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Tuesday, 26 May 2009
India is believed to be a vast pool of talented and skilled professionals. And that’s the reason why global car manufacturers are eyeing Indian car designers and engineers for their firms. New car launches and technological innovation in the recent times clearly reflects India’s ingenuity. With this, car manufacturers like Renault, Nissan, Honda Motors, and Suzuki Motors Corporation are hiring professionals from the Indian R&D centres for their global headquarters. Manufacturers around the world are even outsourcing creative designers and skilled engineers from India. Maruti is set to send 80 of its existing engineers to Japan to train them on the development of new car models. It is believed that every year 30 new recruits from Maruti Suzuki India are sent to Japan, some to work on the global projects and some are trained on the development of India specific models. Hyundai Motors is also sending some of its most talented engineers to Korea, Frankfurt, and Detroit to work on the company’s global project. And Honda with a focus on India specific models is also planning to send its technical staff to overseas countries. Indian talents are gradually being exposed in the global automotive world and are gaining prominence. This exposure will also introduce them to advancements and innovations taking place in the global industry which will further help foster the growth of Indian car industry. Labels: Auto-Engineers, Car-Manufacturers, Honda, Hyundai, Indian-Car-Designers, Maruti-Suzuki
Thursday, 14 May 2009
Internet has become a powerful media weapon that has brought the entire world in a desktop. Be it blogging, social networking, staying connected with workplace, or getting any sort of information, internet plays a vital role in every facet in the present era of globalization. Unlike earlier, people are now more tech saavy. Realizing this, car manufacturers are intelligently using the platform for advertising their products. It is convenient for the companies to reach their customers through internet more easily. As in earlier days, they used to make huge investment on marketing and sales people to do the same job. But now car manufacturers are reporting good sales through internet networking. Recently, Maruti Suzuki has achieved over a lakh units of sales through digital marketing. Similarly, Tata Motors witnessed 4,000 bookings for Nano through the Tata Nano website itself. It received 30 million hits since the launch of the website. Eyeing the impressive result, other car manufacturers are following the suit. Honda has already begun an exercise to track down sales originating through the internet. In a research, it is revealed that almost 5 percent or more of the total sales are contributed by digital media. Volkswagen has also increased its investment on digital media to promote sales of its luxury cars like the Passat and the Jetta. The internet is silently entering the lives of most urban households. People depend on it heavily for information which they could never access by regular means. Car manufacturers cannot ignore this growing segment and will have to do more than simple advertising to reach the potential customers. Labels: Car-Manufacturers, Car-Sales, Maruti-Suzuki
Wednesday, 13 May 2009
Maruti Suzuki is known to pioneer many innovative ideas since 1983. Its successful strategies has made the company India’s largest car manufacturer. Maruti still continues the trend which is now inspiring many global car manufacturers. What has attracted them is the way Maruti Suzuki manages to improve its brand image with every launch. They are trying to emulate the idea of launching a hatchback and a sedan version of the same model. Maruti has the Swift hatch and the Swift DZire sedan available in both petrol and diesel variants. Car manufacturers like Toyota, Volkswagen, Honda Motors, and Ford Motors want to imitate the same philosophy. They plan to use the same technology for their future launches in India and abroad. It has been learnt that Toyota plans to launch a small and a big car based on the Yaris platform. Volkswagen plans to do the same with the upcoming car model Polo. But, Volkswagen should be careful not to eat its subsidiary Skoda India’s share which has a small car Fabia and big sedans in the premium segment. Similarly, Honda Motors will launch the small car ‘Jazz’ which is based on the City platform. This policy actually saves time and is cost effective while providing options for the buyers in a single platform. Labels: Car-Manufacturers, Maruti-Suzuki-Cars, Maruti-Suzuki-Swift
Thursday, 7 May 2009
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. Labels: Car-Manufacturers, Fuel-efficiency, old-cars
Tuesday, 28 April 2009
India and China being the booming Indian car markets despite recession are attracting many big car companies from the world. Both the countries are fairly active in foreign markets with their cost effective and efficient car models. The recently held Shanghai Auto Show in China witnessed the presence of major car brands like General Motors and Chrysler but surprisingly Indian car manufacturers were missing from the show. The absence of big Indian players like Tata Motors and Mahindra & Mahindra was felt by many. This was especially noticeable as Tata Motors recently launched world’s cheapest car ‘Nano’ was displayed in almost all the international Auto shows. It also against their policies of going beyond Indian shores for new market. Mahindra has entered African and South American markets. Tata Motors is available in more than 10 international markets. When the Indian car manufacturers are interested in western markets then the question remains why they stay away from China? Is it because Indian car manufacturers are apprehensive about China? Or they are obstructed by stringent entry rules of the motor show? Indian car manufacturers deny the accusation of being afraid of the competition from the Chinese market. They blame the strict entry barrier for being absent from the Shanghai Auto Show. They further express that regulations for investment and branding are very difficult to follow in China. There is very little scope for car manufacturers who enter in a small way to expand their operations in the country. But Indian car manufacturers are still positive about attending the show sometime in near future. Labels: Auto-Shows, Car-Manufacturers, Chinese-Car-Market
Monday, 27 April 2009
It’s a celebration time for the component manufacturers in India as small car race is in full swing among car manufacturers. In this time of downturn when car buyers are maintaining distance from expensive cars, companies are bullish to introduce more small cars to sustain their business in the market. And delightfully all these cars use local components which in turn benefits component manufacturers. This brings more work to the recession hit component manufacturers and also gives them a chance to reconcile their lost grip of the market. Car brands like Volkswagen, Ford, BMW and Skoda is planning to introduce more small cars in domestic as well as in the international market. Volkswagen will also roll out Polo from the small car segment by mid 2010. All these small cars will attract nearly 70 to 80 percent of local components. This will not only lead to a good opportunity for the component manufacturers in India but will also reduce the price of the cars drastically. Well, the production of small cars is benefitting component manufacturers as well as car manufacturers. Labels: Car-Manufacturers, Component-Manufacturers, Small-Cars
Monday, 20 April 2009
After making a foothold in the urban and semi-urban areas, Hyundai Motors now desires to grasp India's rural markets which are untapped by small car manufacturers so far. To start with the plan, the company has recently organized a programme called Hyundai Utsav to push sales in rural areas of Andhra Pradesh and Punjab.
Hyundai has intelligently chosen the 'mandi', a local wholesale marketplace, where thousands of people congregate on a daily basis. It wants to reach to the prosperous farmers, money lenders, local business communities, private companies, government employees, doctors, lawyers and others.
The programme kicked off on April 18 in over 50 venues in Andhra Pradesh and Punjab will last for 42 days. Under the Hyundai Utsav scheme, well-trained teams will be sent to non-dealership towns. They will be stationed across all the intended locations and will be responsible for activities like-taking care of visitors, offer test drives, and create awareness about loan schemes. At the end of the programme, the team will collate local consumer data which will help the company to execute future plans.
The scheme can work wonders for the company which has been trying for years to gain the No.1 position in India. But the challenges for providing after sales services, maintenance and spares will be a huge task. However, the company will have an advantage to penetrate a largely untapped market for passenger cars.
Labels: Car-Manufacturers, Car-Sales, Hyundai-cars
There are many small car buyers who sacrifice safety for the cause of higher efficiency and smaller car size. Small cars are revolutionizing the entire industry with new agendas and aspirations. But the fact that driving small cars can cause fatality is ignored. Though they provide reduced emissions and good mileage, the question remains are they actually safe?
Recently an insurance company in U.S. conducted a safety test by slamming three mini car models into a midsized car. The three models Honda Fit, Toyota Yaris, and SmartForTwo were slammed into Honda Accord, Toyota Camry, and Mercedes-Benz C-Class. All the six car models were travelling at a speed of 64 km/h. And what shocked everyone was that all the three mini-cars experienced severe impact of the accident. They were all fared poorly in the accident whereas the midsized car into which the three were banged fared acceptably well.
Weight versus safety has always been an arguing discussion in the car market. To introduce small cars that are peppy in traffic and are wondrous in performance, car manufacturers have to downsize the cars. And this downsizing and down-weighting actually makes them unsafe on roads.
