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Friday, 9 April 2010
 “OK is no longer OK”. That was the campaign that Mahindra Group settled on for their Navistar print campaign. And guess what, that particular campaign has been adjudged as the ‘Best Print Campaign in the Country’ by the Public Relations Council of India (PRCI). Mahindra Navistar campaign outsmarted about 300 corporate companies who had also queued up for the award. Mahindra Group performed well in the year end awards. Mahindra Group entered the awards through many of it campaigns launched during the year, and apart from the best print campaign award, bagged a number of other awards including Mahindra Lifespaces, its sustainability project as also the group’s electronic newsletter. The award ceremony was held at the India Habitat Center, Lodhi Road, New Delhi. Mahindra Navistar Automotives Ltd. (MNAL) is a joint venture between our very own Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd. (M&M) and Navistar Inc. USA. Navistar manufactures commercial truck, school bus and mid-range diesel engine manufacturer in North America. The joint venture manufactures the entire array of commercial vehicles (including Trucks and Buses) from 4.5 tonne GVW to 49 tonne GVW. The new HCV product range, along with technological expertise from Navistar, has been engineered to meet the Indian requirements. Mahindra & Mahindra shares another joint venture with French auto manufacturer, Renault, under which it sells the entry level sedan, Logan. The PRCI is registered national body, a non-political organisation of professionals from various fields including public relations, communications, advertising, education and similar other allied services. Based in Bangalore, the PRCI has pioneered the process for Accreditation of PR and Advertising work in India. The PRCI, for the past four years, has started awards for excellence in PR, Communication and Advertising to recognize work of excellence by corporate companies at an all India level. The award attracts people from across India and abroad. Labels: Logan, Mahindra-and-Mahindra, Mahindra-Group, Mahindra-Navistar, Mahindra-Navistar-Campaign, Navistar, PRCI, Public-Relations-Council-of-India, Renault, Renault-Logan
Thursday, 1 April 2010
 Let me get straight to the point and tell you what is happening between Mahindra & Mahindra and Renault. Now don’t get your hopes very high and don’t even expect any news of a fiasco between the two. Yes, the latest news is that the two car manufacturers are going to get past their differences and announce a new restructured plan for their joint venture, Mahindra Renault Pvt Ltd (MPRL). The restructured joint venture would start kick start with the Logan sedan being repositioned as a small car, with a shorter length and featuring a compact petrol engine. The two car manufacturers had joined hands to sell the entry level sedan, Logan, but it failed to impress the Indian audience, primarily because of its pricing and ordinary looks. The model is currently selling about 500 units annually against the projected target of 50,000 units per annum. The joint venture proved to be a bad show for both and what started as a blame game soon became more action oriented with Renault associating itself with other major Indian and global brands (read Nissan and Bajaj Auto). However, month-long negotiations have enabled the two carmakers to rekindle their joint affair. The restructuring of the JV will also save them from an ugly and early divorce. The two are totally geared up and are expected to announce their fresh plans, about the JV and the new car, in the second week of April. Reanult chief, Carlos Ghosn indicated at a truce when he said that the Logan could be repositioned and the JV restructured. Of late, even Anand Mahindra has abstained from criticising Renault publicly. So far, Renault spokesman has not made any comments but Pawan Goenka, head of M&M's auto division, did divulge that they were working on a new plan. But he did not comment any further. Recently when Renault decided to set up an independent production and sales unit in India, everyone thought that that was the end of roads for the joint venture between Renault and M&M. Logan will continue to be manufactured at M&M's Nasik plant and will be distributed through select outlets of M&M’s dealer network. However, the Logan will go through the tweaking, mostly engine and dimensions, that was long overdue. M&M had come up with the tweaking options long back, but Renault was reluctant to give in.  The Logan’s overall length will be reduced below 4 metres so as to comply with the Indian government’s understanding of a ‘ small car’ and attract lower excise of 10%, against the current 22%. This will allow for a competitive pricing. Even the petrol engine capacity will be brought at 1200cc, against the current sizes of 1400cc and 1600cc.The diesel engine car, which has a 1500cc engine, will continue. Labels: Anand-Mahindra, Carlos-Ghosn, Logan, M-an-M-and-Logan, Mahindra-and-Mahindra, Mahindra-Renault-Pvt-Ltd, Renault
Friday, 19 March 2010
