But a Tata Nano entering the Jay Leno epic garage is no ordinary occasion. Thus, the Tata Nano was welcomed in a Bollywood setting with Jay Leno dressed in a Sherwani.

This is probably the first time I am seeing Jay leno not wearing a denim jeans or a suit as he generally does on The Tonight Show. Quite a car eh?

Jay Leno is one of the biggest petrol heads in the world only next to the Sultan of Brunei. He has a garage that houses nearly 200 mouth watering cars and 90 motorcycles. He has a dedicated web series called ‘Jay Leno’s Garage’ wherein he road test cars that come to his garage. A special tri-color Tata Nano will be a part of this web series which will air shortly. Don’t worry, we will get it for you as soon as it is released.

From the look of things, it seems that the upcoming web episode will be full of Bollywood sequences with dancers showcasing their jhatkas and matkas. We can’t wait to hear Jay Leno’s opinion on the Tata Nano. But it seems that it will take some time for the review to air because Jay Leno just finished shooting it.

In the meantime, you guys can head to Jay Leno’s website to see some of his cars.

[Source: businesstoday.intoday.in]

Our reader Sandeep Singh from Frankfurt who is fluent in Dutch, helped us understand the article that has appeared on AutomobielManagement.nl.

The Tata Nano is safe enough to ply the NL roads and has been certified road worthy by the RW (Rijksdienst voor het wegverkeer) which is NL’s ARAI. The car was bought by an online parts provider Blijdatikrij.nl.

Blijdatikrij paid 625 Euros to transport the vehicle to Netherlands and paid 600 Euros to upgrade it to meet the standards and norms in their country. It looks like they have fitted larger wing mirrors to the car. They paid 2,400 Euros to buy the LX variant but doesn’t the LX model have body colored bumpers and fog lights?

Blijdatikrij may never reach a destination on time..the Nano’s got the power and speed to do it, but its going to catch every road user’s attention who inevitably would like to take a closer look at the 21st century Ford Model T born in India!

[Source - Blijdatikrij.nl via Automobielmanagement.nl]

[Can't see the video above? Head over to the Youtube page to see the video.]

What do you think will be the contribution of the diesel variant to the Tata Nano sales?

Click on the image to see images of the Tata Nano Diesel test mule

High resolution image of the image that gives its identity away! [Opens in a new window]

Look at the picture above; seems like a mundane stop at the petrol pump right? But now looks carefully. There is a Tata Nano on temporary registration plates preceded by an Indigo (again on temp plates).

So? You ask. They could be just two dealer vehicles fueling up and heading to the stockyard before the final delivery.

Wait! Don’t jump to conclusion. Look where the Tata Nano is fueling up. It is a diesel station. Yes! This is the Tata Nano diesel caught red handed. And the Tata Indigo with temp plates could be its convoy vehicle thus completing the scene.

While we have seen many Tata Nanos on temp plates portrayed as Tata Nano Diesel, this is the most concrete proof ever unraveled about the Nano Diesel. The mysterious Nano Diesel is one of the most hotly anticipated car in the Indian automotive scene. Speculations suggest that Tata Motors is targeting a fuel economy of 40 kmpl. For our international audience that’s 94 mpg!

Tata is modifying the front and rear bumpers, an intercooler or radiator could be mounted up front. Our spotted adds that the tail pipe emerges from the right hand side of the rear fascia, as opposed to the central position on the petrol model. This is not clear from the photographs, but it is only a matter of time before a clear picture emerges.

Speculations also suggest that the Nano’s diesel engine will be a unique two-cylinder, 700-800 cc mill and that the diesel variants will be 20-30% more expensive than the Nano petrol. If all goes as plan, the Tata Nano will be the most fuel efficient production vehicle in India! It will run using a CRDI (DICOR in Tata’s dictionary) engine and could employ the world’s smallest turbocharger.

The Nano has been consistently put down by its arch rival Maruti Suzuki Alto in terms of sales figures. But the Nano Diesel is a whole new game now, isn’t it?