Labels: Car-Buyers, Car-Manufacturers, Small-Cars
Tuesday, 7 April 2009
Till date Maruti Suzuki was proudly known as the car manufacturer of most fuel-efficient cars in the Indian car market. There was no car manufacturer who was able to challenge the fuel efficiency Maruti offered in its entire portfolio of car. But now the unchallenged run of Maruti Suzuki comes to an end with the launch of world’s cheapest car Nano. A thought may have evoked in your mind as to how a small car like Nano was able to end this successful run of the country’s leading car manufacturer. But the answer is as simple and straight. In the recent testing and quality verification the Automobile Research Association of India has testified that Tata Motors’ small car Nano is more fuel-efficient than most of the frugal car models in India. The association tests and certifies all commercially launched cars in the country under standard conditions. Recently the associated tested around 450 models in the country out of which Nano turned out to be a winner with a certified fuel efficiency of 23.6 km/l. At this stage Maruti was pushed under the Nano with its winning A-Star at the second position recording a fuel efficiency of 19.6 km/l. And this was followed by the third position again attained by Maruti’s highest selling Alto with an efficiency score of 18.1 km/l. The third position was tied up with the Hyundai i10. Nano taking over Maruti’s car models in terms of mileage sounds really amazing. Tata has never been able to overpower the success that Maruti had been rejoicing in the country since past 25 years. And don’t even remember whether the J. D. Power Asia, a known research firm, has rated Tata cars for its excellence in performance, mileage, or dependability. But the launch of Nano has changed the scenario. With this Tata desires to climb the value chain and achieve a strong foothold in the Indian car market. The launch of Nano is itself a breakthrough in the car industry and further the Nano achieving the highest fuel efficiency marks another significant milestone in the company’s history. Labels: Car-Manufacturers, Maruti Suzuki A-star, Maruti-Suzuki, Small-Car, Tata-Nano
The eminence of Mahindra Xylo keeps on increasing with the moving wheel of time. Since the car has made its significant debut in the country it is rejoicing great demand and high sales. Thousands of car buyers across the country are getting excited to start a pleasant and thrilling drive with the Xylo. You would be surprised to know that in the span of just two months the car has recorded 12,000 bookings. This clearly states how demanding and how commanding the car is. To add more excitement to your lifetime with the Xylo, the car manufacturer also organizes a Xylo contest. This is an exciting contest where the participants have to view the Xylo advertisement on the Xylo website and answer few questions regarding the advertisement. The questions are also displayed on the adjoining section of the website. All you have to do is answer the questions and fill up the form and submit. And if you win the contest then you’ll be able to win a dream holiday of a lifetime in an exotic Club Mahindra destination in India. That’s exciting! Excitement does not end here as other lucky winners will win the Xylo t-shirts. If you are one among those who have a long lasting desire of a dream holiday like this then participate in the contest by clicking here. Labels: Car-Manufacturers, Mahindra Cars, Mahindra Xylo
Monday, 6 April 2009
Automatic cars have taken the latest trend in the Indian car industry. Automatic transmission is one of the best features a car can have it as its make the driving a stress free. Many car manufacturers are introducing the car with automatic gear shift. The automatic SUVs are becoming very popular now and there is a speculation in the Indian car industry that even Ford is planning to introduce the automatic version of Endeavour. The new version of Endeavour would have a have a 5 speed automatic transmission and will be based Ford’s patent technology Transmission Control Module (TCM). This technology can automatically sense and quickly adjust to the changing speed of the engine speed as well as the driving condition. There is no confirmed data about its engine specification but it said Endeavour is expected to be powered by a 2.5L and 3.0L engine option which is same as the existing model of Endeavour Thunder. Coming to its price tag, Endeavour AT is expected to additional cost of Rs 50, 000. Labels: Car-Manufacturers, Ford-Endeavour, Ford-Endeavour-Automatic, Indian-car-industry, SUV
Thursday, 2 April 2009
For those who love the Porsche Cayenne, the car manufacturer has introduced a diesel version to for you to rock on. The Cayenne diesel is surprisingly the first diesel car from Porsche that will make its debut to India in limited numbers. The diesel Cayenne was mainly designed and produced for the European market. But then the tremendous response from the Indian car buyers forced the car manufacturer to send the car to India as well. Precision Cars India is the official importer of Porsche cars in India and it always desires to offer the same options to Indian buyers as to other buyers across the world. And now, the Cayenne diesel is set to roll out on Indian roads. But sadly, only 19 enthusiastic diesel car lovers can grab the car as the car is limited for India. If you closely look at the car you won’t find any difference in the appeal if you compare with the petrol version of the car. The only difference will be the heart of the car that will now bear a responsive V6 engine that will generate 240 bhp sufficient to reach a top speed of 214 km/h. The powerful technology along with the Tiptronic S transmission enables the car to accelerate from rest to 100 km/h in 8.3 seconds. And above all the car will also be BS IV compliant with a sophisticated and high-tech exhaust system. To have more joy and excitement on both on-road and off-road journeys Porsche Stability Management and Porsche Traction Management are fitted to the car. And you can also have a sports mode where in you can enjoy the drive with better response and smoothness. Expected to roll out with a price tag of Rs 64,950,000, Porsche Cayenne diesel will be a new and toughest competitor in the diesel segment. Labels: Car-Manufacturers, Diesel-Cars, Indian cars, New-Car-Launch, Porsche-Cayenne
Tuesday, 17 March 2009
Time has come to think small! All car manufacturers are racing with the concept of their distinctive small cars and so is the Jaguar Land Rover. Jaguar-Land Rover is planning to roll out a small car with a little help from the UK government. The car will be purely based on the Land Rover’s LRX concept vehicle. LRX concept is the smallest, lightest, and most fuel-efficient car that made its first debut in the Detroit Auto Show last year. And now the company aims to put the innovative concept on road. LRX is born out of passion and speaks of Land Rover design language. With a highly desirable identity, the concept is styled with reinterpreting cues, floating roof, rising beltline, round headlights, and traditional Land Rover tailgate. Moreover, the compact size defines the need of present day car industry. The innovative concept by JLR not only defines a style statement but makes a power statement too with intelligent power management system and revolutionary technologies. The best part is the beautiful interior designed with recycled materials. This lightweight concept by JLR kitted out in sustainable technologies is a perfect answer to the present day challenges offering fuel efficiency, lower emissions, lower fuel consumption, thrifty designs, and engineering excellence. Labels: Car-Manufacturers, Jaguar-Land-Rover, Small-Cars
Friday, 13 March 2009
Toyota recognized for their ‘Green car’ technology is once again working on another new eco-friendly concept. The car brand is already celebrating its high position in the green car segment with its Prius Hybrid. This time the car manufacture is thinking distinctive and productive developing a super-efficient plug-in hybrid that has frame made out of seaweed which will hit the showrooms in next 15 years. It does sound little weird but not impossible. With the new concept the car would develop on the already hypergreen 1/X plug-in hybrid concept, which weighs 926 pounds. The carbon-fibre body would be replaced with plastic derived from seaweed. Toyota will convey its green vision of the future at the Melbourne Motor Show by unveiling three green cars- New generation Prius, a cool Camry concept designed in Australia and the 1/X (Seaweed concept). Now with the people concerned for the greener nature and as long as the cars are eco friendly in nature, affordable, safer there seems to be no reason for such a smart cars not to make good sales. Labels: Car-Manufacturers, green cars, hybrid cars, Toyota Cars, Toyota Prius
Tuesday, 10 March 2009
The Scorpio fans who are waiting to buy, then this the right time as the car manufacturer is offering a ‘big’ cash discount of Rs 34,000-70,000 on its Scorpio. Very recently the M&M launched the all new Scorpio Mighty Muscular with attractive exterior and interior. But what made the Mahindra’s to offer such a huge cut in price? To start with is the commodity price which has come down compared to the prices in December. With manufacturing of Xylo, an MPV the company also learned the art of saving money with out compromising on quality. And these reasons helped them to take the decision of bringing down the Scorpio prices. The aforesaid reason could be the true but there are also other reasons that completely support the price slash. Like, with the launch of the new Mighty Muscular Scorpio, the company wants to finish the old stocks of Scorpio so that the new version will start its sale with full swing. Whatever be the reason, all that matters is that the buyers are at the gaining end. So the don’t waste your time thinking. If you think, the Scorpio is worth your choice, then go ahead a make a good deal. Labels: Car-Manufacturers, Mahindra and Mahindra, Mahindra Scorpio, Scorpio Discount, SUV
Thursday, 5 March 2009
With approaching 2009 election, car manufacturers are experiencing a sudden rise in SUV demand. As SUVs are easily driven on rough terrains and carries large number of seating capacity, they are preferred by most of the politicians for their election campaigns and rallies than a sedan or a small car. Now the car manufacturers are following the ‘ant strategy’ storing their food so that they can utilize it at the time of actual need. The car brands like Ford, Mahindra and Mahindra (M&M), and Tata Motors are storing their warehouses with SUVs foreseeing the demand of these vehicles in the forthcoming elections in the country. The Mahindra Scorpio, Ford Endeavour, and the Tata Safari are favourite among the politicians. Earlier, the Tata Sumo and the Toyota Qualis served the Indian politicians a lot during the election campaigns and rallies but now as they are discontinued, other SUVs from different brands have taken over their positions. It seems the elections excitement is not just among the politicians but also among the car manufactures who see this as an opportunity to make profit. Labels: Car-Manufacturers, Mahindra-and-Mahindra, SUV
