica Parker, “Sex And The City 2,” features Kim Cattrall, Kristin Davis and Cynthia Nixon, with John Corbett and Chris Noth. Written and directed by Michael Patrick King, based on the TV Series Created by Darren Star, based on Characters from the book by Candace Bushnell. The film is produced by Michael Patrick King, Sarah Jessica Parker, Darren Star and John Melfi.

While the four friends drive in their Maybach and G-Class SUV from Mercedes-Benz, Mr. Big will once again drive through New York City in his Black S-Class. He also has the new eco-friendly S400 Hybrid from Mercedes Benz. Samantha drives in the legendary offroader from Mercedes-Benz, the G-Class. The four girl friends are shown leaving together for an exotic trip chauffeured in the comfort of luxurious Maybach saloons. Whoa!

The new 2011 E-Class Cabriolet just made its appearance on the big screen as Carrie and Mr. Big went off to Connecticut in the Quartz Blue luxury car. That’s the same car that features in the print ad. The exclusive automobile promotional partner of Sex And The City 2 has been earning a lot of fame of late. The popular personalities of the four friends are adding to the fame of the luxury brand.

The Sex and the City 2 logo and the tag line also include “The stunning. The talented. The New Mercedes-Benz E-Class Cabriolet.” Who is sexier, the cars or the characters? Well, hard to decide. These Mercedes-Benz commercials will run in 17 of the top Mercedes-Benz markets on top channels. The movie is very well bringing out the brand values of Mercedes Benz and Maybach – style, excitement and elegance.

Four different Mercedes cars, the all-new E-Class Cabriolet, the S400 Hybrid Sedan, the G-Class SUV and the ultra-luxury Maybach sedan feature in the entire movie. The chic, elegant, and versatile four seat, three-layer soft top convertible, the all-new E-Class Cabriolet, which has the latest in luxury and safety technology has been showcased in the film. The new environmentally friendly S400 Hybrid, ruggedly sophisticated G-Class and ultra-luxurious Maybach too display their natural elements.

Mercedes-Benz is hyperactive at the moment and how can the car maker forget the very popular Facebook? The interactive site features a Mercedes-Benz E-Class Cabriolet filled with 27 gift boxes. Each box is a unique surprise for the visitor ranging from an HP Entertainment Notebook to a Swarovski wrist watch to the sunglasses that Carrie wears in Sex and the City 2. Sounds interesting!

Call it magic or call it the Ford Figo, it all means the same thing. The latest launch from Ford India, Figo, has turned the fortune of the company which was lagging behind in the Indian small car market. But now, the company is back in the game with an ace in its hands. The Ford hatchback is doing well in the Indian market and much better than its competitors. And now, Ford has another reason to extend the celebration period.

Ford India will now be exporting petrol and diesel engines of Figo to Thailand and will also completely built units of Figo to South Africa by July 2010. The car manufacturing company had earlier revealed that it will be manufacturing engines not only for India, but for overseas markets like South Africa, Asia-Pacific, Europe, and North America too.

The initial phase of this plan will see the export of Figo engines to the ASEAN countries and South Africa. Ford India’s manufacturing unit in Chennai has a production capacity of 250,000 engines per annum, and with the recent developments, the plant seems totally poised to become a major centre for exportation of both diesel and gasoline engines. The new engine plant is spread across over 40,000 square metres and will enhance the production capacity by almost four times.

“We will be exporting diesel and petrol engines to Thailand. The monthly demand there is around 3,000 units. It is difficult to comment on the future volumes as it depends on the demand in the Thailand market as well as other markets the Thailand plant serves,” Ford India president and managing director Michael Boneham was quoted as saying.

He also added, “While we are exporting Figo model to South Africa, new overseas markets are being explored,” he said. He had earlier said in an official release, “This engine plant was created with a ‘best of the best’ approach,” said Michael Boneham, president and managing director, Ford India. “We benchmarked against other competitive facilities globally, as well as the current volume manufacturers in India for quality and production efficiency.”

Boneham was on a talking spree and he revealed that Ford India will start off a second shift at its Maraimalai Nagar production facility, as Figo has far exceeded expectations. Ford has already delivered 16,000 units of the hatchback and has another 6000 confirmed bookings for the same.

