Indian Car Blog - Carazoo.com

Union Budget 2010 has been out there for some time and we have still not recovered from the bitter fact that cars are going to cost more now. Some car manufacturers even went a step ahead and increased prices of their cars even before the budget was read. Talk about beating the competition!

But auto industry analysts have welcomed the Budget saying that it is actually going to benefit the auto industry in the long-run. Another authority which seems mighty pleased with the Union Budget is the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM).

SIAM has welcomed the Union Budget 2010-11, branding it as a reform focused growth oriented Budget in the background of economic downturn. Dr. Pawan Goenka, President, SIAM and President – Automotive, Mahindra & Mahindra, is quick to point out the positive proposals of the Budget.

He said that the correction in Excise duty on Electric Vehicles will enable the manufacturers take CENVAT credit and exemption of Customs duty on Electric Vehicles parts. Dr Goenka also welcomed the increase in weighted deduction for in-house R&D to 200% from 150% and outsourced R&D from 125% to 175%.

So it means that electric vehicles will cost lesser now. All that sounds good. But considering that electric vehicles are not much popular among the Indian customers, relaxation in customs duty on electric vehicles certainly does not bring any kind of joy to us.

Dr. Goenka also said that 2% hike in Excise duty was expected and should not have adverse impact on the market. That’s about the market but what about the people on whom the auto manufacturers have already passed on the cost burden.

So what if you have to pay more to purchase the vehicle that you have always wanted to, it does not wreak havoc in anyone’s life – definitely not SIAM’s, at least.

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The Union Budget 2010 has done it to us again. Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee, on Friday, announced a two per cent increase in excise tax on prices of large cars, sports cars and MUV’s (Multi-Utility Vehicles in the general budget. That’s the uglier side of the budget.

The better side is that the small car segment would continue to get the 4 per cent excise duty relief that was introduced by the government as an industry stimulus package during 2008, when auto sales had hit an all time low.

That’s not all. There are other components of the 2010 Union Budget which would negatively affect the vehicle buying decisions of the consumers. There has been increase in fuel prices with petrol becoming costlier by Rs 2.67 and diesel by Rs 1.50 (Delhi).

It does not end there. The Union Budget 2010 has announced a hike on the excise duty of steel as well which would result in vehicles manufacturing becoming an expensive affair and the costs being passed on directly to the buyers.

Some of the auto manufacturers in the country have already announced a hike in the prices. Maruti Suzuki India, India’s largest car maker, has said that the Maruti Suzuki cars will become costlier by 2 percent, while Hyundai Motor India has hinted at a price rise of Rs 6,500 – Rs 25,000 on an average on all its cars sold in India.

But considering all this, we can feel good, at least, about the corrections in the excise duty on Electric Vehicles. The electric vehicles will now get exemption from custom duty and other special duties on the components used. This is going to move the auto industry’s focus on innovation, R&D and product development which would bring in competitiveness on a long-run.

In 2008, the UPA government had reduced the excise duty on small cars (from 12 per cent to 8 per cent) and big cars from 24 per cent to 20 per cent. This move helped the auto industry recover from the global economic slowdown in 2008.

With the car prices and fuel prices going up, let’s see how the consumers respond.

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It is just unimaginable how things have changed around us in a matter of a decade or less. Let’s speak here on the advent of the Electric vehicles in the Indian context. The concept for Electric Vehicles was impossible about a couple of years ago. The scene in India changed after Maini Reva, the first Indian electric car maker put up a bold face and entered the Indian market. Yes, the going was certainly tough for Reva initially, thanks to the overly priced car which was limited only to the city use. It seemed highly impractical when the car was first launched in India.

But those were the days and now these are the days. Times do change. Reva surely set up as a pioneer in safeguarding the environment with its non-polluter electric cars. Picking up the cues, even bigger and environment-conscious car makers also joined the fray in a big way after the great recession of 08-09. This was a decisive moment as the mindset of billions of people suddenly started changing in the wake of Copenhagen summit.

India almost suddenly became a hot spot for the car manufactures to try out their new electric wares and cars that spat less smoke. This year’s Auto Expo certainly will be serving as a launch pad for more and more electric vehicles to hit India. This could prove a hit provided the practicality issues are sorted out soon.

At the Auto Expo, almost all the car manufactures are showcasing their electric car portfolio. Staring from General Motors’s EV’s, Electric vehicles like that of Honda EV-N, Renault Twizy ZE and Toyota’s Prius Hybrid will be showcased. Toyota has been making this hybrid since 1997 but India will see the third generation version of Prius on the roads pretty soon which will have a 1.5 litre petrol engine mated with an electric motor and will give around 20 kilometres a litre.