 Nissan is busy looking for partners to produce a car to be positioned below its Micra. Now, Nissan says, anybody but Mahindra & Mahindra. Why? Well, Nissan sells the Renault Logan but is not too happy with the car’s performance. M&M and Nissan are actually too busy with this existing car. They are thinking of repositioning the Logan and simplifying it. The Logan would not be withdrawn from the Indian market though. Mahindra-Renault confirmed that both the Logan and the joint venture would stay. Will a revamped version of the entry level sedan be rolled out? There are rumours on bringing in a shortened version and now you know why the company is currently offering discounted Logan cars. We just heard that the long body may be reduced a little in length. It is believed to decrease from 4.2 to 4 metres and will also upgrade its local content. With these changes, the car will fall in the small cars category and will be able to enjoy the 10 per cent excise benefit. The car has failed to create an impression on the minds of Indians. Only around 5,000 units have been sold since April last year, 60 per cent lesser than the previous year. What is going to be the destiny of the joint venture? We do not have a say as Mahindra and Renault have been discussing the matter. It does look like the venture will survive long. However, with mutual understanding, the business model or products might be squeezed a little. There’s one thing for sure; the Logan will remain on the Indian road. The market response to the Logan has been very saddening for both Mahindra and Renault. The car may soon be simplified and we may hear some news from the company very soon. Logan customers, however, will enjoy the services of the company. The car will have a completely normal lifecycle. If not for all this drama, don’t you think it is strange to see the rates of the Logan climb down when rates of other cars are climbing up? All car makers are looking for excuses to increase prices. They say, the manufacturing costs have risen, the BS-IV norms are stringent and the prices will have to go up. Mahindra-Renault has decided to take a deviation from this trend. It is offering huge discounts to perk up the Logan’s sales. Currently Mahindra-Renault JV is trying hard to cope with the major decline in sales of its entry-level sedan. A mere 500 units per month is a sad figure. To add to this, the dealers too are burdened with Logan’s huge inventory pile-up. When there are so many cheaper alternatives these days, nobody wants to even sniff the Logan. Do you believe this? A discount of Rs. 50,000 is offered on the petrol version, while its diesel variant is available at a discount of Rs. 18,000. If you are already eligible for a corporate discount on the Logan, you are luckier. The current discounts are available in addition to that corporate offer. Now, if you have a soft corner for the car, you may have to hurry. The offer is valid only till the end of this month. Labels: Logan, Logan-Discount, Logan-Sales, Mahindra-Logan, Mahindra-Renault, Mahindra-Renault-Logan, Small-Logan
Tuesday, 12 January 2010
Renault will present India the connoisseur of France. The French car maker is all set to drive in the Fluence. The stylish Fluence will mark Renault’s debut in the luxury car segment. Renault had earlier showcased this awesome luxury car at the 2010 Auto Expo that concluded yesterday. At present, Renault has only the Logan to offer in India. The Logan is a practical sedan which the French car maker has introduced with its Indian counterpart Mahindra & Mahindra. The Logan is spacious and very efficient, but it is equally dull. This is the main reason why the Mahindra-Renault Logan failed in the Indian car market. The Fluence will be available in both petrol and diesel engines. It will be pitted against the likes of Toyota Corolla, Chevrolet Cruze and Honda Civic. The Fluence is developed by Renault in association with Samsung and sold as the SM3 in Korea. However, the Fluence carries a lot of Renault styling cues. In fact, it looks very similar to the Renault Laguna. The Renault Fluence is handsomely designed. The sunken headlights look super attractive and the sharp ridge along the bonnet and the wave over the front wheels is unique. Even the taut rear and distinguished taillights are mind-boggling. The Fluence is just not about good looks. It can impart the most impressive ride and manoeuvrability. Its suspension is known for being very refined and silent. The soon-to-be launched Fluence is fuel efficient and comes with the option of 6-speed manual as well as a Nissan-sourced CVT auto gearbox. The Fluence is expected in late 2010 for around Rs 10-12 Lakh. But before, Renault launches the upmarket Fluence in India, the car maker has to shed of its impression it has created with the Logan. It has to prove the country that Renault can make great cars and has a great heritage. Labels: Fluence, Logan, Nissan, Renault, SM3
Wednesday, 11 November 2009
The Logan was officially launched in 2004 but it is two-years old in India. It was introduced to the Indian car market through a joint venture between Mahindra & Mahindra and French car maker Renault.
Despite having many merits, the Logan has failed to win the hearts of Indian car buyers. The car could not attract customers mainly because of two major flaws.
The first drawback of the car is its look. The sedan has a very bland look. This is probably the reason a lot of car buyers opted out from buying the Logan. Carazoo.com feels that a face-lift could solve this problem. The sedan has to undergo a cosmetic surgery to keep up with the latest trend.
Apart from a face-lift, Mahindra-Renault should concentrate on its pricing too. The second weakness of the Logan stands on the price point. The petrol range starts at Rs 4.61 lakh going up to Rs 5.87 lakh and the top-end diesel variant is priced at Rs 6.68 lakh (all prices ex-showroom New Delhi).