“With the second shift the production capacity will go up to 140,000 units. The additional production will bring down the waiting time for Figo. We will be increasing the headcount in the plant by 1000,” he added. “Currently, the waiting period ranges between 4-6 weeks and we want to bring it down further. With the new shift, we hope make it three-four weeks.”

Ford has launched the Figo in both petrol and diesel versions, and about 60 per cent of total Figo sales comes from the diesel variant. Ford is also aiming to develop a more expansive dealership network and increasing the number from 166 to 200.

We saw a magnanimous performance from the McLaren team at the Turkish Grand Prix and a similar performance followed at the Montreal’s Circuit Gilles Villeneuve too. McLaren drivers, Lewis Hamilton and Jenson Button, have turned on the heat in the 2010 F1 Championship with their third one-two of the season.

With the glorious win at the Canadian GP, McLaren has moved on the top of the points list of the 2010 F1 Championship.

“It is fantastic for the team. It’s the result of continued hard work from the guys. I saw the second to last lap Mark had gone ahead,” said Hamilton. “I was so fortunate the guys came on the radio and said I had chance to get another lap in, it’s great to finally strip these guys. It’s a great result and I’m very happy,” he added.

The race was a classic combination of lots of ups and downs. The second fastest qualifier Mark Webber was moved back five grid places after Red Bull replaced the gearbox which was closely followed by a collision between Ferrari’s Felipe Massa and Force India’s Vitantonio Liuzzi.

Ferraridriver, Fernando Alonso finished third ahead of the two Red Bull drivers. Sebastien Vettel and Mark Webber saved the pride and honour of the Red Bull team with their respective fourth and fifth place finish. Pity they could not show us the victorious performances that we have gotten accustomed to of late.

Nico Rosberg finished the race at the sixth position ahead of his team mate, Michael Schumacher who has been subjecting us to one lame performance after the other. The seven-time Formula 1 season champion started at 13th post his lamest qualifying performance of the season and finished eleventh. Now, this can be considered anything but consequential for the Mercedes team.

“The first stop was perfectly timed, so it was looking quite promising,” Schumacher said. ‘Then I had a puncture on the front right tire … after I got together with Kubica, and that obviously decided my race. From there, I was stuck in traffic and there was nothing more to do because today our weapons were not very sharp.”

The Polish driver from the Renault team, Robert Kubica, and Sebastien Buemi from the STR – Ferrari team grabbed the seventh and eighth position respectively.

It was a big day for the Indian racing team Force India. Both the drivers from the Force India team finished among points. This is the second time that the Indian team has been able to do so since its inception.

Vitantonio Liuzzi started with the fifth place on the grid and survived an opening lap tangle, while still managing to finish among the top ten with his finish at the ninth place. Team mate Adrian Sutil, while struggling with tyre degradation, raced wheel-to-wheel with Liuzzi and finished at the tenth position.

With a total of 35 points, Force India is maintaining its tight hold on the sixth position.

HRT driver Karun Chandhok started 24th on the grid and finished 18th in the race.

Tomorrow, at three in the afternoon what a splendid sight those at the Le Mans are going to behold. The legendary 24-hour race will begin. The spotlight this time is surely going to be on Jeff Koons’ BMW Art Car, the 17th BMW Art Car which was presented in Paris just last week. Two months ago, BMW Motorsport Director Mario Theissen had announced the driver line-up for the Le Mans. Andy Priaulx (GB), Dirk Müller (DE) and Dirk Werner (DE) will race the BMW Art Car #79. Jörg Müller (DE), Augusto Farfus (BR), Uwe Alzen (DE) will drive the BMW Le Mans car #78.

The 24 Hours of Le Mans race needs no introduction. It is the world’s oldest endurance race in all of sports car racing, held every year since 1923 near the town of Le Mans, Sarthe, France. Commonly known as the Grand Prix of Endurance, it is organized by the Automobile Club de l’Ouest (ACO) and runs on a circuit containing closed public roads. It is not just for testing a car or the driver’s ability to be quick. The car and the driver need to last over a period of 24 hours.

The BMW M3 GT2 that will be taking part in this year’s Le Mans flaunts a 4-liter V8 motor with a maximum output of 500 bhp, a revamped chassis, racing-caliber brakes, and extensive use of lightweight materials. Able to reach 100 km/h in 3.4 seconds, the BMW M3 GT2 is swiftly budding as a real first year challenger at this year’s event and we wish BMW, the car and its drivers the best of luck.