Wednesday, 4 March 2009
Car manufacturers enjoyed a good share of pie when the government announced the 4 per cent cut in CENVAT in December 2008. But despite the reduction in the excise duty, many car manufacturers like Hyundai Motors and Maruti Suzuki increased the prices for its models blaming the rising input costs. Following them, even other car companies like Honda is also likely to hike its car prices of all the models. During the announcement of the excise cut, the revenue department supposedly highlighted the purpose of the reduction that was solely done to benefit car buyers. Initially, the prices were slashed but the car companies in the veil of high input cost hiked the prices again beating the purpose of the cut ordered by the government. Eyeing all this, the government is now in talk with the car companies asking them to pass on the complete benefit of 4 per cent cut in CENVAT to the consumers. It is disappointing that the car manufacturers took away the benefits that were totally entitled for the consumers. Labels: Car-Manufacturers, Car-prices, Honda-Cars
Buick Y-Job is a striking and inspirational car designed by a world renowned designer Harley Earl in 1938. This is not only one of the most significant American car designs but is also known to be a signpost for concept cars. The Buick Y-Job is excitingly the world’s first concept car that was created with a desire to test buyers’ reaction to a specific design and style. The car was designed by Earl who was the chief designer of General Motors. Unlike the concept car designed in the modern era, the world’s first concept car was fully functional as it was used by Earl for his personal transportation for several years. The elegant design of the car was complemented by power-operated hidden headlamps, wraparound bumpers, flush door handles, and elegant styling cues. Earl with his Y-Job introduced new trends in design and engineering. And amazingly when the car was first displayed in the 1938 Chicago Auto Show, it attracted mass lovers. Even then the car never went into production but today it is considered to be a historical treasure. This inspirational Buick Y-Job became the vision of concept cars that has actually reshaped the car industry. General Motors used the car as a sales weapon to attract car buyers and the same is now followed by many car manufacturers around the globe. Labels: Car-Manufacturers, Concept-Cars, General-Motors
This year’s Geneva International Motor Show at Geneva Palexpo marks the beginning of spring in Europe with a host of innovations and new car models scintillating the pavilion. The auto show was started in 1905 and since then it’s held every year during March in Geneva. The first and significant auto show of Europea will display about 120 new car models this year that are speculated to make their debut in the global market in a couple of years. The most striking part of this year edition is the green theme that will display a host of ecological and economical models. Infact most of the car manufacturers are set to introduce their unique green concepts to woo reluctant car buyers. It’s amazing to know that it’s the first time in the history of Geneva Motor Show that the show has turned one of its seven exhibition hall just to showcase the eco-friendly cars. Fiat, Renault, and Volkswagen are placing smaller and more economical petrol and diesel engines under the bonnet of their striking car models. General Motors that is presently undergoing a tough crisis is also set to display the electric version of the Ampera sedan. And a new car manufacturer Tesla will unveil an all-electric sports car that can run from 0 – 100 km/h in 4 seconds. Even Bentley has entered green revolution with 461kW and 12 cylinders engineered car driven by both biofuel and petrol. With this exhilarating show round the corner, all car manufacturers are expecting a reverse gear in plunging sales, lay-offs, and plant closures. Labels: Car-Manufacturers, eco-friendly cars, Geneva-Motor-Show
Thursday, 26 February 2009
Suicide doors were common in the traditional cars but are rarely found in modern cars. These are doors that are hinged to the trailing edge of the car, an edge closer to the rear of the vehicle. They are commonly called as "rear-hinged doors" "coach doors", and "freestyle doors" by manufacturers instead of the name suicide door due its negative connotation. You must be wondering then why the name suicide is even used? It’s nothing strange because the name clearly indicates the danger associated with the doors as there are chances of its falling if its remain unlatched. When driving at high speed the fast moving air surrounding the car creates a low pressure area around that acts as an outward force to open the door. And just imagine what will happen if the car’s door suddenly open out at high speed. The occupant will be thrown out of the car if not wearing a seatbelt. The key advantage of the suicide doors is that they provide an easy entry and exist for the occupants. But passengers from both the front and rear cannot exit or enter the car simultaneously unless the car is too large in its structure. For such an insignificant advantage, no car manufacturer can put the passenger’s life on toll. Today these doors are found in some of the cars but are placed in such a way that it cannot be opened unless regular front doors are opened. You’ll find a pack of suicide and regular front doors in a couple of modern cars including the imposing Rolls-Royce Phantom Drophead Coupe. They are also been used in some of the modern day concept cars. Labels: Car-Manufacturers, Concept-Cars, Rolls-Royce-Cars
Wednesday, 4 February 2009
After being in the reverse gear for so many months, the car sales are now appear to be in the front gear as big car companies have reported positive car sales in January. Surprisingly, car manufacturers have witnessed a lift in car sales despite the withdrawal of discounts and schemes. Though manufacturers faced slight trouble in gearing up in the stressed market, they were able to overcome it with the prop of new car launches and car exports. The very beginning of this year saw new car lunches like the Fiat Linea and the BMW 7 Series. The industry is delightfully driving back to recovery with positive developments like reduction in fuel prices, dip in inflation, softening of retail interest rates, and growing availability of finance in the market. Experiencing a favourable environment, leading car manufacturers including Maruti Suzuki and Hyundai have seen a progressive growth on a sequential basis as now waning car buyers are stepping into the showrooms with positive attitude. Many car manufacturers like Maruti Suzuki and General Motors have also signed an understanding with banks to provide easy and hassle-free finance solutions to all the buyers which is further catalysing to bring back the sales figure to positive scale. Recently Hyundai also tied up with Syndicate Bank to accelerate car loan disbursals and to provide alluring loan schemes to its prospective car buyers. Though the encouraging market situations have proved to be a blessing in disguise for car manufacturers, they still have a long way to reach the destination of success. Labels: Car-Manufacturers, Car-Sales, Maruti-Suzuki
Wednesday, 28 January 2009
Maruti cars will be now heavy on pockets as the company has hiked prices of all its high-end cars including the Swift, SX4, and the Swift Dzire. The beginning of the year 2009 is witnessing car price jump across many car models. Car manufacturers like General Motors, Honda Seil India and Mercedes-Benz have already announced to increase their car prices. The increase in car prices is basically in response to the pressures of high input cost and fluctuating currency exchanges. Many might have a question waving in their minds as to how fluctuating currency exchanges affect car prices. Simply because many car components are directly imported and any fluctuation in the dollar value in turn impact the car prices. The price of recently launched A-Star hatchback has been increased by Rs 10,000 while prices of all SX4 variants have been hiked by Rs 9,000. The new prices of the Swift Dzire for both petrol and diesel variants is now raised by Rs 7,000 and the base version of Swift petrol will be available with an additional cost of Rs 5,000. If you are planning to buy higher variants of diesel counterpart of the leading hatchback Swift, then you have to pay an additional amount of Rs 6,000. But if you have plans to buy the Maruti 800, Omni, Alto, WagonR, Zen Estilo, Gypsy, Versa or the Grand Vitara, then you can relax as the company has not changed the prices of these car models. Labels: Car-Manufacturers, Car-prices, Maruti-Suzuki
Wednesday, 14 January 2009
Demand for luxury cars in India is growing in a big way. Luxury cars have always magnetised car buyers with their charming appeal and aesthetics. Despite the economic crunch, the luxury cars has made good sales in the Indian car market. To attract the buyers and to sustain in the car industry many car manufacturers reduced the car prices. But surprisingly, the luxury car manufacturers did not have to throw any kind of freebies or discounts to sell their cars. Passion for luxury car drives car buyers to go ahead with their dream to buy these cars even at the time of sluggish market. One such buyer is the 'Power Star' of Kannada cinema Puneet Rajkumar who is an instant buyers of luxury cars and reveals that he goes for car shopping whenever he feels like no matter whatever the market condition is. Currently he owns a Audi Q7 and dreams to upgrade it with the Bentley Coupe and the BMW M6. Aditya, another Kannada actor too is not affected by the slowdown in the car market. Cars are his greatest passion and he considers this possession as his second home. Very soon we can see him driving his Hummer, which he is planning to import from Dubai. He is also mesmerised with the BMW 5-series and plans to buy by year-end. Car rallyist Anitha Kholay also loves car and upgrades it frequently to give new and fresh look. Unaffected by the current downturn, she plans to add a Merc C or a E class sedan in her garage along with the present Skoda Octavia Rider and a Mitsubishi Lancer. Labels: Car-Manufacturers, Indian-car-market
Thursday, 8 January 2009
