The revolutionary T.25 that we had featured a few days ago, is just a few weeks away. The car which aims to revolutionize the way we drive will be shown for the first time as a prototype very soon. Reports say that the car has been officially shown to franchisees for the first time this week.

More than a dozen international companies have already signified their interest. This says a lot about this small car which we think is the Tata Nano’s British equivalent. Read our earlier article here.

Gordon Murray-

Most of our potential clients are large, successful businesses with strong brands, but only a minority are established car manufacturers, and we’re quite content with that. Our theories and processes are ideal for investors with a clean slate who are getting into cars for the first time

Gordon Murray’s vision of flexible and freedom is what the T.25 signifies. His philosophy that cars must quickly become smaller, more frugal, more space-efficient and easier to build if drivers are to preserve today’s ability to drive anywhere at will. The car aims to do all this and then some. Expect this to be the next British small classic after the Mini.

Gordon Murray T.25 Image Gallery

The entire design was completed at the Gordon Murray Design studio near Guildford, Surrey. Potential customers will be shown the full sized models that you can see in the pictures here. The first running prototypes are expected to be running in a few weeks time.

The car is smaller than even the Smart For Two and is powered by a mid placed 3 cylinder petrol engine that drives the rear wheels. It is lighter, frugal and can carry more load than the smart and the Toyota iQ.

The Murray blueprint is based on a car manufacturing method, titled iStream, that decreases costs by ridding big stamped parts and tenders remarkable model flexibility from simple base mechanicals. Murray estimates that an iStream factory needs to be at most about one-fifth the size of a standard car factory.

Source : AutocarUK

Well, sticking with the present conditions, we all know that the Tata Nano and Smart ForTwo are some of the smallest cars on the planet. These cars might have a more popular companion once Gordon Murray’s T.25 micro car gets ready.

Gordon Murray, the same guy who designed the Mclaren F1, claims this car is sure to revolutionize the market by being half the size of an average car, still expects a minimum of 4 stars in the Euro NCAP crash tests. You have to take a look at the pictures to see the revolution for yourself.

This car will also be capable of class beating economy and pollution norms and at the same time maintaining a power to weight ratio of a modern Sedan.

Two T.25′s will fit in a single lane while driving and 3 will fit in a standard-sized parallel parking spot in the U.K

Rendering of the Gordon Murray T.25

Murray also promises that there will be 6 different layouts for his little multi-purpose vehicle, all of which will share the same underpinnings.

As the pictures demonstrates, the car will improve significantly in the department of automobile engineering like cutting carbon emissions and fuel consumption in half and cutting the amount of raw materials necessary for its construction in half.

Less energy will be required to assemble the vehicle or ship it to its final destination and wherever possible, recycled components will be made use of.

Gordon Murray T.25 Scale Comparison Image Gallery

Press Release-

Autocar UK has published a post giving more information on Fiat’s low cost brand for developing countries like ours.

The website says the low cost car will come with a “super frugal 2-cylinder engine” but nothing about the displacement or power is mentioned. Now, could this possibly be the same engine that is used on the Tata Nano ? We earlier heard that there could be a possible hand in this venture from Tata Motors.

The website adds that the three planned models are expected to be built initially in Fiat plants in either Poland, Serbia or Italy. The idea is here is to offer a new car to those who are seeking to buy second hand cars.

Source- Autocar UK

The Italian carmaker Fiat is planning to launch a four-wheel-drive mini SUV of the acclaimed 500 minicar, according to latest German media reports.

The Fiat SUV, named the Fiat 500 Giardinetta will fight its rival rival Mini Clubman, and will look similar to it, with a  distinct wagon-like appearance

The Fiat 500 Giardinetta, sources say, will almost certainly use the same 4WD system found on the Fiat Panda hatch. The Fiat 500 itself is based on the same platform as the Fiat Panda.

32,000 units of the small-sized Fiat 500 Giardinetta will be produced from 2010 onwards. If this car has the same pull as the Fiat 500 (which eventually will happen, we guess) production will be increased multi-fold. A long wheelbase Fiat 500 has already been produced by Italian coach-builder Castagna, which was displayed recently at the Geneva Motor Show.

The last count we heard from Fiat on the number of 500′s in India was 41. Given it’s stratospheric price tag, it is a satisfactory number.

Fiat should drastically decrease it’s price, just like how Honda did with the Civic, and Mercedes is doing with the E-Class (8 lakhs off the sticker price for a limited period) so that more people can show off and publicize this desirable toy.