It’s not just us; several other successful partners are also rejoicing the reappearance of BMW Motorsport at the Le Mans. So, don’t be surprised seeing the BMW M3 GT2 with logos of Castrol, Crowne Plaza, Dunlop, Randstad, and more at the race. At the premiere of the 17th BMW Art Car Jeff Koons unveiled and signed his car in front of 300 international VIP guests on June 1. Back in 1977, Roy Lichtenstein had first presented and signed his Art Car at the same place, the Centre Pompidou. Since 1975, artists from throughout the world have turned BMW automobiles into art signifying a particular period through the BMW Art Car program.

In the spirit of Calder, Stella, Lichtenstein and Warhol, BMW announced this year that the 17th Art Car would race where the first rolling pieces of art by legendary artists raced – at the 24 Hours of Le Mans. Koons’ canvas is a BMW M3 GT2, which was given approval to compete in the world’s most famous endurance race.

Koons had taken photographs of several race cars at speed, then stretched the images and integrated them into a gigantic digital collage. That collage is what got spread all over the M3 GT2’s attractive lines. The artist looked at graphics of the earlier race cars, the light bursts and speed. The final graphic imagined by Koons was suggestive of power, motion and light. He used his signature soaked shades on a black background set against the car’s silver interior. The resulting design passes on an energetic race car appearance even when it’s standing still. Koons felt the power under that hood and wanted to let his ideas rise as high as the car, to bond with that power.

It was in 2003 that Koons expressed his desire to create a BMW Art Car. He drove a BMW more than two decades ago while residing in Munich, home to the BMW Group headquarters. Koons is known for his heartfelt appreciation of cars.

Hello Mister, what car do you own? Is it a Chevy or a Chevrolet? Wondering what’s wrong? Read on please and you’ll know. Chevy, sorry Chevrolet, is owned by GM and the car maker does not like anyone calling a Chevrolet by the name Chevy.

Come on GM, ‘Chevy’ has already been instilled deep in everybody’s mind. Watched the Hindi movie Prince? Like in the movie, GM will have to erase everyone’s memories of the past with a memory chip and install ‘CHEVROLET’. Going back to ‘Chevrolet’ will be harder than getting out of bankruptcy for GM.

“We’d ask that whether you’re talking to a dealer, reviewing dealer advertising, or speaking with friends and family, that you communicate our brand as Chevrolet moving forward,” said the memo, which was signed by Alan Batey, vice president for Chevrolet sales and service, and Jim Campbell, the GM division’s vice president for marketing. Why? Nobody has ever thought of Chevy as a dirty word, have we? Say ‘Chevy’ in front of your family, friends or pets, and you’ll pay a 25-cent fine and GM had a jar at the door for the collection.

One rebel in the marketing team sent a copy of the memo to a popular publication and thus began the excitement. Everybody added their part of spice as the news spread. Anyone accused does get a chance to prove the accusations wrong, right? Here’s what Chevrolet’s top spokesman Klaus-Peter Martin had to say. “We are proud of our nickname. We are not going back and switching anything or changing anything because nothing is broken.” GM says, “We love Chevy. In no way are we discouraging customers or fans from using the name. We deeply appreciate the emotional connections that millions of people have for Chevrolet and its products.”

GM just wanted to make sure that future marketing provides a consistent message, especially overseas. GM should have explained that in detail to its employees, and the drama wouldn’t have taken place. Now, that the milk has already been spilt, how about using ‘Chevy’ consistently, GM? Everyone would like the Chevy car name better and it will certainly carry the brand image higher. Chevy cars are already sold in around 130 countries. In Mexico, Chevrolet sells a car called the Chevrolet Chevy. What about that name GM?

Jim Hall, principal of 2953 Analytics Inc., an auto-industry consulting firm, said “They get a name for free, they should use it. We live in a world where information moves so fast. You can’t tell me that people in India don’t know what a Chevy is.” Well, Mister Jim, we are aware of Chevy, Chevrolet and the current controversy too. Is it possible for a new customer in a far away land to walk past the Chevrolet dealership searching for the Chevy dealership and never find it? Never!

Let this be a learning experience, GM. Here’s the moral of the day for you.

Moral 1: It does not matter what people call you, as long as they are saying it nicely.

Moral 2: Never write in a memo what you don’t want to see in a publication.