Audi India is planning to introduce a more powerful diesel engine in the A4 to compete with the BMW 320D. The engine Audi is planning to launch in the A4 is the 170bhp 2.0 litre diesel. The current 140bhp diesel in the A4 is quite down on power infront of the Bimmer. However, Audi is concerned about the diesel particulate filter (DPF), which is better suited for Bharat Stage IV fuel but that will be available only in 2010 and only in the metros.
Maruti Suzuki plans to take the A-Star to new markets, such as Africa and the Latin America. Maruti is looking to tap new markets for exports, as the demand is shifting towards compact cars globally. This would help Maruti meet its target of exporting 1.5 lakh cars, across all models, in the current fiscal, two times that of the year ended March 2009. Maruti exports doubled to 15,978 units in the April-May period led by A-Star.
Pitched as an export product, A-Star is already being shipped to France, Italy, the UK, the Netherlands, Germany and other major markets in Europe by Maruti. Maruti had developed A-Star originally for Europe, where it is sold under various brands, such as Alto, Pixo and Celerio, in different markets. Maruti will now sell the car in Algeria, its biggest market in Africa, besides Chile, Mexico, Malaysia, Sri Lanka and Nepal and around 50 other markets, where it has sales and distribution network.
Fiat has postponed the launch of the Bravo in India, due to the sudden downturn in the auto market. If launched, Bravo would have attracted nearly 100% import duty, just like its three-door hatchback Fiat 500 (which costs above Rs. 13 lakh) in India. The Fiat Bravo and Fiat Brava are small family cars produced by the Italian automaker from 1995 to 2001. The name was revived for 2007 with an all-new replacement for the Stilo, the new version will use only the Bravo name and is not available with three doors.
Fiat and Tata Motors will not launch models in segments where they would have to compete with each other. However, they will jointly cooperate with each other and be interdependent on each other’s forte. While Tata Motors taps Fiat’s technology and support as well as the share of the numbers that the Linea and Grande Punto make. Furthermore, it also gets to manufacture cars in Fiat’s brand new Ranjangaon plant. Fiat on the other hand gets access to the Tata Motors’ huge sales and service distribution network in India.
Audi India plans to increase its dealership network in the country and aims to grab 30% share of the luxury car market by 2011. Audi currently holds 20% share in Indian luxury car segment. Audi has entered into dealer partnership with Bangalore-headquartered Jubilant Motors for appointing dealers in Southern market.
The Maruti Swift DZire was launched in March 2008, and though we find the car quite weird looking it has set the sales chart on fire with average monthly sales of 5,000 units. Maruti sold 61,952 units of the Swift DZire in the last fiscal. The sedan version of the hatchback Swift is available in both petrol and diesel variants and has replaced its phased out entry-level sedan-Esteem. The car is giving its competitors, Mahindra-Renault’s Logan, Tata Motors’ Indigo and Hyundai Accent a tough run for its money. Infact the DZire is such a massive success, it is predicted to be best selling car of 2008-09.
The demand for DZire has been way beyond the company’s expectation at about 5,000 units a month. This is especially higher than other models in the same (A3) segment, with record bookings of about 1,500-2,000 units every month. About 65% demand for Swift DZire is for the diesel variant. Maruti Swift Dzire is equipped with advanced features which make it an enticing buy. Unlike the Maruti Swift which is made in several countries, Maruti Suzuki plans to build the Maruti Swift Dzire exclusively in India. However the Maruti Swift Dzire may be exported to several countries.
A team from Auto Bild set a new record for navigating the Golden Quadrilateral highway network. Three teams of two journalists from the magazine drove a new, unmodified Skoda Laura 2.0 TDI PD L&K for over 5941km, non-stop. The drive was flagged off from Hotel Trident, Gurgaon at 0318hrs on the 6th of June. The car passed through Delhi, Agra, Allahabad, Varanasi, Kolkata, Bhubaneshwar, Vishakapatnam, Chennai, Bangalore, Pune, Mumbai, Ahmedabad and Jaipur before finishing in Gurgaon, again at the Trident Hotel.
