Ford to Introduce a New Car in India Every 12-18 months

While Ford Figo is to reach Indian roads next week, the carmaker Ford is all geared up to give a tough competition to other carmakers in the compact car segment. Ford India has announced its plans to introduce a new car in the Indian auto market after every 12 to 18 months.

Speaking to a Business Line, President and Managing Director of Ford India Pvt Ltd., Mr Michael Boneham said, "Nearly 70 per cent of all cars sold in the country is in the small car segment. For us the majority of new launches will be in that segment across the next four to five years. What we are planning to do here is launch a new car every 12 to 18 months."

At present, the automaker is preparing to launch its hatchback - Ford Figo in small car segment. This most awaited model will be competing with small cars from the Hyundai Motor India, Maruti Suzuki and Tata Motors. With Figo is to be launched in the first week of February, the automaker is moving actively to create a better market on the Indian car industry. Meanwhile, seeing the strategy of Ford India in launching vehicles, it seems Ford car lovers will have to wait for another 12 to 18 months for another small car from Ford.

Tata Motors Board Meeting on January 29

A meeting of the Board of Directors of Tata Motors Limited will be held on Friday, January 29, 2010, to consider, inter alia, the Audited Results (Standalone) for the third quarter ended December 31, 2009 of the Accounting Year 2009-2010, pursuant to Clause 41 of the Listing Agreement.

Nine from Nissan

Nine vehicles one after the other. Nissan Motors is ready to sweep all other automakers in India off their feet. The Japanese automaker has plans to launch a total of 9 vehicles in India in the next two years. The 9 vehicles from Nissan include 4 CBU imported vehicles and the rest 5 would be made in India.

Nissan India has already made its way on the Indian roads with three cars that include - the recently launched Nissan 370Z, Teana sedan and X Trail that is a sports utility vehicle. These three cars have been Japanese imports in India.


The automaker has clearly stated that it will be manufacturing 5 cars in India. The first output from the company's Chennai plant will be a hatchback followed by a sedan version of the same model.

Now with 3 vehicles already in the Indian market and 6 more to come soon, its gonna be a almost like a win-win situation of Nissan Motors. We wish Nissan Motors All the very Best!!

Now IKON has a variant - Ford Ikon Plus

Are you one of those who wanted Ford Ikon in both diesel and petrol options? Then, your wish is granted. Ford India has introduced a new variant of Ford Ikon in the name of Ikon Plus. Synonymous to its name, the car is definitely a plus plus. New Ford Ikon comes with following features:

• 13 inch alloys
• Rear spoiler
• Side mouldings
• Chrome exhaust tip
• Leather vinyl seats
• IPod-compatible MP3 player
• Remote keyless entry

Ford Ikon Plus is available in both diesel and petrol variants. This latest launch from Ford india will be available at Rs 5.17-5.77 lakh (ex-showroom New Delhi).

Nissan Micra to be Launched in July 2010

The red carpet has been set for the global city car. After the seductive luxury sedan - Nissan 370Z, another Nissan product is ready to enter Indian auto market. This global city car is Nissan Micra. Nissan Micra will be launched in the month of July this year (read 2010).

The Japanese carmaker Nissan announced about the car launch yesterday that is 21st January, 2010. The production unit for Nissan opens up in the month of March and the actual production of the cars will begin in the month of May, 2010.

With this upcoming launch in the month of July, 2010, Nissan India plans to put up Nissan Micra as a mass production vehicle. The price and features of this most awaited launch is however not know, but the automaker claims it to be a competitively priced. Now, it is for us to see that how many lakhs will this global city car cost us?

Mercedes Benz E250 Launched in India

You must have seen and read about a number of new launches at the Mercedes pavilion at the Auto Expo this year. After some really charismatic cars, Mercedes benz has again launched a world class vehicle in India. At a launch ceremony in Mumbai, the Managing Director and CEO, Mercedes Benz India - Dr. Wilfried Aulbur launched Mercedes Benz E250 V6 and the E250 CDI Blue Efficiency.

Here are some of images of the recently launched Mercedes Benz E250

It's Mahindra This Time – Automaker Increases Rates of Vehicles

Third in a row. It's Mahindra this time to join the list of automakers who have increased the rates of their models in the new year. Stating rise in the rates of the raw materials as the major reason for the hike in car prices, Mahindra has made some minor changes in the rates of some of its models. Here are some of the car models whose rates have been hiked.

Models with the Announced Hike in Prices

• Scorpio - Rs. 6,400-9,300/-
• Xylo - Rs. 4,600/-
• Bolero - Rs. 4,800/-

Tata Motors follows the footsteps of Maruti Suzuki

In the last post, we told you about the price hike of all Maruti models. Now Tata Motors is the next automaker to do almost the same. Tata Motors has also announced increase in the price of some of its popular models. At present, its just the Tata Indica and Tata Indigo for which the prices have been raised. The increase is almost between Rs. 5000 to 8000.

Revised Prices of Maruti Suzuki Models

Effective 16th January, 2010, Maruti Suzuki has increased prices of all its car models. India's biggest and most favourite automaker, Maruti Suzuki has increased the prices that varies from 0.17 percent to 1.47 percent. Ask Maruti the reason for this rise and they have a valid answer to justify this plunge in car rates. The reason is - to recover the increase in the input costs arousing out of raw material costs over the past year.