Stronger competing models in the market with aggressive price tags such as Hyundai Accent, Ford Fiesta, Maruti Suzuki Swift DZire, Ford Ikon and the range of Tata Indigo sedans are available in the market in a price bracket close to the Logan.
Logan’s failure to play the pricing game was because the localisation content of the car, which is at 50 per cent, is much lower than competition and thereby has pushed up the final cost of the car. Moreover, the engine is imported from France, forcing the Logan to be more expensive compared to the other players in its segment.
Besides, the Mahindra-Renault Logan has suffered because of the dual structure excise duty, which is lower for small cars (up to 4 metres long) at 8 per cent while larger ones such as Logan (4.24 metres long) face a heftier 20 per cent. Competitor Tata Motors has trimmed the length of the Indigo to take advantage of the lower excise for small cars, thereby bringing down the cost of the car.
If the Mahindra-Renault partnership can look at these points, Carazoo.com expects that sales of the Mahindra-Renault Logan will shoot up inevitably. Labels: Logan, Logan-Facelift, Mahindra-and-Mahindra-Cars, Mahindra-Renault, Mahindra-Renault-Logan, Mahindra-Renault-Partnership, Renault-Cars
Wednesday, 7 October 2009
It looks like Renault is having a very tough time ahead. Its joint venture with Mahindra and Mahindra seems to be heading nowhere. And now when both the companies have realized that the joint venture is not bringing them any treasure to fill up their coffers, they have finally decided to talk it out. It is still not known what will be the final decision of both the companies. But of the many issues that the companies are facing right now, the most important is the unsuccessful tenure of Logan, the only car that is launched of the joint venture between the two companies. It does not look like the Renault will walk away from the partnership or the Indian car market. And the very obvious reason is that the Renault still wants to have its fingers dipped in the Indian car market pie, which is the most happening car market of the world at the moment. In a joint venture between the two companies, 51 per cent of the stake is held by Mahindra and Mahindra while the rest of 49 per cent is being held by French car maker Renault. The companies will be discussing on whether it is feasible to launch a new car at this time and what should be the future plans to remain in the business. We desperately hope against hope that both the companies sort it out in a cordial way and will not think of a break up. Renault’s ultra-low cost car plan also seems to be affected by the perplexity that is happening between the two companies. Bajaj, its partner in producing the ultra-low cost car, seems to be not happy with the proposal of partnering only with Renault, leaving aside Mahindra & Mahindra. Bajaj already had brand issues with Renault. And the company is not comfortable in joining hands with Renault, which is already in turmoil. Well as the companies are still in discussion, let us all keep our fingers crossed for an intelligent decision from the companies. Labels: Bajaj, Joint-Venture, Logan, Mahindra and Mahindra, Renault, Ultra-Low-Cost-Car
Thursday, 5 March 2009
Eyeing the success of the Logan, Mahindra-Renault has added a new variant into the car’s portfolio to further increase the sales performance of the car. Named as Logan Edge Connect, the new model is the extension of the Logan Edge with new convenient and attractive features. With the introduction of this new variant, now the total count of Logan variant is 13. The new car sports high-end music system. The high-end version of Logan offers hands-free option but Logan Edge Connect gets an addition and interesting feature of integrated hands free telephony system for the convenience of the driver. It also comes with an advanced Driver Information System (DIS) that easily provide useful data like fuel consumption, average speed, and duration for which fuel is likely to last. The Logan Edge Connect comes within the price range of Rs 5 Lakh to Rs 7 Lakh. Mahindra-Renault is introducing new stuffs to make its Logan more special and competitive. Let’s see how much the new Logan variant aids the joint venture to grab good sales. Labels: Logan, Mahindra-Renault, New-Car-Launch
Wednesday, 7 January 2009
Mahindra-Renault Logan gets a completely new look. The credit for this goes to the three graffiti artists who travelled all the way from France to Mumbai to paint and transform the Logan. With a key motive to reflect Indo-French harmony in an Indian Car, the three creative and highly talented artists painted the Logan. Applying their artistic abilities and wild imaginations, the trio painted two Logans from bonnet to the rear bumper with innovative and artistic pictures. One of the artist among them has passion for Hindi music and is a die-hard fan of Bollywood legends, Kishore Kumar and Bappi Lahri. So, the two cars were painted with creative images of these legends. You can also find picture of a famous French football midfielder Zidane. With all these it gives a look as if music lyrics have been imprinted on the car along with exciting notes, phrases, and creative images. Overall, the painted Logans are surprisingly attractive. And one such Logan is found driven by the director of Alliance Francaise de Mumbai. And the other two Logans is expected to be auctioned soon. Labels: Logan, Mahindra-Renault
