Indian Autos blog

A diesel version of the Honda Accord has been spotted testing in the suburbs of Delhi by eagle-eyed Rahul Kohli. Though the diesel version is good news, the Accord being tested however is not the American Accord, but the European/Japanese Accord, which means this car is not coming to India. But the engine might.

So this begs the question about why Honda is testing this car in India. Our estimation points to the notion that Honda is testing its diesel engines in a market which it considers, has the lowest quality diesel. Diesel engines are certainly not Honda’s cup of tea, the 2.2l i-CTDi diesel engine that does duty on the European Accords, CR-Vs and Civics is Honda’s first ever attempt at making a diesel engine.

This diesel engine (specifically the high pressure injector) is said to be extremely sensitive to the diesel fuel quality and the inability of Honda to tune down the engine to run on lower quality fuel is the main reason for Honda not introducing diesel versions of the CR-V, Accord and Civic in India.

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We discovered a video of the unveiling of the VW Polo sedan (Berlina, Vento) in Russia on You tube, which gives you a good idea about the vehicle’s looks in the absence of studio lighting. The video is not very old considering the Vento was launched officially on the 3rd of this month.

Nissan has plans to develop a low-cost, economical, small, city car for the Indian market. The car will be developed from the grounds up and will be a made-in-India product. Nissan is currently looking for partners for forming a joint venture to develop this small car. Currently, Ashok Leyland seems to be the fore runner in becoming Nissan’s partner for this project.

Andy Palmer, Nissan’s Senior Vice-President -

We are yet to decide on a partner for the car, though the favorite is Ashok Leyland

But, the spokespersons of both Nissan and Ashok Leyland are not ready to confirm Andy Palmer’s comment. They say that nothing has been finalized as of now and that talks and discussions are currently ongoing.

Ashok Leyland’s Official Spokesperson -

As we have said at our previous press meet, Ashok Leyland is just weighing options to develop a small car. No plans have been firmed up on that. All the reports pertaining to the Nissan-Ashok Leyland tie-up are purely speculative

Nissan India’s Spokesperson -

With regards to the small car project, we have already made it clear during the press conference held on June 1, 2010 that we are in the conceptual phase, talking with several partners. Our approach is customer lead, so we will adopt different configurations in different markets. We are in discussion with ALL (Ashok Leyland Limited), since we have a good relationship, but nothing is finalized. In this market, we are discussing with ALL and others, in other markets, we will discuss with other potential partners. We do not have any other guidance to share at this point of time

From the above quotes, one thing for clear is that Nissan is indeed planning to develop a small car with an Indian partner, but who will that partner be is the big question waiting to be answered. Watch this space.

The world’s largest car manufacturer, Volkswagen, has unveiled the all new, next-generation version of its mid-size saloon, the Jetta. The new car features major revisions in design and styling as compared to its predecessor and draws a lot of inspiration for its looks from the NCC Concept Coupe which VW showcased at this year’s Detroit Motor Show. The new Jetta has adopted the Volkswagen family front-end look as seen on the new Polo, Golf, Touareg and Phaeton.

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Mahindra and Mahindra is holding negotiations with its former JV partner Renault for reworking on the Logan platform to develop new vehicles, reports Business Standard.

M&M which recently bought out Renault’s 49% stake in Mahindra Renault Private Ltd, has now got exclusive rights for the Logan platform in India. But still, Mahindra has to pay Renault additionally to get rights to work on the Logan’s design.

The shortened boot version of the Logan could be launched soon. M&M recently announced that the company is checking the feasibility of the shortened version of the Logan (we call it Logano!).

Also the Renault badge and the Logan name would be used only till Dec 31, 2010, after that it would be badged a Mahindra and could carry a new name.

M&M also announced that it would be looking to develop the Logan platform into a utility vehicle, MPV, SUV or a crossover and has no plans to develop it into a new sedan.

It is to be noted that after Mahindra broke off with Renault, it slashed the prices of the Logan by about Rs. 80,000.