Will the Nano diesel finally make a dent on Alto’s sales?

Tata Nano diesel Image Slideshow

Can’t see the slideshow above? Head over to the Tata Nano Diesel Flickr Gallery page for images.

Shown above is a mirrored image of the RHD Nano and is only for the purpose of illustration

Currently, the Tata Nano is on sale mostly in the Indian sub continent. The countries include India, Sri Lanka and Nepal which are all Right Hand Drive markets. As a result there was no need to develop a LHD version of the Nano so far.

However, going forward, Tata Motors wants to tap into parts of Africa, South America and South-East Asia in this fiscal. Most markets in these region are LHD. As a result, the automaker has started work on the Tata Nano LHD.

The export markets are very critical for Tata Motors as it expects to utilize full capacity at the 2.5 lakh units a year Sanand plant. The Sanand plant is currently producing not more than 10,000 units per month which is just a fraction of the full capacity. The company expects that by the middle of this fiscal, it will utilize the full capacity at Sanand.

To further boost volumes, Tata Motors is reportedly developing a diesel variant of the Nano and a petrol variant with a bigger engine.

[Source: TheHinduBusinessline.com]

Java Motors from Indonesia have registered the Tata Nano LX with the Ministry of Industry in Indonesia as a 4×2 passenger vehicle with a 624cc engine for testing purposes.

This means that Java Motors would start testing the Nano on the Indonesian streets to make suitable adjustments.

The Nano would be launched through the CBU route as Tata motors currently cannot judge the scale of demand. However, if things go well, the automaker is planning a dedicated assembly line in Indonesia for the Nano.

The Nano that heads to Indonesia is a 2012 updated model which has been thoroughly refined by Tata Motors. The company has worked on the performance, ride quality, mileage and high speed stability of the Nano to make sure that it is well accepted in the market.

[Source: us.otomotif.vivanews.com]

Mr Tata had tweeted on March 10 that the diesel engine and power steering feature are on part of the future plans for Nano.

Tata has dispatched 10,475 units of the Nano to its dealers in India. Tata Motors had showcased the Nano CNG and a concept version of the Nano with front disc brakes, chrome pack and relaid interiors. Tata should not let the third anniversary pass like another day. A couple of special edition models could get more people talking about the car.

In today’s Bumper To Bumper video, this is my discussion. I’ve provided a couple of ideas, and I’d love to know your thoughts on this topic.

However the easily affordable Nano didn’t benefit Tata Motors with anything other than bringing worldwide publicity. Mr. Tata described it as an “opportunity wasted”.

But all of that did not discourage the company. The company now rides on bigger ambitions for the Nano. Introducing new variants in the car including a diesel and electric model is in the plan. The company is also planning to upgrade the engine to a more powerful unit than the current 624cc one. Tata Motors showed the CNG-fired Nano as a concept at the Delhi Auto Expo two months back.

The company manages to sell about 9,000 units of the Nano every month, which is much below the Sanand plant’s production capacity. So, the company will be working on uplifting its image from being a poor man’s car to an affordable small car. The introduction of new vibrant colors like Rouge Red, Champagne Gold, Papaya Orange, Aqua Blue and Mojito Green is a step in the right direction to lure the young generation into buying this car.

[Source - EconomicTimes.IndiaTimes.com]

Yet again, the Tata Nano is making news as the engineers and researchers in Pune, Lucknow and Jamshedpur are working on making some car parts out of the non-inflammable and non-toxic yet biodegradable cornstarch.

We think, it’s the Poly lactic Acid (PLA) plastic, which is made out of the extractions of cornstarch and is very durable, stretchable and can withstand the tremendous pressure occurring in the event of a crash.

Every manufacturer are looking out for alternative sources for material, which can make their products more efficient, lighter and eco-friendly though recyclability. Material sciences teams are pushing the barriers to make cars weigh less yet achieve the same marks in crash tests. Tata could be the first ones to use the cornstarch technology but there’s no word from any official about the technology being patented by the company.

[Source - BSMotoring.com]