The B+ and C segment has witnessed a lot of action in the recent months. First came the SX4 diesel followed by a string of launches such as the fluidic Verna, Ford Fiesta and the recent one the Nissan Sunny. After the hatchback segment, this segment was bound to receive the lime light as people who had bought the hatchbacks would soon look for an upgrade.
With the rise in the number of launches and existing players offering huge discounts on their respective models, VW is not going to fold its hands. Our good pals at Motorbeam have snapped up what could possibly be a facelifted, production ready Vento for the Indian market.
Please note that recently VW has quietly sent a better equipped version of the Highline variant to its dealers without notifying the automotive press.
But this test mule has some visual treats that are completely different from the existing Vento. Chief of the list is the smoked headlamps which are clearly visible in the spy pic. Current Vento’s headlamps come with crystal clear surrounds. The front bumper and the grill is drenched in white camouflage hinting that there is something cooking there as well. Is Volkswagen working to differentiate the Polo and Vento front-ends?
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Here’s our next W201 – the Audi Q3 seen testing yet again. The difference is Audi’s not bothered about aficionados clicking away at their mules. For Audi India camouflage is a term found in a 3rd grader’s Zoology text book.
Our reader Aditya Prakash who is by far the biggest Audi fan in India (and runs a Facebook page CarsIndia) has sent us another catch wearing the four rings. The Audi Q3 continues testing in Mumbai with a possible unveiling at Auto Expo next year.
The Q3 shares its foundation with the Volkswagen Tiguan and as the latter is not available in India, the VW Group need not follow the brand pattern and position the Audi offering at a premium.
So Audi India should start the Q3 under 25 lakh rupees and set the segment ablaze.
Under the hood Audi will use the 2L diesel from the Passat/Jetta/Laura/A4 and pair it to a 6-speed manual and 7-speed automatic gearbox. Unlike the X1 which is purely a 2WD crossover, the Q3 might come with Audi’s Quattro (AWD) system. We expect Audi to bring the Q3 to the market by May 2012.
IndianAutosBlog.com reader Sudeep sent these snaps of the Volkswagen Up! from the Frankfurt International Airport last evening along with a note implying his interest in its Indian entry.
Like Sudeep there are thousands of people lining up to test drive and experience the cheapest offering from VW yet. The five-door Up! hits European markets during 2012 and we’re expecting unrelenting VW India to fly down an example to the Auto Expo 2012. The Up! is designed for the customer unable to afford a Polo but aspires to drive the German-engineered Volkswagen.
The car’s rear is built using a Brio-blushing all-glass hatch, C-Shaped tail lights and a no-fuss bumper. The design theme for the Up! should have been a razor blade – simple and functional. For the Indian market Volkswagen will have the brand in upper case pasted on the bottom left of the glass hatch. The Indian car will have smaller wheels, five doors, bits from the BlueMotion car and higher ground clearance.
[Read everything about the Up!]
The Up is a tall boy with thin seats, simple dashboard interface, small wheels, compact turning radius and a tiny footprint. These are the contents of a perfect city car. Under the hood Volkswagen could use the 1.2-liter diesel from Polo generating lower output. The Chevrolet Beat and Hyundai i10 are its prime targets and Volkswagen’s rise to the top of the world by 2018 rests partially on the shoulders of the Up!.
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Like it or not, Honda is considered to be a premium brand in India. At this point auto aficionados around the globe would be going WHAT??. But it is true and so is the fact that Indian consumers perceive Honda cars as desirable and aspirational. Brand Honda also enjoys a cult following in India where there is saying ‘Once you go Honda, you don’t go back’. So what happens when a premium brand decided to go mass market?
This is when the Brio comes into picture. The second largest Japanese automaker has decided that it wants to put an end to Maruti Suzuki and Hyundai’s small car domination in India. The Brio is Honda’s little warrior out to compete with proven products such as Swift i10 and Wagon R.
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Ford India organized an off-road event at the outskirts of Delhi today. Having tried out innovative promotions for their cars in the recent past with the ‘Swap your drive’ and the ‘Ford Fiesta Experience’ campaigns, Ford heads out to send out a gentle reminder to customers who find some new utility vehicles (read Mahindra XUV500, Tata Safari Merlin) enticing.
The off road event that took place today was called the Great Ford Endeavour Drive. Organized at about 20km from Delhi, the location looked like an average Indian road magnified powerfully. Every inch was used up to test the Endy’s forgotten off-roading traits.
Reaching the event location was an off road experience in itself. Passing through some narrow village roads and steep inclines we reached ‘Camp Wild’ located deep within the vicinity.
Soon after reaching we were introduced to the Endeavour. We were then told about the other recreational activities at Camp Wild that were organized such as rock climbing, rope balancing, etc but being an automotive enthusiast we had our eyes on the Endeavour line Arjuna had on the eye of the fish.
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Recently, Ashok Leyland launched their flagship LCV Dost in Mumbai at a price of Rs. 3.79 lakhs to Rs. 4.37 lakhs.
The Dost platform is co developed with Nissan and will transform into many Ready-to-Use Vehicles (RUVs) such as Refrigerated containers, Steel containers, Ambulance, Aluminium Fixed Side Decks and Service-At-Site vehicles.
However the company has major plans to launch a Van based on the Dost.
This is not something new to the Indian Automotive scene. Many LCVs have transformed themselves in van for commercial uses. A few that come to our mind are Tata Ace and Mahindra Maxximo.
These vans are very effective runabouts in rural India which demands a robust car which can handle rough usage. What can be more tough than a modified pick up truck right?
During the launch of the Dost, Dr V Sumantran, executive vice chairman Ashok Leyland commented that it will be an 8 seater van and will be launched very soon. SRK, our in-house design genius, has speculated what this upcoming van may look like.
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IndianAutosBlog.com reader Reji Joseph mailed us images of the Innova killer testing in Chennai. Last month, IAB brought you images from Bangalore of a premium variant of the NV200, courtesy of Shreyas Shreedhar. Now we have images of a LHD variant with testing equipment onboard.
Frankly there’s not been one MPV in India that can hold a candle to the Innova. Mahindra tried to offer the highest level of space and comfort for the Innova’s starting price, but that has not worked. Tata Motors hoped to get the Innova customer into its dealership by stuffing the Aria with features, providing far better interiors and technology-wise, a superior product. That has not clicked.
Mind you, the Aria and Xylo are awesome vehicles for the price they are offered at. They both have the Innova’s abilities but their origin could be the culprit of damp sales or failed objectives. Have these two brands grown enough to challenge the giant that is Toyota? We will find out when Nissan brings out the NV200 whether it is the brand that culpable for the strayed course.
Hyundai has not shown any interest in the MPV market and Maruti’s R3-based MPV might be positioned below the Innova like Xylo.
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Hyundai has opened bookings for the Eon small car. One can book the vehicle through visiting the dealership or sending a text message. We’ll keep a close eye on the number as it has the capability to vroom past 25k within the first few days.
The Eon is a well-sculpted city car sporting modern interiors and a peppy 800cc engine. It is likely to be placed a notch below the Santro.
Indian Autos Blog described some of the Eon’s features months before others got to see the car, brought not one, but three artist renderings of the model while it was being tested and developed, speculated on its branding and brought spy shots from its tests.
Are you bringing home an Eon this Diwali?
With the rise in the number of launches and existing players offering huge discounts on their respective models, VW is not going to fold its hands. Our good pals at Motorbeam have snapped up what could possibly be a facelifted, production ready Vento for the Indian market.
