Honda India has revealed that the VW-Suzuki partnership is a threat for the company as it pressurizes them to launch competitively priced cars while maintaining its brand value. Honda says that many such alliances are not good for them as these companies have cost advantages when it comes to R & D, sharing platforms, etc.
Honda Motor India president and CEO, Takashi Nagai to Go Auto-
This (VW-Suzuki partnership) is very worrying for us
In Europe the Toyota/Peugeot/Citroen trio have successfully managed the Aygo/107/C1 triplets. Likewise the Nissan/Renault/Samsung/Dacia products have been successfully sold alongside each other in many markets. In North America too the Honda Accord has to battle it out with the Korean siblings – Hyundai i45 & Kia Magentis/Optima. Even the Hyundai ix35 & Kia SL Sportage are a threat to the CR-V.
But the biggest threat has to be VW-Suzuki says Honda. In the ASEAN Region, Suzuki has a monopoly in the small car market especially in India thanks to its skill to manufacture low cost products. This skill coupled with VW’s German engineering, quality & safety could be a nightmare for companies like Honda and even Hyundai.
But at the end Honda says that it is a smart manufacturer because it has learnt how to launch well priced products while maintaining their brand value. Honda has high hopes with its new small car which it showcased at the 2010 Delhi Auto Expo. Honda hopes that it will be able to garner a good market share in the Asia-Pacific region with this new baby Honda.
It also says that will continue to further strengthen the Honda brand instead of making alliances or thinking of alternative brands.
As we reported earlier Renault is considering to launch the Dacia Duster SUV in India rebadged as a Renault. The company might launch the car around 2012 and manufacture it at its Chennai plant and could think of exporting a massive chunk to countries in close proximity.
The Dacia Duster is based on the Logan platform and since it comes from the Dacia family, it is a low cost car. Renault could position this vehicle in the sub 10 lakh rupee segment. The interesting part is that in Europe, before Dacia could offer a LPG version of the Duster, a company named Borel beat them to it.
Borel has gone ahead & is offering a LPG kit in the Duster along with a 2 year warranty. In India, LPG powered cars are fast gaining market. As prices of petrol rise, people are switching to CNG & LPG equipped vehicles. LPG will have a good demand in the immediate future, while CNG is the next step in alternate fuels chapter in India.
Will Renault consider launching the Duster with an LPG kit in India? A rugged urban SUV with a good price tag that is economical to run – sounds like a recipe of success. Let us wait & watch.
Since the time I started driving, I haven’t thought of anything other than 5-speed manual transmissions. I don’t have a lot of driving experience in ATs. My legs are working fine (till now, thankfully) and I’m only 23 years old. I’ve always felt the ATs were for people who were uncertain about their driving skills or for older people who want a simplified automobile. That’s the way I’ve been thinking all this while until recently when traffic jams, even on back roads near my home were no more a temporary phenomenon. Everyday there’s a traffic jam somewhere that we need to put up with. During the rains due to slow moving or stuck vehicles, it gets worse. With increasing number of cars and poorly organized cities, drainage systems, traffic regulation and bad roads, many people have had enough. If they have a small budget, they can’t hire a chauffeur. They love personal transportation which offers them extra comfort and safety, so a car like the A-Star AT makes a lot of sense there.
Entry posted on September 6, 2010 by
Shrawan Raja;
Read More on Ford
Reports earlier this year suggest that there is a highly disguised blue oval doing rounds at an unspecified location in Europe. Thankfully, AutoExpress has solid proof with spy shots and a rendering which reveal that this is a Fiesta-based small crossover somewhat similar but smaller than the Focus based Kuga. This vehicle is nothing but the next generation Ford EcoSport SUV.
Note the spy shots are only of a test mule which is being used to tune the engine, gearbox, suspension. The Fiesta hatch’s body is a dummy.
When we looked at reports on other websites, we came across another interesting artist impression of how this vehicle will look from the rear when it comes out in the next 12-18 months.
The basic design of the car will carry the Fiesta’s Kinetic Design philosophy. The vehicle will sport large wheel arches and a high ground clearance. The wheels also protrude past each side of the car, showing the car’s wider track and four-wheel drive system that lurks beneath.
