Indian Car Blog - Carazoo.com

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Guess what? In a classic case of role reversal when the Americans are shunning their big, large SUVs in favour of smaller fuel-efficient cars after the global recession, Indians are vouching for these gas-guzzlers.

Owning an SUV in India always was a status-symbol and now with the just concluded Auto Expo 2010 at New Delhi, it has become evident that both the car makers and Indians are paving way for the SUV genre to take hold of India.

The fact that leading car makers of the world are launching their SUV’s in India just boosts the claim. Global biggies like BMW, Audi, Land Rover, Toyota, Skoda, Volvo and Volkswagen are launching over half-a-dozen SUV’s in the next six months. How does that sound. Raid of the SUVs? India’s potential as a growing car market is unrivalled and these auto makers are just cashing in the trend with their pricey SUVs.

Take a look at these stats. Indian automobile industry for the month of Dec 2009 has posted a whopping 68 per cent growth in sales at 10.05 lakh units, while the passenger car sales grew 40.27 per cent at 115,268 units.

Posting a straight ninth month growth trend in a row, the northwards movement has seen similar activity in the Sports Utility Vehicles or the SUVs market both at the manufacturer as well as the consumer level. SUV market, the once niche segment contributing just 15 per cent of total vehicle sales in India is threatening to blow over the top and become a major contributor to the passenger car market.

In a way to enter this niche segment in India, car makers are planning to manufacture most of the new products locally to reduce cost, rather than relying on imports as they have done in the past.

German car maker, BMW has launched its flagship SUV model X6M with a price tag of Rs 1.3 crore (ex-showroom Delhi) and has drawn big plans to capture market share in the segment. BMW has brought its entire SUV portfolio at the Auto Show speculating that SUVs soon will become the next big thing in the Indian car market. With BMW’s compact SUV X1 hitting the Indian market soon, BMW hopes that its vehicle sales in India will double from the now 15 per cent later this year. The company will start assembling the X1, priced more competitively at around Rs 25 lakh making it the cheapest SUV from BMW, at its Chennai plant in the next few months.

Compatriot Audi India also has the same story to tell. Audi has reported 58 per cent rise in SUV sales in 2009 and would commence local production of its compact SUV Q5 soon. It will also bring its most powerful SUV, the V8 4.2 Litre Q7, in limited numbers.

SkodaAuto India which unveiled its Skoda Yeti SUV at the Auto Expo 2010 held in New Delhi is also upbeat on Yeti’s sales in India. SkodaAuto will locally produce the Yeti with all top-end luxury features to sell the Yeti at a highly competitive price. Skoda Yeti might roll out from the Aurangabad plant.

Volkswagen also has been weaving a similar story. VW has brought its flagship Toureg SUV into India at the price of Rs 60 lakh and has planned to bring in its smaller Tiguan SUV also.

Toyota, the Japanese player in the Indian market with its Indian subsidiary Toyota Kirloskar Motor also sensing the demand for SUV’s in India launched its Fortuner which has a six-month waiting period due to an unanticipated rush for bookings and the new Land Cruiser Prado diesel to appeal the diesel-crazed Indian luxury SUV customers.

The Korean car maker Hyundai Motor India on the other hand is also getting ready to bring in the Santa FE by mid-2010. The Santa FE is a crossover SUV based on the Sonata platform and is expected to take on the Chevrolet Captiva, Honda CR-V and the Nissan X-Trail.

If you think only global biggies are eying this niche SUV segment, don’t be fooled. Even Indian car makers like Mahindra and Mahindra and Tata Motors also have been doing their homework. The SUV market from Indian companies like M&M and Tata Motors, grew 21 per cent to 1.04 lakh units in April-December 2009 over the year-ago period. These home-grown giants are trying hard to cater to the growing SUV market by bringing in their SUV models.

Tata Motors which recently unveiled its Tata Aria is slated for release in Feb 2010 while Mahindra and Mahindra is also gearing to roll out its premium SUV which will be positioned above Scorpio and will be built on a all-new platform with a different design, architecture and specifications. Another Indian company ICML also is planning to bring in their SUV which will debut in first part of 2010.

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The snowman or the Yeti is finally here for all of you to see. We are speaking about the Skoda Yeti ladies and gents.
Skoda Auto India unveiled its international best seller SUV Yeti for the first time in India at the ongoing 10th Auto Expo 2010 being held in New Delhi.

With this SUV, Skoda Auto India would soon have 5 models in its portfolio. The Skoda Yeti was unveiled by Reinhard Fleger, Member of the Board, Sales and Marketing, SkodaAuto and Thomas Kuehl, Member of the Board, Sales and Marketing, SkodaAuto India.

Reinhard Fleger at the unveiling ceremony expressed his optimism on the Indian car market and said that the Indian automobile industry continues to be among the most promising car industries across the globe and it shall continue to grow in the coming year backed by an estimated GDP growth of about 7per cent.

Skoda has a market share of around 25 per cent in the mid size segment since Skoda’s debut in the Indian market about 9 years back. Skoda also has aggressive plans lined up for the Indian market and aims to emerge as a major player in the Indian automotive growth story and Yeti certainly is a core aspect of the plan that Skoda has set for India.

Skoda Yeti is known for its ruggedness, contemporary design, luggage space and most of all Yeti meets the needs of environmental care which is a In-thing now.