Get ready to witness the biggest and the most electrifying auto show in Bangalore at Bangalore International Automotive Expo (BIAE) 2009. The Expo will exclusively showcase cars, bikes, motorcycles, and high-end car accessories, bringing over 500 automotive brands under one roof. The show will also caters the needs and requirements of car consumers and car fans. The event will portray the entire Indian automobile industry providing a strong platform for the growth of the auto industry especially the South Indian Automotive Industry. The list of exhibitors include leading car manufacturers like the Audi, Nissan, Maruti Suzuki, Mitsubishi, Maini Reva, and the Mahindra & Mahindra. Two-wheeler manufacturers comprising the TVS, Kinetic, Royal Enfield, and the Yamaha along with a number of auto component manufacturers like the Bosch will also exhibit a variety of their products, valuables, and services. Being supported by bodies like the ARAI, FIAA, AASI and the WIAA, the cynosure of the show will be the hot bikes, customized cars, Nitrocars, and imported vehicles. Apart from these products, this event will also organise various seminars and interactive forums to bring forth the current trend in the automotive market. The auto show will occur from Jan 9th to Jan 11th. Labels: Auto-Shows, Car-Accessories, Car-Manufacturers
Tuesday, 6 January 2009
2009 brings a good news for the foreign car manufactures with the renewed export policy on new cars. Now foreign car manufacturers will be able to export vehicles to India from places other than their country of manufacture. This policy implies to cars having a free on board (FOB) value of Rs 1.9 million or more with engine capacity of more than 3,000cc for petrol variants and 2,500cc for diesel variants. The flexibility of the policy has simplified the export process for the foreign car manufacturers. The policy was introduced in the Exim Policy for 2001-02, but was unfriendly and created a lot of export issues. The new policy will now help those foreign car manufacturers who were unable to export cars to India due to various restrictions. Further to facilitate the import of cars in India, Kochi has been added in the list of permissible customs ports which currently comprises the Nhava Sheva, Kolkata, Chennai, ICD Tughlakabad, Delhi Air Cargo and the Mumbai Port. Labels: Car-Manufacturers, New-Cars
The rat race among car manufacturers to rule the top position in the car industry is on. With the presence of so many domestic as well as foreign car manufacturers imparting pathbreaking models in the market, the competition among them has become very tough and rigid. Maruti Suzuki dominates the Indian car market with 50 percent share in the industry. Whereas car brands like the Hyundai and General Motors are very close to Maruti Suzuki with their small cars acting as atom bombs in the Indian market. When speaking about small cars, we can't even think of neglecting the winning model 'Hyundai i10'. The car has captured everyone's attention with its style, performance, and reliability. Wagon R standing against the Hyundai i10 has maintained the brand image of Maruti Suzuki with comparable sales score. Whereas in the premium hatchback segment, Hyundai Getz petrol variant scores higher than the Maruti Swift petrol variant. Though Maruti Suzuki could not defeat Honda and Chevrolet in sedan segment, its has rolled a new weapon in the hatchback battle field with the launch of the A-Star. The hatchback segment also witnessed the new Indica Vista, a product of Tata-Fiat alliance in India. With its improved design and performance, the new Indica Vista is known to give a strong sense of enmity to its rivals. Maruti Suzuki being the leading car manufacture of the country still dominates the small car segment. Now the company's grip is loosen due to tough competition. As the competition gets tougher, the car manufacturers are thinking of different ways to be on the top position. Only the time can tell, who will rule the Indian car industry? Labels: Car-Manufacturers, Indian-car-industry, Maruti-Suzuki
Tata Motors is all set to enter the green belt with the introduction of a Eco car. Surprisingly, the green car from the house of Tata is not for India but for Thailand. The company is working on a Eco car project for Thailand. The project implies the development of a low-cost hybrid vehicle or a platform that could spawn a range of passenger cars similar to Indica platform which was deployed to manufacture car models like the Indigo, Indigo Marina, Indigo XL and the Indigo CS. The project had received the 'go on' signal from the BOI (Board of Investments) of Thailand in the last year of April. As per the clause, the car will follow all the rigorous emission and safety norms comprising the Euro 4 emission norms and crash requirements. The design of the the Eco-car is created with bold body, spacious cabin, and comfortable seating keeping in mind the taste and demand of local population of Thailand. The increasing pollution level is a major concern in most of the country and car manufacturers are working on green projects to develop cost effective yet eco-friendly cars. Even the buyers mind set have changed seeing the rising tide of global warming. Hope the breeze of green perception spread globally making the Earth a better planet to live in. Labels: Car-Manufacturers, Eco-Friendly-Car, Tata-Motors
Monday, 5 January 2009
Since its debut, Tata Nano, is always in the news for its iconic character. The car is yet to be commercially launched and rumours of its different avatars have been echoing for a long time. Tata has amazed everyone with its innovative technology used in the Nano that has made the car enjoy the tag of world's cheapest car. Again the company has taken a step ahead of other car manufacturers with its plan to introduce a hybrid version of the Nano. If Tata's plans go well, the Nano could soon be seen with Bosch's micro-hybrid technology which is believed to reduce fuel consumption and emissions by about 5 to 10 percent. The micro-hybrid technology is also known as 'stop-start system' in which the hybrid set up automatically turns off the car’s engine while it's not in use. This little but powerful technology will join diesel and all-electric variants of the Nano. The cost of Micro hybrid technology will be much lower than the full hybrid system. Though the exact price of the Nano Hybrid is not yet known, it's expected to cost Rs 4,000 to 6,000 more than the parent model. Labels: Car-Manufacturers, Hybrid-Cars, Tata-Nano
Wednesday, 31 December 2008
All new passengers cars that will roll out from the January 1st , 2009 will display mileage information. The rule declared by Indian government for all car manufacturers to tag their car models with the mileage information will be implement with the advent of new year. Maruti Suzuki will be the first car company to imply the rule in the country. The company has already started a training programme for its 14,000 dealers across 600 sales outlets in order to implement the "Fuel Economy Consumer Information" programme. Interestingly, Maruti Suzuki has already implemented the rule by announcing the fuel economy of its global car A Star. The data for the same is provided by the Automotive Research Association of India (ARAI). The Automotive Research Association of India (ARAI) is supposed to test cars and two-wheelers under the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturer's initiative to provide the mileage related information. These information will also be supported with a disclaimer which states 'disclosed figure has been arrived at in test conditions and fuel values could differ due to variables such as driving habits, road and traffic conditions, fuel quality, maintenance practices, loading pattern and so on'. This is an good step taken by the government and the car manufacturers. It is the duty of the car manufacturers to reveal the fuel economy to help the buyers make a good selection based on their need. Labels: Car-Manufacturers, Fuel-efficiency, Maruti-Suzuki
Tuesday, 30 December 2008
December is a month of celebrations for the car manufacturers. After a long time of downturn, some of the car manufacturers have experienced good sales this month. This festive season is coupled with the celebrations of the 25th anniversary of Maruti Suzuki and 10th anniversary of Tata Indica. The first Indica was rolled out in 30th December 1998. Since then, the car has crossed various economic barriers with its changing style, design, performance, and engine technology. Tata Motors has unveiled various generations of the Indica in response to the changing demands of the Indian consumers. To add special joy and cheer to the 10th anniversary of the Indica, the company has introduced a special limited edition of the Indica Vista. The new generation Indica when launched in August 2008, has laid a strong foundation in the car industry. The limited edition excitingly comes with new vibrant colour combinations that include Porcelain White with a black roof. Adding to the exterior is the beauty of gold finished grill garnish, golden emblems, and a expressively designed number plate. Peep into the interiors and you’ll know the actual beauty of the Vista that is embellished with premium features and subtle touches. The anniversary special Quadrajet Diesel and Safire Petrol Indica Vista are available with price tags of Rs 5,04,045 (ex-showroom Delhi) and Rs 4,15,263 (ex-showroom Delhi), respectively. Labels: Car-Manufacturers, Indica-Vista, Tata-Motors
Friday, 26 December 2008
As a gratitude to India on completing 25 glorious years in the Indian car market, Maruti Suzuki unveils the National Road Safety Mission programme. Maruti feels that this is only a small way to thank India for constant support throughout its journey. The mission is attributed to impart driving training to about 5 Lakh people in the next three years. The company lays emphasis on training the underprivileged section of the society. Out of the 5 Lakh trainers, about 1 Lakh trainers are to be from the weaker section, people who are actually keen to take up driving as their profession. The existing two Institutes of Driving Training and Research (IDTRs) and 47 Maruti Driving Schools will be utilized to train learners. Designed with all the elements of a good and social responsibilities, the company desires to benefit the society both in terms of social welfare and financial gains with this programme. The mission introduced by the Maruti may motivate other car manufacturers to adopt a similar approach. If this happens, then Indian roads would become the safest place to drive. Labels: Car-Manufacturers, Maruti-Suzuki