Click here for Indian Autos Blog’s exclusive rendering of the shortened Mahindra Logan.

After bringing you the leaked brochure and a complete rendering, we now have a spy shot of the rear end of the face-lifted Volkswagen Tiguan. What is clearly evident from the image is that the face lifted Tiguan does not possess major changes and will have no serious changes compared to its predecessor.

The face lifted Tiguan is expected to feature only minor changes to its exteriors, to bring it in sync with Volkswagen’s family look for its vehicles just like the new Polo, Golf, Scirocco, Touareg and Phaeton.

The exteriors of the Tiguan face lift will have new headlights with integrated LED daytime running lights, new bumper, fog lights, grille and wheels. The face lifted Tiguan will in all probability carry over the same interiors of its predecessor with slight changes in textures and materials.

The Tiguan face lift will feature the same engine options as its predecessor, but tuned to deliver more fuel economy and lower emissions.

Volkswagen India could consider launching the Tiguan in India, as a rival to the super successful Toyota Fortuner. If launched in India at a price around the 20-lakh mark, the Tiguan could lure a lot of customers waiting for the delivery of their Toyota Fortuner or those who are considering to buy the BMW X1.

Mitsubishi is gearing up for the launch of the Lancer Evo X in the second week of July 2010. Earlier today we had posted spy pictures of the Mitsubishi Lancer Evo. Now we have exclusive spy pictures of the same car at the Madras Motor Sports Track (MMST) courtesy of Ujwal Reddy and Ansul Singhi.

The Lancer Evo has been expected in India for quite sometime and thankfully Mitsubishi taken a step to please the car enthusiasts in India. The Lancer Evo X is every boy-racer’s dream car. The car look absolutely mean with its chiseled front end and the gaping opening. The sporty tail lamp and the huge rear spoiler make sure that the Evo X isn’t mistaken for ‘just-another’ saloon.

This car looks like an average premium sedan and does a nice job of hiding its real character, a beast powered by a 2.0l inline 4 cylinder engine pumping out over a 290 horses. The black-powdered finish 14-spoke alloy 18″ BBS alloy wheels add to the stunning looks of the car. There are the solid paddle-shifts which help the driver get the best out of the 6-speed Twin Clutch SST transmission.

The car’s interiors look extremely well made with a high quality of fit and finish. The interior reeks of sportiness. The pitch black interiors along with the piano black inserts looks fantastic. The three-spoke steering wheel with aluminum touches looks chunky and tempting. The sporty Recaro seats in the Lancer Evo are extremely supportive. The car comes with the brilliant Rockford Fosgate music system with a sub-woofer.

The car would be be priced at more than Rs. 40 lakhs, if you were wondering.

Ford India is doing extremely well in India at the moment with its hugely successful Figo. Ford has invested heavily in its Maraimalai Nagar facility near Chennai.

Ford’s engine building plant is a world class facility with a annual capacity of 2,50,000 units. Now Ford has started exports of its 1.4l and 1.6l petrol engines to Thailand. The company has already been exporting its diesel engines to South Africa. Soon Ford’s Chennai plant would become its hub for small engines.

Michael Boneham, President and MD, Ford India -

The first shipment of 1,000 petrol engines is a significant first step in our goal to become a major production and export hub of diesel and petrol engines.

Ford is strengthening itself in India as it has a number of new products to be launched in the next couple of years. Though the details of the upcoming products are not clear, we expect Ford to bring the next generation Fiesta (currently being tested in Chennai in its hatchback form), the next gen Endeavour and a new small car based on the Ford Start concept.

Ford has also announced that it would produce smaller Ecoboost engines in 3- and 4-cylinder versions internationally. These turbocharged direct injection petrol engines are both fuel efficient and immensely powerful. Ford also has the option of building the smaller displacement Ecoboost engines in Chennai and exporting it to Asia-Pacific, Africa and even Europe.