As we reckoned earlier, the Force Motors' attempt at taking a shot at the luxury MPV segment will indeed be the courtesy of Mercedes-Benz Viano.
From the spy shots of Indiancarsbikes.in's reader 'Earthfusion', it's clear that the Viano MPV will be rebadged by Force Motors. The heavily disguised test mule was seen testing near Force Motors' factory at Chinchwad, Pune.
The Viano based MPV is Force Motors' second attempt at the high-end passenger car segment while the Force One, another Mercedes based vehicle, marked the company's foray into the segment. Force Motors' association with Mercedes is not limited to manufacturing cars under license alone, the Pune based automaker also builds engines for Mercedes-Benz cars.
The Mercedes Viano is being offered in some international markets as a 7 or 8 seater. The MPV was facelifted in 2010 but we expect Force Motors' version to be based on an older car with restyled front and rear fascia.
The Force MPV will be positioned in the vicinity of the Toyota Innova and Tata Aria and is expected to come with all the features that are expected by customers in that segment.
The MPV is most likely to be equipped with the same Daimler sourced 2.2 litre diesel engine and 5-speed manual gearbox used by the Force One SUV. At 140 bhp, the Force MPV matches the power output of Tata Aria which is the most powerful vehicle in its class.
The Force MPV will be relying on its space and its Mercedes roots to lure the potential customers but Force Motors need to widen its dealership network if they have to get footfalls, inquiries or customers.
[Source: Indiancarsbikes.in]
