Indian Autos blog

Autoincar and Bloomberg have reported that the Renault-Nissan alliance is working on bringing out a low-cost SUV on the V-platform by 2013, which will take on the role of the Juke’s younger brother. Remember that the Juke itself is the Qashqai’s younger sibling.

The Nissan V-Platform will be worked on for the next few years to yield a sedan and MPV, apart from the hatchback (Micra) which hits showrooms next month.

The platform is designed in such a way that it can host engines up to the size of 1.5-liters. If the SUV comes out in the next three years, it will be the fourth derivative of the V-Platform.

Didn’t we talk about the rush of mini SUVs awaiting us in the coming years a few days ago? The signals are only getting stronger by the day.

Toyota’s small car -

Indeed this is big news. It will be the first time a company in India is launching cars under a sub-brand.

Toyota has not introduced many cars in India. Look at their international line-up. It has so many cars that if you ask one of Toyota’s own engineers, they would not know how many they made.

Speaking to the humble man who heads Toyota in India, Mr.Nakagawa was finding my questions a little humorous at the new Camry’s launch in Bangalore exactly a month ago. I asked him questions like whether or not the iQ was on the Indian platter and if the Hilux (based on the Innova’s architecture) would reach here. I even asked him if the Aygo, Yaris and the Prius could make sense in India, since I felt those cars were cool (no, I don’t know what market survey is and yes, I do know they can always go wrong).

Toyota was sure their future small car could do a great deal of damage to their competitors’ bottom line. They were not willing to share details except that it would not look very unique and only a petrol engine would be fitted initially.

Now, BS Motoring reports more than one small car donning the Daihatsu badge would arrive in India. The big question here is if the new small car could also be among the Daihatsu arsenal.

Dato Akira Okabe, senior managing director and member of the Toyota Motor Corporation board -

We may look at launching more than one compact car model for the (Indian) domestic market. Our current market share in passenger vehicles is 3 per cent. In the next four years, we hope to sell three times our current volumes. And by 2015, our rate of growth will be in double digits.

Toyota’s entry-level SUV plans -

The recently launched Fortuner is priced at 18.75 lakh and the company is looking at bringing in a SUV that will be priced well under 15 lakh. This will mostly be an option for those looking for more fun, quality and character in the Safari-Scorpio segment. The next generation Safari and Scorpio are getting ready to see the light mostly by the end of next year and improvements in quality and technology could make it a little bit more difficult for the Toyota SUV to exercise dominance right from the start.

Earlier in 2007, Fiat’s outgoing CEO Luca De Meo revealed two very important future models at an investor conference. One was B-Compact Fiat Uno, while the other was called CX-OVER (shown in the picture).

Fiat is said to have started working on the CX-Over (crossover) that will be bigger than Fiat Panda 4×4 and will pack the functionality of an MPV (as quoted by Fiat in the title). The car will measure about 4.5 meters in length, meant to be easy to use in the city and perform as a good offroader.

Nissan plans to a give a much needed facelift to its ageing X-Trail SUV which is likely to be launched by Mid-2009. The new X-Trail promises to be more powerful and fresh with new interiors and exteriors compared to the existing version.

Japanese car manufacturer, Toyota has revealed its plans to bring the iconic Landcrusier (showcased earlier at AutoMall Delhi ’09 this month) to the Indian Market. A Senior Toyota official said that they will be launching the Landcrusier soon this year.

The German luxury car giant, BMW entered the Indian market in the year 2007 and in its second year it sold 2,908 units of its cars which wasn’t too far away from the direct competitor, Mercedes Benz which sold 3,625 cars in the same year with a 12 year experience in the Indian car market.

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.

Women and SUVs don’t mix, but if they do, boy! are we in for some great action! This is the most exciting or say the funniest event that happens to an SUV on two wheels!