After signalling its foray into high-end personal vehicles with the Force One SUV, Force Motors is keen on adding another high-end product, this time a MPV.
During the launch of the Force Traveller-26 in Chennai, Mr. Naresh Kumar Rattan, Chief Operation Officer (COO) and President of Force Motors informed that the company will add a new assembly line to its manufacturing facility at Pithampur, Madhya Pradesh to accommodate the new high-end MPV.
He said, "We want to have a multi-purpose high end van. It is right now under development. We have to put an assembly line in the factory in Pithampur. It will take the existing plant into a new level."
Mr. Rattan also informed that the Force One SUV will have 2 to 3 new variants possibly with features like four wheel drive and ABS. The company had sold 2,000 Force Ones so far against a target of 4,000 units in the first year.
The high end MPV planned is most likely to be the old Mercedes Viano which will be manufactured under license from Daimler with few modifications. The Daimler sourced 2.2L FMTECH engine which powers the Force One is expected to be shared by the MPV too.
The Force MPV will be positioned to rival the segment king Innova and the Tata Aria. Force Motors, in order to make any impact, need to improve its sales and service network.
[Source: Rediff.com; Images from NetCarShow.com]
