Indian Autos blog

A report on India Today has provided some important details on production version of the Bajaj Lite/ULC, a passenger vehicle that will be unveiled before the Auto Expo. In media interviews, Bajaj officials have stated that their vehicle is not a car though the flexible platform allow it to be dressed as a car.

Development of the four-wheeler is complete. It is powered by a 800cc petrol engine (Nano is powered by a 624cc two-cylinder mill) capable of returning close to 30kpl. The report states it will be more spacious than the Nano.

The Tata Magic Iris and the Piaggio NT3 concept are good examples of low-cost four-wheelers

The ULC is similar to the Volkswagen Up! – its a platform to spawn a family of vehicles. The ULC’s foundation can be used to roll out a set of commercial vehicles. Even the next generation Bajaj RE Auto Rickshaw three-wheeler could be bodied on the flexible ULC platform.

Renault and Nissan have shied away from questions on the future of the Bajaj-Nissan-Renault partnership. The ULC does not feature on the Renault’s list of five cars by late 2012. The initial agreement was that Bajaj will handle the design and manufacturing, and Renault/Nissan would market it.

BMW officially introduces the MINI brand in India on the 5th of January at Delhi Auto Expo 2012. The three models that are going to be launched MINI, MINI Convertible and MINI Countryman will be on view at the ‘MINI pavilion.’

At the BMW stand models continue to tumble with the launch of the M5, unveiling of the BMW Vision ConnectedDrive concept study the presentation of the limited-edition BMW Individual 7 Series Composition inspired by piano manufacturer Steinway & Sons.

The newly launched 6 Series Coupe and full model range will be in attendance.

If you thought that an Indian consumer is strapped for choices when it comes to budget SUVs, well you are correct (as of now). However, the 2012 Delhi Auto Expo will rectify the imbalance as one will be inundated with SUV launches that will perfectly fit your budget.

One of the significant vehicles is definitely the 2012 Ford Ecosport SUV. It is even more significant when you know that this little SUV is a global product being showcased in India for the very first time.

But don’t get your expectations high because the model is still months away from the market. In fact, Ford is still testing the platform to make sure that it has the right ingredients in the underpinnings. Our friends at Noticias Automotivas, caught a test mule in the Fiesta’s attire. Considering, the Ecosport will also make it to other BRIC nations, Ford Brazil has been entrusted the responsibility of developing the SUV.

As the countdown to Auto Expo starts ticking days away, juicy test mules get snapped doing their final testing round. Thanks to our pals at MotorBeam.com, we finally get to see the first images of Duster undergoing tests rounds in Chennai, India. The Duster is a hotly anticipated SUV for the Indian market but was rarely caught on camera.

Renault India is betting big on the success of the Duster because its first two products Fluence and Koleos did not manage to bring significant numbers. The Duster, on the other hand, was an SUV developed for the developing Eastern European countries making it is a perfect product for similarly characterized Indian market.

Read everything about the new Renault Duster for the Indian market

The Renault Duster will be available with the 1.5-liter dCI motor in India capable of delivering a magnificent ARAI fuel economy of 20+ kmpl as it does on the Micra and Sunny. It is expected to deliver a healthy 85bhp of power.

However, don’t think that the Duster will have the entire market to its own. Ford is also prepping up the EcoSport SUV to battle it out against the Duster. Just yesterday, Maruti Suzuki gave us a glimpse of their future SUV plan. A range of MUVs and MPVs from various auto companies will also compete for a share of the same pie.

What pricing strategy should Renault India follow for the Duster?

If you want to make an average Indian two-lane road look quite insufficient, you need to get yourself a Land Cruiser. This thing MASSIVE to drive and to be in. Driving a Land Cruiser almost feels like your invading the by-streets in an army tank. Anyways, Toyota has given a small facelift to the 2012 Land Cruiser and here are the updates:

IndianAutosBlog readers have seen this one coming as we uploaded brochure scans very recently.

Exteriors changes on 2012 Toyota Land Cruiser:

• A boxier front bumper with new fog lamps
• Redesigned headlamps with integrated LED strips (LEDs are the norms these days)
• A revamped front grille with chrome slats.
• OVRMs with turn signals
• Redesigned tail lamps
• New alloy wheel design in 18 and 20 inch size options

click through for more

We couldn’t find a more fitting title for this video!

Watch how Polish driver Paul Dytko is preparing to tackle the next European Hill-Climb Champion season. Dytko’s special Polo makes 400hp and for maximum traction, it is equipped with 4WD and can reach 100kph from a standstill in four seconds!

If you thought the Polo 1.6 was scary around the bends, this video is a must-watch.

In the build up to the Delhi Auto Expo, Maruti Suzuki announced that it will showcase a concept SUV, along the lines of the EcoSport or Duster at the Auto show. To heighten the anticipation, tightly cropped pictures of the Concept’s design features are displayed on the Expo section of the Maruti website.

Up front, the Concept sports individual rectangular grilles stacked together along with robot-eyed lamps. Teaser images of its Star-shaped alloys and L-Shaped tail lights are also part of the flash slideshow.

The SUV could act as the successor to the famous Jimny/Gypsy as the grille is reminiscent of the current model. Besides Gypsy/Jimny, there are no compact SUVs in its range. Leveraging on the Gypsy’s reliability and cult status is the best possible move Maruti can make with the production version. We guess the product will be ready by Auto Expo 2014.

Maruti could use Swift parts to manufacture the vehicle. The Ertiga MPV on view at the Expo follows the same route. The cost benefits and shortened development time through component sharing is the most competent trick in the book. For instance Volkswagen group will save billions of dollars in development cost by using a common parts bin for almost 40 of its models in the next seven years.

Reports of the Suzuki A-Star’s local foray is flowing thick and fast on media channels in Indonesia. The A-Segment hatchback, manufactured in Manesar, is expected to give company to the Estilo Karimun next year. It will be fitted with the same 1L, 3cyl K Series petrol mill. Two variants, ZXi and VXi, supposedly compose the Indonesian range of what the rest of the world knows as “Alto.”

India is the sole manufacturing location for the Suzuki A-Star. It is exported to countries in Asia, Europe and UK.