GM will have the concept Chevy Volt and the Chevy Spark Electric prototype at the show. The Chevy Spark Electric will have the same look at the petrol version but the engine will be replaced by an electric motor. The electric power train will be sourced from REVA.It must be recalled that GM and Reva Electric had signed an agreement recently to develop electric cars for the Indian market. The car is expected to debut commercially this year. The Chevrolet Volt is an electric vehicle with extended-range capability. It is said to be designed to drive up to 40 miles on electricity without using gasoline or producing tail-pipe emissions.

Tata Motors in the meanwhile is not lagging behind and we are anticipating that Tata showcases an electric/hybrid version of its Nano and also an electric version of its Indica, which has been in development in Norway. Tata had bought Norway-based electric vehicle maker Miljo Grenland/Innovasjon in 2008.

The Norwegian firm will manufacture super polymer lithium ion batteries and electric vehicles based on Tata Motors’ range of products as well as conduct research and development in allied technologies. Tata Motors will soon roll out its Rs 160 crore electric car project in Norway and later scale it up for other Scandinavian markets. The Indica Vista EV has been designed and developed by Tata Motors' UK subsidiary, Tata Motors European Technical Centre.

India’s largest car maker Maruti Suzuki is displaying its hybrid Maruti SX4 sedan amongst other concept cars at the Auto Expo 2010. The company is working on clean fuel technologies as part of a public-private partnership ahead of the Commonwealth Games, 2010.

Reva, which is India’s first electric car, showed off its NXR and NXG range of small EVs at the Frankfurt Auto Show last year. Though these cars will not be showcased at the Auto Expo, the India launch is expected soon.

Hyundai too has joined the EV bandwagon and will be showcasing an i10 EV at the Auto Expo. The launch though will be at a later date.

Mahindra is not falling behind of the schedule and has a couple of EVs which is all set to be unveiled at the show.

Let’s hope that the Indian public gives thumbs up for electric vehicles and hybrids in this Auto Expo 2010.

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India’s only Electric car maker REVA Electric Car Company has unveiled the two NXR and NXG at the Frankfurt Motor Show. It is the first time REVA has taken part in this prestigious Auto Show.

The electric car maker has revealed that the NXR (NeXt Reva) will go on sale in Europe in 2010. REVA has also announced the price of the NXR, at less than € 9,995 for the City model and the lithium-ion NXR Intercity version will be around € 14,995. But the price of the car will vary across Europe depending on taxes and subsidies. Customers will be offered the option of purchasing the car and batteries separately, or at an all-inclusive price.

Powered by a lithium-ion battery, the REVA NXR is a three-door, four-seater hatchback family car that is suitable for urban driving. The car can travel at the top speed of 104 km/h, with a range of 160 km per charge. If using the 90 minute fast charge (normal charging is eight hours), the REVA NXR offers an effective range of 320 km a day. A fast charge for 15 minutes will provide a 40 km range.

The NXR has keyless entry and operation, dual charge ports, intelligent digital display and a range of telematics. These include SMS alerts and commands such as distance-to-empty and time-to-full charge, remote cabin heat/cool, a monthly eco-drive check by email, service and insurance alerts, remote diagnostics and healing and REVive remote emergency charge. REVive is an exclusive technology of REVAthat acts like an invisible reserve fuel tank and addresses ‘range anxiety’.

If a customer runs out of charge, they can telephone or SMS REVA’s customer support centre. The advanced telematics feature will assess the car’s batteries remotely and activate a reserve amount of energy while protecting the battery life. Within minutes, a few extra kilometres of range are made available via the telematics and the driver can continue home or to a place where the NXR can be charged.

The REVA NXG (NeXt Generation) will have a range of 200 km per charge and a top speed of 130 km/h. It features the same telematics as the REVA NXR, including REVive and using the fast charge, it has an effective range of 400 kilometres a day. The REVA NXG will grace roads in 2011. The car will come with a price tag of € 23,000 excluding batteries plus a monthly mobility fee.

REVA Electric Car Company is committed to the creation of ultra low carbon cars and has only made Electric Vehicles (EVs). The REVA NXR and REVA NXG are the absolute ‘Green Cars’ that have lowest dust-to-dirt carbon footprints than any car in mass production.

The REVA NXR has been designed to use approximately 80% fewer parts than a conventional or hybrid car and will be assembled in REVA’s new ultra low-carbon assembly plant in Bangalore powered by solar energy and using natural light and ventilation and rainwater harvesting. Preparations have begun to create a ‘second life’ for the lithium batteries to optimise energy efficiency and reduce the cost to consumers via the creation of guaranteed residual values.

From 2010, REVA will publish the carbon emissions for the assembly and lifetime operation of both these new cars and by this environmental disclosure, customers can make an informed buying decision.

REVA will launch its Bangalore output with capacity of 300,000 units per year. Today, REVA is selling, or being test marketed, in 24 countries worldwide and has the largest deployed fleet of electric cars on the market with over 3,000 EVs on the road and more than 70 million kilometres of user experience.

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