Audi’s chairman gave out information on several future models in his speech at an annual meet. The A1 small car will be released in 2010, while the A8 will be launched in November this year. Audi is also working on a hybrid version of the Q5, while the smaller Q3 is slated for a 2011 release.
Archive for May, 2009
The new Mercedes Benz E-Class will arrive in India this year, sources tell us. The new E-Class is waiting to be released, but not until Mercedes has finished selling the remaining stock of the present E-Class which is now out as a special edition.
Since the launch of the Ford Endeavour in India, its looks have remained unaltered. The big change however was the addition of a more powerful 3.0-liter turbocharged diesel engine recently to the existing 2.5-liter variant.
Suneil Shetty’s appointment as the vehicle’s brand ambassador was another, if I was his fan, which I am not.
The Ford Ikon received its facelift a few months back and it seems certain that the Endeavour’s next in line.
Vietnam is a big market for the Ford Endeavour (11,600 cars have been sold there since 2005) and the company decided to unleash the refreshed model there for a start. The changes are minor, only cosmetic. The source website also reports the model will find its way into the ASEAN markets through the course of this year.
Ford Endeavour facelift differences-
- new radiator grille
- new strip running over the grille with “Ford Everest” engraved on it
- new bumper with a single line of chrome bisecting it
- pear shaped headlamps replace the squared and 80′s-looking ones
- plastic deflector on the hood for aerodynamic benefit? Might appear only on the top-end version
- tail lamp has been brought into shape, they are more rounded now
- beige interiors
- a bigger and badder badge on the front fenders
- addition of automatic transmission, which according to our sources will also reach India.
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Auto Express identifies this car as the next generation Lacetti. We believe the next generation Lacetti is the Chevrolet Cruze.
This car you see here is in fact the next generation Aveo. Built on the Gamma 2 platform, it has the same DNA as the 2010 Chevrolet Spark.
Auto Express also mentions this car would be introduced in 2010.
We have spoken enough of the 2010 Fiat Uno and the possibility of Fiat making use of the Ranjangoan facility to manufacture it. Fiat could follow Maruti’s footsteps by selling this car with a different name despite it being a modern Fiat Uno.
Fiat‘s trying to get a hold in the Indian market and with the positive response it received with the Linea, it is definitely getting there. The Grande Punto should accelerate progress and small cars such as this Uno will reach India eventually.
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These fellows could victoriously sell two generations of the Octavia side by side in India, but on a segment higher, the level of competition is completely different and needs a different approach. The Superb sales were not so superb in India. BMW and Mercedes Benz even chuckled about it.
Skoda to me is a brand which can sell any kind of car with success in India. Their debut car came at just the right time, and it was the right car too. Before Skoda’s entry, hardly a few foreign car makers were trading in India, and the lack of competition was the advantage Skoda rode on.
Now given a choice between Skoda, VW and Audi, majority of the Indians would put their money on Skoda due to their longer experience in India and better service network.
The irrefutable fact is the Superb aged faster than Skoda’s calculations, faster than anyone’s calculations for that matter. Time was running out but the fix was clear as crystal. It was more a issue of when.
Skoda was succeeding to sell a fair volume of Skoda Superbs until the new Accord and more recently the VW Passat emerged in India, stealing whatever thunder remained after the Mercedes C Class and the BMW 3 Series shared among themselves.
Honestly, the Skoda Superb seemed like a Skoda Octavia on healthier diet. The number of sales enquiries diminished over time sending Skoda back to the discussion board.
‘When’ is now, and look what they’ve got.
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You can catch our Maruti Suzuki Ritz Special segment to learn the earlier developments and the car
Just hours ago, MSIL (Maruti Suzuki India Limited) launched the Suzuki Ritz (Splash elsewhere) in India in petrol and diesel variants. The Ritz is the seventh small car in Maruti’s portfolio, positioned in the A2 segment.
The Ritz will be available with two engines- you choose either the K-series 1.2 litre, four-cylinder, 85PS Petrol engine or the 1.3 litre, 16-valve DDiS, 75PS Diesel engine that Fiat and Tata customers are happy driving.
The diesel variants cost Rs 4.65 lakh and Rs 4.99 lakh, where as the three petrol variants cost between 3.90 lakh to Rs 4.80 lakh.
Petrol Versions –
Lxi – Rs.3,90,000/-
Vxi – Rs.4,20,000/-
Zxi – Rs.4.80,000/-
Diesel Versions –
Ldi – Rs.4,65,000/-
Vdi – Rs.4,99,000/-
(All prices Ex-Showroom Delhi)
Suzuki designed the Ritz on the Swift‘s platform, and the high degree of localization additionally helps bringing down the costs.
The company was able to achieve 85% localization for this car.
The Ritz is also India’s first BS IV compliant hatchback. Maruti’s spokesperson declined to comment on the number of cars they were targeting to sell due to the twisted market conditions, but assured it was equipped to meet any level of demand.
Maruti Suzuki India Managing Director and CEO Shinzo Nakanishi-
“Ritz is our parent Suzuki’s fifth global model and it will be the first Bharat Stage-IV emission norms compliant Indian car. We have launched it at the beginning of the fiscal and we hope it will bring excitement in the market”
We’ll update you when more information is available.
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Micheal Boneham, President and Managing Director of Ford India stated the entry-level Ford, developed for emerging markets like Brazil and India will cost close to 4 lakh rupees (roughly $8,000). The car will be produced in both hatchback and sedan forms from next year onwards in Ford’s Chennai facility.
