Renault-Nissan and Bajaj join hands for low-cost car

Bajaj Auto and the Renault-Nissan alliance on Monday announced that they will form a joint-venture company to develop, produce and market the car, code-named ULC (ultra-low cost)with wholesale price ranging from $2500. The new JV company will be 50% owned by Bajaj Auto, 25% by Renault and 25% by Nissan. Targeting the growing Indian new vehicle market, the ULC will be made at an all-new plant to be constructed in Chakan (Maharashtra) in India. Initial planned capacity will be 400,000 units per year. Sales will start in early 2011 in India, as a primary market, with growth potential in other emerging markets around the world. The feasibility has already extended into joint product evelopment and the project is on line to meet targeted performance & cost, company officials said. The company would initially invest Rs 1,000 cr in the venture. Renault and Bajaj will manufacture engines for the small car and LCV.

Desert Storm rally flagged off

The sixth edition of the Desert Storm rally was ceremoniously flagged off by Maruti's Chief General Manager RS Kalsi from Uppal's Orchid on Thursday.But this year, the grueling rally has something for everyone. Not only will the winners of all categories - PRO (for professionals 4wd & 2wd), NAV (for amateurs SUVs) and NAV (cars), get Rs one lakh purse, they will also get to rally for the first time ever at night.The night leg will be held near Bikaner. Rally enthusiasts will also get to traverse over sand dunes, another first, for the competitors.Last year winner Khushwant Randhawa and Sunny Siddhu will be among several favourites for the top honour. "I have missed out twice here in last two years, hopefully I can do it this time," Siddhu said before the flag off. Politician and socialite Nafisa Ali's brother, Niyaz Ali is also among the hopefuls. He is teaming up with Kim for the sole foreign entry in the competition.But interestingly the car that they had built for the rally - Suzuki's Grand Vitara - is stationed in Dubai, as it was lost in transit. They had to borrow Sarika Sehrawat's Gypsy, to participate. "Thanks to Sarika we are in the rally. She lent us her Gypsy," Kim said.The four-day carnival will be officially flagged off from Jaipur on Friday and will cover a distance of over 2200 kilo metres giving the drivers a lifetime opportunity to explore India.

Hyundai ‘Miles & Smiles’ Rally for Verna & i10 owners

A joy ride in your favourite car and an opportunity to win fabulous cash prizes at the same time - Hyundai Owners could not have asked for a more appropriate Sunday morning. The rally found humongous response amongst its i10 and Verna customers with as many as 75 Hyundai cars participating in the rally.

The Hyundai ‘ Miles & Smiles rally’ was organized by Hyundai Motor India for its valued Verna and i10 customers – to give them a chance to gauge the mileage of their car, learn the techniques of fuel efficient driving and also win prizes in the process. The event was co-sponsored by State Bank of India (SBI) and the associate sponsor was Indian Oil Corporation Limited.

The concept of the rally was to promote fuel efficient driving habits among its Verna and i10 customers. Fossil fuel is becoming expensive and a sparse commodity, consequently judicious use of the fuel is a must, if we are to conserve this resource. In this, driving habits make a big difference. It not only contributes to savings on the part of the owners but also saves precious resources.

Before the start of the rally participants were briefed on the techniques of fuel efficient driving and driving styles which will improve the fuel efficiency of their vehicle considerably. The idea was simple. All participants tanked up at the nearby filling stations and their tanks were sealed which ensured that they could not refuel during the course of the rally.

Their trip meter was made Zero and the Odometer reading noted down by the organisers. To ensure absolute transparency the tank was filled up in the presence of the participants, sealed and entries were made in the log book. After this, they were flagged off on the rally. On return, the same procedure was followed. The amount of fuel consumed was measured and the participant who used the least amount of fuel was declared the winner. The contest was held for owners of both the petrol and diesel variants of the Verna. The rally covered an approximate distance of 110 Km and culminated in scenic Khandala

The rally was flagged off from the Hotel Intercontinental at 9:30 am. Drivers in both Petrol and Diesel categories for the Verna and the petrol i10 who got the best mileage out of their cars were given cash prizes. The winners in each category got a cash prize of Rs 15,000. The first and second runners up in both categories also received cash prizes worth Rs. 8,000/- & Rs. 5,000/- each.

