BharatBenz will introduce 3 trucks by the third quarter of 2012. In the next 20 months, the company has aggressive plans to launch 17 models. As promised earlier, the range of product would start from 6 tons and will go right up to 49 tonnes. BharatBenz has also tied up with HDFC Bank, ICICI bank and Sundaram Finance for truck financing.

The The 160-hectare facility will start production in April. The plant will start with an initial capacity of 36,000 units per year. It will be later ramped up to 70,000 units depending on the requirements. The current range of trucks have attained 85 per cent localization with 41 per cent coming from within a 50 kilometer radius and 44 per cent from the rest of the country.

BharatBenz trucks will be sold and serviced over a network of 70 dealerships. This will be extended to more than 100 dealerships by 2014.

[Source: BSMotoring.com]

General Motors did not have vans that were suited to our country’s conditions and requirements, so they poached two of them (one was shown at the Expo, a smaller one is under testing) from their Chinese partner’s arsenal.

The Maruti Omni (India’s big daddy of vans) and the Eeco are exuding dominance at the bottom of the commercial vehicles pyramid. Though sales of the Maxximo mini van and the Ace Magic are soaring, they are a touch crude for a personal vehicle. The Venture feels more premium and manages 1,000+ units of sales every month.

TopGear feature on the Ford Transit

Companies like Toyota, Ford and Volkswagen having heavy ambitions don’t have vans in India. That does not mean they don’t build them at all. They have decades of success and a huge legacy with brands like the Toyota Hiace, Volkswagen Caddy and the Ford Transit.

The company we’re talking about today is Ford. The Blue Oval gave birth to the Transit in 1965 and due to its car like handling and storage holding capacity of a MPV, it was the car of choice for bank robbers. Over five million units have been sold worldwide and the Transit has become synonymous with the word van in Europe and UK.

Yesterday Ford put out photographs and details of a concept that previews the next generation Ford Transit. The Tourneo Custom Concept crushes speculation on how the next 1-tonne family ferrying Transit van will look like. It’s exactly like the Fiesta and Focus, sporting the Kinetic Design styling treats such as the large trapezoidal grille, muscular shoulder line, and pronounced wheel arches and window lines. The story continues in the cabin, the dashboard layout is frighteningly similar to Ford cars and the gear lever is mounted on the dash for better ergonomics.

Drive is derived from Ford’s 2.2-litre Duratorq TDCi diesel engine in three levels of power – 100PS, 125PS and 155PS. Plenty of variants will be on offer along with the choice of two wheelbases (SWB and LWB).

The question is, will a Transit, rewired for the Indian market with higher mileage, shorter wheelbase, price-conscious features and variants, work with Indian families?

There are two versions of the Xylo pickup, one for the domestic market and another for the export markets. Our pals at Motorbeam spied a double cab pickup version of the Mahindra Xylo testing on the Mumbai-Pune expressway. It has a much better road presence thanks to a more uniform construction, chrome inserts, load bay accentuated with a stroke over the wheel arch and what we’d call designer tail lamps considering this vehicle is used to haul cement bags and water cans.

The domestic Genios have a flat load bay and a sober rear profile. They prefer function over form and to cut costs, it misses out on panache. There is no point in introducing it as a lifestyle product in India because the Scorpio Getaway already has that part of the market covered. As a commercial carrier the Genio and the Bolero are doing exceptionally well for Mahindra.

The double cab variant is being tested for the export markets. There is a huge demand for such vehicles in Asian and African markets. If powered by the same 2.2-liter mHawk motor from the Scorpio, the Xylo double cab variant will produce 120 bhp of power and 290 Nm of torque.

[Source - MotorBeam.com]

The Tata Ultra LCV & ICV range will comprise a series of variants from 5 to 14 tonnes. The range will be powered by new generation 3L (138 HP) and 5L (168 HP) common rail (DICOR) 16-valve engines.

The highlights of the Ultra LCV are:

• Steel cabin with hydraulic cabin tilt mechanism
• Steel rolled chassis frame
• A dash-mounted cable shift gear
• Seats with integral headrest
• Tiltable, telescopic and collapsible power steering
• Clear-lens headlamps
• Radial tyres
• Parabolic leaf springs
• First time in the category, disc brakes ensure safer transit of goods

Tata Motors Ultra 714 was shown at the Auto Expo this month

Tata Motors is giving its products a similar face right from the Ace to the Ultra trucks. The facelift of the Ace was also shown at the Auto Expo featuring a new front fascia.

The Stile is a product of the Ashok Leyland-Nissan partnership to roll out commercial vehicles in India. It is an attempt to tap into a segment Ashok Leyland has given a miss in the past. The partner LCV (a rebadged Nissan Atlas) is another vehicle that helps Ashok Leyland explore a lower segment. The transformation of Ashok Leyland from being a heavy trucks manufacturer into a cross-segment player started with the launch of the Dost and marches ahead with these vehicles.

The Evalia takes care of personal transport segment while the Stile is aimed at the commercial customer. The Evalia could be tasked with handling the urban crowd while the Stile can take on the rural population. The difference in customer bases will get clarity once the vehicle reaches the market. As one saying goes only the customer has the right to decide the market. Some IAB readers have contrary remarks. They have said the Stile looks better and more advanced than the Evalia!

Ashok Leyland has not divulged information on the Stile’ powertrain. What it has said however is a wide range of applications will be developed on the platform such as an ambulance van, parcel service vehicle, inter and intra city transport bus, etc.