The Skoda pavilion also has displayed the Fabia Elegance, the Laura Laurin and Klement trim level and a Top end Superb with a 3.6 FSI V6 engine and 4WD featuring the 4th-generation Haldex clutch system with the automatic 7-speed DSG gear box at the Auto Expo 2010.

Visitors to the Skoda stall will be thrilled to the European models such as Superb Combi Elegance, Fabia Sportline and the environmentally-friendly GreenLine also displayed at the Expo along with Octavia RS with 2.0 TSi petrol engine, offering a generous output of 147 kW (200 bhp), is a reminder of the sports tradition in Skoda's long history.

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Chevrolet Cruze seems to cruising in the right track. This premium sedan from General Motors which is also sold in India has won the “Excellent Value for Money” award at the ‘Autobest 2010’ awards.

This award could boost the sales of the car in India which was launched in India in the month of September. This car was brought to India to strengthen the brand image here in India. Chevrolet Cruze is a car which actually came as a right car at the right moment loaded with lots of innovative features that was lacking in the sedans that come in the D segment.

The award was conferred by a jury comprising of senior and highly experienced journalists from Central and Eastern Europe. The Chevy Cruze contended for its position against the likes of the Hyundai i20, Skoda Yeti and the Volkswagen Polo. It’s a formidable victory for GM and will help GM develop a new range of vehicles.

The jury evaluated the competitors on the basis of design, specifications, transmission, fuel consumption, environmental impact and in relation to the interior space where the Cruze reigned over other contenders for its price and excellent quality.

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Volkswagen Polo has been voted the European Car of the Year 2010. This certainly comes as the much needed shot in the arm for Volkswagen which has already set up a manufacturing plant at Pune to produce VW Polo in India.

The expected launch of the Volkswagen Polo in India launch is expected to be in the sidelines of the 2010 New Delhi Auto Expo. This hatchback which already has created some flutters in the Indian automotive circle with it’s to be tagged speculated wallet-friendly price, seems to have announced its arrival in the Indian scene with this award.

Volkswagen Polo had to surpass many world class cars with ease in this stiff competition to win the coveted title which is also one of the oldest and most esteemed awards in Europe which was started in 1964. 59 jurors from 23 European countries cast their votes in today’s competition. The total number of participants of this year’s European Car Of The Year contest was 33.The nearest competitor is Toyota I.Q. which managed to score 337 points while Polo scored 347 points.

The top five contestants are as follows,
1. Volkswagen Polo 347 points, 59 votes, 25 vote wins
2. Toyota iQ 337 points, 58 votes, 20 vote wins
3. Opel/Vauxhall Astra 221 points, 55 votes, 5 vote wins
4. Skoda Yeti 158 points, 54 votes, 4 vote wins
5. Mercedes-Benz E-class 155 points, 48 votes, 2 wins

The rating and judgement have done on total value proposition of the car, not only on luxury aspects of the car. It is quite interesting to see that Polo has been voted above two well proven cars like that of Skoda Yeti and Mercedes Benz E-Class. We are expecting Skoda Yeti in India in upcoming 2010 Auto Expo. So India will become another warfront for these German engineering marvels.

Not only was the award jury impressed by the new Polo. Since its market launch in May of this year, Volkswagen has received over 130,000 orders for the new benchmark car of the compact class. The Polo is available as a dynamic 3-door and comfortable 5-door in Germany. As the Polo BlueMotion, just 3.3 litre fuel consumption makes it the most fuel-efficient and environmentally friendly five-seater in the world.

VW Polo is expected to be priced below 4.5 lakhs in India. The Indian version of Polo may be a stripped version of the European Polo. Soon after VW Polo’s hatchback arrival we may witness the VW Polo Sedan also.

The last time the Volkswagen won was way back in 1992 with its new third generation Golf which emerged victorious over the likes of Opel Astra and Citroën ZX.

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Yeti, the new attraction from Skoda, will be unveiled at the 2010 Geneva Auto Expo and will be subsequently launched in India.

The launch of Yeti, in India, is expected sometime in the early 2010, and will be at the 2010 Auto Expo. Yeti is a crossover, the missing link between Fabia and Octavia in India.

Yeti will be a good choice for the Indian roads. It is neither an SUV nor a car and thus a crossover. It has integrated the good qualities from both an SUV and a car. The Yeti, though carries the qualities of an SUV, is not as bulky as one and has a very trendy look. In spite of being a two-wheel drive, the Yeti has high ground clearance and long suspension.

The Yeti is built based on the Volkswagen Golf platform and borrows mechanics and features from Skoda Laura, Skoda Fabia, and Skoda Roomster. The looks of the Yeti resembles more of Skoda Fabia, with its grille, which can be easily recognized, and it has the suspension of the Fabia. And it is also expected to have the brakes and transmission of Roomster.

The Yeti has a very intelligently designed interiors and it also has a very interesting option of a bike carrier.

Both the petrol and diesel versions of the Skoda Yeti are expected to be launched in India. The petrol variant will be powered by a 1.6-litre to 2.0-litre engines and the diesel version comes with a 1.9-litre turbo diesel engine.

The competitors of Yeti in the Indian car market would be Mahindra Scorpio, Tata Indicruz, and Tata Safari. The car is expected to carry a price tag of Rs 10 lakh, which is slightly on the higher side.

The Skoda Yeti will be brought as CKD to India and will be assembled at the Skoda’s Aurangabad plant using the kits from Skoda’s Kvasiny plant in the Czech Republic.

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