The race at Shanghai last weekend could have had delightful consequences, but wasn’t to be. All Force India has to do now is hope for the best with a set of new changes including an interim diffuser at this weekend’s Bahrain GP.
Both the VJM02 cars will host a new floor and an interim diffuser. The Force India cars will also carry new auxiliary wings on the front wing and reprofiled sidepods to fit the modified rear end.
Dr Vijay Mallya, chairman and team principal-
“I think the team’s performance in China was very encouraging. We functioned well as a unit, made the correct calls from the pit wall and showed again that when the conditions allow we can be competitive. Both Adrian and Giancarlo drove phenomenal races and really did the team proud. We know we still have work to do and putting in these performances in every race is still a distant goal, but I feel confident there are good foundations now. It’s a boost for everyone not to lose hope as we can still surprise.”
“As usual, we know points are going to be very difficult to achieve and we should not set this as a goal for Bahrain. Yes, Adrian had a very strong race in China and very nearly achieved our ultimate goal far earlier than anyone could have expected, but we should not look on the Chinese Grand Prix as indicative of our general form. Instead, we need to focus once more on reliability and consistency and look to be there if circumstances allow.”
Car manufacturers in India are reeling in the wake of the economic crisis, but none of them intend to give it up anytime soon. Every car maker has its own strategy to deal with poor sales numbers which according to Auto experts continue till the end of this year for many.
Car makers know one thing- You can excite customers and bring them to showrooms only if you have something new to boast of. Listed here are nine glitzy cars that promise to draw the map to car dealerships for customers in India.
While the buzz has started to create ahead of the launch of 2009 Tata Indigo, IAB has always been the first to get you the latest happenings about the Tata Indigo right from the spy shots to the engine spec and design.
What we’ve got here, we believe, no one else has. Ritesh Madhok, a talented photographer has sent Indian Autos Blog a handful of pictures from the Award function which was conducted in Mumbai, same day last week.
The Mercedes Benz Golf Awards was a glamorous event which included a display of AMG cars and India’s well known models walking the ramp. The S65 AMG and the SL63 AMG were parked at the function.
Toyota has launched a refreshed Innova with new colors, exteriors, climate control, steering mounted audio controls and an in-dash CD changer. The mechanicals remain the same and this is a frantic attempt by the company to woo its customers and take some attention away from the new kid on the MPV block- The Mahindra XYLO.
The facelifted Mahindra Scorpio has been photographed without any camouflage. The changes are purely cosmetic and the biggest change and a surprising move is the 2.6 CRDe engine will be no longer produced and the mHawk engine will be the lone motor across the Scorpio’s range. The SUV should be launched within a few months time.
The Tata Indicruz based on the Indica Vista platform will go on sale hopefully by the end of this year in India. It has been spotted testing for well over a year now. Tata has driven thousands of miles in many continents on their latest cars- both the Indica Vista and the Indicruz, to analyze and understand their cars better, much before their entry into the market. Another derivative of the Indica Vista, the Indigo sedan we are told, will arrive at dealer showrooms by the end of June 2009.
We really didn’t bother talking much about the refreshed Innova on Indian Autos Blog as we felt it was unnecessary to give front row importance to a car with new bumpers and wheels. The Innova is the most comfortable car in India, we agree, but the new Innova is the least exciting we must say.
The refreshed Toyota Innova gets a new grille, bumpers, wheels and slightly different interiors. The car is already on sale in markets such as Indonesia and the engine and gearbox remain same. Dual A.C vents debut on this model and so does the suspension (shock absorbers have changed), for the improvement of ride quality.
Only after the launch later tomorrow, will we know of any India-specific changes. The seat fabric is likely to be changed, and probably more colors will be offered.