Ex-Showroom Prices in Delhi (in Rs)
Model	New	Old	Increase	Change %
M800 Std	191646	191146	500	0.26
M800 Std Ac	213062	212562	500	0.24
Alto Std	231585	231085	500	0.22
Alto Lx	265262	264762	500	0.19
Alto Lxi	283878	283378	500	0.18
Omni Cargo LPG	194725	192725	2000	1.04
Omni Cargo	213706	213206	500	0.23
Omni (Eight Seater)	221268	220768	500	0.23
Omni LPG	230388	227388	3000	1.32
Esteem Lx	445968	444968	1000	0.22
Esteem Lxi	476223	475223	1000	0.21
Esteem Vxi	511520	510520	1000	0.20
Baleno Lxi	576173	575173	1000	0.17
Versa Dx	433575	432575	1000	0.23
Versa Dx2	471779	470779	1000	0.21
Versa Std	360182	359182	1000	0.28
WagonR Lx LPG	345106	340106	5000	1.47
WagonR Lxi LPG	373160	368160	5000	1.36

However, there is no increase in the prices of Swift, Zen, Baleno (Vxi) and WagonR (Petrol).

BMW in India only around 24 Lakhs

Be honest and tell me. Didn't you ever dream of owning a BMW? Now, your dream can come true easily. BMW India brings its cheapest BMW at Rs. 24 lakhs. BMW X1 is now the cheapest car from the automaker in Indian market. BMW X1 is being imported as CKD and the assembling would be done at the automaker's Chennai facility.

This cheapest car from BMW has a 2.0 liter diesel powerplant. As far as the higher variants of BMW X1 is concerned, these variants will have more power and 4 wheel drive. Though according to sources, the new BMW X1 in India is expected to cost around 24 lakhs, but auto experts believe that the car's on-road price with insurance and other charges might touch around 30 lakhs. Now from 24 lakhs to 30 lakhs.... that is definitely too much. But, one thing is for sure that for all Indians owning a BMW is now no more a difficult task.

Bringing Down the Curtain on the Weeklong Auto Expo

Today the grand finale of the week long Auto exhibition is studded with film stars and other powerful dignitaries, also accompanied by various symposiums and seminars. All around music, light, crowd and colors are the theme of Auto Expo's finale, the show looks great and the show looks great, has conquered the heart and soul of car lovers. The Auto show started with a bang and ended with the spectacular success and leaving an indelible impression on people.

Shouts of Eco Echo Through Auto Expo

It's the age of eco-friendly vehicles. The impact of the global warming has also appeared in Auto Expo, pushing the automobile companies to produce the cars which are environmentally friendly.

Bollywood Megastar Shah Rukh Khan got down to ongoing Auto Expo to kick off the new electric version of Hyundai's i10, presented by the Korean auto giant. The Hyundai i10 Electric is an emission free car that will go on sale on the company's home market in the second half of 2010.



The i10 Electric will be powered by a 49kW (66.6 PS) electric motor under the hood and driving its front wheels. The exhibition of the i10 Electric reasserts Hyundai's commitment to develop environment friendly cars in the global market.



Another Giant of automobile- Maruti Suzuki displayed a small multi-purpose concept vehicle 'rIII' at the Auto Expo, claiming it will fulfill the need of Indian consumers. On the other hand Honda unveiled small car concept, for now known simply as the Honda 'New Small'. The car is slated for a 2011 release in India and Thailand.The design of the car looks utterly new, with extensive use of LED lights an the overall shape of the car is from a new school of design altogether.

All Roads of Automobile World Leading to Auto Expo:

Great pleasure to affirm that Indian Auto Expo rolled out the red carpet for more than 2000 preeminent global car makers from twenty-nine countries, including India, Germany, the United States, Korea, Russia, and Japan. As global automakers geared up for bolstering their presence in the prospering Indian market, they will turn the country into a stage for novel experiments in abating production costs.

Vintage 225 Front Roadster of Audi sports a bewitching look in a shade of ivory to allure all and one and its beauty and design speaks volumes about its majesty. Vintage is really a new generation car, embodying a five-doors. It is all there in the Sport back concept that lets your eyes feast on the future of the automobile.

German luxury car maker BMW also girded up its loins to exceed the commitment by making more investment in the BMW plant in Indian state Chennai and BMW Financial Services. BMW India President Peter Kronschnabl announced that MMW X1 would be launched in late 2010 at the Chennai facility in addition to Having launched BMW Gran Turismo, BMW X6M and BMW 760Li at Auto Expo.

Ravishing Carnival of Auto Expo, Touching the Classic Class!

Indian Auto Expo happened to be sacrosanct for home and abroad car makers, lining up their stylish and swanky gas-guzzlers and electric drainers to display. Auto giants are leaving no stone unturned to hold the lion's share of the burgeoning Indian market. Ongoing Auto Expo has seen a constellation of celebrities who attached the wow factors to the show.

The Auto Expo 2010 has drawn over 10,000 visitors involved in the auto industry since its opening in New Delhi on Tuesday. India has replaced Tokyo and Detroit as the venues for the world’s largest motor shows.

Hyundai at the Auto Expo 2010

Here are some pictures of opening ceremony of Hyundai Motors at this Auto Expo at Pragati Maidan, New Delhi.

Auto Expo 2010 is Here !!

2010 has come with a lot of good news for the Indian auto industry. Automakers have announced heavy growth in the last year and have recorded a surge in their car sales statistics. And now we have the Auto Expo 2010. The expo has begun with bang. From The 10th Auto Expo that begun on 5th January, 2010 will end on the 11th January, 2010.