After experiencing a dull market for a long time, car manufacturers are now rejoicing their Christmas gift. This merriment is brought by the government who has played the role of Santa by gifting them the lowered excise duty. Yes, the 4% reduction in the central value-added tax has tremendously raised car sales. Excitingly, the market that was down from the past few months, have witnessed a number of customers walking into the car showrooms. With this, the December car sales have rose to about 20-25%. Even the piled inventories with the manufacturers are getting cleared. The discounts offered by car manufacturers in response to the lower excise duty had not shown any kind of excitement at an early stage. But gradually, leading car players realized that the rebates have helped improved car sales, especially in the past five days. Cars that have experienced maximum sales are the small cars that account for about three-fourth of the total car sales in December. Car companies like the Hyundai and the Maruti Suzuki have gained maximum revenues from their pleasing small cars like the Alto and Santro. Talking about the sedans, the New Honda City has seen good demand among the consumers. All these car manufacturers has received the gift they wanted. But, luxury car manufacturers like the Mercedes-Benz and the BMW are still in dark because of the high car finance rates. However, with the end of this calendar year, luxury car manufacturers are still hunting for better ways to boost their sales. Labels: Car-Manufacturers, Car-Sales, Luxury-Car
Tuesday, 23 December 2008
The global recession has disturbed the domestic car sales in the recent months. Its true that every black cloud have a silver lining. The silver lining is brought by the export sales amid the gloomy cloud canopying the car industry. Ironically, even during this time of downturn, the overall export sales went up with an impressive percentage of 61.8 in November this year. November experienced a export of 146,337 units compared to 90,398 units in same month last year. Passenger cars played a primary role in whooping the export figure which recorded a sale of 34,607 units in contrast of 15,464 units last year in the same period. The Korean car major Hyundai Motors witnessed a sale growth of 28,500 units from 9,898 units. Also, the Indian car leader Maruti Suzuki's sales raised from 4,382 units to 4,920 units. Whereas, the domestic sales has been affected in a big way forcing many car manufacturers to cut down their production capacity. Most of the car manufacturers have announced discounts and schemes with their car models with a hope to boost the car sales. Though these strategies have helped them to some limit but then they are still not able to revive the sales figure. Now, they are banking on the coming New Year to bring some fortune along with a fresh new dawn. Labels: Car-Industry, Car-Manufacturers, Car-Sales
Friday, 19 December 2008
While most of the car manufacturers are deferring their expansion plans and cutting their production capacity, Audi being optimistic and with a hope that the car market will bounce back to a stable position, has recently inaugurated its new showroom in Ahmedabad. With the establishment of the first Audi dealer showroom in Gujarat, the company desires to deliver the progressive Audi brand experience to its valued customers in the state.Audi's love for exclusivity and sophistication not only reflects in its cars but also in the showrooms. The new exclusive Audi showroom is built over an area of 5,000 sq feet in accordance to the latest international standards displaying a synchronization of sophistication, progressiveness, and exclusivity, which compliments the true brand image of Audi. Excitingly, you can experience the joy and passion of six Audi cars in this new showroom including the recently launched outstanding sports car, Audi R8. All the machinery and equipment in the showroom are directly brought from Germany to deliver excellent service quality whilst maintaining Audi's brand essence in the market. Audi already has eleven car dealerships across India at Delhi, Chandigarh, Gurgaon, Pune, Mumbai, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Ludhiana, Chennai, Kochi, and Kolkata. And the new Ahmedabad showroom makes an another significant addition to the list of Audi dealerships. Labels: Audi-Cars, Car-Manufacturers, Car-Market
Thursday, 18 December 2008
After experiencing bankruptcy in U.S due to economic recession, General Motors now plans to enter the used car business.The company feels that this is the time to make a new start with a fresh approach and innovative strategy. With the current market slump, many car manufacturers are hunting for new avenues to boost car sales. For General Motors, used car business seems to be the best avenue with the current market situation. The company plans to start its new firm with the brand name, 'Chevrolet OK', from January 15, 2009. General Motors may see a new dawn of a brighter future ahead as most of the car manufacturers including leading market players like the Maruti and Honda have rejoiced success with their used car wings. And further to that the used car market in India is growing at an accelerated pace. Under the brand name 'Chevrolet OK', the company will only sell General Motors cars as a part of its project. It is also said that General Motors would introduce this used car biz as a pilot project and would also work on its expansion plans, if the company receives a good response in a couple of months. Labels: Car-Manufacturers, General-Motors, Used-Cars
 After most of the car manufacturers has reduced their car prices to pass the benefits of excise cut to their car customers, German car manufacturers are now following the suit.Audi and Volkswagen have also announced a cut in their car prices in response to the lowered excise duty rates. Excitingly, the prices of the Audi and Volkswagen car models are reduced by up to Rs 2.79 Lakh and Rs 80,859, respectively. You would be happy to know that the price of the Audi A8, A6 and the A4 is reduced by Rs 2.79 Lakh, Rs 1.51 Lakh and Rs 1.21 Lakh, while Audi's SUV, Q7 is now cheaper by Rs 1.85 Lakh. Likewise, the Volkswagen has slashed the price of its sedan Jetta in the range of Rs 46,086 and Rs 57,814 and Passat in the range of Rs 75,674 and Rs 80,859 across India. Government has made a right move by lowering the taxes to arrest the economic downturn whilst giving a new opportunity to the car manufacturers to raise their sales graph. Labels: Audi-Cars, Car-Manufacturers, Car-prices
In this time of credit crisis, falling car sales, and slow economy, car manufacturers have no other option than to cut down their productions. It’s depressing to know that the leading car manufacturers across the country are now switching over to lower production capacities in response to the declining consumers demand. Car manufacturers like the Toyota, Honda, and the Tata Motors have been forced to revise their sales target due to falling car sales. These manufacturers already have a piled car stock with them. And to ease the impact of recession, they are trying various offers and schemes on car consumers to bring them back to the showrooms. But all attempts are going in vain. The unstable and unpredictable Indian car market has placed a big question mark on the consumers as well as the manufacturers. The Toyota has cut its production by about 30% after posting a fall of 48.55% car sales in November. In continuation, the Tata Motors has also announced a cut in their production to go well with the squeezing car demand in the market. Honda is also under the influence of major slump and defers its expansion plan while cutting down production at its Greater Noida plant situated near Delhi. With such an imbalance in the car market, it’s difficult to judge what the future holds. Car manufacturers are also waiting for the New Year dawn with high hopes that the market situation may improve. If the efforts to ease the impact of recession be successful, these manufacturers would again increase the production capacities in line with the increasing demands. Labels: Car-Manufacturers, Car-prices, Car-Sales
Wednesday, 17 December 2008
With so many car manufacturers announcing price cut on their car models, the Indian car market is now on a toss. At one end car companies are reducing their car prices and on the other end speculations of increase in car prices by January 2009 are high in air. Indian car manufacturers including the Maruti, Honda, Hyundai, General Motors, and the Hindustan Motors have announced a cut in their respective car models in response to the excise cut benefits announced by the government. All these players including the German car manufacturers, Audi and Volkswagen, aim to pass the complete benefits to their customers. According to them, this may boost the falling car sales further accelerating the slow moving car market. But, then there are confirm news and few speculations that states that many of the car models will become costlier by January 2009. Some Indian states are planning to increase their local taxes which would eventually increase the price of all car models in those corresponding states. Talking about Honda and General Motors, they have already announced that they are increasing the prices across the entire portfolio of their car models. Even Maruti is speculated to increase the car prices of its car by January next year. With this, the car market is placed on a toss with an imbalance in the expected market performance. If the speculations of price hike are true, the short-term price cut in December this year would not put any major impact on the position of the present day car market. And if speculations are just to gain back the waning car buyers, car sales may boost to some extent without actually reviving the fortune of the Indian car industry. Car manufacturers definitely have to hunt for a fresh approach and innovative strategies to bring back the lost status and position of the Indian car market. Labels: Car-Manufacturers, Car-prices, Indian-car-industry
Friday, 12 December 2008
Though the car prices have been recently reduced by car manufactures in response to the excise cut, the prices may likely to hike up again with the increase in local state taxes of few Indian states. After a long time of falling car sales and dropping economy, Indian car manufacturers are rejoicing the reduction in excise duty announced by the government. But, the industry’s fortune may again start dwindling.  States like Delhi, Himachal Pradesh, Punjab, and Rajasthan are expected to increase their local-level taxes which would definitely bring down the benefits of the lower excise rates. These states are following the trend started by Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat, Kerala, Maharashra, Tamil Nadu, and Karnataka. The latter have already increased their state taxes and the former are in the process to levy new local taxes. This would unfortunately increase the car prices.