We think the first step in publicizing this car would be giving one car to every Tata Motors dealer in India to display in their Showrooms. Why Fiat hasn’t done that so far remains a puzzle to us in IAB.

2008 Fiat 500 Image Gallery

Source- Motor Authority

Nissan’s zero-emission electric vehicle by 2012 for the general public

Although Nissan may be lagging behind its cross-country rivals in hybrid technology, the Japanese automaker is moving full steam ahead with with its electric vehicle plans. Nissan is just as ready to do battle on this front as well (after the famous GT-R & Porsche Nurburgring row)

Mark Perry, Director of environmental product planning for Nissan, claims Nissan is not only developing electric vehicle technology so advanced like never seen before, but have even got a head start over many of their competitors (Guess he’s talking about Toyota, Honda and GM, who have made heavy investments in this field recently).

Nissan’s ongoing research on lithium-ion batteries since 1992

Nissan says it has almost found the solution to it’s problem. I mean, they have been working on lithium-ion batteries for 16 long years. No wonder they say they have the best technology with them. The automaker believes to be so near the answer that it has already signed an agreement with NEC for the larger scale manufacturing of the batteries.

“The difference is that we have made different choices. Several automakers chose to experiment with hybrid vehicles, but everyone knows this technology is only transitional. We have concentrated on what we believe to be the real solution in the future, electric cars. And from this point of view, our technology is already well established,” he said.

Nissan Electric Vehicle Specifications- 160 Kilometer Operating Range with a 26-minute recharge

“The vehicles have an operating range of 160 kilometres, recharge to 80 % capacity in less than 26 minutes and cost less than 70 cents per full charge. This is a viable solution that we could establish if the recharging installations were available. We still have a lot of research ahead of us, but we are the leaders in this field,” said Perry.

Nissan Electric Vehicle vs Tata Nano

It cost hardly 70 cents (about 35 rupees) to fill up. Let’s compare this to the Tata Nano, as Ghosn mentions that this car will be an affordable vehicle-

The Tata Nano according to ARAI reports, will return 24 kmpl (city and highway combined)

If you had to travel 160 kms, you would have to fill the Nano’s tank with 6.6-liters of petrol. One liter of petrol should cost 60 rupees a liter (just an assumption), you need to spend roughly 400 Rupees.

Nissan’s electric car will travel the same distance as the Tata Nano in less than 1/10th the cost

An electric vehicle is easier to manufacture and costs lesser than a normal car as it consists of lesser components. This should most probably be a 4-seater, hatchback, similar to the Tata Nano in dimension and would cost more or less the same as the mid-variant of the Tata Nano.

OK, an electric car needs to have it’s battery pack replaced after a certain point of time, but going by what Ghosn’s statements, Nissan’s battery pack should be more advanced than the current units in the market, and would last much longer than the regular Nickel Metal Hallide units. Combine that with Zero Emissions (by 2012, the Indian Government should have reduced the taxes on Electric cars even further) and absence of any noise pollution, this car would be the ultimate city cruiser in my view.

“If all the developing countries counted on individual cars as much as North Americans, we would need 11 extra planets to provide the necessary resources. Some things absolutely must change, and that’s what we’re doing,” concluded Perry.

IAB Comment- If the cost of Lithium Ion units are brought down, it will undoubtedly replace the Internal Combustion Engine. The beginning of the transition would see hybrid cars, from small to big. Mercedes’s declaration of doing away with petrolium-powered cars by 2015, makes sense to me now.

Nissan is treating India as one of their top priorities. They plan to bring in the Nissan March (based on the A-Star) by April next year and would follow it up with a range of cars including the 370Z supercar. With all that happening, I don’t see why this electric car would not be manufactured in India. It would be the perfect competitor to the Tata Nano and the Bajaj ULC, who by then, would also have their electric forms out on the market.

Folks, the auto industry is heading for a shocking revolution- Electric Vehicles are the future.

The much anticipated Utility Vehicle from Mahindra, the XYLO now has its own microsite- http://mahindraxylo.co.in/

The website talks about the work that has gone into making the XYLO. 160 Engineers in total were involved in developing this MPV which they are going to market as a “Streched sedan” indicating it’s sedan roots.

The XYLO will fight for the top spot against the Toyota Innova, Chevrolet Tavera and the upcoming Tata Indicruz.

The website also informs that the vehicle has undergone a rigorous test schedule, clocking a million miles in a span of 700 days in all imaginable terrains including places like Germany and U.K. If Mahindra’s claim is anything to go buy, we can expect the reliability levels of the Toyota Innova in this product.