The afternoon was as exciting as the morning with plenty of fun, games and prizes galore. The Miles & Smiles Rally is a first Hyundai i10 Mileage Rally organised by Hyundai Motor India after its national launch of i10 in October last year.

Formula 1 : The begining

There was no ‘formula’ for motor racing during the years 1894, when the first ‘organised’ motor race took place from Paris to Rouen, until 1900. The then existing vehicles were simply raced. However, a differentiation was made between those cars on the basis of their method of propulsion (petrol or steam), and their number of seats.

During that time, cars always had at least two seats and it was not until the end of 1920 that single-seater cars were used for racing. The ‘invention’ of the rear-view mirror made an important contribution to this development, since one of the mechanic’s tasks in the 2-seaters was to warn the driver that someone was trying to overtake him!

The ‘FIA Formula-One’ World Championship was created early in 1950 and its first even was held on 13th May 1950 at ‘Silverstone’ Tracks in the U.K., which continues to be one of the most sought after ones even these days.

Wallpaper : Volvo S 80

Gallery : Volvo cars - India

Volvo Car Corporation, known for manufacturing some of the safest automobiles in the world began making cars in 1927 and has pioneered the field of car safety ever since then. Today they are a global corporation with sales companies in all major markets. Volvo cars are built on the principles of safety, quality and environmental care. Since 1999, Volvo have been owned by the Ford Motor Company. Under this new ownership structure they are part of the Premier Automotive Group, Ford's division for premium car brands, which includes Jaguar and Land Rover.


Volvo XC70:



Volvo S80:

Volvo S40:

Volvo C70:



Volvo C30:



Volvo V70:



Volvo V50:



Volvo XC90:

Gadgets for your car

Your car is your mobile castle these days--and so deserves to be appropriately outfitted with the latest gadgets. And there's no shortage of gear for doing that.

At the recent Consumer Electronics Show, equipment makers of all stripes were on hand to show off their latest and greatest for making your car into something far more than a mode of transportation. The newest global positioning satellite systems, for instance, let you talk your way to a destination without ever taking your hands off the wheel. Other gadgets aim to help you buff up your ride's status symbol. Still others cater directly to the kid-toting crowd.

Start with the fun stuff. Bazooka, Earthquake, Titanium Power and Magnadyne--these aren't exactly weapons but companies with sound systems that will make the ground shake and put a dent in your eardrums. We were overwhelmed by the JackHammer SuperWoofer from MTX Audio. There's nothing lightweight about this subwoofer. It weighs in at 369 pounds. It incorporates magnets powerful enough to wipe out the data on credit cards that come within 25 feet. This is the ultimate, "competitive" sound system.

Frequent nighttime drivers might appreciate the Flir PathFindIR thermal imaging camera, which can spot animals and pedestrians up to 2,000 feet away--much sooner than you can eyeball them. This is no toy system; military and police vehicles have tried out this technology. It's also priced accordingly.

You can get lost evaluating all the GPS systems available these days. Happily most are priced within the budget of typical consumers. At the recent Consumer Electronics Show, the Magellan Maestro Elite was the only on-board system that lets you use Google Local search to look up locations. Garmin's nuvi 880 features speech recognition so that you can talk to your direction system, rather than touching a screen to figure out where to go next.

Microsoft and Ford Motor have created Sync, an "in-car connectivity system" that first debuted last year but will become more widespread in 2008. The latest Sync is designed to generate vehicle diagnostic reports and automatically call 911 if an air bag goes off in an accident. And here's the cool part: Sync also lets motorists call up songs on their iPods and other MP3 players via voice commands. Ford plans to make Sync available in most of its high-end vehicles by the end of the year, but it can be purchased separately, too.

There are other ways to make gadgets work in your car even if they weren't exactly built that way. Add Scosche's BlueLife DIY Bluetooth Receiver into a car that isn't equipped with Bluetooth and your cell phone and music devices will get channeled through the car speakers.