Now we know that Ford is already working on the B-Max for the Indian market which is a mini MPV based on the Fiesta platform. Ford India also made a statement last week saying that they will bring 8 new models to India within the next 5 years.
Now apart from the B-Max, this new Fiesta based crossover is another model for India. With a potent diesel engine & a good pricing this baby can be a great alternative to slightly expensive hatchbacks.
Now the question is will Ford adopt the same strategy it did with the Figo – sell the outgoing model rather than the latest one. In other words, will Ford sell the outgoing EcoSport in India instead of this brand new one?
Today let’s take a trip down the memory lane to know more about the most iconic parcel delivering, tourist moving van – The Maruti Omni. Yeah we know, not the most glamorous of all topics.
When I first drove the Omni (and this was quite a long time back), there was this distinct feeling of disconnect from the gear box. Much to my horror, I got the same feeling when I was driving the Chevy spark. Baffled by this knowing, I started digging in deeper. Didn’t take me long to find that way back in 1986, Omni was actually built by GM in partnership with Suzuki.
The ‘Bedford Rascal’ and yes they did call it a Rascal. I guess back then product branding was by hairy-chested men who used to drink gallons of beer and arm wrestled all night long. Anyways, back to the story, the Rascal was jointly developed by GM and Suzuki and was sold under GM’s British-based Bedford marque. It was also sold by Suzuki in other markets under the name of Supercarry. Considering its diminutive strength, the name ‘Super’carry is honestly a bit optimistic. It was ambitious.
Although the Bedford Rascal, which is a pickup truck, and Omni, a mini van, were basically on the same platform, the former was more powerful (with a 4 cylinder, 44bhp engine) as opposed to the later (with a 3 cylinder, 37 bhp engine).
The most iconic workhorse of India has found a new stable in China! The Chinese Auto manufacturer Jiangnan Auto, who ceased producing this car a while ago, sold the rights and manufacturing equipment to Zotye (which, if you don’t know, manufactures the RiO SUV, sold by Premier in India)
Zotye now sells the Maruti 800 for as low as 18,000rmb in the Chinese market. That is just over 1 lakh of rupees.
Before Jiangnan Auto, the Suzuki Alto (a.k.a our Maruti 800) has been manufactured in China by so many companies. Many of them don’t even have a legal contract with Suzuki.
But Zotye feels that there is still market at the bottom of the pyramid and the rural parts of China will highly appreciate the product. If things go as planned, it will be the cheapest car available in China. Zotye is also planning on making a sedan out of the Alto’s platform.
Will Premier be able to sell the Maruti 800 in India after its phased out, by shipping them as CKDs from Zotye in China?
Entry posted on September 6, 2010 by
Shrawan Raja;
Read More on Ford
By Kaustubh Shinde
There is a little bit of extra information that you need to know on the next generation Ford Endeavour. Whether you know it as the Ford Ranger in its pickup truck form, or Ford Everest in other markets, the platform has started its development process as a pickup truck under the codename ‘T6’.
The SUV that will a T6 platform spin-off is being developed under the guidance of Todd Hoevener, Ford’s SUV specialist and vehicle engineering manager, who’s been flown in from America. His recent work includes the latest model of the iconic Ford Explorer.
The design language will lay emphasis on aerodynamics which is a refreshing change from the old one. We expect Ford’s current 3.0-litre, 4-cylinder common-rail turbo diesel engine to be carried over. Otherwise, the 176kW 2.0-litre four-cylinder Ecoboost engine is expected.
Acknowledging the fact that Ford is currently inundated with a lot of Figo orders and its upcoming projects like the Euro Fiesta sedan and seven other models over the next few years are going to keep them very busy, we expect this SUV will take sometime to hit the market, probably the middle of 2012.
Stay tuned, we will bring you more information as it comes to hand.
The new Suzuki Swift has arrived and within the next few months, Maruti Suzuki will start selling it. There aren’t going to be any changes under the hood of the new Swift, but literally everything else has changed, gotten bigger, evolved and evened out.
In the making is a new Suzuki Swift sedan, which could be the ideal car for Maruti, say between the new Swift and the SX4. But for now, enjoy these motion shots of the new Swift that isn’t very far away from a Maruti Suzuki dealership.
