After enlightening the world’s cheapest and smallest car, Tata Motors plans to roll out luxurious and expensive cars. Tata is now targeting the other extreme of the car segment and introduce new upmarket cars in the industry.
Tata has taken over the Jaguar & Land Rover and plans to roll out luxury car models under this venture. The Nano is expected to make its debut in India by the end of this year with a price tag of Rs 1 lakh, whereas the venture plans to design and manufacture luxury cars ranging somewhere between, Rs 80-85 lakh, a price at which car buyers can buy around 85 Nanos.
With such a high price swing from Rs 1 lakh to Rs 85 lakh, do you think that consumers will go for it? Tata has created its own image of producing the world’s cheapest car and now shifting towards high-end segment.
This step towards producing high-end cars is a way to boost up the market for Jaguar & Land Rover and establish the name of Tata as a producer of portfolio of cars in all segments.
Labels: 1 lakh car, Nano, Tata
The much hyped 1-lakh car “Nano” made its appearance at the recent Auto expo in New Delhi. It has come as a blessing in disguise to many banks and financial institutions that over the years have helped millions of Indian middle class families to own two- and four-wheelers. Now, many banks are considering special loan schemes for the Nano on the lines of two-wheeler loans.
It shouldn’t be a matter of surprise that in the near future, banks and financial institutions will call up prospective customer offering them a loan for the Nano. The loan is expected to cover both the cost of the car as well as its running cost. Public as well as private banks would definitely take this opportunity to expand their business.
The only worrying factor among people could be the rate of interest on such a loan because the current interest rates on car loans are very discouraging. According to a survey, it’s confirmed that the rate of interest on Tata’s new small car could be a bit higher than other car loans. For a loan amount as low as 1 lakh for a car, a slight push in interest rates shouldn’t really make a big difference to people eyeing the car.
Labels: 1 lakh car, car loan, small cars, Tata Motor
It seems that Nano is not only threatening the two wheeler market, but also the three wheeler manufacturers. A Gujarat based Electrotherm India which was planning to launch e-auto rickshaw has been forced to shelve its project.
The 780-crore Electrotherm India had moved to producing electric bikes and new brands of three wheelers. The company had conceived a three wheeler with 48 volt battery and can reach a maximum power of 48 kmph. The device could also be fitted in diesel driven Bajaj autos. However the three-wheeler price was said to start from Rs 1.2 lakh.
The advent of Nano, the world’s cheapest car has forced the company to drop all further processes. It remains to be seen whether the Nano wave will wash many more such concepts and projects as its advances.
Labels: 1 lakh car, Diesel cars, Ultra cheap cars
Recent reports in the Western press about
Tata motors’ prospective takeover of the Land Rover and Jaguar brands have raised a few disturbing questions. News analysis and blogs seem perturbed by Tata’s bid for the iconic British brands. The Western media raises the phantom issue of brand image dilution at the hands of the Tata’s; a car manufacturer they associate with the world’s cheapest car – the infamous one-lakh car. Their premise is that the image of the big brands that Tata is eyeing may take a beating as a result of this.
Does the argument hold water? Another question is whether Western car enthusiasts are really so baffled by the change of ownership that they would overlook the survival of Land Rover and Jaguar. Yet another question is, why such discomfiture on the part of some journalists and bloggers? Do people really have so much idle time as to waste it on such issues? Are vested interests in act here? If not the common people, then who’s writing such obnoxious stuff? The answers to these questions deliver a clearer picture of the situation.
As far as the Tatas are concerned, their business credentials are solid. Tata is not just a business conglomerate but a business house that has contributed immensely to the making of modern India. Tatas belong to a generation of conscientious businessmen; a generation of yore who believed in giving back to society from what they got. The Indian Institute of Science and Tata Institute of Fundamental Research stand testimony to their benevolence. In India, the Tatas are clearly seen as ‘businessmen with professionalism’. The conglomerate has always been led by a visionary businessman, be it the founder Jamshedji or the current leader Ratanji. Tata’s business success is a story of India’s rising economic strength.
It’s not the question of Tatas winning or losing the bid for Jaguar and Land Rover. They have won many a time and have also lost on a few occasions. The outcome of the bid is by no means a standard to gauge the Indian
car maker. It will not mean the world if they win and will definitely not be the end of the road if they lose. But, is there anyone else who has stepped up to the task at hand? Only a handful of companies have actually filed for the bid and now only two remain in the race, one of them being a private equity entity - EquityOne.
In this case, what’s really disturbing is the scale of dissemination of such ideology. Would Western car buyers really want to know who made the car they are driving or where it came from? The current views are clearly an indication of restlessness and a result of the propagation of an old belief system pertaining to developing countries. Be what it may, Asia is truly rising.
Article submitted by Krishnaraj ShastriLabels: 1 lakh car, Jaguar, Land Rover, Submitted Article, Tata