Sirius and Ford together have developed a "Travel Link" navigation system, which the carmaker will roll out during 2008. The subscription service features an in-dash screen that provides live information about local gas prices, traffic conditions, sports scores and local movie listings. Included in the hardware for Travel Link, although technically separate from the service, is a 10-gigabyte voice-command "jukebox" that can hold up to 2,400 songs and display complete track information and album cover art thanks to technology provided by Gracenote.

Then there's Azentek's multimedia PC--the Atlas CPC-1200, designed explicitly for cars. It uses an Intel Core Duo processor and can do anything you need--run Microsoft Vista, play high-definition radio, run a GPS system.

If that seems too elaborate, there are ways to amuse your children in the car for a more modest price. Sirius Satellite Radio has launched an automotive satellite TV service. Only three channels so far--but they are the ones that most kids want to see: Nickelodeon, the Disney Channel and a special mobile edition of the Cartoon Network. It's available in some Chrysler models now, and more broadly available in the second quarter of this year.

Ford Fiesta's new Pace Petrol : New excitement on Indian roads

The New Year promises to be very exciting for Fiesta lovers as Ford India introduces the Fiesta Pace Petrol series for 2008, the new series line-up that will offer customers tremendous performance and driving dynamics on their cars, available in three variants – the 1.4 EXI, 1.6 ZXI and 1.6 SXI

The new series takes forward Ford’s assurance of launching fun to drive, high performance cars in India. The Petrol Pace series is fitted with Duratec engines which results in a superior combination of performance, drivability, refinement and fuel economy, with its exciting 'drive-by-wire technology’, delivering an ultimate balance between fuel economy and performance.

The Fiesta's Pace Petrol variants are available at an extremely competitive price range of Rs. 5.93 lakh, Rs. 6.20 lakh and Rs. 6.90 lakh. [Ex- showroom Delhi], for its 1.4EXI, 1.6ZXI and 1.6 SXI range respectively.

Scott McCormack, vice president, Marketing, Sales and Service, Ford India, said, ''Fiesta is class leading in terms of performance, handling and drive quality. In fact the 1.6 petrol Fiesta is the only car that goes from 0-100 in under 12 seconds, making it the fastest in the segment. Fiesta owners are people who take pride in their driving abilities and love enjoying new experiences that Fiesta helps them gain.''

In addition to the Pace Petrol series, in the new 2008 line up, customers can choose three Fiesta Duratorq (Diesel) variants, the 1.4 EXI being offered at Rs. 7.03 lakh, the 1.4 ZXI at Rs. 7.49 lakh and Rs. 8.09 lakh for the 1.4 SXI - all prices ex- showroom Delhi. The new top end SXI variants in both Petrol and Diesel offerings, now has a driver-side Air Bag and classy Turn Indicators on Outside Rearview Mirror [ORVM]. The SXIs also have ABS [Anti-Lock Braking System], making Ford Fiesta one of the few manufacturer's amongst the segment players offering ABS as a standard fitment.

The entry level Fiesta EXI [Pace Petrol and Diet Diesel], comes complete with standard features including power steering, power windows, tilt adjustable steering column, distance to empty trip computer, tachometer, door ajar indicator, central locking and two-tone interiors. In addition to superior feature enhancements in the new line-up, starting this month, Ford India has introduced free 2nd year factory warranty on its entire vehicle line-up, aimed at providing Ford customers greater satisfaction, safety, reliability and hence complete peace of mind on our product and service offerings.

Fiesta holds the Limca Book of record with impressive average of 22.43 km per litre in petrol and 31.48 km per litre in Diesel. Coupled with new offerings and some of the best in class features, the new range will surely reinforce Ford’s legacy of crafting cars that break new grounds.

News : Car manufacturers reduces prices of models

India's top car maker Maruti Suzuki Ltd Friday announced a reduction in prices of some of its models following Finance Minister P. Chidambaram's proposal to trim excise duty by four percent. The prices of all six models that qualify for the lower excise benefit - Maruti 800, Omni, Zen, WagonR, Swift Diesel and Alto - will be reduced. The price reduction ranges from Rs.6,500 for Maruti 800 to Rs.18,030 for Swift Diesel (ex-showroom Delhi), the company said in a statement Friday evening.