The Stile shown at the Auto Expo is configured to seat seven people. According to a source, by mid-2013, the Stile will be introduced in the market. If you are looking for a large MPV and narrowed down your choice to the Stile and Evalia, which one would you choose?

The Stile will take up various assignments in the Indian market. Ashok Leyland has said that a slew of variants such as ambulance, panel vans, courier service vehicle, shuttle bus and hotel shuttles are planned for the Stile. It sports attractive features (for a commercial vehicle) such as sliding doors, two and three row seating configurations and dual tone interiors and will be available in CNG and diesel avatars.

On the other hand, the Partner (spied by our readers Sree Ganesh and SR Vishnuvardan during tests) is a 6-tonne LCV with a tiltable cab. Power is derived via a 120hp CRDI engine. Ashok Leyland has ambitious plans with the Partner. It proposes the release of a range of applications like tippers, containers and refrigerators.

Ashok Leyland is also showing the CNG variant of the Dost at its stall. It will reach the market in 2012 whereas the Nissan-derived models are scheduled for a launch in mid-2013.

Will Mahindra bring the CNG variant to the Auto Expo next month?

Vehicle 2 – IndianCarsBikes.in’s EarthFusion has snagged the Tata ACE Dicor in Pune. IndianAutosBlog.com was first in putting this project under the spotlight back in September, but this is the first time we have photographic evidence of it testing. The Ace DICOR is powered by a two-cylinder turbocharged CRDI engine.

ICB adds that certain mechanical components from the Ace DICOR engine will funnel down into the Nano diesel project, rumored to touch down next year.

[Source - IndianCarsBikes.in and MotorBeam.com]

Madrid has placed an order for ten buses last year. The dual purpose served at this Expo is the bus is a medium to showcase the technologies developed by Tata Motors and as batteries  are expected to reach a lower price point over the next few years, sending the important message out on to the market that Tata Motors is future-ready.

Tata has listed the merits of the CNG-Diesel hybrid model in a press release and they include

• Electric traction system from Siemens employed in over 2000 buses worldwide.
• A full electrical model, possible for zero emission operation, for short distances.
• Common hybrid drive for Diesel-Electric and CNG-Electric, which can be extended to Pure Electric, CNG micro turbine and hydrogen fuel cell buses.
• Overall cost over the lifetime of the vehicle is lower, due to savings in running costs. Procuring cost is significantly higher.
• Regenerative electronic braking allows reuse of energy dissipated during braking.
• Very low and transient engine operation.
• ­Electrically driven auxiliary systems.
• ­Automatic Electric mode.
• Lithium-Ion battery pack provides better performance compared to Lead Acid pack.
• Smaller engine gives rise to less noise.
• Energy management strategies allows tuning to suit specific customer requirements, depending on the operations.

However, Nissan’s LCV partner Ashok Leyland also has similar ambitions and wants a pie of the MPV segment. Ashok Leyland has recognized the growing demand for people movers in India and is reportedly working on an MPV based on the NV200 platform. If everything goes well, this new MPV will mark the foray of Ashok Leyland brand in the passenger segment.

This does raise a question of will there be rift between Nissan and Ashok Leyland as they are both targeting the same segment. However Dr V Sumantran, executive vice chairman, Hinduja Automotive said that their MPV will be completely different from the NV200 and will be targeted towards commercial use rather than a family car. The company is targeting tour operators and taxi operators with their new MPV.

The new MPV will be positioned below the Mahindra Xylo and is at least 12 – 15 months away from its debut. This also acts as a buffer period for Nissan as it has ample time to market the NV200.

The Toyota Innova has enjoyed a dominant run in the Indian MPV segment. However, as more and more manufacturers are diverting their attention towards the MPV segment, the heat will be more intense. The major contender for now seems like the R3 from Maruti Suzuki. Force Motors is also planning an MPV based on the Mercedes Viano. General Motors is testing many Chinese MPVs in India from its SAIC Wulling partnership. At the same time, Chevrolet is all set to refurbish the Tavera with a new BS4 complaint engine by the end of 2011.

As the competition heats up, Toyota better get the Innova facelift out fast.

[Image Credit - Reji Joseph]

[Source - BSMotoring.com]

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.

Most LCVs keep their front fascia intact when they transform into vans. Thus the Dost Van will look very similar to the donor vehicle. Of course, alloy wheels are optional extra.

Similar in dimensions and capacity to the Super Ace, the passenger carrier has to be the Tata Venture’s counterpart and not compete with the smaller and no-frills Maxximo or Magic. The Dost passenger edition could be a more value package instead of a bare bones share-van concept.

It must have well appointed interiors, plenty of useful features and functions, supportive seats with height adjustable head rests, beige interiors, air-conditioning and charging points for laptop computers. Instead of plastic curtains and half doors, sliding doors and glass windows have to be installed making it a tempting option for families as well. Ashley should consider giving it side cut-ins, kinks to the C-Pillar and a chunky stoplight.

The Dost passenger edition will be aimed at transporting school and college staff members, IT company employees, tourists and a small portion could come from customers in extended families.

In order to accommodate 8 people, the Dost van will have 2 rows of seats facing each other at the back (à la Maruti Omni). It will be powered by the same 1.5 litre, 3 pot, common rail TDCR generating 55 bhp and 150 NM of torque. It will be mated to a 5 speed manual transmission. Ashok Leyland should standardized as many creature comforts such as air conditioning, power steering and attractive dual tone interiors.

Can we expect a 2012 Auto Expo debut for the Dost van?