Safari Sumo Cross Over from Tata Motors
Along the lines of its expansion plans in India, the Indian car makers, Tata Motors plans to bring a Sumo-Safari crossover to India. It has recently launched the new generation Indica Vista , as a fully Indian car. It now plans to bring the next generation of Indigo and a new cross over vehicle between Safari and Sumo . The crossover vehicle named indicruz was launched two years ago at the Delhi Auto Expo 2006.
"We will be unveiling the crossover Safari and Sumo, which was displayed at the Auto Expo two years back," Tata Motors passenger cars division president Rajeev Dube said. "This will be followed by the next generation Indigo, probably on the same platform as the Indica." Tata Motors shall develop the next generation Indigo on the Indica platform. It has already spent nearly Rs. 1700 crore on the new Indica platform and plans to sell 12000 to 13000 units a month.
Tata is currently working aggressively on its expansion plans in India. It is also planning to launch its luxury and premium models like Jaguar and Land Rover in India. A team would shortly visit India to assess the market feasibility.
Future Car Launches
Meanwhile, the new Corolla (Altis) from Toyota is coming on September 5 and Honda will bring its new City in the middle of next month. Maruti's A-Star hatchback will be introduced in October. Ditto for Fiat's Linea sedan along with GM's new entry into the sedan segment. The new 7 Series from BMW and Hyundai i20 hatchback will be coming in November.
Mitsubishi is planning to launch its new sedan, the Lancer Gallant, and compact SUV Outlander in October and utility major M&M will debut its new platform Ingenio MUV. The new launches are expected to boost the sagging fortunes of carmakers, who are desperately looking for incremental sales. For the first time three years, passenger car sales declined 1.7% to 87,724 cars this July, down from 89,250 cars in the same month last year.
[Via: Motorbeam]
Skoda Recalls Fabia
Czech automaker Skoda has recalled the petrol version of its Fabia hatchback for rectifying a technical glitch that was affecting fuel efficiency and performance of the car.
According to sources, the company has called back the 1200cc and 1400c variants of the Fabia petrol for a "technical upgradation". When contacted, the company confirmed that it had recalled the car, but blamed "inconsistent fuel quality" behind the step. Due to inconsistent fuel quality in India, Skoda India has done minor change in the software to attain better fuel economy and driving performance, the company said.
Skoda is assembling the Fabia at its Aurangabad factory. Many of the critical components on the car are imported and may not be suitable for local conditions or available fuel quality. According to sources, several customers had experienced problems with the car and some even complained that the brake pedal became hard, while driving at a high speed.
Skoda officials said they would rectify the problem free of cost. "We are not charging anything for this and customers would just need to spend about 20-30 minutes at the dealerships," a company spokesperson said. All manufacturers do constant upgradations of their products so that the customer always enjoys the best quality and service, the company further said.
[Via: carmotor]
New Skoda gets superb insurance ratings
The new Skoda Superb has been awarded impressive insurance ratings, helping it to become one of the most competitively rated cars in the upper medium sector. An insurance rating of 6E is now carried by the entry diesel 1.9 TDI PD 105bhp engine on the S trim Superb, more than three positions better than the outgoing Superb, thereby cutting the cost of car insurance for its new owners. A lower rating has also been achieved by the entry petrol 1.4 TSI 125bhp which sits in insurance band 7E across all three trim levels.
Chris Horrell, product marketing manager at Skoda UK, said: "The new Superb has achieved much improved ratings thanks to enhanced vehicle security, competitive pricing and low cost of parts and repairs. All of these factors contribute to lower insurance premiums for our customers."
Skoda's latest addition has fared exceptionally well compared to other car brands. The car will be on sale in the UK from September 18th, with prices starting from just £15,490.
Suzuki Kizashi 3 to debut at New York Auto Show
Long back at the Frankfurt Motor Show, we saw the debut of the Suzuki Kizashi concept, the first of the Kizashi's, then at the Tokyo Motor Show, we saw the debut of the Kizashi's second concept. Now the Japanese company Suzuki is going to unveil its third version of the Kizashi line-up, the Suzuki Kizashi 3 at the upcoming New York Auto Show.
The Kizashi 3 is said to be the last of the Kizashi concepts and alongside the Kizashi concept 3 will be the Kizashi concept 2 and the Kizashi concept 1. The design of the Kizashi concepts were developed by Suzuki's Advanced Design Group. With these concepts we can see how Suzuki will revolutionize its product line-up.
The Kizashi 3 is said to be a new sports sedan with quality, gadgets,style and interiors like no other Suzuki in production. The Kizashi line-up's design can inspire the cars that Suzuki will make in future.
[Via: Autocrust]
Hyundai planning flagship large luxury sedan
After getting some pretty good reviews for the new Hyundai Genesis, the Korean automobile manufacturer wants to take it a notch higher with a new rear wheel drive luxury sedan that will take the place of the current Hyundai Equus.
The new flagship Hyundai will go against the likes of the Lexus LS, the Mercedes-Benz S-Class and the BMW 5-Series. It is said to be called the Hyundai VI. Above is a recently released teaser image of the new car. Expect it to have Hyundai's largest engines under its hood such as the Tau V8 or the Lambda V6.
[Via: Paulton]
Two Arab investors interested in HUMMER
The HUMMER brand isn't exactly sterling here in the States due to high fuel prices and its standing as the poster vehicle for green groups trying to save the environment from the evils of CO2 emissions. That's probably the biggest reason GM is looking to offload the brand, and while it doesn't seem likely that anyone would want the marque, there are interested parties.
According to GM's Middle East Managing Director, Terry Johnsson, one group is a pair of Arab investors. The Middle East has been a player in the automotive landscape over the past few years, as the region is rife with cash and oil and has growing transportation needs. Arab investors were 50% of the Aston Martin sale in 2007, and Abu Dhabi's investment group purchased 5% of Ferrari in 2005.
Audi Sport now offering Audi R8 GT3 race car
Audi is really intruding into its owner Porsche's territory now. Audi Sport is now offering a race-prepared Audi R8 that complies with GT3 race regulations. Because GT3 prohibits all-wheel drive, the Audi R8 GT3 drives the rear wheels only through a newly developed 6-speed sequential gearbox.
The suspension bits are almost a carryover from the available production line parts. The front end is modified for more downforce and on the rear you will find a huge rear wing.
GM to set up engine plant in India
General Motors will sign an agreement with the western state of Maharashtra for an engine and transmission plant on Thursday, as it steps up the pace in one of the world's fastest-growing auto markets.
The unit will be located in Talegaon, where GM's second vehicle plant is scheduled to start operations next week, a spokesman said, declining to give details of the investment or the plant's capacity to make engines.
"It is an extension of the investment GM has made in Talegaon for the vehicle facility," he said. GM is scheduled to hold a news conference on Thursday in Mumbai, where a memorandum of understanding with the state will be signed, the spokesman said.
GM, which makes the Chevrolet Tavera , Chevrolet Optra , Chevrolet Aveo and Chevrolet Spark in western Gujarat state, will have a capacity to make 140,000 vehicles in the new car plant, taking its all-India capacity to more than 225,000 units.
GM will build a new small car in the new plant as it aims to double its share of the market to 10 percent by 2010. Annual passenger vehicle sales in India are forecast to expand to more than 2 million units by 2010, with small cars accounting for more than two-thirds of sales.
[Via: 1853chairman]