Car consumers who were celebrating the cut in car prices just a few days back are now feeling the pinch. The pinch is even harder and painful because the state taxes are to be levied on the ex-showroom price of the car models. If it was on the ex-factory prices, these customers may have still enjoyed the benefits of excise cut.
Now, it has become difficult to say whether the car market will bloom this December or not. Potential consumers have also felt a harder pinch because the price cut announced in response to the excise cut was lower than the price increased due to the higher state taxes.
December may still prove to be a prosperous month for the car market because the increased taxes are still to be announced. Maybe, till then, potential car buyers can make up their minds to decide on their choice. Customers may take advantage of the reduced car prices now and make quick bookings. But that’s only for a short period. Labels: Car-Manufacturers, Car-prices, Car-Sales
At this stage when the car market is struggling with the tight credit crunch, waning customers, and slowing economy, car manufacturers are wondering how to retain buyers. Winning new car customers during this tough period is a very big challenge but at this point of time car manufacturers should focus more on their already existing customer base. Bain & Co., a U.S-based Company, has recently surveyed thousands of customers in U.S to study their experiences with regards to the ownership, service, and brand loyalty. Excitingly, the company found out that the best way to convert customers to fans is to provide exceptional after-sales services. Especially in this turbulent time, if manufacturers give excellent and quality services to their existing car customers, they will serve as promoters. Brand loyalty pays on a long run. For example, if a car buyer buys a car today and if he/she gets good service till the entire ownership of the vehicle, the owner will definitely appreciate and admire the brand. This appreciation will further transfer to words of praises and then it will form a promotion channel. So, next time if any of the known relative of this particular owner decides to buy a new car, he or she will definitely put the brand’s name ahead with top most priority. This will also help manufacturers to reinforce their relationships with the customers. So, today when the market is not doing well, it’s the right time for car manufacturers to move ahead and retain their existing customers with pride and joy. Labels: Car-Manufacturers, Indian-car-market
Thursday, 11 December 2008
The past couple of months have proved to be a curse for the global car market. The global recession had hit the industry so badly that it has affecting the economy. In November, the U.S car market experienced a decline of about 37% which is shockingly believed to be the steepest fall in the past 26 years. For about 26 years, U.S market has rejoiced a joyful ride. But now, even the big car manufacturers like General Motors, Ford, and Chrysler have reported over 40% decline in their car sales.
This situation in U.S has severely affected the Indian car market with domestic sales plunging to about 19.38% in November 2008. Like U.S, India also had lived a splendid time with a continuous boom in the domestic car sales in past 8 years. The glorious years are now over but the car manufacturers are still optimistic with hopes and aspiration. They are offering discounts and schemes as part of Christmas and New Year celebration with the expectation of growth in their car sales. Car manufacturers are looking forward with positive perceptions that the month of December will pour some blessings in the car market and put an end to the slowdown as well as this year. Almost all car manufacturers have cut down their car prices to bring back their waning customers to the showrooms. The consumer’s response after the announcement of heavy discount on Honda Civic Hybrid and Ford Fiesta are the live examples to showcase that car discounts may boost the car sales. Both the cars have experienced good sales in a small period of time. Further to that, the Indian Government has lowered the excise duty by 4%. This has given one more opportunity to the car industry for improving their sales numbers. Most of the car companies have reduced the prices of their entire fleet of cars to pass the benefit of lowed taxes to their customers. This means that the total discount in overall price of the car is double-digit with more expectations of car sales to zoom this December. Labels: Car-Manufacturers, Car-Sales, Indian-car-market
There is a bunch of new technologies entering the car market, out of which the satellite based audiovisual entertainment is something interesting and attractive. This new technology is introduced by DSK Digital Technologies in association with Micro International Group, Taiwan-based electronics major. Christened as FunStar, audiovisual entertainment system will include vehicle media on demand (VMOD). This would be excitingly integrated in a system that includes car audio/video, television, and car safety along with mobile office and car-telematics. With this advanced system, you can enjoy a variety of applications like watching films, listening to music albums, and playing games. It would be fitted in the rear side of the headrest of front car seats. Every passenger in the car can enjoy his or her own personal entertainment channel as all would be supplied with a personalized processing option. FunStar would really add fun and excitement to the car journey. The pioneer of this great car technology is in negotiation with various car manufacturers to offer this solution in-built in their respective car models. Labels: Car-Manufacturers, Car-Market
Wednesday, 10 December 2008
Technologies and innovations are ruling every sector including the car industry. Today, cars are no more only a means of transportation. Car consumers have put in high aspirations and demands from car manufacturers. They want cars that are equipped with more technically advanced and modern features. Car telematics is a blend of computer technology and wireless communication that works in association with electronic sensors. The key objective of telematics is to connect cars to mobile networks. These play an integral role to improve communication between a driver and a car with regards to roadside assistance and remote diagnostics. Telematics also help car drivers to perform functions like exchanging mails, downloading digital audio and video files, accessing Internet, and searching a perfect route to a desired destination. These applications further help to improve safety and comfort level while driving. The U.S was the first market to adopt telematics in car. Following the U.S market, even European and Indian markets have started adopting this technology to introduce improved standards in the car. In India, the worth of telematics can be seen in high-end luxury cars like that of Mercedes-Benz and BMW. Even Volkswagen, Volvo, and Mahindra have introduced electronic sensors in few of their car models. Car telematics is though a new word in the car industry but a significant one as all the latest technologies including the Driver Information System in New Logan, Brake Assist in Mercedes-Benz cars, or the GPS (Global Positioning System) in quite a few of the cars in India, all are works on the principle of telematics. Indian car manufacturers are still in search of better car-telematics to improve the movement of car on roads to ensure improved safety and better driving experience. Labels: Car-Manufacturers, Indian-car-industry, Mercedes-Benz-Cars
Driver information system is one of the recent technologies introduced in the car market. It is a refined form of communication channel between the car and the driver. This new system is found with an amazing appeal in the New  Logan and Audi cars. It is fitted in the instrument cluster and displays all critical information required by a car driver. It provides information on the current operating status, average speed of the car, amount of fuel-consumed, distance travelled after the last refueling, and the distance the car can travel with the remaining amount of fuel. DIS is a live example of union of the consumer electronics industry with the automotive industry. With this many other operations like Bluetooth connectivity, web servers, gaming systems, mobile connection, and GPS (global positioning systems) also enhances the driving pleasures. Customers now demand for such technologies as these contributes to a hassle free driving. Many car manufacturers are also on their way to adopt the DIS and add value to the driving power of their respective car models. Labels: Audi-Cars, Car-Manufacturers, Car-Market
Tuesday, 9 December 2008
Car manufacturers have tied high hopes with the approaching festive season of New Year and Christmas to recover from the grief of plunging car sales. They are trying to ignite a fire of thrill and excitement in the gloomy car market by announcing heavy discounts, schemes, exchange benefits, and vouchers to tempt customers for car purchase.  While others are offering price discounts, Skoda presents free periodic maintenance for 3 years or 50,000 km on the purchase of new Skoda cars. This offer is valid until the date when the year 2008 moves to 2009. Yes, you can avail this offer till 31st December. All Skoda cars including the Skoda Octavia, Skoda Superb, Skoda Laura and Skoda Fabia fall under this year-end scheme. Similar offer is also declared by Skoda’s parent company, Volkswagen. You can buy the Volkswagen Jetta with a free maintenance of 3 years or 45,000 km whichever is earlier. Skoda promises zero worries with the purchase of Skoda cars making your ride more pleasurable. Skoda calls it the ‘zero worries scheme’ and encourages the car buyers to seriously consider buying their cars. Labels: Car-Manufacturers, Skoda-Cars, Volkswagen-cars