The teaser shots give little away. Indicators mounted on the rear view mirrors and the the dials are lit up in blue in an inverted U-shaped landscape.

Check indianautosblog.com everyday. We will keep a close eye on the microsite as well as for leaked images or videos.

This was one of the most anticipated cars of this year. A Mini turns heads, even more if it was electric! think about it. This is the perfect solution. This car proves that style and economy need not be mutually exclusive. We carried an article on this earlier itself. Read it here.

Press Release

The BMW Group will be the world’s first manufacturer of premium automobiles to deploy a fleet of some 500 all-electric vehicles for private use in daily traffic. The MINI E will be powered by a 150 kW (204 hp) electric motor fed by a high-performance rechargeable lithium-ion battery, transferring its power to the front wheels via a single-stage helical gearbox nearly without a sound and entirely free of emissions. Specially engineered for automobile use, the battery technology will have a range of more than 250 kilometers, or 156 miles. The MINI E will initially be made available to select private and corporate customers as part of a pilot project in the US states of California, New York and New Jersey. The company is looking into expanding the MINI E pilot to include Europe. The MINI E will celebrate its world premiere at the Los Angeles Auto Show on November 19 and 20.

The MINI E’s electric drive train produces a peak torque of 220 Newton meters, delivering seamless acceleration to 100 km/h (62 mph) in 8.5 seconds. Top speed is electronically limited to 152 km/h (95 mph). Featuring a suspension system tuned to match its weight distribution, the MINI E sports the brand’s  (read BMW’s) hallmark agility and outstanding handling.

By introducing the MINI E, the BMW Group is underscoring the resolve with which it works towards reducing energy consumption and emissions in road traffic. The BMW Group is drawing on its unique technological expertise in the field of drive systems to develop a vehicle concept enabling zero emissions without renouncing the joy of driving. Putting some 500 cars on the road under real daily traffic conditions will make it possible to gain widely applicable hands-on experience. Evaluating these findings will generate valuable know-how, which will be factored into the engineering of mass-produced vehicles. The BMW Group aims to start series production of all-electric vehicles over the medium term as part of its Number ONE strategy. The development of innovative concepts for mobility in big-city conurbations within the scope of “project i” has a similar thrust, as its objective also includes making use of an all-electric power train.

The energy storage unit: cutting-edge lithium-ion technology engineered specifically for use in the MINI.
Based on the current MINI, the car will initially be available as a two-seater. The space taken up by back-seat passengers in the series model has been reserved for the lithium-ion battery. When in use in the zero-emissions MINI, the battery unit combines high output with ample storage capacity and a small footprint with power ratios that are unrivalled in this field of application so far. The lithium-ion storage unit will have a maximum capacity of 35 kilowatt hours (kWh) and transmit energy to the electric motor as direct current at a nominal 380 volts. The rechargeable battery is made up of 5,088 cells grouped into 48 modules. These modules are packaged into three battery elements that are compactly arranged inside the MINI E.
The energy storage unit’s basic components are based on the technological principle that has proven itself in practice in power supplies for mobile phones and portable computers. The MINI E’s lithium-ion battery can be plugged into all standard power outlets. Its charge time is strongly dependent on the voltage and amperage of the electricity flowing through the grid. In the USA, users can recharge a battery that has been completely drained within a very short period of time using a wallbox that will ship with every MINI E. The wallbox will be installed in the customer’s garage, enable higher amperage, and thus provide for extremely short charging times. Wallboxes fully recharge batteries after a mere two-and-a-half hours.

Driven by electricity: reliably, affordably and free of emissions.
A full recharge draws a maximum of 28 kilowatt hours of electricity from the grid. Based on the car’s range, a kilowatt hour translates into 5.4 miles. Besides the benefit of zero-emissions driving, the MINI E thus offers significant economic advantages over a vehicle powered by a conventional internal combustion engine as well.

The heavy-duty battery delivers its power to an electric motor, which transforms it into thrilling agility. Mounted transversely under the MINI E’s bonnet, the drive train unleashes its full thrust from a dead standstill. This provides for the car’s fascinating launch capability. The MINI E’s intense driving experience is augmented by its dynamic deceleration potential, which is also directly coupled to the accelerator pedal. As soon as the driver releases the gas pedal, the electric motor acts as a generator. This results in braking force, and the power recovered from the kinetic energy is fed back to the battery. This interaction ensures extremely comfortable drives – especially at medium speed with constant, but marginal, variation. In city traffic, some 75 percent of all deceleration can be done without the brakes. Making substantial use of this energy recuperation feature extends the car’s range by up to 20 percent.