Tata Motors has reduced the prices of Indica and Indigo model by Rs 8,500-Rs 15,300. The price cut is a result of the 4 per cent excise duty cut announced by Finance Minister P Chidambaram on Friday. While the Indica will see a price cut ranging between Rs 8,500-RS 14,600, the Indigo compact sedan (CS) will witness a drop of Rs 12,700- Rs 15,300 across variants. The company has also cut prices of its commercial vehicle range, which includes trucks and buses, by 2 per cent.

Hyundai Motor India Ltd intends to cut the prices of its Santro by Rs.12,000 while its Getz and i10 would be cheaper by Rs.14,000 and Rs.12,000 respectively.

According to an official of General Motors, the company would reduce the prices of its Spark and Aveo U-VA models. The price reduction will be between Rs.7,500 and Rs.14,000.

Among the tyre manufacturers, JK Tyre and Industries Ltd has announced its intention to reduce the prices of its radial and bias tyres fitted on trucks, car and farm vehicles from March 1, 2008, onwards.

K.J. Rao, chief financial officer of Ceat Ltd, said the company would pass on the two percent reduction in excise duty to the customers.

Excise duty cut : Cars n Bikes going cheap !

If you are planning to buy a vehicle this year, rejoice. Two and three-wheelers, cars, buses as well as four-wheelers will are likely to set you back by less.

Cars could be cheaper by Rs. 7,000 to Rs. 19,000, depending on the model and its variants. Two-wheelers would be cheaper by Rs. 2,000 to Rs. 5,000, industry experts said.

Car market leader Maruti Suzuki India Limited said it has passed on the full benefit of excise duty reduction to customers. The company has announced price reduction in all six models that qualify for the lower excise benefit: Maruti 800, Omni, Zen, Wagon R, Swift Diesel and Alto.

Hyundai said the company has decided to pass on the benefit of the excise duty cut to customers on three models, Santro, i10 and the Getz with immediate effect.

We will be cutting the prices of our small cars between Rs 7,500 and Rs 14,000, General Motors India vice-president P Balendran said.

Finance Minister P. Chidambaram has proposed that the excise duty on small cars, two, three wheelers, buses and their chassis is brought down to 12 per cent from 16 per cent, while in case of hybrid cars the duty will be lowered to 14 per cent from the current 24 per cent.

Small car is defined as one with petrol engine capacity upto 1.2 litres and diesel engine upto 1.4 litres and 4 metres length.

Honda Siel Cars India senior general manager G. Sen expressed disappointment that the gap in excise duty between small cars and big cars has been further widened, but exuded confidence that the reduction in excise duty on hybrid cars would enable the company to import hybrid vehicles from the parent Japanese car company.

Hyundai Motors India Ltd. vice-president (marketing and sales) Arvind Saxena said the government decision to reduce excise duties was a welcome decision. The move will help the auto industry grow, specially the small cars segment which constitutes 78 per cent of the market, he said.

News : Honda Siel expects approval for Civic Hybrid soon

Mr T. Oyama, President & CEO, Asian Honda Motor Co, and Mr M. Takedagawa, President & CEO, Honda Siel Cars India (right), at Honda’s new production facility at Greater Noida on Monday.

Honda Siel Cars India on Monday said that it expects to receive homologation for its Civic Hybrid from the Automotive Research Association of India within the next 10 days.

The company also said that while it did not expect much volumes from the hybrid car, it was primarily to showcase its technological competitiveness.

“Even if we sell 300-500 units of Civic Hybrid, it is okay. Our purpose is to show the technology which has been present in other countries,” said Mr Masahiro Takedagawa, President and CEO, Honda Siel Cars India, at the inauguration of its facility in Greater Noida.

Mr Takedagawa said that the company planned to sell 90,000 units next fiscal, a growth of 35 per cent compared to the current fiscal. Its new sports utility vehicle CR-V, sedans Accord and Civic Hybrid would contribute to increased sales. Honda is also looking at expanding its dealership network over the next three years to establish its presence in newer cities.