It’s depressing to know that the recent terror attack in Mumbai, India’s financial capital, has added to the woes of car manufacturers. Mumbai, at present is experiencing a wave of dismay, fear, and anger. People are down in sentiments in wake of terror attack. Seeing the current scenario, the car manufacturers are compelled to postpone their new car launches. Mahindra & Mahindra and Fiat are the first ones to defer their car launches. These two car companies are Mumbai-based and have seen the devastated affects the terror has brought to the city. They are not ready to push customers for car sales at this stage when there is upheaval in Mumbai coupled with slowdown in the car market. Both the companies had plans to launch their car models, Fiat Linea and Mahindra Xylo, in December this year. But now, the launches have been delayed and are speculated to make their debut in January 2009. Both the launches are significant for the respective companies as these are considered to set new benchmarks in the Indian market. So, they want a fresh and cheerful environment at the time of launch. Labels: Car-Manufacturers, Mahindra-and-Mahindra, New-Car-Launch
Monday, 8 December 2008
As the New Year approaches, many car manufacturers are offering heavy discounts to scale up the dropping car sales and so is Hyundai. For Hyundai car lovers, the company has announced a jackpot. You would be glad and thrill to know that the company offers unbelievable and once in a lifetime offer on its compact car, the Hyundai Santro. You can now buy it at a 10 year old price of Rs 2.99 Lakh. Shocked or amazed, this is the fact and an opportunity that should not be missed. In addition, Hyundai also announces special schemes for its i10, Getz Prime, Verna, and Accent. On the purchase of Hyundai i10, you can enjoy a total savings of Rs 25,600 as you’ll get an exchange discount of Rs 7,500 along with free insurance and Hyundai original car accessories worth Rs 5,000. On buying the Getz Prime, you can get a benefit of Rs 27,500 with an exchange loyalty of Rs 10,000 coupled with a gift cheque of Rs 17,500. Purchase of Hyundai Verna can give you a total savings of Rs 44,270 available with a special scheme of free insurance and exchange loyalty of Rs 20,000. Also, on the purchase Hyundai Accent, you can make a total savings of Rs 27,500 with a gift cheque of Rs 17,500 and an exchange loyalty of Rs 10,000. Hurry friends, this is a limited period offer from 5th to 15th December. Labels: Car-Manufacturers, Car-Sales, Hyundai-cars
Thursday, 4 December 2008
If you are waiting to buy a new car for yourself, then this is the perfect time for car purchase. Struggling with the slowdown blues, Indian car manufactures have announced heavy discounts on their top running car models. Big players of the market including Maruti Suzuki, General Motors, Tata Motors, and Ford have announced big discounts on their cars as a lucrative proposal for those who are waiting to buy a new car. Many of you may have planned to buy a car this year but inflation and recession may have dug down your decision. And if that’s the case, then here is the right time for you to move ahead with your desire of purchasing a car. You would be glad to know that the most lucrative discount has been offered by Ford for its New Ford Fiesta, a discount of Rs 91,000. But this offer is valid for only 10 days. Maruti is also softening the price tags to attract waning customers with a discount of Rs 35,000 on Maruti Suzuki WagonR, Rs 15,000 on Maruti Suzuki Alto, Rs 20,000 on Maruti Suzuki Zen Estilo, and Rs 15,000 on Maruti Suzuki SX4. Tata Motors is also offering an average discount of Rs 20,000-30,000 on its entire range of car models. Talking about General Motors, the company offers attractive discounts and schemes on the purchase of Spark, Aveo, Aveo U-VA, and Optra. Hyundai is still in process of finalising its new schemes and discounts to pull customers back to Hyundai showrooms. Regardless of what the New Year has in store for these car manufacturers, they are throwing out discounts to clear inventories. Labels: Car-Manufacturers, New-Car, Tata-Motors
Monday, 1 December 2008
The car manufacturers are working on different strategies to strengthen their position in India. Now they are trying to win Indian hearts by manufacturing ‘Made in India' cars as buyers are inclined to Indian made products driven by their love for the nation. Some of the car majors like General Motors, Maruti Suzuki (MSIL), and Volkswagen have already laid stone for this new 'Truly Indian’ project. These cars would be developed almost completely in the country, utilizing the technical expertise and skills of creative Indian engineers. The cars will be exclusively built keeping in mind the Indian road conditions and the buyers taste. General Motors is expected to introduce ‘Indian car’ by next year. The Indian car leader Maruti Suzuki is working on full swing for the production of India-built car and also plans to hire more engineers further to facilitate the manufacturing process. Though Maruti Suzuki A-star is the fruit of Indian technical expertise and designs, we cannot call it completely India made, as a lot of Japanese technologies are used to develop the vehicle. Hyundai i10, which has bagged many awards and critics’ appreciation both in India as well as abroad, is also completely manufactured in India. Also, in the lineup is the Volkswagen’s 'Indian Car', which is currently under the development stage. ‘Made in India’ cars would probably be the next latest trend in the Indian car industry. This will further strengthen the position of Indian car industry globally. But hope the design, quality, and the price are also taken care. Labels: Car-Manufacturers, Indian-cars, Maruti-Suzuki
Monday, 24 November 2008
The global recession that has struck our world is now peaking. The tide of financial downfall in the U.S. has left no company untouched. Major U.S auto manufacturers that have faced severe financial difficulties include decade old names such as General Motors and Ford. GM and Ford are at the verge of bankruptcy. Struggling to stay alive, these manufacturers have finally asked for help from their government. How does this affect the Indian auto market? The heavy loss along with a severe liquidity crunch in the U.S has compelled people to cut upgrades to bigger and better cars. Due to a lack of finance in the market, the number of people buying new cars has almost come to a standstill. With deteriorating car sales, car production has also seen a massive slow down, which means that the demand for auto components is fast dwindling. Auto players, who use to import car components from the fast growing and cheaper Indian market, have cut down their auto component orders due to the hard hit of recession. Even players like Bajaj Auto, Hyundai Motors, and Tata Motors from India have cut down their component orders. After a slowdown in August 2008, September proved to be a promising month for the auto industry. Production growth in September 2008 was recorded to be 12.70% with a domestic sales growth of 5.39%. This growth was further swayed away by the strong wind of recession in the month of October. In October, car sales fell down to about 9.05% over October 2007 along with a slowdown in car production that dropped to about 12.32%. Export sales also dipped from various markets, which have taken a stiff beating on the component manufacturers. Fortunately, the strong and growing Indian economy with its vast working population may have a cushioning effect on the car manufacturers and dealers. However, the auto component manufacturers will hit the hardest during this slow down and the declining sales are likely to continue at least until March 2009. Labels: Car-Manufacturers, Ford-Cars, General-Motors
At one end Maruti Suzuki has unveiled its world’s strategic model A-Star and at the other end the company is cutting down production of its other car models. It is believed that the month of October had brought great challenges and tough times for not only Maruti but other car manufacturers as well. Maruti’s sale recorded a steep decline in October and a further decline in the month of November. In response to the slowdown, the company decided to cut down the production. Earlier Maruti Suzuki had three shifts in its Gurgaon facility. But now, it has been reduced to two and a half shifts aimed at streamlining inventory levels. Not losing hopes, Maruti introduces the A-Star and expects the market to bounce back with new excitement and booming sales by the end of this year. With such an aim, Maruti revives its marketing strategies and initiatives. It also continues special offers for government employees and the corporate sector to take away incremental sales. Labels: Car-Manufacturers, Maruti-Suzuki, Maruti-Suzuki-A-Star
Tuesday, 18 November 2008
Car manufacturers are struggling hard to cope up with the hard hit of global recession. Some are cutting down their car prices, some are replacing expensive car components with cheaper one. While many are offering special discounts for corporate and government employees and few are even cutting down their production. At the other end of the spectrum automotive manufacturers strongly feel that Government must also move hand in hand with them to help stoke the demand in the economy. They believe that if government reduces the excise duty, it will help them to reduce car prices and deliver best to their esteem customers. Car manufacturers think that reduction in excise duty, indirect taxes, fiscal stimulus, and improved infrastructure would help boost auto industry in the country. Surprisingly, the rate of inflation is coming down with the reduction in oil prices. All take this is as a golden opportunity to look ahead to the future growth of the auto industry in India. Industry, Government, and Economy all look ahead towards a brighter vision. Labels: Car-Manufacturers, Car-prices
