Indian Autos blog

Ssangyong has started retailing a special edition Korando LE in the UK market. It stands apart from the usual variants through 18 inch bespoke alloy wheels, rear spoiler and privacy glass.

Interior additions such as heated front seats, leather trimmed steering wheel and gear lever, parking sensors and cruise control beef up not just looks alone but also value.

Three colors the Mahindra-owned Korean auto maker offer on the limited edition model are White, Red and Black. Power is derived from a 2L turbodiesel mill producing a peak power 173bhp and 360Nm of peak torque.

Fiat has started working on the facelift for the Linea in Europe and the first spyshots were posted here on IAB yesterday. Fiat India introduced MY2012 Linea last month with no cosmetic changes that continues as the mainstay model for the rest of 2012. In 2013, there’s a good chance of seeing the new Linea in India.

The new Linea is reportedly gearing up for a premiere at one of the big auto shows in Europe (Geneva, Paris, Frankfurt) this year and by the year-end to grace showrooms.

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Shanghai-VW has cloned the latest generation Passat, made it smaller and is introducing it as the Volkswagen Lavida in the Chinese market. Everything from the car’s daylight opening, tail light, kink on the C-Pillar to the car’s headlights are similar to the Passat (NMS). Volkswagen has many tie-ups with local Chinese auto makers but the latest Lavida’s development used very few inputs from Wolfsburg.

Ford has presented the B-Max five-seat MPV on the internet. The public will see it in flesh for the first time at next month’s Geneva Motor Show. The B-Max is the MPV counterpart of the EcoSport SUV. It will make it to India by mid-decade with a longer wheelbase. The bodywork, front-end and rear are likely to stay similar on the extended wheelbase version.

Renault is finalizing last minute details on the fourth generation B-Segment Clio as it gets ready to present the vehicle in October’s Paris Motor Show. The new Clio will be the most stylish of generations as Renault is trying to connect emotionally with its would-be buyers. A 900cc, turbocharged three-cylinder petrol engine is said to be the driving force on the Clio 4. Isn’t that engine ideal for the Indian market as Nissan could also benefit from it?

Mahindra exhibited the Rexton at the Delhi Auto Expo and we weren’t the only ones who felt the need for a redesign. The Rexton joining hands with the Korando will sit above the XUV500. Mahindra has announced that the Rexton’s launch will be conducted by November 2012.

Examining its ecosystem, the competition is very stiff and unforgiving. As many of the Rexton’s rivals are either CBU or CKD models, they the latest in terms of design, technology and features.

Mahindra testing the Rexton with no camouflage in India is not news. Ssangyong testing the facelift of the Rexton since late last year in Korea is again not hot news for Indian Autos Blog reader.

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There was a huge buzz for the Renault’s first small car. After all, it will be the company’s first mass market product for the Indian masses. There were many rumors floating in the market and a lot of car names were thrown around (Modus, Clio, Twingo, Sandero which we revealed were not true much before the launch).

Renault India finally showcased its Pulse during the Indian GP in Delhi. When we saw the Pulse, we immediately realized that the Pulse was just a re-badged Nissan Micra.

However, Renault waited till the Indian Auto Expo to launch the product.

Fiat India’s CEO Rajeev Kapoor told IndianAutosBlog.com four weeks back that the company will work on facelifts of its current range, without putting a date on it. He categorically stated that 2012 will be reserved exclusively for the MY2012 Punto and Linea to penetrate the market.

Fiat is working on a new retail strategy, which once in place, can leave the product planning team to get creative. Through stand-alone dealer outlets (setup by Tata Motors dealers across 20 cities), Fiat can sell products without any distraction or cannibalization.

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BMW has always been known for create segments that no one would have ever dreamed off. Can you imagine the look on the designer’s face when BMW CEO walked in to the boardroom and said “Right chaps, we will make an SUV which will look like a Coupe”. Even the world automotive press questioned the need of a Coupe-crossover. But BMW was right and that showed in the sales figures of the X6.

The Bavarian giant is again tripping on creativity and plans to introduce a smaller X6. BMW plans to bring the X4 in the market which will challenge the Range Rover Evoque, Porche Cajun et al. AutoExpress gives us a glimpse of what this future model would look like:

The design of the X4 is clearly a cross between the X3 and the new 1 Series. It has a much sharper coupe-like roofline than the big brother X6. It is expected to be powered by the same engine options as the X3 mated to six-speed manual or eight-speed auto gearboxes.

Expect the BMW X4 to enter production by 2014.

Here at IAB, we generally focus at the outcome rather than the components. However, something very interesting was unveiled yesterday that will change the way one of the biggest manufacturer in the world makes its cars.

Yes, we are talking about the MQB platform from VW which will underpin pretty much everything the VW group has to offer.

The MQB or Modular Transverse Matrix platform will unify all the products that fall under the VW group. The platform is so important for VW that they call it – “the backbone of light and safe cars.” It is an extremely flexible platform that can be stretched, or shortened to fit anything from a Golf to a Passat.

The biggest advantage of this platform is the uniform position of all motors (diesels, plug-in hybrids, electrics, gas engines) and transmissions. This will provide an unbelievable efficiency and flexibility to the VW group. Also, the company can now manufacturer VW, Skoda, Seat and Audi models on the same assembly line thus gaining massive economies of scale.

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