“By the end of March, we would have 80 dealerships in 51 cities. In the next three years, we would double our dealerships to 160 by adding 39 new cities,” said Mr Jnaneswar Sen, Senior General Manager, Sales.

Honda has expanded its capacity at its plant in Greater Noida to one lakh units from 50,000 units. Besides this, the company’s second plant which is being commissioned at Rajasthan could also be scaled to over 2.5 lakh units per annum from its initial capacity of 60,000 units.

The company plans to use its Greater Noida facility to manufacture its current range of products and the second plant in Rajasthan for compact cars. This includes Jazz, a premium hatchback, which is being considered, and another small car for which the company has begun work and expects to roll out in three- four years time.

Maruti receives appreciation award from CBEC

Car market leader Maruti Suzuki India Ltd on Monday said it has received an appreciation award from Central Board of Excise and Customs (CBEC), Finance Ministry, for its contribution to the national exchequer.

The company has paid a gross excise of Rs 2,635 crore to the government during the April-January period of the current fiscal, up 26.7 per cent over the same period of last fiscal, MSIL said in a statement. The appreciation award was given to the company by Finance Minister P Chidambaram on February 24.

News : Maruti pays Rs 2,635-Cr. excise

Maruti Suzuki India Ltd (MSIL) has been awarded by the Central Board of Excise and Customs under the Ministry of Finance for paying a gross excise of Rs 2,635 crore during April-January 2007-08, an increase of over 26.7 per cent compared to the corresponding period the previous fiscal. The Finance Minister, Mr P. Chidambaram, presented the award for its contribution to the national exchequer. The increase in excise payment in this fiscal is on account of higher sales by the company and a faster growth in higher value models, Maruti Suzuki said in a statement.

Wallpaper : Porsche Boxter S

News : Tata, JLR deal to be finalised by next week

American car-maker Ford is expected to finalise the deal with Indian conglomerate Tata for the sale of luxury brands, Jaguar and Land Rover, by next week, media report here said. Run-up to Budget 2008-09

"The two sides, which have been in exclusive talks since the beginning of the year, are expected to sign a deal worth up to $2 billion next Wednesday or shortly afterwards," The Times said in a report on its online edition today.

According to the report, Ford is expected to seal the sale of Jaguar and Land Rover to Tata, next week after the American car-maker recently agreed to pump hundreds of millions of pounds into the pension fund to smooth the process. The deal is expected to be welcomed by unions, who believe that there is no immediate threat to British jobs or manufacturing, it added. On January 3, Ford had named Tata as the preferred bidder for Jaguar and Land Rover. The Times also said that Ford has pledged to pump in 300 million pounds into the pension fund to clear its deficit. "It has also given assurances over the long-term supply of engines and some other components to the two marques to ease union fears about their future...," it pointed out.

"The two marques had to be sold together because Ford had merged a number of their operations and supplies. The official announcement is being timed for after the Geneva Motor Show, so that the two companies can try to promote their products at the key European showcase," the report added.

News : Mitsubishi launches Cedia Select in Jalandhar

The Mitsubishi on Wednesday launched its new car Cedia Select, which comes with a factory fitted auto LPG, in the city. Latest new generation alternate fuel technology has been used in the Cedia ALPG and the technological know-how and kit was provided by BRC Gas equipment Company of Italy, a leader in alternate fuel technology, Sumit Seth, Sales Head of Hindustan Motors, Mitsubishi Motors Division, said while launching the car here.

"The Common Rail Gas Injection with Sequent Technology ensures there is no compromise on power and it keeps the car's emissions extremely low", he claimed.

About the features & convenience of the car, he said that shift from petrol mode to ALPG mode and vice-versa with the help of ergonomically placed electronic changeover switch, at the central console, he said adding that the car automatic switches to petrol mode when LPG is exhausted ensuring peace of mind. About the cost of car, he said that basic price of the car was kept a Rs 8.30 lakh.

Review : Chevrolet Captiva

The General Motor’s new Chevrolet Captiva SUV appears very eye-catching with a tall and sturdy look. The rails on its roof and the side plastic mouldings provide the car a genuine off-road reliability. Whereas the immaculately designed dashboard as well as the centre console look fine. However the flip side’s that one will find the heating panel and the stereo located too low for comfort, while something as minor as a storage cubby is found at the more convenient spot higher up.