Signature MINI agility in a new guise.
Weighing in at 1,465 kilograms (3,230 lbs), the MINI E has an even weight distribution. Minor modifications made to the suspension ensure safe handling at all times. The Dynamic Stability Control (DSC) system has been adapted to this model’s specific wheel loads.
The MINI E’s brake system comes with a newly developed electric underpressure pump. Its Electrical Power Assisted Steering (EPS) is the same as the one used in mass-produced MINIs. Both brake and steering assistance react to driving conditions and are thus extremely efficient. Even the air conditioning’s electrical compressor only operates if desired or necessary.

Design: unmistakably MINI, undoubtedly new.
At first glance, the MINI E is obviously an iteration of the brand. But its design, which is the blueprint for the zero-emissions two-seater, has been complemented by a number of visual cues that point to its revolutionary drive concept. All of the units produced for the pilot project will have the same paintwork and bear a serial number next to their side turn signal lights.
The MINI E’s coachwork sports an exclusive combination of metallic Dark Silver on all panels but the roof, which is clad in Pure Silver. What distinguishes the zero-emissions MINI is a specially designed logo in Interchange Yellow, depicting a stylized power plug in the shape of an “E” set against the silver backdrop. It has been applied to the roof, in smaller dimensions to the front and back, to the charger port lid, the dashboard trim, and – combined with the MINI logo – to the door jamb, in slightly modified form. The color of the roof edges, mirror housings, interior style cues and seat seams will match the logo’s yellow tone as well.

Moreover, the central gauge and the battery level indicator behind the wheel of the MINI E, which replaces the MINI’s rev counter, feature yellow lettering against a dark grey background. The battery level is displayed in percentage figures. The central gauge includes an LED display indicating power consumption in red and power recuperation in green.

MINI E customers will be part of a pioneering mission.

A 500-unit, limited-production MINI E series will be manufactured through the end of 2008. The project will thus attain an order of magnitude that clearly exceeds the size of currently comparable test series. Putting the MINI E on the road on a daily basis will be a pioneering feat to which both the drivers and engineers of the first zero-emissions MINI will contribute as a team.

MINI E customers will join forces with BMW Group experts to assist in the project’s scientific evaluation. MINI E engineers accord high importance to staying in touch with the drivers on a regular basis, as this will help them analyze driver behavior besides vehicle characteristics in order to gain the most accurate and realistic picture of the demands placed on a vehicle with a purely electrical drive in the select usage areas.

Special charging station and full service for every MINI E.
The cars will change hands based on a one-year lease with an extension option. Monthly lease installments will cover any required technical service including all necessary maintenance and the replacement of wearing parts. At the end of the lease, all of the automobiles belonging to the project will be returned to the BMW Group’s engineering fleet where they will be subjected to comparative tests.
The MINI E’s lithium-ion battery can be charged using a wallbox provided to MINI customers. Only lockable garages or similar buildings will qualify as homebases and power stations for the MINI E.

Maintenance by qualified specialists.
The electric drive’s high-voltage technology requires that maintenance work be done by qualified personnel using special tools that are not included in MINI service partners’ standard toolboxes. In light of this, a service base will be set up on both coasts, staffed by service engineers that are specially trained to perform maintenance and repair work on the MINI E’s electrical components. In the event of drive malfunction, these experts will provide professional support at the customer’s local MINI dealer or the service base’s specially equipped workshop. Technical inspections will take place after 3,000 miles (just under 5,000 kilometers) and at least after six months.

Production in Oxford and Munich.
The MINI E has already gone through the major phases of product development for mass-produced vehicles and passed numerous crash tests on the way. Aspects investigated besides passenger protection were the impact of collision forces on the lithium-ion battery and finding a non-hazardous location for it in the car. The MINI E’s energy storage unit emerged completely unscathed from all of the crash tests mandated by US standards, which are especially high.

Production of the approximately 500 cars will take place at the company’s Oxford and Munich sites and is scheduled for completion before the end of 2008. MINI’s UK plant will be responsible for manufacturing the entire vehicle with the exception of the drive components and the lithium-ion battery, with the brand’s series models rolling off its assembly lines concurrently. The units will then be transferred to a specially equipped manufacturing complex situated on BMW plant premises where the electric motor, battery units, performance electronics and transmission will be integrated.

IAB

Source : BMW Blog

It’s raining exotics in 2009. After the arrival of the Audi R8, followed by news of a possible launch of the Nissan 370Z, Porsche, who has already setup it’s base to sell and service its vehicles, might introduce the Porsche Panamera in the country, next year.