Friday, 12 December 2008
Mahindra-Renault which managed to sell just 300 units of Logan last month is offering an attractive discount of Rs 60,000 on the car. The discount is a mix of direct cash discount from Mahindra-Renault and the benefit arising out of the CENVAT (Central Value Added Tax) rate cut. You can avail the discount on all the nine variants of the Logan which starts from 10th December and will be valid till 27th December. Nalin Mehta, Chief Executive Officer, Mahindra-Renault said, “We are offering a uniform discount of Rs 60,000 on the car from tomorrow, which is a mix of direct cash discount from us and the benefit arising out of the CENVAT rate cut.” The base variant of Logan petrol, Logan 1.4GL, now comes at Rs 4,12,000 against the Rs 4,72,000 earlier and the base variant of the Logan1.5 DLE diesel is available at Rs 5.15 Lakh compared to the previous price of Rs 5.75. Customers can also avail a bonus of Rs 10,000 under an exchange offer, which will be in addition to the Rs 60,000 cash discount. Submitted By: Rina Labels: Car-Discounts, Car-Sales, Logan, Mahindra-Renault
Friday, 10 October 2008
Goodies for Logan lovers! You must be excited to know that Mahindra Renault has added innovation to their advanced and fuel-efficient car, Logan. Don’t confuse it with a new launch or a new variant; it’s simply a new collection series with added features that comprise driver information system (DIS). This new system installed in the most successful car will definitely enhance its escalating demand. The best part of the innovative DIS system lies in its display. The system displays on-board fuel efficiency, average speed, and average mileage. Even the price is competitive with a tag of Rs 5.08 lakh (ex-showroom New Delhi). With this the company also offering an exciting game on-board, a pre-festive offer named ‘Chaabi mein Gaadi’. As per the scheme, the car keys will be distributed to about eight lakh potential customers across the country. The contestant whose key turns on the Logan engine will be announced as the lucky winner who’ll drive away the Innovative Logan. Labels: Fuel-Efficient-Cars, Logan, Mahindra Renault, New-launch
Friday, 4 April 2008
Renault made its debut by launching Logan in India through a joint venture with Mahindra a few years ago. After it’s entry into India, Logan has somehow managed to give good competition to its rivals in mid-size segment but it failed to impress and attract more customers as expected by Renault. Now, Logan is being revamped and presented with new style.
It’s not so impressive performance and heavy price tags have forced many customers to opt for other cars than Logan. When people are going crazy for small cars in countries like India, it will be really challenging task for car manufacturers to increase the sale of mid-size sedans like Logan. So, Renault has determined to revamp and add some more frills to Logan. It will launch revamped version of Logan in next few months to take on its competitors mainly Maruti Swift Dzire. Let’s hope Renault will achieve success this time. Labels: Auto market competition, Car-Sales, Logan, Mahindra, Maruti Dzire, midsize cars, Renault, small cars
Monday, 11 June 2007
India is emerging as one of the fastest growing markets for foreign cars. With the people earning more, investments to lead a luxurious life-style with an expensive car is also increasing. Imported cars are the top choice for most business executives. India's automotive trade is set to double by 2010 and then double again by 2016. India is turning into one of Asia's major car markets. Automotive industries from Korea, Japan, and the US are in tough competition with each other to make a place for themselves in the Indian automobile segment. Renault in joint venture with Mahindra & Mahindra launched Logan and Hindustan Motors is in collaboration with Mitsubishi. The automobile industry is witnessing a growth of 10% annually. Foreign manufacturers invest heavily on Indian automobile market because of their ensured knowledge of good returns. Indian economy's growth rate is allowing its citizens to change their life-styles. Many Indians are ready to spend on chic and flamboyant cars, which enhance their style of living and play a major role in signifying the societal status of a person. However, most foreign cars are imported to India rather than being manufactured here, such as the Audi Q7, Mercedes-Benz SLK, and so on. This is mainly because even though luxury cars are in high demand, only a small segment of people can afford to buy such expensive cars. Indian manufacturers feel that it is not feasible to manufacture cars in small numbers. Importing a car causes further increase in prices. However, this does not deter the rich in India - the higher the car price, the more the prestige that goes with it. Labels: Audi-Q7, Foreign car manufacturers to launch more vehicles in India, Logan, Mercedes-Benz
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“OK is no longer OK”. That was the campaign that Mahindra Group settled on for their Navistar print campaign. And guess what, that particular campaign has been adjudged as the ‘Best Print Campaign in the Country’ by the Public Relations Council of India (PRCI). Mahindra Navistar campaign outsmarted about 300 corporate companies who had also queued up for the award.