In the new Chevrolet Captiva, the 2.0 litre four cylinder 150PS diesel is the very first one in an all-new group of diesel engines. Infact, this diesel engine is the result of collaboration between GM Powertrain and GMDAT along with the Italian firm, VM Motori. It has got aluminium cylinder heads, modish injection systems as well as an alterable geometry turbocharger for an even turbo intervention from low rev / acceleration levels.

Chevrolet Captiva has sufficient room for accommodating five adults easily. This car is 4.6m long, 1.8m wide and 1.7m high, with a wheelbase of 2.7m. When going out in short drives, the third row of seats in the Chevrolet Captiva can seat two teenagers and also grownups. The model comes fitted with a 17 inch alloy wheels, leveling suspension, partially leather trim, heated windscreen and the electronic stability monitoring system, ESP.

There are several other stunning feature of GE’s new Chevrolet Captiva such as a weight limiting net, obverse passenger under-seat cargo placement space as well as compact collection box for containing coins, maps and other similar items. Other add-ons include side safety airbags as standard. The ESP has been installed in the car as per norm along with the all-wheel drive package. This particular package serves impeccably with ESP and comes into play when the situation is slippery and therefore, dangerous.

The apparatus keep tab on all information directed by the steering wheel, tyres, brakes and accelerator pedal robotically making important modifications, controlling grip especially when the situation is not right. On the whole, GE’s new Chevrolet Captiva is proportioned perfectly and highlight packed SUV with fine off-road capabilities. The price of Chevrolet Captiva is expected to be around Rs 18 lakh. This car’s available in nine vibrant colors.

Wallpaper : Mercedes-Benz SL-Class

Gallery : TATA Nano

Review : Skoda Fabia

Skoda has introduced its second generation Skoda Fabia in India as a 2008 model. The Skoda Fabia is a 5-door large hatchback which was introduced to the world at the March 2007 Geneva Auto Show. The first generation of Skoda Fabia has sold since 1999 and has been a very successful model with over 15 Lakh of them being sold in Europe and other countries.

The Fabia's anti-lock braking system (ABS) ensures maximum control of the vehicle in emergency braking situations. Its Motor Speed Regulator (MSR) and dual brake assist system ensure utmost safety while driving. The model also features dual front air bags that provide cushioning and reduce the impact in case of collisions. Fabia resembles the Maruti Swift in looks, but it is longer than the Ford Fusion.

The Fabia in India comes in diesel and petrol variants that are borrowed from the Skoda roomster, which is another successful model from Skoda. The 1.4 PD TDI diesel variant comes with an Inline-3 engine that generates 68 bhp. The 1.4 MPI petrol variant has an Inline-4 engine. Both engines are coupled to a 5-speed manual transmission. The diesel Fabia gives amazing fuel efficiency, which is close to 14.1 km/litre in the city and 18.5 km/litre on the highway. The Petrol variant is expected to deliver approximately 14.7 km/litre on the highway.

The Skoda Fabia has an instant appeal with its cheeky cuteness. This large hatchback has a sharp design that makes it stand out in its class. The Fabia successfully gives a compact appearance with a tight-fitting roof, projector headlamps that are a blend of aesthetics and functionality, and a big chrome bar with a classy look. The exterior appeal is further complemented by alloy wheels with wide tyres for better road grip. Stepping into the hatch will give an altogether new experience of comfort, innovative technology, and safety features. The interiors have an impressive dual tone design for a lavish feel. Fabia's multi-textured seat fabrics give a touch of class to the interiors. The interior of the hatch is packed with technology that includes a multi-function information display of the current time, outdoor temperature, instantaneous fuel consumption, average fuel consumption, distance traveled, time driven, and average speed range. Convenience features include a remote keyless entry for one-touch lock and unlock, electronically adjustable and heated outside rear view mirrors, and front and rear power windows. To keep occupants entertained, Fabia adds a CD/MP3 player with large graphic display and auxiliary audio input to use portable audio players.