The drive was certified by the FMSCI (Federation of Motorsports Clubs of India) and the partners participating in this journey were Shell (Oil & Lubricants), Map my India (Navigation) and Trident Hotels (Hospitality). The Shell Helix Ultra engine oil lived up to its reputation with the engine of the car started at the flag-off and switched-off only at the flag-in after 75 hours and 32 minutes, giving no problems throughout the trip.
The drive broke the existing national record of driving the Golden Quadrilateral set in a Toyota Corolla which stood at 87 hours and 50 minutes. Observers from FMSCI, the official motorsport body of India and affiliated to the FIA, were in the car at all times to monitor times, fuel and route. A high frequency GPS tracking system employed in the car that mapped the journey, while another touch screen based GPS navigation system ensured the drivers stayed on the correct route. The drive also set the record for the most fuel efficient drive around the Golden Quadrilateral consuming a total of 586.46 litres of fuel. This gave an average of 10.26kms per litre at an average speed of 78.65kms.
TVS Motor will launch the Apache RTR 160 in the US this year, the world’s most developed automobile market. If TVS Motors enters the US, it will be the second indigenous company to foray into that market, the first being Royal Enfield. Another Indian company, Mahindra & Mahindra plans to introduce its flagship Scorpio SUV in the US next year.
TVS Motors has cleared the mandatory technical and emission tests for its bike and plans to launch it later this year. TVS has held negotiations with Classic Motorworks, an importer and distributor of two-wheeler in the US, which already distributes Royal Enfield Motorcycles - Bullet, Classic and Croma in the US.
TVS will start shipping bikes in the next few months. TVS is not expecting big volumes, but looking at high brand leverage in the US, a predominant high-end big bike market like the Triumph, Harley Davidson, Honda, Suzuki and Yamaha. TVS has presence in a few overseas markets, including a 300,000-units a year manufacturing facility in Indonesia, and also sells its bikes, scooters and mopeds in Latin America, South-East Asia and Africa.
Heavy-weight motorbike maker Royal Enfield on will launch two models by early next year and plans to expand its overall production capacity by over 35% by 2010. At present, Royal Enfield is evaluating possibilities for launching the two bikes with two different engines, twinspark 350cc and 500cc engine with EFI technology.
Royal Enfield is also increasing its production capacity to 60,000 units per annum by 2010 from the existing 44,000 bikes a year at its facility in Chennai. They would also invest Rs 25 crore in enhancing capacities and launching new products by 2010.
Here are the results in full : - 2009 Engine of the Year - VAG 1.4-litre Twincharger (Golf, Scirocco, Ibiza FR/Cupra)
Porsche’s direct injection 3.8-litre flat six has taken ‘Best New Engine of the Year’ at the 2009 International Engine of the Year awards. The engine was commended by the judges for managing to attain an increase in power through greater capacity while achieving reduced fuel consumption and carbon dioxide emissions.
Best New Engine of the Year - Porsche 3.8-litre flat-six (911)
Green Engine of the Year - VAG 1.4-litre Twincharger (Golf, Scirocco, Ibiza FR/Cupra)
Best Performance Engine - Mercedes 6.2-litre AMG V8 (SL63, E63 etc)
Sub 1-litre - Toyota three-cylinder 993cc (Aygo)
1-litre to 1.4-litre - VAG 1.4-litre Twincharger (Golf, Scirocco, Ibiza FR/Cupra)
1.4-litre to 1.8-litre - BMW-PSA 1.6-litre turbo (Mini Cooper S, Peugeot 207)
1.8-litre to 2-litre - VAG 2-litre TFSI (Golf GTI, Scirocco, Audi TT)
2-litre to 2.5-litre - Mercedes 2.1-litre diesel (BlueEfficiency E-Class and C-Class)
2.5-litre to 3-litre - BMW 3-litre twin-turbo diesel (335d, 535d etc)
3-litre to 4-litre - BMW 4-litre V8 (M3)
Above 4-litre - Mercedes 6.2-litre AMG V8 (SL63, E63 etc)
Maruti will launch the Grand Vitara with a more powerful engine in the first week of July this year. The more powerful Grand Vitara will get a 2.4L VTT petrol powerplant with 160bhp on tap and will help the SUV comply with Bharat IV norms. The Maruti Grand Vitara site reads “New Grand Vitara 2.4 litre Coming Soon In First week of July”.