The Porsche Panamera is a four-door, four-seat high-performance sedan, currently in testing stage, set to be launched in 2009. It will be front-engined and rear wheel drive and powered by a modified version of the 4.5 L V-8 found in the Cayenne, equipped with the FSI system as used by Volkswagen (Porsche and Volkswagen collaborated on the Cayenne/Touareg sport utility vehicle platform).

According to Rod Wallace, Managing Director of Porsche India, the new Porsche Panamera will find potential buyers in India as it will come with a sedan that delivers performance of a sports car.

India is facing a crisis situation, but the ultra-rich hardly know or bother of inflation and high fuel prices. In fact, Porsche this year registered a substantial growth in sales numbers compared to the same time last year. The German is confident that the rich will like the concept of a car, which offers the performance of a sports car and a luxury of a sedan.

Porsche is trying to increase brand awareness among the Indians by leasing its cars. It has had immense success with the Cayenne, Boxster and 911 models, and for the family which believes that speed shouldn’t come at the cost of comfort and space, the Porsche Panamera is just the kind of car for you!

Via- Car Trade India

]]> http://indianautosblog.com/2008/11/porsche-panamera-india-2009/feed 0 http://indianautosblog.com/2008/11/marutis-indian-car-to-be-conceived-designed-and-developed-in-india http://indianautosblog.com/2008/11/marutis-indian-car-to-be-conceived-designed-and-developed-in-india#comments Thu, 20 Nov 2008 12:58:05 +0000 Vibs http://indianautosblog.com/?p=4435   [ Read More ]]]>

India’s largest Auto maker and volumes player Maruti Suzuki (MSIL), has today announced that it will introduce its first fully ‘Made in India’ car in the next four years.

Maruti Suzuki which yesterday launched another great product from its stable known as ‘A-Star’ in India, at an attractive introductory price of Rs 3.47-4.12 lakh, has already began the work on its future product which is totally focused, designed and developed in and for India.

“We have started the ground work to launch a car which is conceived, designed and developed fully in India,” said Mr.I.V. Rao, MSIL Managing Executive Officer (Eng.) to media.He also mentioned that Maruti is looking to roll it out in 4 years time, a time frame similar to what Tata Motors took for designing and developing the Tata Nano

However, he did not comment whether it would be a small or big car. Now, we take a guess- It has to be a small car, something like a modern interpretation of the aging Maruti 800 which might be phased out in the year 2010. It should compete with Hyundai and GM’s small car for the future. Maruti will also look to make a small car which can use flexible powertrains like hybrid, electric etc.

“We are discussing it internally,” Rao said, adding groundwork such as preparing for manpower, capacity and other related infrastructure has started.

MSIL’s ‘Made In India’ car will be the next major step in the company’s efforts to achieve its goal of developing products on its own. “Our ultimate aim is to have products developed on our own,” Mr.Rao said.

MSIL engineers have also played an important role in the development of the A-Star, which is Suzuki’s fifth global model.

IAB Comment- A while back we heard about Bajaj deciding to build their own car apart from the ULC/Lite. Now it’s Maruti. What both Bajaj and Maruti are trying to do is collaborate with the Internationals and learn the tricks so that they can replicate it while making their own cars. Learning from the leaders is such a good idea and will do wonders to the Indian Auto Industry.

Toyota revealed the Camry CNG Hybrid concept, which explores the idea of combining Hybrid Drive technology with natural gas power. It debuts this week at the Los Angeles Auto Show, and is easily identifiable, thanks to its bland looking grille-free front section.

Normally, all Hybrid cars have a petrol engine. In this case, rising fuel costs have made CNG a much more attractive option for consumers, and Toyota is hoping to add the cheaper fuel to its “portfolio of alternative fuels”.

A company spokesman said that CNG could take its place as a primary fuel source in future, however, there are currently no plans to put this concept into production.

Most CNG applications provide worse mileage than petrol as well as slower acceleration, but considering the price of petrol these will be of little concern to potential customers. Because of the huge reserves of CNG and the dwindling supply of petrol, CNG’s cheap price of around $2.50 per gallon is expected to easily offset any mileage issues that potential motorists may face. It is cleaner, with lower CO2 emission levels than both petrol and diesel.

The benefits of CNG is currently being amplified by rapidly changing market conditions and an increase in consumer environmental awareness.

2008 Toyota Camry CNG Hybrid Concept Image Gallery

Source: MotorAuthority