Thursday, 13 November 2008
Innovation is creeping in the car industry as car manufacturers are trying to hunt for cost efficiencies. This seems to be a worse period for the car industry when global recession has bang the Motown. Shockingly, car manufacturers are struggling to drive hard bargains with commodity vendors and find interesting ideas for tightening the belt. Talking about Honda, the company is looking to squeeze operational efficiency and cut down the use of electricity to skim cost. Interestingly, Honda is also growing creepers on the rooftops to reduce the dependence on AC. This is just an initiative; the company is still trying further to help meet the required cost rduction. After Honda, Tata Motors is also trying to cut down cost by replacing expensive car components with cheap and affordable alternatives. Even Maruti is making a greener move and trying to make its car parts recyclable. In a similar manner if all the car manufacturers are on the verge of meeting the required cost efficiencies, then cars of the future are definitely going to be cheaper. Labels: Car-Industry, Car-Manufacturers, Tata-Motors
 The Honda Civic Hybrid now wants to spread Green all around! Not only the environment-friendly “reduce emissions” kind, but also the kind that makes a miser smile. Honda gives its Civic Hybrid an 8 Lakh price cut, which is said to be one of the steepest in the history of the Indian car market. This offer is effective immediately and is said to be valid till the end of the year. Talk about saving GREEN! The cut will be between the Rs 8.14 to 8.17 Lakh range bringing the ex-showroom price of the Hybrid down to approximately Rs 13.25 Lakh in some cities – close to the price of its much more successful Civic petrol sibling. This is the first for Honda in terms of marketing strategy practiced in India. However, this strategy is not uncommon for other Indian car manufacturers. To try and bring Hybrid sales of 63 cars in 6 months up to par to match the 5000 cars in 6 months Civic Petrol sales is a big dream to have and will be an even bigger accomplishment if successful. Well, this may not be the last drastic step Indians see car manufacturers take if the world economy continues to disintegrate in the near future. Labels: Car-Manufacturers, Honda-Cars, Indian-car-market
Tuesday, 11 November 2008
Car designing was earlier restricted to the style, appeal and exterior of the car. But now the trend has changed. Everyone wants path breaking aesthetics both in the exterior as well as interior. This has widened the arena of car designing. Whether it’s a high-end luxury car or a small compact car, we always need a warm hug from the car interiors. Car manufacturers and designers later realized the fact that a normal car owner spends much of their time in the interior, either driving, reading books, or listening music and some even spend most of their days in their cars to commute from one place to another. Interestingly, some car owners even ask for customization of the car interiors. Talking about the BMW 3-Series convertible that offers a blend of comfort and luxury with their high-end car seats and the armrest. Armrest has reflective polymers to reduce surface temperature of the leather. Coming to the Volvo cars, it also offers innovative interiors. Similarly, many car manufacturers offer a blend of comfort and luxury in the car interiors to lure more customers. There are many things that can complement the interior today. A long list including the friendly controls, impressive dashboards, hugging car seats, and appealing upholstery, actually define the inner beauty of a car. As it is a known fact that the inner soul is more beautiful than the outer appearance. The same applies to a car’s interior that needs to be more impressive and beautiful than the exteriors. Labels: Car-Designing, Car-Manufacturers, Luxury-Car
Though the Indian car market is on a slowdown, car manufacturers have recorded a surge in sales due to special offers extended to the government employees. Many car manufacturers like the Maruti, Hyundai, and General Motors, during the festive season had introduced special schemes and discounts for government employees in response to the pay revision. This special scheme has showed a substantial jump in the car sales across the sector. So, these manufacturers further plans to extend the schemes by another one month to cope up with the sluggish car market. Maruti, Hyundai, and General Motors are all happy and satisfied with the announcement of such schemes in the car market. This was a direct hit to the government employees who rarely feels the need to have a car. But now, the offers have knocked out their thoughts and they are approaching car dealers. The growing consumer interest has forced them to extend the scheme with high hopes to record a still higher sales figure. Labels: Car-Manufacturers, Car-Sales, Indian-car-market
Friday, 31 October 2008
The caption ‘buy a home to get a car’ sounds so simple. But is it that simple. Along with the car market, the entire economy is dwindling with high inflation and financial crisis. The middle class section of the society has headed towards a tough, challenging, and strange crossroads, a point where they have to cut down their basic necessity of life. Buying a home has become a challenge and even buying a car. Both are a necessity today. But, interestingly, today real estate owners are offering special schemes and discounts to lure customers. They are not able to reduce or cut down the actual cost because of increasing inflation but they are definitely offering incentives in terms of interiors and even cars. Yes, some of the real estate owners are offering cars to all their customers on booking a flat. This means, to buy a car of worth Rs 5 lakh or even Rs 10 lakh, you have to buy a house worth Rs 25 or 40 lakh. Car manufacturers are simply trying to club promotional activities to push car sales. But is this the right strategy for advertising or branding? Labels: Car-Manufacturers, Car-Market, Car-Sales
Wednesday, 29 October 2008
With Oil prices sky rocketing, global economic crisis is hitting every sector, car manufacturers are severely hit across the globe. To add to this, some countries like India, suffer with extreme traffic problems making it even worse. In the next few years, if there is any segment that would benefit it would be the small car. We will see many more variants in the market. And unlike in the past, these variants will not be just 1.4 liter or 1.6 liter but also come out with CNG and Electric variants. Every car manufacturer will need to get more innovative in terms of design, features, ergonomics, and performance. I am however; quite surprised that many car manufactures haven’t considered India yet for launch of their small cars. On road, most of the current small cars don’t differentiate much. So, I personally see a huge scope for the launch of luxury small cars. How many have seen small cars with Sun-roof, ABS, Airbags, side impact bars, alloy wheels, and leather upholstery. Not many? Well, I hope very shortly we all will do. India not only stands a great chance of becoming a platform for global launch of small cars but also design centre for global small cars. Submitted By: Vikas Valsang Labels: Car-Manufacturers, Oil-Prices, Small-Car
Friday, 24 October 2008
Like other car manufacturers, the Toyota is also eyeing the festive season to boost car sales. It also aims to catch customer’s sentiments by providing free service campaign. Exciting news is that the company has introduced the ‘Drive n Zoom’ free service campaign conducted at all Toyota car dealerships across India exclusively for Toyota customers. The key motive of introducing such kind of campaign is to spread the importance of periodic car maintenance essential for long and healthy life of cars. Good to know that the company offers 25-point free check up coupled with value-added packaged services. Underlining the campaign you’ll also get a chance to win assured gifts with the service and maintenance campaign. So, the month of October is for the Toyota car owners. Don’t waste your time and grab this excellent opportunity with open hands. Labels: Car-Manufacturers, Car-Sales, Toyota-Cars
Wednesday, 22 October 2008
This festive season has come up with loads of smashing car offers. Diwali is a festival of lights and you can very well brighten your house with a new car key shinning in your house. You just need to do the Diwali shopping and one new car may be yours. That sounds interesting! These days many shopping malls and branded outlets across the country especially in cities like Bangalore, Mumbai, and Delhi are offering special schemes on purchase. If you purchase anything above a specified price limit, you may be lucky to win a new car. This new car can be any, may be Hyundai i20, Mitsubishi Outlander, and may be a luxury car from the list of Audi, BMW, and Mercedes-Benz cars. No doubt that this is an excellent opportunity for purchasers to test their luck. But then, Indian car manufacturers are molding their marketing strategies to market their car models. The newly launched Mitsubishi Outlander can gain market value through these schemes and offers. But, others like Hyundai and Mercedes-Benz are simply trying to drive the sales and cope up with the sluggish car market. Car manufacturers have undying hopes attached to the festive season! Labels: Car-Manufacturers, Luxury-Car, New-Car
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